Inside The Star
When the 2025 NFL season began, the early favorites for the top seed in the NFC playoff bracket seemed pretty clear-cut. The Chicago Bears were not on anyone’s radar outside Illinois.
The Eagles, the Lions, and the Rams had to be the pre-season favorite.
Here we are, 13 weeks in, and none of them are in that position. The Lions are in jeopardy of not even making it in as a wildcard, much less a division winner.
On paper, the last team you’d have expected to currently be the top seed in the conference was the Bears.
Yet, here we are, by the grace of a better conference record, the 9–3 Bears, led by Caleb Williams, currently sit as the NFC’s top seed.
And that is why we say that you don’t play the games on paper, Analytic maniacs. (Yes, I’ll be beating this dead horse for the rest of the season.)
The Rams are currently the No. 2 seed, but they are now tied at 9-3 with the Seattle Seahawks for the NFC West lead.
Both teams are looking over their shoulders at the 9-4 San Francisco 49ers, who are currently the seventh seed, but still in the hunt for the division title and even the top seed.
San Francisco has beaten Seattle, split with the Rams, and will face the Bears at home in Week 17.
The Eagles are in the No. 3 seed at 8-4. But they are on the verge of a collapse that might let the 6-5-1 Dallas Cowboys get in as a Division winner.
Technically, the Cowboys are in the ninth spot, a half-game behind Detroit as they get ready to play tonight. But they are only 0.004 percentage points ahead of the Panthers.
Carolina, like the 49ers, has the week off but would move up to ninth with a Dallas loss.
The Panthers are also just a half-game behind Tampa Bay for the NFC South lead and the No. 4 slot.
With most of the NFC’s top 10 teams playing a lot of divisional games down the stretch, these last five weeks will be insane. Which should make for some great viewing.
It’s a two-horse race between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos for the AFC’s top seed.
After Sunday night’s overtime win over Washington, Denver tied the Patriots at 10-2. A tie-breaker against common opponents put the Broncos in first.
After Monday night’s game, more like a massacre, the Patriots (11-2) jumped back into first behind another solid performance by Drake Maye at quarterback.
For now, as the Patriots go on bye this week, Denver and Bo Nix will likely get to 11-2 after they beat the Raiders on Sunday and re-claim the No. 1 seed.
But neither team can afford to...
