Part of what makes the playoffs so great is that the regular season becomes irrelevant. The present moment is all that matters.
Lose, and you’re out. Win, and you keep going. Any team can go on a run.
With the 14-team postseason bracket and field set, here’s why each squad has a chance to get to — and win — Super Bowl LX. The teams are listed according to playoff seeding.
AFC
No other NFL team gets after the quarterback the way the Broncos do. They led the league in sacks (68), sack rate (9.97%) and pressures (285), and ranked second in pressure rate (40.8%) and average pass rush get-off time (0.82 seconds) in the regular season, according to Next Gen Stats.
While Denver has a clear No. 1 pass rusher in Nik Bonitto, this defense is perhaps most dangerous because of its depth up front. Eight Broncos have at least four sacks this season, including four with more than six sacks.
Broncos linebacker Nik Bonitto has been terrorizing quarterbacks all season, earning his second straight Pro Bowl nod. (Photo by Timothy Hurst/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
An elite quarterback gives a team a chance to win it all, and New England has one in Maye, who’s become a superstar in his second NFL season. The 2024 No. 3 overall pick combines incredible efficiency with arguably the NFL’s best deep ball.
Maye in 2025 led the league in both completion rate (71.7%) and passer rating (113.5), to go with his 4,394 passing yards (fourth in the NFL) and 35 total touchdowns (31 passing, four rushing) against 11 turnovers (eight interceptions, three lost fumbles).
The Jags have a defense capable of stifling the best of offenses, but the way Lawrence played down the stretch of the regular season is what makes Jacksonville one of the most dangerous teams in the playoffs.
Over the final six weeks of the regular season, the fifth-year quarterback had 19 total touchdowns (15 passing, four rushing) with just one turnover. The addition of wide receiver Jakobi Meyers ahead of the trade deadline and the emergence of third-year pro Parker Washington have made the passing game lethal with Lawrence, who’s also using his legs more than ever.
Trevor Lawrence played the best football of his career down the stretch of the 2025 season. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
Mike Tomlin’s defense was inconsistent to start 2025, but it’s playing some of its best ball right now. The Steelers limited their opponents to under 80 rushing yards from Weeks 15-17. Pittsburgh didn’t give up more than 26 points in its final six regular-season games, which is remarkable considering it allowed at least 30 points in four of its first seven games.
First-round rookie defensive tackle Derrick Harmon, who missed six games this season with knee issues, is now healthy. Even better, star outside linebacker T.J. Watt returned for the regular-season finale after missing the previous three games due to a partially collapsed lung.
The Texans boast arguably the best defense we’ve seen in years. Leading the league in yards allowed and ranked second in scoring defense, Houston suffocates opposing offenses in both the run and pass game. Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter are the NFL’s best edge rusher duo, while Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter are arguably the league’s best cornerback tandem.
Six Texans defenders were named Pro Bowlers or Pro Bowl alternates this season.
Houston’s swarming defense suffocates offenses and gives the Texans a chance to knock off any opponent in the postseason. (Photo by David Buono/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
There’s no Patrick Mahomes blocking Allen from getting to the Super Bowl (and potentially winning it) this year. Don’t be shocked to see the reigning MVP take advantage of this opportunity. He’s been terrific in the postseason for most of his career, after all. In his past six playoff games, Allen has 14 total touchdowns (eight passing, six rushing) and just one turnover.
A defining moment for the Chargers’ defense came on Monday Night Football in Week 14, when it registered a season-high five takeaways in an overtime victory over the Eagles.
Overall, Los Angeles’ 23 takeaways tied for seventh in the regular season. That skill gives the Bolts a chance to slow down even the best offenses in the playoffs, giving more opportunities to Pro Bowl quarterback Justin Herbert.
NFC
Whatever Mike Macdonald’s defense may lack in top-end talent upfront, it more than makes up for with its depth. Four Seattle defenders have at least six sacks, five have 13 or more quarterback hits and seven have six-plus tackles for loss.
The Seahawks also gave up just nine rushing touchdowns in the regular season, second-fewest in the league.
Chicago Bears: Propensity for takeaways
No team in football is better at forcing turnovers than the Bears, who had a league-leading 33 takeaways in the regular season.
Veteran safety Kevin Byard had an NFL-best seven interceptions, while linebacker T.J. Edwards and cornerback Nahshon Wright had a pick-six apiece.
Though the Chicago defense doesn’t rank among the league’s elite, the unit has had a knack for takeaways all season. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
The Eagles’ defensive line is a force to be reckoned with and poised to wreak havoc as Philadelphia seeks to make its third Super Bowl appearance in four years. The Eagles racked up four-plus sacks with a four-man rush three times from Weeks 14 through 17.
The 24-year-old quarterback has yet to show true consistency at any point in his three seasons, and his long-term future in Carolina remains uncertain. But Young’s heroics in the clutch give the Panthers a fighting chance in the postseason, even in the unlikely scenario that they make it to the Super Bowl. The former No. 1 overall pick has 10 game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime since the start of 2024, including six this season.
It’s hard to believe that back in training camp, there were concerns about Stafford’s health and his availability for the start of the season. At age 37, he’s turned in arguably his greatest season — a 65.0% completion rate for a league-leading 4,707 yards and career-high 46 touchdowns, with 11 turnovers (eight interceptions, three lost fumbles) and a 109.2 passer rating. He’s a front-runner to win MVP.
Despite another injury-ravaged season, the Niners have a shot at winning it all because of Purdy, who’s been playing some of the best ball of his career. San Francisco’s offense struggled against Seattle in the regular-season finale, but from Weeks 15 through 17, the former seventh-round pick completed 74.2% of his passes for 893 yards and 13 total touchdowns (11 passing, two rushing) with just three turnovers. Purdy’s 7.0% touchdown rate ranked second in the NFL in 2025.
Though he missed half the season due to injuries, Niners QB Brock Purdy was on fire late in the season. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
The Packers have one of the league’s most dangerous offenses thanks to an effective deep passing game. Jordan Love has a 13.0% deep passing rate, second-highest in the league among qualified quarterbacks, per Next Gen Stats. Fourth-year receiver Christian Watson is Green Bay’s biggest threat to burn opposing secondaries. He has four touchdown receptions of 20-plus air yards this season, according to NGS.
Their aerial success makes it hard to stop the Packers on third down, where they ranked second in conversion rate during the regular season (48.8%).
Ben Arthur is an NFL reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.
Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
