NFL Playoff Standings 2020: Updated AFC, NFC Records and Power Rankings

The opening round of the 2020 NFL playoffs sprung a few surprises with the third seed from each conference eliminated during Wild Card Weekend. Tom Brady and Bill Belichick will have to wait on a seventh Super Bowl title after the New England Patriots were sent packing from the AFC bracket by the Tennessee Titans on Saturday.

It was a similar story for Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints, beaten 26-20 in overtime by the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

Both the Titans and Vikings earned dubious rewards for their upset wins, namely daunting road trips to face the top two in the power rankings during the divisional-round weekend.

The Vikings are on the road against the NFC-best San Francisco 49ers on Saturday, with the Titans facing the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium later in the day. Baltimore boasts arguably the most talented roster in the league on both sides of the ball, so it's no surprise Lamar Jackson and Co. own the summit spot in the updated rankings.

Playoff teams naturally top the rankings, with the rest of the league placed behind them based primarily on regular-season records.

NFL Divisional-Round Power Rankings

1. Baltimore Ravens (14-2)

2. San Francisco 49ers (13-3)

3. Green Bay Packers (13-3)

4. Kansas City Chiefs (12-4)

5. Minnesota Vikings (11-6)*

6. Seattle Seahawks (12-5)*

7. Tennessee Titans (10-7)*

8. Houston Texans (11-6)*

9. New Orleans Saints (13-4)*

10. New England Patriots (12-5)*

11. Philadelphia Eagles (9-8)*

12. Buffalo Bills (10-7)*

13. Los Angeles Rams (9-7)

14. Dallas Cowboys (8-8)

15. Chicago Bears (8-8)

16. Pittsburgh Steelers (8-8)

17. Atlanta Falcons (7-9)

18. Indianapolis Colts (7-9)

19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-9)

20. New York Jets (7-9)

21. Denver Broncos (7-9)

22. Oakland Raiders (7-9)

23. Jacksonville Jaguars (6-10)

24. Cleveland Browns (6-10)

25. Arizona Cardinals (5-10-1)

26. Miami Dolphins (5-11)

27. Los Angeles Chargers (5-11)

28. Carolina Panthers (5-11)

29. New York Giants (4-12)

30. Detroit Lions (3-12-1)

31. Washington Redskins (3-13)

32. Cincinnati Bengals (2-14)

*Includes Playoffs.

Throwback Vikings Should Worry 49ers

The Vikings didn't win as many regular-season games as the Seahawks or capture their division the way the Houston Texans did the AFC South. Yet Mike Zimmer's team ranks higher after rolling the shutters down against the high-powered Saints.

Zimmer has been an exceptional defensive mind dating back to his days as an assistant with the Dallas Cowboys. His creative use of personnel unleashed a loaded front seven against Brees.

Specifically, Zimmer challenged the interior of the Saints' O-line by moving edge-rushers Danielle Hunter and Everson Griffen inside.

Vikings D-line coach Andre Patterson and versatile end Ifeadi Odenigbo explained why the schematic wrinkle worked:

Zimmer may opt to change tact for the trip to the Bay Area, where the Vikings will want to set hard edges against a Niners offense adept at stretching defenses sideline-to-sideline.

Bottling up San Fran's outside-zone running game will be key. Fortunately for the Vikings, linebackers Anthony Barr and Eric Kendricks, along with safety Harrison Smith, are ideal seek-and-destroy weapons for the purpose.

More seasoned 49ers fans will have memories of Anthony Carter destroying the Super Bowl hopes of Joe Montana, Jerry Rice and Roger Craig back in the 1987 divisional round. Carter's 10-catch, 227-yard effort helped the Vikings secure one of the great upsets.

This year's vintage of the Vikings have more than a few talented pass-catchers on the outside. If either Adam Thielen or Stefon Diggs are on their game at Levi's Stadium, the NFC's top seed could be one-and-done in this postseason.

Titans Won't Topple Another AFC Heavyweight

Tennessee's 35-14 win over the Texans in Week 17, followed by events at Gillette Stadium, put the Titans above their division rivals in the rankings, even ahead of taking on 14-2 Baltimore.

The Ravens have overpowered teams with their run-heavy, Jackson-led offense. Keeping him under wraps is the challenge facing astute Titans defensive coordinator Dean Pees.

He's well known to the Ravens, having helped Baltimore win the Super Bowl after the 2012 season. Pees had the right game plan to stymie Brady during Saturday's 20-13 win.

The Titans were able to confuse Brady by showing pressure pre-snap before bailing edge defenders out into space to take away the Pats' deadly screen game.

No matter what Pees comes up with, Tennessee's best bet may be to keep the explosive Jackson and Mark Ingram off the field. Controlling the clock won't be easy, though, not even with Derrick Henry buoyed by his 182 rushing yards in New England.

Testing the middle against the Ravens is a tough prospect with formidable 0-technique Brandon Williams anchoring the D-line. The Titans ran away from the Patriots' monster nose tackle Danny Shelton, and the will be best served avoiding Williams in the same way.

A smothering defense and a smash-mouth ground game make the Titans a throwback, much like the Vikings. Yet while the latter has the potential to open the game up on offense, the Titans will struggle if Henry is kept quiet by Baltimore's fourth-ranked defense.