What Are the NFL Playoff Tiebreakers?
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The NFL playoff tiebreakers are the rules that are used to determine which team will advance to the playoffs if two or more teams are tied in the standings.
NFL Playoff Tiebreakers
If two teams have the same record, the NFL uses a set of tiebreakers to determine which team will advance to the playoffs. The first tiebreaker is head-to-head record. If the teams have not played each other, the next tiebreaker is division record. The next tiebreaker is record against common opponents.
How the NFL playoff seeding works
The NFL playoff seeding is determined by each team’s record in the regular season. The four division winners in each conference are seeded 1-4 based on their record, with the team with the best record being seeded 1 and the team with the worst record being seeded 4.
The two wild card teams in each conference are seeded 5 and 6, based on their regular season records. The tiebreakers for the wild card teams are the same as the tiebreakers for the divisional teams.
The top two seeds in each conference earn a first-round bye, while the 3 and 4 seeds host the 6 and 5 seeds, respectively, in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. The winners of those games then travel to take on the top seed in each conference in the Divisional round of the playoffs.
The Conference Championship games are played between the two remaining teams in each conference, with those winners advancing to Super Bowl Sunday.
How the NFL playoff tiebreakers work
To determine which teams advance to the playoffs and which team goes home, the NFL uses a tiebreaker system. If two or more teams have the same record, the following tiebreakers are applied in order, until one team emerges as the winner.
Common Opponents: The record of each common opponent (games won and lost) is compared. The team with the better record against those common opponents advances.
If the teams still tie, then divisional and conference records are used as the next tiebreaker. If a playoff spot is still on the line after that, then strength of victory (the combined won-lost records of all opponents that a team has beaten) and strength of schedule (the combined won-lost records of all opponents that a team has played) come into play in that order.
Finally, if there are still ties after all those other options have been exhausted, a coin flip will be used to break them.
NFL Playoff Seeding
If two or more teams have the same record, the following tiebreakers are used to determine which team will be seeded higher in the playoffs. The tiebreakers are listed in order of importance.
How the NFL playoff seeding works
The NFL playoff seeding determines which teams will play each other in the opening round of the playoffs. The higher-seeded team will have home-field advantage, meaning they will host the game at their stadium. The four division winners are seeded first through fourth, based on their record. The next four teams with the best records (regardless of division) are seeded fifth through eighth.
In the first round of the playoffs, the wild card team with the best record plays the division winner with the worst record. The other wild card team plays the division winner with the second-worst record. The second round matchup is determined by reseeding so that the highest remaining seed plays the lowest remaining seed. This process continues until only two teams remain for the Super Bowl.
If two or more teams have identical records, tiebreakers are used to determine seedings and playoff matchups. The first tiebreaker is head-to-head record, meaning if one team has beaten another team during the regular season, they would be seeded higher in a tie situation. If head-to-head records are identical, then divisional and conference records are used as tiebreakers. If there is still a tie, then strength of schedule ( SOS) is used as a tiebreaker.
How the NFL playoff tiebreakers work
The National Football League (NFL) playoffs are a single-elimination tournament held after the end of the regular season to determine the NFL champion. From 1966 to 1969, the NFL successfully fended off rival organizations by negotiating television contracts that placed all of its postseason games on network television. In 1970, the AFL and NFL merged, and as part of the resulting agreement, all playoff games were televised on an exclusive basis by NBC. The following year, CBS began televising some NFC playoff games, while NBC continued to televise all AFC playoff games and the Super Bowl.
NFL Playoff Tiebreakers
There are a few different NFL playoff tiebreakers that can come into play during the season. These tiebreakers are used to determine who will advance to the playoffs if two or more teams are tied in the standings. The most common tiebreakers are head-to-head record, division record, common games, and strength of victory. Let’s take a more detailed look at each of these tiebreakers.
How the NFL playoff seeding works
The current NFL playoff system was instituted in 2002. There are four division winners and two wild card teams in each conference. The four division winners are seeded 1-4 based on their record, with the #1 seed getting a first-round bye. The two wild card teams are seeded 5 and 6.
In the first round of the playoffs, the #5 seed hosts the #6 seed, and the #4 seed hosts the #3 seed. The winners of those games then advance to play the #1 and #2 seeds respectively.
The NFL tiebreakers for determining playoff seeding are as follows:
1. Win-loss record
2. Head-to-head record
3. Record in common games
4. Record in conference games
5. Strength of victory (win percentage of opponents)
6. Strength of schedule (opponents’ win percentage)
7. Best combined ranking among conference teams in points scored and points allowed
8. Best combined ranking among all teams in points scored and points allowed
9. Coin flip
How the NFL playoff tiebreakers work
When two or more teams in the NFL are vying for the same playoff spot, there are a number of tiebreakers that can be used to determine which team gets the edge.
The first tiebreaker is head-to-head competition. If two teams have played each other during the regular season and one team has won both games, that team would win the playoff berth.
If two teams have not played each other or if they each won one game against each other, the next tiebreaker is division record. In order to make the playoffs, a team must first win its division. If two teams are tied for a divisional spot, the team with the better record within the division (against all other teams in the division) will win the spot.
If two teams are still tied, then conference record (against all teams in the conference) is used as the next tiebreaker.
The final tiebreaker is common opponents. If two teams have not played each other and are tied in conference record, then each team’s record against common opponents is compared. The team with the better record in those games will win the playoff berth.
If two teams are still tied after all of these tiebreakers have been applied, a coin toss will be used to determine which team gets the berth.
