There are 4 weeks left within the 2023 NFL common season, and we’re inching nearer to January with a preliminary snapshot of how the 14-team playoff image might look on the highway to Tremendous Bowl LVIII.
After the Philadelphia Eagles have been blown out by the San Francisco 49ers in Week 13 after which misplaced to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 14, the race for the 1-seed within the NFC has turned the wrong way up, with all three groups sitting at 10-3.
Within the AFC, the battle for the highest spot is shut as properly, with the Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins main the race to get a first-round bye. The Kansas Metropolis Chiefs have misplaced two video games in a row and may be a highway playoff sport in January.
Which groups might sneak into the wild-card spherical? And which groups’ hopes are all however over? We used ESPN’s Soccer Energy Index to mission the remainder of the season, wanting on the playoff image for each conferences, together with odds for the favorites to make the postseason, clinch the division and even make the Tremendous Bowl. We even have seeding projections for the AFC and NFC, so you’ll be able to see the most certainly matchups in every convention, and an early take a look at the groups combating for the No. 1 choose in subsequent 12 months’s draft.
Here is every thing you want as we get nearer to the NFL playoffs (up to date Tuesday, Dec. 12):
Bounce to a piece:
AFC: Full projections | Seeding
NFC: Full projections | Seeding
Matchup of the week
Race for the 2024 No. 1 choose
Projecting the AFC playoff area
After the Pittsburgh Steelers misplaced their second straight sport in Week 14, their playoff possibilities dropped to 32%, per FPI. They are going to face the Indianapolis Colts, who’ve a 43% likelihood to make the postseason, in Week 15.
The Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins have one of the best likelihood to get the 1-seed and the first-round bye within the AFC, and the 2 groups face one another in Baltimore in Week 17. The Dolphins’ possibilities took successful with their loss on Monday evening to the Tennessee Titans, nonetheless.
Within the opening wild-card spherical, the 2-seed hosts the 7-seed, the 3-seed hosts the 6-seed and the 4-seed hosts the 5-seed.
Projecting the NFC playoff area
After the Dallas Cowboys’ win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 14, the NFC East image turned slightly murkier. Within the NFC South, in the meantime, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints are all 6-7; FPI believes the Bucs have a slight edge to win the division.
The San Francisco 49ers now have the within observe to get the 1-seed, which comes with a bye till the divisional spherical. Within the opening wild-card spherical, the 2-seed hosts the 7-seed, the 3-seed hosts the 6-seed and the 4-seed hosts the 5-seed.
The wild-card race within the NFC is broad open, as seed Nos. 6 and seven might come from a bunch of groups.
The one sport you need to completely watch
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Indianapolis Colts are combating for an AFC wild-card spot, and their Week 15 matchup can have ramifications for the playoff image. FPI likes the Steelers to win in Indy, but when they do not win, they’re postseason possibilities could be on the ropes.
The race for the No. 1 choose in 2024
The 2024 NFL draft seemingly will characteristic two quarterbacks combating for the No. 1 spot, as Caleb Williams (USC) and Drake Maye (North Carolina) are ESPN’s top-ranked prospects. Which groups might take them? After Week 14’s outcomes, the image has change into clearer.
The 5-8 Chicago Bears personal the 1-12 Carolina Panthers’ first-round choose (by way of final 12 months’s pre-draft commerce), and that choice has a 95% likelihood to land at No. 1, in keeping with FPI. The three-10 New England Patriots have the second-best odds to snag the highest choose.
The three-10 Arizona Cardinals even have two first-round picks, with FPI projecting their authentic choice at No. 3 and the 7-6 Houston Texans’ choose — which was acquired within the transfer up final April — at No. 21.
NFL playoff schedule
Week 18 video games are Jan. 7, then it is on to the postseason. Here is when every spherical of video games will probably be performed:
Jan. 13-15: Wild-card spherical
Jan. 20-21: Divisional spherical
Jan. 28: AFC and NFC championship video games
Feb. 11: Tremendous Bowl LVIII (in Las Vegas)
