Prescott and Thomas talk about Marshawn Kneeland’s influence
Ahead of the MNF game between the Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders, Dak Prescott and Solomon Thomas reflect on the life of Marshawn Kneeland.
USA TODAY Sports will provide timely updates on the league’s evolving playoff picture each week during the 2025 NFL regular season. It typically begins after a late Sunday afternoon game and continues through the remainder of the week (Monday and Thursday games, or Saturday game, if applicable). And when the holidays start, I plan to watch it then too.
What the hell happened? What does that mean? As the seven-team brackets for each conference begin to take shape, what will be the relevant factors (and perhaps the tiebreakers)? Everything will be explained and analyzed leading up to the postseason berths being decided on Sunday, January 4th.
Here’s where things stand as Week 11 of the 2025 season is nearly complete.
NFC Playoffs Photos
1. Philadelphia Eagles (8-2), NFC East leader: Something catastrophic (not uncommon in Philadelphia) has to happen to the defending champions. do not have This is the first consecutive victory since winning this category 21 years ago. After Sunday night’s win over Detroit, Philadelphia is now awarded the No. 1 seed after escaping the Rams in Week 3. remaining schedule: Cowboys, vs. Bears, vs. Chargers, vs. Raiders, vs. Commanders, vs. Bills, vs. Commanders.
2. Los Angeles Rams (8-2), first in the NFC West: They defeated Seattle, won five straight games, and took first place in the division. However, the Rams remain effectively one game behind Philadelphia in the conference standings. remaining schedule: vs. Buccaneers, at. Panthers, at. Cardinals, vs. Lions, at. Seahawks, at. Falcons, vs. Cardinals
3. Chicago Bears (7-3), NFC North leader: After an 0-2 start, they won seven of eight games and took first place in the district. And now it looks like they’ll be painting a weakened Pittsburgh team in Week 12. remaining schedule: vs.Steelers, at.Eagles, at.Packers, vs.Browns, vs.Packers, at.49ers, vs.Lions
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-4), NFC South leader: The lead in the division has shrunk to 0.5 games over Carolina, but the Bucs’ schedule will soon become much more manageable. remaining schedule: Rams, Cardinals, Saints, Falcons, Panthers, Dolphins, Panthers
5. Seattle Seahawks (7-3); wildcard number 1: They lost to the Rams and fell from first place in the NFC West. All three of the Hawks’ losses have come against NFC opponents. remaining schedule: Titans, Vikings, Falcons, Colts, Rams, Panthers, 49ers.
6. Green Bay Packers (6-3-1), Wild Card No. 2: They were badly beaten in Sunday’s win over the Giants, but ultimately moved up one notch in the NFC seeding. remaining schedule: vs. Vikings, at Lions, vs. Bears, at Broncos, at Bears, vs. Ravens, at Vikings
7. San Francisco 49ers (7-4), third wild card: Detroit’s latest setback leaves only the third team in the NFC West to advance into the projected seven-team NFC playoff field. And perhaps the Niners can start building momentum with QB1 Brock Purdy back in the lineup. remaining schedule: vs. Panthers, at Browns, bye, vs. Titans, at Colts, vs. Bears, vs. Seahawks
8. Detroit Lions (6-4), on the hunt: With Detroit eliminated from the playoff picture, the offense was back on track Sunday night in Philadelphia…for now. If they had won in Philadelphia, the Lions would have been the No. 2 seed. This shows how crowded conferences are today. remaining schedule: vs. Giants, vs. Packers, vs. Cowboys, at Rams, vs. Steelers, at Vikings, at. Bears
9. Carolina Panthers (6-5), on the hunt: In addition to closing in on the Bucks, they are one game back from the Niners (who they will play next) for the NFC’s last wild-card spot. remaining schedule: 49ers vs. Rams, BYE, vs. Saints, vs. Buccaneers, vs. Seahawks, vs. Buccaneers
