NFL – How Is The Race For The Playoffs Shaping Up?

We have just completed week 10 in the NFL season and as we are now well over the half-way mark in the regular season, attention starts to turn towards the playoffs.

With seven spots available in the post-season in each of the two conferences, it means that teams have just less than a 50/50 chance to earn a playoff spot at the start of the season. However, right now some teams chances have improved markedly, while others are hanging by a thread.

In this article, we are going to take a look at the full NFL Playoff picture in both the AFC and NFC. We’ll explain how the playoffs are organised, why they are taking place a little later than usual this year and what the benefits and advantages are for teams that finish top of the seedings in both conferences.

Finally, we will then take a look at which teams are currently in those positions, and which other teams could force their way into playoff contention over the remaining seven weeks of the season.

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NFL Regular Season & Playoffs

This year, the NFL season has been increased by one game, with each team playing 17 matches and having one bye week in the 18 week regular season. As a result of this, the regular season will finish later than usual, meaning that the playoffs will also start a little later than in previous years.

Instead of finishing before the New Year, the 2021-22 NFL regular season finishes on the weekend of the 9^th January.

The four teams that wins their division in each conference will be seeded 1-4 in that conference based on their record. The next best three teams based on their records, will then be seeded from 5 through to 7.

At this point we will know the seven teams in each conference that have qualified for the playoffs. The top seed in each conference will then be granted a bye week in the first round of playoff action, the NFL Wild Card Games.

This sees the seeded teams in the playoffs face off in a predetermined draw:

• Seed #7 @ Seed #2
• Seed #6 @ Seed #3
• Seed #5 @ Seed #4

The following week, the top seeded team joins the action in the Divisional Round, which sees the lowest ranked team in each conference playing at the number 1 seeds, with the other two teams facing off, with the lowest seeded team being given home advantage.

After the Divisional Championships, the two teams remaining in each conference head forward to the Conference Championship on the 30^th January. The winners of this the go forward to contest the Super Bowl, which will be held on the 13^th February. The Pro Bowl game is played the weekend before the Super Bowl on the 6^th February.

This year’s Super Bowl will be held at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, home to both the Rams and Chargers.

Snoop, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar will headline the famous Super Bowl halftime show.

Current NFL Playoff Standings

Let’s take a closer look now at how the Playoff standings look in each of the conferences, starting with the AFC.

AFC Playoff Rankings (after week 10)

1. Tennessee Titans (8-2)
2. Buffalo Bills (6-3)
3. Baltimore Ravens (6-3)
4. Kansas City Chiefs (6-4)
5. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3-1)
6. New England Patriots (6-4)
7. Los Angeles Chargers (5-4)

In contention:

8. Cincinnati Bengals (5-4)
9. Las Vegas Raiders (5-4)
10. Indianapolis Colts (5-5)
11. Cleveland Browns (5-5)
12. Denver Broncos (5-5)

Struggling to qualify

13. Miami Dolphins (3-7)
14. New York Jets (2-7)
15. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-7)
16. Houston Texans (1-8)

The Titans currently hold the number one spot after a fine run of six wins in a row, the last five being against teams that were in the playoffs last year. They not only have a 1.5 game lead over the Bills and Ravens at the top of the AFC, but also hold a three-game lead over the Colts in the AFC South, which is effectively a four-game lead as they have beaten Indianapolis twice already this season.

The Bills, Ravens and Chiefs come next, and they would likely have been the picks in each division this season, but they have all suffered from below par form at times this season. The Steelers and Patriots have surged into the playoffs and look a solid bet to remain in that top seven.

Perhaps the only real place up for grabs in this conference is the 7^th seed spot and that is going to be hugely competitive, the Chargers hold that position now, but any of the five teams in contention could seriously challenge them, especially in a conference where so many teams have a 0.500 record or better.

I can’t see the top four seeds changing a great deal, and I think the Patriots and Steelers also reach the playoffs and of the remainder I think the Chargers, Raiders or Bengals are the most likely to clinch the seventh seed spot.

And as for number 1, with a relatively easy remaining schedule, this conference is the Titans to win.

NFC Playoff Rankings (after week 10)

1. Green Bay Packers (8-2)
2. Arizona Cardinals (8-2)
3. Dallas Cowboys (7-2)
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-3)
5. Los Angeles Rams (7-3)
6. New Orleans Saints (5-4)
7. Carolina Panthers (5-5)

In Contention:

8. Minnesota Vikings (4-5)
9. San Francisco 49ers (4-5)
10. Atlanta Falcons (4-5)
11. Philadelphia Eagles (4-6)
12. Washington Football Team (3-6)
13. New York Giants (3-6)
14. Seattle Seahawks (3-6)
15. Chicago Bears (3-6)

Struggling to qualify

16. Detroit Lions (0-8-1)

The Green Bay Packers hold top spot in the NFC, just ahead of the Cardinals who have now lost two of their last three games. The Dallas Cowboys bounced back from defeat last week to record a heavy win this and they could be a genuine contender for top spot in the NFC seeds come the end of the season.

The Bucs have lost twice in a row now and they have the Saints hot on their heels in the NFC South, while the Rams have also lost twice in a row and with Carolina moving to 0.500 this week with their win over the Cardinals, the NFC playoff race is a tight one.

Only the Lions are out of contention in the NFC, but the teams with a 3-6 and 4-6 or similar records are going to have to improve markedly to make the playoffs. At the moment, the Vikings and 49ers are the teams looking most capable of moving up into the playoff picture, probably at the expense of the Panthers.

Heading into the last eight weeks of the season, it promises to be an enthralling time in the NFL as teams battle it out to position themselves for the playoffs battle to come!