NFL playoffs are all set with Broncos, Seahawks earning top seeds

The NFL Playoff field was nearly set heading into the final Sunday of the regular season. Now we know every matchup that will start the road to Super Bowl LX.

The Seattle Seahawks clinched the NFC's No. 1 seed with a win over the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday. The Panthers took the final spot in the NFC thanks to some help from the Atlanta Falcons, they clinched the NFC South.

The Denver Broncos were able to beat a Los Angeles Chargers team that elected to rest key starters to grab the top seed in the AFC. The loss moved the Chargers down the AFC wild-card race, but allowed them to rest their starters ahead of the playoffs.

The Steelers used Sunday Night Football to cash the final ticket to the dance in a wild finish to close out the year. Here's a look at the final playoff picture of the 2025-26 season.

AFC Standings

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AP Photo/John Raoux

Jaguars WR Parker Washington

Division Leaders

1 Denver Broncos (14-3; clinched AFC West, No. 1 seed)

2. New England Patriots (14-3; clinched AFC East, No. 2 seed)

3. Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4; clinched AFC South, No. 3 seed)

4. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7; clinched AFC North, No. 4 seed)

The Jaguars picked up arguably the biggest win in the early window, clinching the AFC South with a dominant 41-7 win over the Tennessee Titans. That denied the Texans an opportunity to steal the division and locked them. Liam Coen's squad could still wind up as the top seed if the Patriots and Broncos both lose in the afternoon.

The Broncos-Chargers game carried a lot of weight, but the Chargers decision to rest starters took away some of the drama. The Broncos were able to shut down the Trey Lance-led Bolts to lock up the No. 1 seed.

The decision had ripples as the Patriots were then locked into a battle for the two seed. They'll maintain home-field until the AFC Championship game after a dominant win over the Dolphins to end the season. Meanwhile, the Jaguars win over the Tennessee Titans clinched the AFC South and the three seed.

The Steelers clutch 26-24 win to close out Sunday's slate punched their ticket as they'll host the Houston Texans on Wildcard Weekend.

Wild-Card Race

5. Houston Texans (12-5; clinched No. 5 seed)

6. Buffalo Bills (12-5; clinched No. 6 seed)

7. Los Angeles Chargers (11-6; clinched No. 7 seed)

Houston lost out on hosting a game when Jacksonville took care of the Titans. However, they did themselves a huge favor by pulling out a 38-30 win over the Colts to lock down the five seed.

The Bills had the easy task of beating the Jets to set themselves up for the sixth seed. The Chargers loss to the Broncos sealed the deal.

Eliminated

8. Indianapolis Colts (8-9)

9. Baltimore Ravens (8-9)

10. Miami Dolphins (7-10)

11. Kansas City Chiefs (6-11)

12. Cincinnati Bengals (6-11)

13. Cleveland Browns (5-12)

14. New York Jets (3-14)

15. Tennessee Titans (3-14)

16. Las Vegas Raiders (3-14)

The Ravens were the only AFC team that was actually eliminated on Sunday. They'll face a long offseason trying to identify what went wrong.

NFC Standings

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Panthers Buccaneers Football

AP Photo/Peter Joneleit

Division Leaders

1 Seattle Seahawks (14-3; clinched NFC West, No. 1 seed)

2. Chicago Bears (11-6; clinched NFC North, No. 2 seed)

3. Philadelphia Eagles (11-6; clinched NFC East, No. 3 seed)

4. Carolina Panthers (8-9; Clinched NFC South, No. 4 seed)

The Seahawks got to kick back and relax on the final day of the season as the NFC's top seed. However, there's still the business of the second and third seeds to figure out.

The Bears weren't able to guarantee themselves the No. 2 spot by beating the Lions. Their 19-16 loss to their division rival left things up in the air, but the Eagles weren't able to take advantage. Philly, who rested their starters, lost to the Commanders and sealed their spot as the No. 3 seed in the NFC.

The Panthers should be looking to send the Falcons a gift. They ended up clinching the NFC South and the No. 4 seed by virtue of tiebreak when the Falcons beat the Saints.

Wild-Card Race

5. Los Angeles Rams (12-5; clinched No. 5 seed)

6. San Francisco 49ers (12-5; clinched No. 6 seed)

7. Green Bay Packers (9-7-1; clinched No. 7 seed)

The Seahawks clinched the NFC West and opened the door for the Rams to leapfrog San Francisco for the fifth seed. The Rams took advantage with an easy win over the Cardinals to knock the Niners to the sixth seed.

The Packers were locked into the seven-seed regardless of this week's results. Their loss to the Vikings while resting their starters doesn't tell us much about where they are at.

Eliminated

8. Minnesota Vikings (9-8)

9.Detroit Lions (9-8)

10. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9)

11. Atlanta Falcons (8-9)

11. Dallas Cowboys (7-9-1)

13. New Orleans Saints (6-11)

14. Washington Commanders (5-12)

15. New York Giants (4-13)

16. Arizona Cardinals (3-14)

The Buccaneers were the only team to be eliminated on Sunday, by virtue of the Falcons' win over the Saints, despite Tampa picking up a big win over Carolina on Saturday