NFL Playoff Picture 2026, Week 18 Standings, AFC and NFC Wild Card Bracket Hunt

The NFC's top seed will be determined in the final game of the regular season. The AFC's top seed can still belong to one of three different teams.

In a year of parity, it is only fitting that there are still so many unanswered questions with the playoffs looming.

Who are the teams vying for the top spots in their conference, who are reserved to the fact that they will be wild card entrants, and which teams are grasping to their postseason hopes and dreams like a wide receiver on a game-winning touchdown?

Find out with this look at the playoff picture ahead of Week 18.

NFC Standings

AP Photo

Division Leaders

1. x-Seattle Seahawks (13-3, NFC West; +500 odds to win the Super Bowl)

2. z-Chicago Bears (11-5, NFC North; +2000)

3. z-Philadelphia Eagles (11-5, NFC East; +1000)

4. Carolina Panthers (8-8, NFC South; +20000)

The Eagles picked up a big, one-point victory over the Buffalo Bills Sunday evening to keep pace in the NFC and potentially improve their standings should the Chicago Bears lose to Detroit in the season finale. If that scenario plays out, the Eagles will improve to the No. 2 seed.

While the offense still does not look like that of a Super Bowl contender, the defending champions have built some much-needed momentum with three straight victories and will be among the handful of teams with a legitimate chance to hoist the Lombardi Trophy come February.

The top seed in the NFC will be determined in the final game of the 2025 regular season when the Seattle Seahawks battle the San Francisco 49ers. A win by the latter would guarantee the team does not have to leave their home stadium for the remainder of the season as it will host Super Bowl LX.

Wild Card Teams

5. x-San Francisco 49ers (12-4; +950)

6. x-Los Angeles Rams (11-4; +475)

7. x-Green Bay Packers (9-6-1; +2000)

The Rams still look every bit the Super Bowl contender that they were entering their Week 16 game against the Seahawks but a loss in Seattle cost them five spots in the standings. Seattle and San Francisco's victories in Week 17 guaranteed that the Rams will be a Wild Card team, regardless of the outcome of the team's final two regular season games (Monday vs. Atlanta, Week 18 vs. Arizona).

The Packers are in a similar situation after their loss Saturday to Baltimore gave Chicago the NFC North crown. A team dismantled by injuries late, it would not be surprising to see them sit their starters in the final week of the season in an effort to be as healthy as possible for the postseason.

In The Hunt

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-9; +100000)

The NFC South title is on the line Saturday when Tampa Bay and Carolina clash for the second time in three weeks. The Panthers won that first showdown, 23-20, with the key difference being an interception from Baker Mayfield. If the Buccaneers' double-tough quarterback can protect the ball, and the back half of the defense can hold up even in the slightest, Tampa Bay could have a chance at clinching that No. 4 seed and hosting a playoff game.

Eliminated

Minnesota Vikings (8-8)

Detroit Lions (8-8)

Dallas Cowboys (7-8-1)

Atlanta Falcons (6-9)

New Orleans Saints (6-10)

Washington Commanders (4-12)

Arizona Cardinals (3-13)

New York Giants (3-13)

x-indicates clinched playoffs; z-indicates clinched division

AFC Standings

AP Photo

Division Leaders

1. z-Denver Broncos (13-3, AFC West; +750 odds to win the Super Bowl)

2. z-New England Patriots (13-3, AFC East; +900)

3. x-Jacksonville Jaguars (12-4, AFC South; +1300)

4. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-7, AFC North; +9000)

Win against the Los Angeles Chargers and the Denver Broncos will host the playoffs as the No. 1 seed in the AFC. It would be a major accomplishment for Sean Payton and second-year quarterback Bo Nix, whose squad won every game in dramatic fashion, by one score or less.

The Patriots and Jaguars have outside shots at the top seed but need help to achieve home field advantage, mostly in the form of the other team losing.

The Steelers would love to host a playoff game at Acrisure Field and could have guaranteed as much with a win over the Cleveland Browns. Their offense picked the worst time to become insufficient, though, and the team limped to a 13-6 loss. The AFC North title is on the line Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens.

Wild Card Teams

5. x-Houston Texans (11-5; +1400)

6. x-Los Angeles Chargers (11-5; +2500)

7. x-Buffalo Bills (11-5; +1100)

A win over the Indianapolis Colts in Week 18, and a loss by the Jaguars against the Tennessee Titans, would give the Texas the AFC South title, a major accomplishment for a team that could barely sniff the postseason early on. Their stingy defense, coupled with increasingly solid play from CJ Stroud, makes them a dangerous threat to the rest of the conference.

The Chargers and Bills have secured Wild Card spots after a disappointing Week 17 in which they lost their two games by a combined five points, proving that one play here or there could be the difference between battling for a division title in the final week of the year or succumbing to the reality that they will be on the road for the playoffs.

In the Hunt

Baltimore Ravens (8-8; +2000)

With no Lamar Jackson at the helm, the Ravens showed up and balled out Saturday, with Derrick Henry rushing for over 200 yards and scoring four touchdowns in a dismantling of the injury-plagued Green Bay Packers. Tyler Huntley played a clean, efficient game and the defense came up big when it needed to. While we do not know if Jackson will suit up in Week 18 amid his back injury, the team can still pull out a victory in a winner takes all showdown with Pittsburgh for the AFC North title.

Eliminated

Indianapolis Colts (8-8)

Miami Dolphins (7-9)

Kansas City Chiefs (6-10)

Cincinnati Bengals (6-10)

Cleveland Browns (4-12)

New York Jets (3-13)

Tennessee Titans (3-13)

Las Vegas Raiders (2-14)