NFL
Which teams have the top seeds in the NFC and the AFC?
Patrick Mahomes is in excellent form as he comes in these playoffs, and Kansas will be the team to beat this year.
The regular season of the NFL for 2022 has come to an end. The postseason games that will take place before Super Bowl 57 are about to get underway.
The last pieces of the AFC and NFC playoff pictures were put into place on Sunday night. Here is a complete rundown of the playoff field and seedings for the NFL following week 18:
Only two official playoff seedings were set in stone going into the weekend, and those were for the Buccaneers, who were the champions of the NFC South, and the Giants, who were the wild card team and were locked into the sixth position in the NFC.
NFL standings after Week 18
AFC
NFC
A look at the AFC playoff picture
1. The Kansas City Chiefs finished with a record of 14-3 to win the AFC West division. With their victory against the Raiders on Saturday, the Chiefs won the number one seed and the opportunity to play their first playoff game at Arrowhead Stadium. They will play at home in the AFC championship game against every club that isn’t the No. 2 Bills, who also won their game at home on Sunday against the Patriots.
2. The Buffalo Bills, finished with a record of 13-3 and won the AFC East. With a dominant second half that resulted in a win against the Patriots, the Bills were able to clinch the No. 2 seed and go to the playoffs. That means they won’t leave until they are eliminated or meet the Chiefs in the AFC championship game, which will be played at a neutral site. They will begin the season by playing host to the Dolphins, who finished as runners-up in their division last year.
3. The Cincinnati Bengals finished with a record of 12-4 and won the AFC North division. The Bengals have ensured that they will win their division, allowing them to play at home against the Ravens for a second time. They remained one game behind the Bills, whom they are now scheduled to play against in the divisional playoffs while away from home.
4. The Jacksonville Jaguars finished with a record of 9-8 and won the AFC South division. After coming back from a 16-point deficit to beat the Titans at home by a score of 20-16 on Saturday, the Jaguars were officially crowned champions of their division. As a result, the Jaguars qualified for the playoffs in Doug Pederson’s first season as head coach and Trevor Lawrence’s second year as the team’s starting quarterback. In the wild-card round, they will play at home against the Chargers, whom they defeated on the road by a score of 38-10 in Week 3.
5. The Los Angeles Chargers have a record of 10-7 and are in second place in the AFC West. As a result of the Ravens’ loss, the Chargers have secured the top spot in the wild-card standings, making up for the deficit they had in Week 18 of the previous season. The Broncos defeated the Chargers on Sunday despite playing their starting lineup into the fourth quarter. To open the playoffs, the Chargers will travel to Jacksonville to avenge their defeat at home in Week 3 against the Jaguars.
6. The Baltimore Ravens are in second place in the AFC North with a record of 10-7. The Ravens were aware that they would have to play the division champions for a third time the following week in Cincinnati, so they decided to rest some of their key players, including backup quarterback Tyler Huntley, as well as Lamar Jackson, who was not healthy enough to play in Sunday’s game against the Bengals.
7. The Miami Dolphins are in second position in the AFC East with a record of 9-8. The Dolphins broke their five-game losing run with a tenacious 11-6 victory against the Jets at home. The triumph came in ugly form, though. They were able to clinch the last wild-card slot and play the Bills for a third time since the Bills defeated the Patriots and they had the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage over the Steelers because they won against the Steelers at home in week 7.
The favorites to take this year’s trophy will no doubt be the Kansas City Chiefs. Patrick Mahomes is in excellent form as he comes in these playoffs, and Kansas will be the team to beat this year