NFL Playoff Picture - Week 17: Postseason seeds, projected draft order

NFL Playoff Picture is a weekly look at the teams jockeying to secure their shot to make it to Super Bowl LVIII.

AFC

x = clinched playoff berth
y = clinched division title
z = clinched first-round bye

The Baltimore Ravens clinched the AFC's No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs with their 56-19 thrashing of the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

The Dolphins' loss, combined with the Buffalo Bills' narrow win over the New England Patriots, sets up an AFC East title game between Miami and Buffalo in Week 18.

The Kansas City Chiefs wrapped up an eighth straight divisional title by beating the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Jacksonville Jaguars sit atop the AFC South after shutting out the Carolina Panthers, but their perch is perilous with both the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans owning equivalent 9-7 records. The Jags get the edge via divisional wins tiebreaker and can clinch the AFC South title with a win over the Tennessee Titans in Week 18. If Jacksonville loses, however, the winner of Colts-Texans will take the division crown.

In the hunt

The Texans own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pittsburgh Steelers and thus can remain above them and also leapfrog the Colts to clinch a playoff berth with a win in Indianapolis next week.

The Steelers will need to win and get some help from other results in Week 18 to make the postseason, but they could be aided by the Ravens potentially resting their starters.

The Bengals were eliminated with their loss to the Chiefs, while the Denver Broncos beat the Los Angeles Chargers but were also eliminated nonetheless.

NFC

x = clinched playoff berth
y = clinched division title
z = clinched first-round bye

The San Francisco 49ers secured the NFC's top seed with their win over the Washington Commanders combined with the Arizona Cardinals' shocking upset of the Philadelphia Eagles.

These two results had broader implications for playoff seeding, boosting the Dallas Cowboys over the Eagles and into pole position for the NFC East title and the conference's No. 2 seed. Dallas' controversial win over the Detroit Lions on Saturday night created this possibility.

If the Cowboys beat the Commanders on the road in Week 18, or if the Eagles lose on the road to the New York Giants, Dallas will be NFC East champion.

The New Orleans Saints' win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers spoiled their NFC South rivals' division title-clinching plans and left both teams at 8-8. The Bucs hold the tiebreaker over the Saints via win percentage in common games since they split the season series and have the same record against NFC South opponents. Tampa Bay can clinch the NFC South by beating the last-place Panthers in Week 18.

The Green Bay Packers took another step toward the playoffs with a rout of the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday night. The Packers would claim a wild-card spot with a win over the Chicago Bears in Week 18.

In the hunt

Technically, the Bears occupy the 11th seed, but they've been eliminated while the 12th-seeded Atlanta Falcons are still alive.

The Seahawks need a win over the Cardinals and a Packers loss to get into the playoffs. The Vikings would have to beat the Lions and get plenty of help in other games to sneak into a wild-card spot.

If the Falcons beat the Saints next week and the Buccaneers lose to the Panthers, Atlanta will win the NFC South. In this scenario, all teams would finish with 8-9 records, but the Falcons would have the superior record against NFC South opponents (4-2 for the Falcons, 3-3 for the Buccaneers and Saints).

The Saints' clearest path involves beating the Falcons in Week 18 and hoping the Buccaneers lose to the Panthers. That would earn New Orleans the NFC South title. A wild-card berth is still possible, but would require a Saints win and losses from both the Packers and Seahawks.

Projected NFL draft order