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2026 NFL season · free tool

NFL Playoff Predictor

Pick every remaining game and watch the standings, the seeds and the bracket follow, with the NFL’s real tiebreakers. Then take your team all the way, or not.

Real results through Oct 12 (Week 5) · refreshed every 3 hours

Follow your team

Choose a team to see its predicted record, its seed and how far it goes, updated with every pick.

Playoff picture

Seeds 1 to 4 win their division

  1. 1KC
  2. 2BAL
  3. 3JAX
  4. 4BUF
  5. 5NE
  6. 6DEN
  7. 7LV
  1. 1SF
  2. 2MIN
  3. 3NYG
  4. 4CAR
  5. 5DET
  6. 6GB
  7. 7CHI

Pick the winners

Fill the empty games
0 of 193 remaining games picked79 played

Week 6

  • Thu, Oct 15 · 8:15 PM ETSEA −2.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 9:30 AM ET · neutral siteJAX −2.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 1:00 PM ETBAL −3.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 1:00 PM ETCAR −3.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 1:00 PM ETCHI −1.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 1:00 PM ETNO −1.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 1:00 PM ETNE −7.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 1:00 PM ETPIT −2.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 1:00 PM ETIND −7
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 4:05 PM ETLAR −12.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 4:25 PM ETBUF −4.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 4:25 PM ETKC −8.5
  • Sun, Oct 18 · 8:20 PM ETGB −1.5
  • Mon, Oct 19 · 8:15 PM ETSF −7.5

Standings

Real results plus your picks · a tie counts as half a win

AFC

AFC East
TeamW-LPCTDIVCONF
4BUFBills4-1.8000-12-1
5NEPatriots3-2.6001-03-1
NYJJets2-3.4000-02-0
MIADolphins0-5.0000-00-3
AFC North
TeamW-LPCTDIVCONF
2BALRavens4-1.8000-02-0
CLEBrowns3-2.6001-01-2
PITSteelers3-2.6001-12-2
CINBengals3-2.6000-12-2
AFC South
TeamW-LPCTDIVCONF
3JAXJaguars4-1.8000-03-1
INDColts2-3.4001-01-3
HOUTexans1-4.2001-11-3
TENTitans0-5.0000-10-3
AFC West
TeamW-LPCTDIVCONF
1KCChiefs4-01.0002-04-0
6DENBroncos3-2.6001-12-1
7LVRaiders3-2.6001-12-2
LACChargers0-5.0000-20-3

First teams out: 8. CLE 3-2 · 9. PIT 3-2 · 10. CIN 3-2

  • #2 BAL over BUF, JAX · conference record
  • #3 JAX over BUF · conference record
  • #5 NE over CIN, CLE, PIT, DEN, LV · conference record
  • #6 DEN over CIN, CLE, PIT, LV · conference record
  • #7 LV over CIN, CLE, PIT · conference record
  • #8 CLE over CIN, PIT · division tiebreaker

NFC

NFC East
TeamW-LPCTDIVCONF
3NYGGiants3-1-1.7001-0-12-1-1
PHIEagles2-3.4001-01-2
DALCowboys2-3.4001-11-2
WASCommanders1-3-1.3000-2-11-2-1
NFC North
TeamW-LPCTDIVCONF
2MINVikings5-01.0002-04-0
5DETLions3-2.6000-02-1
6GBPackers3-2.6001-12-2
7CHIBears3-2.6000-22-2
NFC South
TeamW-LPCTDIVCONF
4CARPanthers2-2.5001-02-1
ATLFalcons2-3.4001-12-1
TBBuccaneers1-4.2000-01-2
NOSaints1-4.2000-10-3
NFC West
TeamW-LPCTDIVCONF
1SF49ers5-01.0003-03-0
SEASeahawks3-2.6001-11-2
LARRams2-3.4000-12-1
ARICardinals1-4.2000-20-4

First teams out: 8. SEA 3-2 · 9. LAR 2-3 · 10. ATL 2-3

  • #1 SF over MIN · strength of victory
  • #5 DET over CHI, GB, SEA · conference record
  • #6 GB over CHI, SEA · conference record
  • #7 CHI over SEA · conference record

Playoff bracket

Tap a team to send it through. Seeds follow your standings.

AFC

WILD CARD
DIVISIONAL
Lowest seed
TBDTBD
AFC TITLE
TBDTBD

NFC

WILD CARD
DIVISIONAL
Lowest seed
TBDTBD
NFC TITLE
TBDTBD
SUPER BOWL LXI
TBDTBD

Pick all 13 playoff games to crown a champion.

How to use the NFL playoff predictor

  1. Choose your team, then pick the winner of each remaining game week by week, or switch to the team view and mark each game a win, a loss or a tie.
  2. Short on time? Fill the empty games with the favourites, the home teams or weighted random results, then change the ones you disagree with.
  3. Watch the division standings and the seven seeds of each conference move with every pick. Ties are broken with the NFL’s own procedure.
  4. Pick the playoff games round by round up to Super Bowl LXI, then share the link: it opens your exact picks.

NFL playoff picture if the season ended today

Real results only, through Oct 12 (Week 5). Division leaders hold seeds 1 to 4.

AFC

  1. Kansas City Chiefs (4-0), leads the AFC West
  2. Baltimore Ravens (4-1), leads the AFC North
  3. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-1), leads the AFC South
  4. Buffalo Bills (4-1), leads the AFC East
  5. New England Patriots (3-2), wild card
  6. Denver Broncos (3-2), wild card
  7. Las Vegas Raiders (3-2), wild card

First teams out: Browns (3-2), Steelers (3-2), Bengals (3-2).

