How Many Teams Make the NFL Playoffs This Year?

How Many Teams Make the NFL Playoffs This Year?
The NFL playoffs are a single-elimination tournament held after the regular season to determine the NFL champion.

NFL Playoff Basics

The NFL regular season is almost over, and we all know what that means- the playoffs are coming! But how do the playoffs work? How many teams make it in? Let’s find out.

How many teams make the playoffs?

In the NFL, the playoff field consists of six teams from each conference: the four division winners and two wild card teams. The wild card teams are determined by the NFL’s playoff seedings, which are based on each team’s regular season record.

In the AFC, the division winners are seeded 1-4 in order of their records, with the #1 seed receiving a first-round bye. The two wild card teams are seeded 5 and 6.

In the NFC, the division winners are seeded 1-4 in order of their records, with the #1 seed receiving a first-round bye. The two wild card teams are seeded 5 and 6.

What are the seeding tiebreakers?

There are four main tiebreakers for seeding in the NFL playoffs: head-to-head record, conference record, common opponents and strength of victory.

1. Head-to-Head Record: If two teams are tied in the standings, the head-to-head record is the first tiebreaker.

2. Conference Record: If two teams are still tied after considering the head-to-head record, then the conference record is the next tiebreaker.

3. Common Opponents: If two teams have identical conference records, then the tiebreaker goes to their record against common opponents.

4. Strength of Victory: If two teams are still tied after looking at all of the other tiebreakers, then the final tiebreaker is strength of victory. This measures the combined winning percentage of all the teams that each team has beaten during the season.

What are the divisional and conference tiebreakers?

If two clubs are tied in the division or conference standings, the following steps will be taken in order:

1. Head-to-head competition between the clubs
2. Best won-lost-tied percentage in games played within the division or conference
3. Best won-lost-tied percentage in common games, minimum of four
4. Strength of victory
5. Strength of schedule
6. Best combined ranking among conference teams in points scored and points allowed
7. Best combined ranking among all teams in points scored and points allowed
8. Best net points in common games
9. Best net points in all games
10. Best net touchdowns in all games

2019 NFL Playoff Picture

This year, there are a total of 12 teams that have made the NFL playoffs. These teams are the New England Patriots, the Baltimore Ravens, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Houston Texans, the Los Angeles Chargers, the Chicago Bears, the Dallas Cowboys, the Seattle Seahawks, the Indianapolis Colts, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Los Angeles Rams, and the New Orleans Saints.

AFC

As the NFL regular season winds down, the race for the playoffs is heating up.

In the AFC, the New England Patriots have all but wrapped up the top spot in the conference, while the Pittsburgh Steelers are in good position to claim one of the two wild-card spots.

The other two playoff spots are up for grabs, with a number of teams still in contention. The Baltimore Ravens currently hold the sixth and final spot, but they are being challenged by the Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, and Tennessee Titans.

The race for the final Playoff spot in the AFC will come down to the wire, with any of these teams still having a chance to claiming a spot in this year’s postseason.

NFC

The top six teams in each conference—the four division winners and two wild card teams—will qualify for the playoffs. The NFL playoff brackets are not set until all Sunday games of Week 17 are completed.

Seeds 1-4 will be division winners. Seeds 5 and 6 will be the wild card teams. In the first round of the playoffs, the third seed will host the sixth seed and the fourth seed will host the fifth seed. The top seed in each conference gets a bye in the first round.

2020 NFL Playoff Picture

The 2020 NFL playoff picture is set. The playoffs will begin on Saturday, January 4th and will run until the Super Bowl on February 2nd. There are a total of 12 teams that have qualified for the playoffs this year.

AFC

As the NFL enters Week 15, the playoff picture is beginning to take shape. In the AFC, the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens have clinched playoff berths, and the Kansas City Chiefs have clinched a division title. The Houston Texans, Buffalo Bills, and Pittsburgh Steelers are all but assured of playoff spots as well. That leaves just one divisional title and two wild card spots up for grabs.

In the AFC East, the 10-3 Patriots are in first place, followed by the 9-4 Bills. The Patriots have a one-game lead and a head-to-head win over the Bills, so they are in excellent position to win the division. The Bills would clinch a playoff berth with a win over the Steelers in Week 15 or a loss by either the Oakland Raiders or Los Angeles Chargers.

The AFC North is led by the 9-4 Steelers, who hold a one-game lead over both the 8-5 Ravens and Browns. The Ravens currently hold the tiebreaker over both Pittsburgh and Cleveland based on their better record in conference games (7-3 vs 6-4). The Steelers can clinch the division title with a win over the Bills in Week 15 or losses by both Baltimore and Cleveland.

In the AFC South, the 10-3 Texans have a two-game lead over both the 7-6 Titans and Colts. Houston can clinch the division title with a win over Tampa Bay in Week 15 or losses by both Tennessee and Indianapolis.

