With one week remaining in the regular season, the playoff field is almost set, as 12 teams have clinched playoff berths. But the playoff seeds remain in flux. Here’s a list of the teams remaining in contention for each playoff seed, and how they can earn those seeds.
NFC
1. Seahawks or 49ers. The winner of Saturday night’s Seahawks-49ers game in San Francisco will determine who gets the No. 1 seed in the NFC. If the teams tie, the Seahawks will be the No. 1 seed.
2. Bears or Eagles. If the Bears win or the Eagles lose, the Bears are the No. 2 seed. If the Bears lose and the Eagles win, the Eagles are the No. 2 seed.
3. Eagles or Bears. The team that doesn’t get the No. 2 seed gets the No. 3 seed. The Eagles are resting their starters and effectively conceding the No. 2 seed to the Bears and preparing to be the No. 3 seed.
4. Panthers or Buccaneers. If the Panthers beat or tie the Buccaneers on Saturday, the Panthers are the No. 4 seed. If the Panthers lose but the Falcons win on Sunday, the Panthers are also the No. 4 seed. If the Buccaneers win and the Falcons lose or tie, the Buccaneers are the No. 4 seed.
5. 49ers or Seahawks or Rams. If the Seahawks lose on Saturday, they are the No. 5 seed. If the 49ers lose on Saturday and the Rams lose on Sunday, the 49ers are the No. 5 seed. If the 49ers lose on Saturday and the Rams win on Sunday, the Rams are the No. 5 seed.
6. Rams or 49ers. If the Rams lose or the 49ers win, the Rams are the No. 6 seed. If the 49ers lose and the Rams win, the 49ers are the No. 6 seed.
7. Packers. The Packers are the only team that has clinched its playoff seed. The Packers are the No. 7 seed in the NFC regardless of anything that happens in Week 18.
AFC
1. Broncos or Patriots or Jaguars. If the Broncos win or the Patriots and Jaguars both lose, the Broncos are the No. 1 seed.
If the Patriots win and the Broncos lose, the Patriots are the No. 1 seed.
If the Jaguars win and the Broncos and Patriots both lose, the Jaguars are the No. 1 seed.
2. Patriots or Broncos or Jaguars. If the Patriots and Broncos both win, the Patriots are the No. 2 seed. If the Patriots and Jaguars both lose, the Patriots are the No. 2 seed. If the Broncos win and the Jaguars lose, the Patriots are the No. 2 seed regardless of what the Patriots do.
If the Broncos lose, the Patriots win and the Jaguars lose, the Broncos are the No. 2 seed. If the Broncos lose, the Patriots lose and the Jaguars win, the Broncos are the No. 2 seed.
If the Jaguars win, the Broncos lose and the Patriots win, the Jaguars are the No. 2 seed. If the Jaguars win, the Broncos win and the Patriots lose, the Jaguars are the No. 2 seed.
3. Jaguars or Broncos or Patriots or Texans. If the Jaguars, Broncos and Patriots all win, or the Jaguars tie, thie Jaguars are the No. 3 seed. If the Jaguars and Texans both lose, the Jaguars are the No. 3 seed. If the Broncos win, the Patriots win and the Texans lose, the Jaguars are the No. 3 seed regardless of what the Jaguars do.
If the Broncos lose and Patriots and Jaguars both win, the Broncos are the No. 3 seed.
If the Patriots lose and the Jaguars win, the Patriots are the No. 3 seed.
If the Texans win and the Jaguars lose, the Texans are the No. 3 seed.
4. Steelers or Ravens. If the Steelers beat or tie the Ravens on Sunday night, the Steelers are the No. 4 seed. If the Ravens win, the Ravens are the No. 4 seed.
5. Texans or Jaguars or Chargers or Bills. If the Texans and Jaguars both win, the Texans are the No. 5 seed. If the Texans, Chargers and Bills all lose, the Texans are the No. 5 seed. If the Jaguars win and the Chargers and Bills lose, the Texans are the No. 5 seed regardless of what the Texans do.
If the Jaguars lose, the Texans win and the Bills lose, the Jaguars are the No. 5 seed. (There are also scenarios that see the Jaguars as the 5 seed based on the strength of victory tiebreaker with the Chargers.)
If the Chargers win and the Texans lose, the Chargers are the No. 5 seed. If the Chargers win and the Jaguars lose, the Chargers could also get the No. 5 seed based on clinching the strength of victory tiebreaker over the Jaguars.
If the Bills win, the Chargers lose and either the Texans or Jaguars lose, the Bills are the No. 5 seed.
6. Chargers or Jaguars or Texans or Bills. If the Chargers, Texans and Jaguars all win, the Chargers are the No. 6 seed. If the Chargers and Bills both lose, the Chargers are the No. 6 seed. If the Texans win and the Bills lose, the Chargers are the No. 6 seed regardless of what the Chargers do.
If the Jaguars and Chargers both lose, and the Texans and Bills both win, the Jaguars are the No. 6 seed.
