The season is over. The playoffs are set. Before I get deep into the playoffs though, I want to do my final regular season rankings. Playoff predictions and regular season football are different things. These rankings will reflect the long season that began four months ago. The playoffs are about being able to string together three or four wins.

So anyway, here’s the last rankings. The rest to follow.

12/30 rankings. 12/24 rankings. 12/16 rankings. 12/9 rankings. 12/3 rankings. 11/26 rankings. 11/18 rankings. 11/11 rankings. 11/4 rankings. 10/28 rankings. 10/21 rankings. 10/15 rankings. 10/8 rankings. 9/30 rankings. 9/24 rankings. 9/16 rankings. 9/9 rankings.

1. Seattle Seahawks
2. Denver Broncos
3. New England Patriots
4. Jacksonville Jaguars
5. Houston Texans
6. Chicago Bears
7. Philadelphia Eagles
8. Los Angeles Rams
9. Buffalo Bills
10. San Francisco 49’ers
11. Los Angeles Chargers
12. Green Bay Packers
13. Pittsburgh Steelers
14. Carolina Panthers
15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
16. Minnesota Vikings
17. Atlanta Falcons
18. Baltimore Ravens
19. Detroit Lions
20. Dallas Cowboys
21. Miami Dolphins
22. Indianapolis Colts
23. New Orleans Saints
24. Cincinnati Bengals
25. Kansas City Chiefs
26. Cleveland Browns
27. Washington Commanders
28. Tennessee Titans
29. New York Jets
30. Arizona Cardinals
31. New York Giants
32. Las Vegas Raiders

There are so many dumpster fires in this group, but one could fairly say the top 23 teams all at least had a good point in the season. For teams #15-32, it’s the offseason. Coaching changes, the draft, and free agency await. I won’t be changing the order there anymore at this point. Obviously the most disappointing season goes to the Chiefs, which isn’t really necessarily anyone’s fault, time just caught up to them. The most hopeful of the non-playoff teams, to me, should be New Orleans.

So, about the playoffs- totally different season. If the regular season is about consistency and repeating good habits, the playoffs are about top end talent, typically. Now, there is a lot of crossover- the last three NFC champs were top two seeds- but it’s not a lock. This year you have Wild Cards like the Rams and 49’ers who have made recent runs to the Super Bowl, and teams like Buffalo with plenty of experience at this time of year. So what’s my take about this week’s games?

• Rams (-10.5) @ Panthers- The Rams should win this and cover, however I did watch this regular season game, and Bryce Young and the Panthers offense looked really good. Also, the Panthers have been winning every other week for like two months, and are coming off of a loss. So I’m tempted to bet on the Panthers to at least cover, and I think I like the over in this game. However, in the real world, I’d be shocked if the Rams don’t win this.
• Packers (-1.5) @ Bears- I don’t think the Bears are flukes. I also don’t think they win this game. These two teams split this season, with the Bears winning the more recent game. It was an exciting, back and forth game though, one that the Packers found every way to lose. This is a divisional game, and those are way harder to win two in a row. It also sounds like the Packers are a bit healthier this week, so I’m calling the upset.
• Bills (-1.5) @ Jaguars- This one is a hard game to predict. Jacksonville had one of the hottest finishes in football. They are a surprise to be here though, while the only surprise with Buffalo is that they’re on the road. I feel like Buffalo needs to get it done this year. On the other hand, Lawrence has played plenty of postseason games, and has wins too. I have the least feel for this one, but I’ll take Buffalo on here, I guess.
• 49’ers @ Eagles (-4.5)- I love my Eagles, but this is a genuine heavyweight fight. After the Eagles, the Niners and Rams are probably the best two NFC teams of the past five years. Here the Niners are again, albeit with a very different team, back in Philly for a playoff game. Purdy and Shanahan have been in plenty of games, they won’t be intimidated. With that said, the travel, the home field advantage, and health all favor the team that won the Super Bowl last year. For those reasons, the Eagles should win. I just wouldn’t sleep on it.
• Chargers @ Patriots (-3.5)- Are the Chargers of today just the Chargers of the Rivers days? They’re really good, they have a great coach/QB combo. They’re here consistently. But is it ever their time? This is a far travel, to play a team who had a little bit better season. So the Patriots should be the favorites, and they are. Is this the time for the Chargers though? Doesn’t seem like it.
• Texans (-3) @ Steelers- The Steelers are a lot better than people give them credit for. If they keep Tomlin and Rodgers for next season, and add more talent around them, the 10-7 division champs could truly contend. However, what they need to do is find their future QB for after next year. The Texans should give them time to do that. This defense is absolutely elite, and up to the task of a deep playoff run.