10. Dallas Cowboys (4-5-1), acquired: Monday’s blowout loss to the Raiders gave this team a much-needed boost both mentally and in the standings, and Dallas is back in the playoff periphery. remaining schedule: vs. Eagles, vs. Chiefs, at Lions, vs. Vikings, vs. Chargers, at Commanders, at Giants
AFC playoff photos
1. Denver Broncos (9-2), AFC West Leader: Sunday’s victory over Kansas City put a chokehold on the Chiefs’ AFC West title, which they have held since 2016. The Broncos also moved past the Patriots into first place in the conference. Denver’s AFC record (6-2) is currently 0.5 games ahead of New England. remaining schedule: BYE, Commanders game, Raiders game, Packers game, Jaguars game, Chiefs game, Chargers game
2. New England Patriots (9-2), AFC East leader: The team, which reached nine wins for the first time in the league on Thursday night, is in prime position for its first district championship since Tom Brady led the team in 2019 and likely its first No. 1 seed in the playoffs since 2017. remaining schedule: Bengals, vs. Giants, BYE, vs. Bills, Ravens, Jets, vs. Dolphins
3. Indianapolis Colts (8-2), first in the AFC South: Charmin had a loose schedule leading up to the bye, but he can’t control who he plays. However, the lineup in the second half doesn’t seem to be as forgiving. remaining schedule: Chiefs vs. Texans, Jaguars vs. Seahawks, 49ers vs. Jaguars, Texans
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4), AFC North leader: They have only one game left in the battle for first place in the division with Baltimore, and could face life without QB Aaron Rodgers in the short term. remaining schedule: Bears, vs. Bills, vs. Ravens, vs. Dolphins, vs. Lions, Browns, vs. Ravens.
5. Buffalo Bills (7-3), Wild Card No. 1: QB Josh Allen’s big performance on Sunday moved Buffalo up one seed, but the Bills were no closer to first place in the AFC East. A tough game looms Thursday night in Houston. remaining schedule: Texans, Steelers vs. Bengals, Patriots, Browns, Eagles vs. Jets
6. Los Angeles Chargers (7-4), 2nd Wild Card: The week off comes at just the right time for a battered team that was beaten by Duval County on Sunday. remaining schedule: BYE, vs. Raiders, vs. Eagles, Chiefs, Cowboys, vs. Texans, Broncos
7. Jacksonville Jaguars (6-4), third place wild card: They continue to collect potentially important head-to-head tiebreakers, with Sunday’s loss to the Bolts joining the Jags’ win over the Chiefs. remaining schedule: Cardinals, Titans, vs. Colts, vs. Jets, Broncos, vs. Colts, Titans
8. Houston Texans (5-5), chasing: They won three of four games, including two straight wins without injured QB CJ Stroud. If the Texans want to win the AFC South for the third year in a row, they’ll likely need to sweep the Colts while continuing to make strides. remaining schedule: vs. Bills, vs. Colts, vs. Chiefs, vs. Cardinals, vs. Raiders, vs. Chargers, vs. Colts
9. Kansas City Chiefs (5-5), chasing: After Sunday’s loss at Denver, their nine-year run at the top of the AFC West appears to have effectively ended. There’s still plenty of time to recover otherwise for a team that hasn’t missed an AFC Championship Game since Patrick Mahomes became QB1 in 2018. remaining schedule: vs. Colts, at Cowboys, vs. Texans, vs. Chargers, at Titans, vs. Broncos, at Raiders
10. Baltimore Ravens (5-5), chasing: They regained relevance and won four straight. But their best hope for reaching the postseason is winning their third straight AFC North title, considering they’ve already lost to KC and Houston. Their upcoming three-game homestand looks…winnable? remaining schedule: vs. Jets, vs. Bengals, vs. Steelers, vs. Bengals, vs. Patriots, vs. Packers, vs. Steelers
NFL teams will be eliminated from playoff contention in 2025
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