If the Texans lose and either the Bills lose and Chargers win, or the Bills win and Chargers lose, the Texans are the No. 6 seed.
If the Bills win, the Chargers lose and the Texans and Jaguars both win, the Bills are the No. 6 seed. If the Bills win, the Chargers win and the Texans lose, the Bills are the No. 6 seed.
7. Bills or Jaguars or Texans or Chargers. If the Bills lose, the Bills are the No. 7 seed. If the Chargers, Texans and Jaguars all win, the Bills are the No. 7 seed regardless of what the Bills do.
If the Jaguars lose and the Texans, Chargers and Bills all win, the Jaguars can be the No. 7 seed if the Chargers clinch the strength of victory tiebreaker over the Jaguars.
If the Texans lose and the Chargers and Bills both win, the Texans are the No. 7 seed.
If the Chargers lose and the Bills win, the Chargers are the No. 7 seed.
When the Bears drafted Caleb Williams first overall in 2024, many people noted that the franchise has never had a quarterback throw for 4,000 yards in a season and that chatter has picked up again of late.
Williams enters Week 18 with 3,730 passing yards, so he is within striking distance of the milestone against the Lions. Williams is in a good groove right now with 829 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions in the last three weeks, but he echoed head coach Ben Johnson when said on Wednesday that any personal achievements take a back seat to the team’s goals.
“For me, it would be cool just in the sense there’s never been one here,” Williams said, via the team’s website. “I was brought here for those types of things and those types of moments, the things that haven’t been done here, to try and be able to accomplish. But the self-goals and all of that always get swept under when you go for team goals and that’s winning ballgames. That’s first and foremost on my mind. That’s first and foremost for this team because the most important thing is winning ballgames and heading into the playoffs with some momentum and some good energy.”
The Bears will host their first playoff game since January 2019 later this month, so there’s plenty to be excited about in Chicago regardless of how many yards Williams winds up at the end of Sunday’s game.
The Lions have collapsed from 15-2 in 2024 to 8-8 in 2025. They have one game left. It’s technically meaningless. Quarterback Jared Goff still sees relevance in the Week 18 game at Chicago.
“It’s about respect,” Goff said Wednesday. “Not only respect for yourself, within your own team but respect around the league. We want to go out there and put something good on tape that can gain a little respect back from probably some of the loss of respect we earned this year.”
Whether the operative words is respect or something else, the Lions aren’t the team they were a year ago. They have one last chance to leave an impression on the league before inevitable offseason changes will come.
The first step presumably will be to fix the offense. And that may entail replacing offensive coordinator John Morton, who lost playcalling duties in Week 10, when coach Dan Campbell took over.
Campbell surely would admit that the current offensive approach isn’t sustainable. Campbell needs to run the team, not the offense. And, in hindsight, it was far easier for Campbell to do only that.
Win or lose, Campbell has decisions to make. And the Lions have work to do to get back to where they were in 2024, 2023, and the second half of 2022.
For Goff, there are no decisions to be made in the short term. The goal is to play, and to play to win.
“It’s what I’m paid to do,” Goff said. “I’m the quarterback of this team. I’m paid to play on Sundays and do my job and do it to the best of my abilities. It doesn’t matter what our record is or what the situation may be. That’s my job.”
The job on the last Sunday of the season is to potentially keep the Bears from securing the No. 2 seed in the NFC, and to help the Lions finish on the right side of .500 for the fourth straight season. That’s something they haven’t done since 1969 through 1972.
The wait continues for wide receiver Rome Odunze in Chicago.
Odunze has missed four straight games with a foot injury and he was listed as a non-participant on the first practice report of Week 18. Head coach Ben Johnson said last week that he expects Odunze to help the team again this season, but it may not be until the playoffs are underway.
Rookie wideout Luther Burden was limited by the quad injury he suffered in last Sunday night’s loss to the 49ers. Word on Monday was that Burden avoided a serious injury and it would seem there’s some chance he will be able to play against Detroit this week.
Wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus (illness) was a full participant after missing the 49ers game. Edge rusher Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (concussion) did not practice while defensive back Josh Blackwell (shoulder), defensive back Nick McCloud (illness), and tackle Ozzy Trapilo (knee, quad) were limited participants.
In the storied history of the Chicago Bears franchise, they’ve never had a 4,000-yard passer. Caleb Williams could change that this season, but coach Ben Johnson says that’s not anyone’s focus.
Asked about Williams having 3,730 passing yards this season with one game remaining, Johnson said he’ll be happy for Williams to get to 4,000, but nowhere near as happy as he’ll be if the Bears win on Sunday.
“If it were to happen that’d be great, but I think he would agree with me when I say our No. 1 objective is to win this ball game,” Johnson said. “Whatever that takes, that’s our goal. We’ll see where it’s at at the end of the year. But that’s tertiary.”
Williams needs 270 yards to reach 4,000 on the season. He needs 109 yards to break the franchise single-season record of 3,838 yards, set by Erik Kramer in 1995.