There’s not much left to decide. With one game to go, we know six of the seven playoff participants in both conferences. We know that Denver, Seattle, and San Francisco control their destinies, in terms of winning home field. The order behind those teams could move a bit, but for the most part, it’s done.

The truth is that there are some teams who don’t care, and haven’t cared for weeks, and then there are some teams trying. So what is there to learn at this point? Not a ton. Just enough to hold your interest though, and that’s why you’ll watch this week. You still won’t really know who is the favorite in the NFC though, because you just won’t. The same could be said of the AFC, which none of you would trust anyway.

So basically you have a couple of meaningful games left. They are:

• Ravens-Steelers- the winner wins the AFC North. If the Steelers win, most people will make them the underdog now, no matter who they play in round one. If the Ravens win, people will start calling them the sleeper, and blah, blah, blah. Lamar has been hurt and inconsistent all year, but I guess that will all change when the calendar changes, according to some.
• Panthers-Buccaneers- If you still believe there are football gods, the Bucs should disprove that for you. They have been one of the worst football teams in the league for about two months, and yet they’re a home win against an 8-8 team away from the playoffs. They’ll probably be favored at kickoff. Meanwhile the Panthers grew from a hideous football team early to become really no worse than some of the NFC’s “contenders” after the first month. And yet, they both have a chance.
• Seahawks-Niners- Winner gets home field, a bye, and wins the best division in football this year. Loser gets either five (Seahawks, where they will still be favored) or six (possible for the Niners, but the reward is a trip to Philadelphia in January). This is literally a difference of having the easiest or one of the hardest roads to the Super Bowl. The Niners might never leave home again this season, a streak that would encompass the last two games of the season, two rounds of the playoffs, and the Super Bowl, or they could travel 3,000 miles to a hostile environment. Completely insane.
• There are other games that sort of matter for seeding, or could matter if Denver were to lose, but those are remote possibilities.

Ok, so on to the rankings.

12/24 rankings. 12/16 rankings. 12/9 rankings. 12/3 rankings. 11/26 rankings. 11/18 rankings. 11/11 rankings. 11/4 rankings. 10/28 rankings. 10/21 rankings. 10/15 rankings. 10/8 rankings. 9/30 rankings. 9/24 rankings. 9/16 rankings. 9/9 rankings.

1. Seattle Seahawks
2. Denver Broncos
3. New England Patriots
4. San Francisco 49’ers
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
6. Houston Texans
7. Chicago Bears
8. Philadelphia Eagles
9. Los Angeles Rams
10. Buffalo Bills
11. Los Angeles Chargers
12. Baltimore Ravens
13. Green Bay Packers
14. Pittsburgh Steelers
15. Carolina Panthers
16. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
17. Minnesota Vikings
18. Atlanta Falcons
19. Detroit Lions
20. Dallas Cowboys
21. Miami Dolphins
22. Indianapolis Colts
23. New Orleans Saints
24. Cincinnati Bengals
25. Kansas City Chiefs
26. Cleveland Browns
27. Washington Commanders
28. Tennessee Titans
29. New York Jets
30. Arizona Cardinals
31. New York Giants
32. Las Vegas Raiders

We have a new #1. At least for now? Sure, Seattle took over the lead in the NFC by themselves on Thursday. Now all they have to do is beat Carolina and San Francisco on the road to hold it. No big deal. The Rams have a stupid easy finish, so there’s no margin for error for Seattle. Meanwhile San Francisco and Chicago remain alive as well, and well, they play each other this week. Green Bay still could factor into everything, and they finish with a desperate Baltimore team and a game in Minnesota. Philadelphia will be #2 or 3, and it’s probably three, but they have a tough game in Buffalo before coming home for Washington.

