Which NFL Teams Are Still in the Playoffs?

It’s that time of year again! The NFL playoffs are in full swing and we’re here to give you a rundown of which teams are still in the running.

AFC

The American Football Conference (AFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL). The AFC has 16 teams in it, and of those 16, 6 have already clinched a spot in the playoffs. They are the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, and the Baltimore Ravens. 4 teams have been eliminated from the playoffs, and they are the Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins, and the New York Jets. The remaining 6 teams are the Tennessee Titans, Indianapolis Colts, Cleveland Browns, Houston Texans, Oakland Raiders, and the Buffalo Bills.

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league’s American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team plays its home games at Gillette Stadium in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts, which is located 28 miles (45 km) southwest of downtown Boston.

Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its home games at M&T Bank Stadium and is headquartered in Owings Mills.

Founded in 1996, the Ravens were the eighth franchise of the NFL and were originally based in Cleveland, Ohio before relocating to Baltimore in 2002. The Ravens are owned by Steve Bisciotti and are currently valued at $2.5 billion, making them the 27th-most valuable sports franchise in the world. The name “Ravens” was inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Raven”.

Kansas City Chiefs

The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league’s American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team was founded in 1960 as the Dallas Texans by businessman Lamar Hunt and was a charter member of the American Football League (AFL). In 1963, the team moved to Kansas City and assumed their current name. The Chiefs joined the NFL as a result of the merger in 1970. The team is valued at over $2 billion.

Houston Texans

The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston, Texas. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team plays its home games at NRG Stadium, an outdoor stadium in Houston, which opened in 2002 to replace indoor Astrodome. The franchise was founded in 2002 as the Houston Texans by owner Bob McNair; the expansion team’s first season began that same year.

The Texans have gone on to win AFC South division championships in 2011, 2012, 2015, and 2016. In six seasons under head coach Bill O’Brien, they have made the playoffs four times–in 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018–and have won AFC Wild Card playoff games in 2015 and 2016.

NFC

The National Football Conference (NFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL). This conference consists of 16 teams, which are divided into four divisions. Three division winners and a fourth “wild card” team make the playoffs from each conference. The NFC playoff teams are:

Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league’s National Football Conference (NFC) North division. It is the third-oldest franchise in the NFL, dating back to 1919, and is the only non-profit, community-owned major league professional sports team based in the United States. Home games have been played at Lambeau Field since 1957.

The Packers are the last of the “small town teams” which were common in the NFL during the 1920s and 1930s. Founded in 1919 by Earl “Curly” Lambeau and George Whitney Calhoun, the franchise traces its lineage to other semi-professional teams in Green Bay dating back to 1896. Between 1919 and 1920, the Packers competed against other semi-pro clubs from around Wisconsin and the Midwest, before joining the American Professional Football Association (APFA), now known as the National Football League (NFL), in 1921. Although Green Bay is by far the smallest major league professional sports market in North America, Forbes ranked the Packers as the world’s 26th most valuable sports franchise in 2016, with a value of $2.35 billion.

New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Saints currently compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league’s National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Saints were founded by John W. Mecom Jr., David Dixon, and the city of New Orleans on November 1, 1966. The team plays its home games at Mercedes-Benz Superdome in an area of Uptown New Orleans known as Champion Square, which is bindings Lafayette Street on one side and Poydras Street on the other.

Seattle Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football franchise based in Seattle, Washington. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league’s National Football Conference (NFC) West division. They joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team, along with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League (NFL) as an expansion team in 1960, and first took the field for the 1961 season. The team competes in the National Football Conference (NFC) North division.