The AFC West is led by the 10-3 Chiefs, who have already clinched a division title. The Raiders are second at 7-6, followed by the 6-7 Chargers and 5-8 Broncos. Oakland can clinch a playoff berth with a win at Los Angeles in Week 16 coupled with either a loss or tie by either Pittsburgh or Indianapolis.

NFC

The National Football Conference (NFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the world. This conference and its counterpart, the American Football Conference (AFC), currently contain 16 teams each, making up a total of 32 teams in the NFL.

The NFC playoff picture is wide open heading into Week 17, with nine teams still in contention for a spot in the postseason. The Seattle Seahawks hold the top spot in the conference at 11-4, but they could still be overtaken by the San Francisco 49ers, who sit just behind them at 10-4.

The Green Bay Packers are also in the mix at 10-3, although they would need to win their final game and have both the Seahawks and 49ers lose their Week 17 matchups to overtake them for the top spot. The New Orleans Saints are also lurking at 10-3 and could jump into first place with a win over the Carolina Panthers in Week 17 combined with a Seahawks loss.

Below is a look at the current NFC standings and what needs to happen for each team to clinch a spot in this year’s NFL playoffs:

-Seattle Seahawks (11-4): Holds first place in NFC West and can clinch division title with a win or tie against San Francisco in Week 17. If Seattle loses to San Francisco, it can still clinch division title with an Arizona loss or tie against Los Angeles Rams in Week 17. Can clinch first-round bye with a win or tie against San Francisco combined with a Green Bay loss or tie against Detroit OR a Green Bay loss combined with a Minnesota Vikings loss or tie against Chicago Bears. Does not control own destiny for either scenario, but can still clinch NFC’s No. 1 overall seed if it wins out AND San Francisco loses one of its final two games AND Green Bay loses one of its final two games OR if it wins out AND San Francisco loses out AND Minnesota loses out.

-San Francisco 49ers (10-4): Can clinchnfc West title withwin over Seattle combinedwith an Arizona Cardinalsloss ortieagainst Los AngelesRamsinWeek17insteadof controlstheirown destiny by clinchingwitha winover SeattleinWeek17 ORwitha SeahawkslossortieORwitha CardinalslossorCardinalstieinWeek17ifSeahawkswinortie49ersholdheadtoheadtiebreaker overSeahawksowntiebreaker overCardinalsbywayof betterdivisionrecord6–1comparedto5–2isstill mathematically aliveforNo1seedin NFCbutcannotclinchbywayof losingoutandSeattlewinning outandGreenBaylosingoutortwoofthose threeresultsoccurring

-New Orleans Saints (10-3): Cannot clinchnfc South titleinWeek17becausehold headtoheadtiebreakerspecialteams unitscoringtworoundslower 23−21comparedto CarolinaPanthers 25−23butcanstillwin divisiononbasisof betterrecordintheconference 10–3comparedto 8–5enteringfinalweekoffrustrated season losttowiceCarolinawhichhas doneanaboutfaceafterstarting campaign0−2

-Green Bay Packers (10 – 3): Cannot clinchnfc NorthtitleinWeek17becauseVikingshold headtoheadtiebreakerearningpositive resultoccasionaldroppedpasses38−25 comparedto Packers29−20 losses ExchangeOTfieldgoalspossiblehad MasonCrosbymadehisattemptinsteadctx hittinguprightcoststhePackersapoint thatwouldhavetiedthegame20−20near endoffirsthalfconcededa touchdownon fourthdownruninsteadofforcingsafety whichwouldhaveresultedin6pointsbeen assertedVikingsnevertrailedSince AaronRodgersreturnedfromknee injurysufferedWeek6hasnotthrown interceptionsUnexpectedplayoffscenario downroadifMinnesotafaltersbefore closingoutseasonfinaltwogamesonthe roadRamsathomeChiefs

-Minnesota Vikings(9 – 6): On vergeoffirstbacktobacksundaynfl nightfootballappearance since2009week16visitsoldfriendand formercoach Leslie FrazierBearsfell behind earlytrailed21−7halftime deficitreduced21−14camethrough clutchstoppingBearsdrivelate 4thQ whichcouldhavesealedgameForce OTinterceptionEddieJackson gaveVikingsballat midfield setupDanBailey39ydFG game winnerSnatcheddefeat from jaws of victoryfirsttimeall seasonblowingdoubledigitleadresult knockedthemoutoftopspotinthedivision fallsecondplacebehindPackerswhom theyholdheadtoheadtiebreakeroften referredtoprimetimematchupasthesundaynigthfootballspecialgameontheroader mightbeviewedasOnlyagameget bestW CarrPossibilityMariota returns