NFL Playoffs 2024-25: Updated Standings, Bracket Picture and Scenarios
The battle for playoff positioning is in full swing in the NFL as every win counts. That was never more evident than in Week 15, where several games featured high-stakes match-ups with significant playoff seeding at stake.
Who emerged victoriously and where did it put them among their toughest conference opponents?
Find out with this recap of Sunday's games and their effect on the NFL playoff picture.
AFC Playoff Picture
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The current AFC playoff picture is:
Division Leaders
1. Kansas City Chiefs (13-1)
2. Buffalo Bills (11-3)
3. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4)
4. Houston Texans (9-5)
Wildcard
5. Baltimore Ravens (9-5)
6. Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)
7. Denver Broncos (9-5)
On the Bubble
8. Indianapolis Colts (6-8)
9. Miami Dolphins (6-8)
10. Cincinnati Bengals (6-8)
Eliminated
11. New York Jets (4-10)
12. New England Patriots (3-11)
13. Cleveland Browns (3-11)
14. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-11)
15. Tennessee Titans (3-11)
16. Las Vegas Raiders (2-11)
NFC Playoff Picture
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The current NFC playoff picture is:
Division Leaders
1. Detroit Lions (12-2)
2. Philadelphia Eagles (12-2)
3. Seattle Seahawks (8-5)
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6)
Wild Card
5. Minnesota Vikings (11-2)
6. Green Bay Packers (9-4)
7. Washington Commanders (9-5)
On the Bubble
8. Los Angeles Rams (8-6)
9. Arizona Cardinal (7-7)
10. Atlanta Falcons (6-7)
11. San Francisco 49ers (6-8)
12. Dallas Cowboys (6-8)
13. New Orleans Saints (5-9)
Eliminated
14. Chicago Bears (4-9)
15. Carolina Panthers (3-11)
16. New York Giants (2-12)
Washington Stays in the Playoff Hunt with Narrow Victory Over New Orleans
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One of the best stories of this 2025 season has been the emergence of rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders. Left for dead in a jam-packed NFC East, the team entered Week 15 at 8-5 and in the seventh and final seed in the conference playoff picture.
To keep pace and fend off a Los Angeles Rams team surging at the right time, they needed a win in New Orleans.
It was hairy late, but they got it.
Daniels' fellow rookie, Spencer Rattler, rallied the Saints from down 17-0 to within a touchdown late in the game. An errant clock stoppage helped the home team out and gave them a chance to score one last time, a chance Rattler and Co. cashed in.
A failed but gutsy two-point conversion lost the Saints the game and enabled a huge sigh of relief from a Commanders team that has to be better than that if they hope to make an impression in the playoffs.
Daniels played well, tossing two touchdowns and ending the day with his second, consecutive QB rating higher than 110 but the defense's inability to stop a Saints team utilizing its second and third-string quarterbacks was concerning and not something the organization can expect to escape unscathed from every week.
A repeat of that performance could cost them more than a win; it could cost them a playoff spot that no one expected in Year One of the Dan Quinn-Jayden Daniels regime but has everyone excited for in the nation's capital.
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NFC West Up For Grabs
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Seattle's control of the NFC West dissipated Sunday night following a 30-13 loss at home to the Green Bay Packers.
Once sitting pretty in the fourth seed, the Seahawks dropped out of the top seven completely by way of the loss, opening the door for the now-surging Los Angeles Rams to take the lead in the division.
A wide-open division, it has seen different teams in the league at different points, with Arizona and San Francisco controlling earlier in the season and Seattle and Los Angeles coming on strong late.
The Rams have two more divisional games this season, against Arizona and Seattle, meaning the last game of the season will likely ultimately determine the division champion and the fourth seed in the playoffs.
And the NFL would have it no other way.
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