With week 18 of the National Football League season now complete, we now know the 12 teams that are in the NFL wildcard round and the two teams that do not have to play a wildcard game at all and have advanced to the divisional playoff.
This weekend in the AFC, the Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4) will host the Buffalo Bills (12-5), the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7) will host the Houston Texans (12-5), and the New England Patriots (14-3) will host the Los Angeles Chargers (11-6). You might ask why the Steelers are hosting the Texans when Houston had the better record. It is because Pittsburgh gets the higher seed as they were a divisional winner. The Steelers are coming off a dramatic 26-24 win over the Baltimore Ravens and got into the postseason due to a missed 44 yard field goal by Tyler Loop.
Meanwhile in the NFC, the Chicago Bears (11-6) are hosting the Green Bay Packers (9-7-1) in a NFC North Division battle, the Carolina Panthers (8-9) are hosting the Los Angeles Rams (12-5), and the Philadelphia Eagles (11-6) are hosting the San Francisco 49ers (12-5). The Rams and Eagles are on the road because they were in the same division as the Seahawks (14-3) in the NFC West, and are playing a divisional winner this weekend. The Eagles won the NFC East and the Panthers won the NFC South. The Seahawks had the same record in the NFL as the Denver Broncos, which had the best record in the AFC. It just so happens the best three teams in the NFC in 2025 all came in the NFC West.
