NFL Playoff Picture 2025-26, Bracket Clinching and Elimination Scenarios for Week 13

On the heels of a very notable Week 12 and heading into a crucial Week 13, the NFL playoff picture is slowly coming into focus.

The biggest game from this past weekend saw the Kansas City Chiefs get a huge win over the Indianapolis Colts to get back over the .500 mark and keep pace with the three AFC teams in wild card position, all of whom currently own 7-4 records.

Those three teams—Los Angeles Chargers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Buffalo Bills—all have head-to-head wins over the Chiefs, putting added pressure on Patrick Mahomes and co. going forward.

Things in the NFC are very tense at the top, with five teams having three losses or fewer right now. The Los Angeles Rams have, riding a six game winning streak, have moved into the No. 1 seed in the race for home-field advantage.

Here are the updated standings, as well as clinching and elimination scenarios for Week 13.

Team Standings

AP Photo/Kyusung Gong

AFC Standings

Division Leaders

1. New England Patriots (10-2; lead AFC East)

2. Denver Broncos (9-2; lead AFC West)

3. Indianapolis Colts (8-3; lead AFC Sorth)

4. Baltimore Ravens (6-5; lead AFC North)

Wild-Card Race

5. Los Angeles Chargers (7-4)

6. Jacksonville Jaguars (7-4)

7. Buffalo Bills (7-4)

8. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-5)

9. Houston Texans (6-5)

10. Kansas City Chiefs (6-5)

11. Miami Dolphins (4-7)

12. Cincinnati Bengals (3-8)

13. Cleveland Browns (3-8)

14. Las Vegas Raiders (2-9)

15. New York Jets (2-9)

16. Tennessee Titans (1-10)

NFC Standings

Division Leaders

1. Los Angeles Rams (9-2; lead NFC West)

2. Philadelphia Eagles (8-3; lead NFC East)

3. Chicago Bears (8-3; lead NFC North)

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-5; lead NFC South)

Wild-Card Race

5. Seattle Seahawks (8-3)

6. Green Bay Packers (7-3-1)

7. San Francisco 49ers (8-4)

8. Detroit Lions (7-4)

9. Carolina Panthers (6-6)

10. Dallas Cowboys (5-5-1)

11. Atlanta Falcons (4-7)

12. Minnesota Vikings (4-7)

13. Arizona Cardinals (3-8)

14. Washington Commanders (3-8)

15. New Orleans Saints (2-9)

Eliminated

16. New York Giants (2-10)

Playoff Clinching Scenarios

AP Photo/Gary McCullough

There are no teams that can clinch a playoff berth in Week 13, but there are some scenarios looming based on the results of this week's matchups:

• The New England Patriots can win their first AFC East title since 2019 with a win on Sunday against the New York Giants and a victory over the Buffalo Bills coming out of their Week 14 bye on Dec. 14.

Week 13 Elimination Scenarios

AP Photo

There are six teams that can be officially eliminated from playoff contention in Week 13.

Las Vegas Raiders Elimination Scenarios

• Raiders loss at Chargers AND Jaguars win at Titans AND Texans win at Colts
• Raiders loss at Chargers AND Jaguars win at Titans AND Bills win at Steelers
• Raiders loss at Chargers AND Jaguars win at Titans AND Chiefs win at Cowboys
• Raiders loss at Chargers AND Texans win at Colts AND Bills win at Steelers AND Chiefs win at Cowboys

New York Jets Elimination Scenarios

• Jets loss vs. Falcons AND Bills win at Steelers AND Jaguars win at Titans
• Jets loss vs. Falcons AND Texans win at Colts AND Bills win at Steelers AND Chiefs win at Cowboys
• Jets loss vs. Falcons AND Jaguars win at Titans AND Chiefs win at Cowboys AND Texans win at Colts

Tennessee Titans Elimination Scenarios

• Titans loss vs. Jaguars
• Texans win at Colts AND Ravens win vs. Bengals
• Texans win at Colts AND Bills win at Steelers
• Chiefs win at Cowboys AND Ravens win vs. Bengals
• Chiefs win at Cowboys AND Bills win at Steelers

Arizona Cardinals Elimination Scenarios

• Cardinals loss at Buccaneers AND Packers win at Lions AND Bears win/tie at Eagles

New Orleans Saints Elimination Scenarios

• Saints loss at Dolphins AND Buccaneers win/tie vs. Cardinals
• Saints loss at Dolphins AND Panthers win/tie vs. Rams
• Saints loss at Dolphins AND Buccaneers win/tie vs. Cardinals AND Panthers win vs. Rams
• Saints tie at Dolphins AND Buccaneers win vs. Cardinals AND Panthers tie vs. Rams

Washington Commanders Elimination Scenarios

• Commanders loss vs. Broncos AND Bears-Eagles game ends in a tie AND Packers win at Lions AND Seahawks win/tie vs. Vikings