NFC

  1. San Francisco 49ers (5-0), leads the NFC West
  2. Minnesota Vikings (5-0), leads the NFC North
  3. New York Giants (3-1-1), leads the NFC East
  4. Carolina Panthers (2-2), leads the NFC South
  5. Detroit Lions (3-2), wild card
  6. Green Bay Packers (3-2), wild card
  7. Chicago Bears (3-2), wild card

First teams out: Seahawks (3-2), Rams (2-3), Falcons (2-3).

Division leaders

  • AFC East: Buffalo Bills 4-1, then the Patriots 3-2
  • AFC North: Baltimore Ravens 4-1, then the Browns 3-2
  • AFC South: Jacksonville Jaguars 4-1, then the Colts 2-3
  • AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs 4-0, then the Broncos 3-2
  • NFC East: New York Giants 3-1-1, then the Eagles 2-3
  • NFC North: Minnesota Vikings 5-0, then the Lions 3-2
  • NFC South: Carolina Panthers 2-2, then the Falcons 2-3
  • NFC West: San Francisco 49ers 5-0, then the Seahawks 3-2

How the NFL playoffs work

Fourteen teams make it, seven from the AFC and seven from the NFC. Each conference’s four division winners take seeds 1 to 4 in order of record; the three best non-winners are the wild cards, seeds 5 to 7. A division winner always gets a home playoff game, even with a worse record than a wild card.

Only the No. 1 seed skips the Wild Card round, where 2 hosts 7, 3 hosts 6 and 4 hosts 5. The bracket is then reseeded: the No. 1 seed hosts the lowest seed left in the Divisional round, and the higher seed hosts every game until the Super Bowl, played at a neutral site.

NFL tiebreakers, step by step

Two teams in the same division

  1. Head-to-head record
  2. Record in division games
  3. Record in common games
  4. Record in conference games
  5. Strength of victory: the combined record of the teams it beat
  6. Strength of schedule: the combined record of all its opponents
  7. Points rankings in the conference, then in the league; net points in common games, then in all games
  8. Coin toss

Wild cards and seeding

  1. Teams from the same division are first ranked with the division steps; only the best of each division stays in the tie.
  2. Head-to-head, if the teams met (with three or more teams: only a sweep counts, one team beating, or losing to, all the others)
  3. Record in conference games
  4. Record in common games, at least four
  5. Strength of victory, then strength of schedule
  6. Points rankings, net points in conference games, then in all games, then a coin toss

When a step leaves one team ahead, it wins the tie and the others start over from the first step. When a step only drops some of three or more teams, the rest start over too, with the two-team steps once two remain. The predictor applies all of this; the points steps can only use games already played, since a pick has no score, and a perfect tie between picked results falls to a fixed coin toss.

NFL playoff predictor FAQ

How does the NFL playoff predictor work?
Every game already played is locked with its real score. For each remaining game of the 2026 regular season you pick the winner, or a tie. The standings, the seven playoff seeds of each conference and the bracket are recalculated after every pick with the NFL’s tie-breaking procedures. Then you pick the playoff games, one round at a time, up to a Super Bowl champion.
How many teams make the NFL playoffs?
Fourteen: seven per conference. The four division winners are seeded 1 to 4 by record, even if a wild card has a better one, and the three best remaining teams are seeds 5 to 7. Only the No. 1 seed gets a first-round bye.
How are NFL ties in the standings broken?
Inside a division: head-to-head, division record, record in common games, conference record, strength of victory, strength of schedule, then points rankings and net points. For a wild card between teams of different divisions: head-to-head if they met (a sweep with three or more teams), conference record, common games (at least four), strength of victory and strength of schedule. Only the best team of each division takes part in a wild-card tie. The last resort is a coin toss.
Can I predict my team’s record?
Yes. Choose your team at the top, or switch the picks to the team view and mark each game a win, a loss or a tie. The card shows the final record, the seed it earns and how far it goes in your bracket, for example “Your Chiefs finish 13-4, AFC #2 seed”.
How is the playoff bracket seeded after the first round?
The NFL reseeds. After the Wild Card round, the No. 1 seed hosts the lowest seed still alive and the other two winners play each other, the higher seed at home. The higher seed also hosts the conference championship game; the Super Bowl is at a neutral site.
What do the Favourites, Home teams and Random buttons do?
They fill every game you have not picked yet. Favourites follows the betting line when one is published, otherwise a power rating built from this season’s point margins, last season’s and a small home-field edge. Random flips a weighted coin for each game, so favourites win more often but upsets happen. Your own picks are never overwritten.
How does a tie game count?
As half a win and half a loss for both teams, as in the official standings: a 9-7-1 team has a .559 winning percentage.
Where do the results come from, and how often are they updated?
Schedules, final scores and betting lines come from the open nflverse data project, with ESPN’s public scoreboard as a backup. The page refreshes every three hours, so a game played on Sunday is locked in by the evening.
Can I share my prediction?
Yes. Every pick is stored in the page address, so the link opens your exact season and bracket. “Share my prediction” opens your phone’s share sheet, and “Copy as text” copies your seeds, champion and link for a group chat. Your picks are also saved in this browser.

Schedule and results from nflverse. Sportsdle is not affiliated with the NFL or its teams.

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