In the AFC everything is a mess. Denver probably still finishes first, but the Chargers still can catch them for the division, and they just lost to Jacksonville, who can also catch them. New England loses the tiebreaker to Denver, but that’s assuming they don’t win the top spot outright. Of course, if they don’t win out, they may not even hold off Buffalo. By the way, Houston is right in this thing too. And Pittsburgh, they just keep winning.

On to the rankings.

12/16 rankings. 12/9 rankings. 12/3 rankings. 11/26 rankings. 11/18 rankings. 11/11 rankings. 11/4 rankings. 10/28 rankings. 10/21 rankings. 10/15 rankings. 10/8 rankings. 9/30 rankings. 9/24 rankings. 9/16 rankings. 9/9 rankings.

1. Seattle Seahawks
2. Denver Broncos
3. New England Patriots
4. Los Angeles Rams
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
6. Buffalo Bills
7. San Francisco 49’ers
8. Chicago Bears
9. Los Angeles Chargers
10. Houston Texans
11. Philadelphia Eagles
12. Green Bay Packers
13. Pittsburgh Steelers
14. Carolina Panthers
15. Detroit Lions
16. Baltimore Ravens
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
18. Indianapolis Colts
19. Minnesota Vikings
20. Atlanta Falcons
21. Dallas Cowboys
22. Miami Dolphins
23. Kansas City Chiefs
24. New Orleans Saints
25. Cincinnati Bengals
26. Washington Commanders
27. Cleveland Browns
28. Tennessee Titans
29. New York Jets
30. Arizona Cardinals
31. New York Giants
32. Las Vegas Raiders

How ’bout them Cowboys?

John Cena graduated high school, played college football, became a bodybuilder, joined the WWE, became the top star in the company, went to Hollywood, and retired from WWE after a 23-year career…

all before the Cowboys made it back to an NFC Championship Game.#ThankYouCena pic.twitter.com/x40qWeEhOB

— Eagles Fan Central (@PhilaFanCentral) December 14, 2025

Ok, now that I got that out of my system, the NFL made sense of itself this weekend. The overwhelming majority of the league is now either in, out, or damn near out. Kansas City is eliminated and no longer has to be treated as a threat. Dallas did what Dallas does. Miami’s mini run is over and they’re done. Cincinnati is finished. Meanwhile Tampa tried to hand the division away, but Carolina handed it back. Buffalo is in fact not dead, and Denver is on it’s way to home field. Things make sense now. Mostly. Jacksonville makes no sense, but we’ll see where things are in a couple of weeks.

On to the rankings.

12/9 rankings. 12/3 rankings. 11/26 rankings. 11/18 rankings. 11/11 rankings. 11/4 rankings. 10/28 rankings. 10/21 rankings. 10/15 rankings. 10/8 rankings. 9/30 rankings. 9/24 rankings. 9/16 rankings. 9/9 rankings.

1. Denver Broncos
2. Los Angeles Rams
3. Seattle Seahawks
4. New England Patriots
5. Buffalo Bills
6. Jacksonville Jaguars
7. San Francisco 49’ers
8. Chicago Bears
9. Green Bay Packers
10. Los Angeles Chargers
11. Houston Texans
12. Philadelphia Eagles
13. Pittsburgh Steelers
14. Baltimore Ravens
15. Detroit Lions
16. Indianapolis Colts
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
18. Carolina Panthers
19. Minnesota Vikings
20. Dallas Cowboys
21. Atlanta Falcons
22. Miami Dolphins
23. Kansas City Chiefs
24. Cincinnati Bengals
25. New Orleans Saints
26. Washington Commanders
27. Cleveland Browns
28. New York Jets
29. Arizona Cardinals
30. New York Giants
31. Tennessee Titans
32. Las Vegas Raiders

Here’s a serious question- is there a chance that both Super Bowl teams from last year, teams that have met in two of the last three Super Bowls, miss the playoffs? The answer is yes. With that said, the answer is that is still unlikely. Kansas City is dead in the water at this point, sure. Philadelphia looks cooked, but they play Las Vegas and Washington for three of their last four games. With even a 2-2 finish, the Eagles are 10-7. Dallas would have to win out to beat that. Even so, it’s possible.

As soon as everyone got high on Chicago being good, they go and get manhandled in Green Bay, a team who has their flaws too. Go figure. Increasingly to me, it looks like the Rams are the team to beat in the NFC, just by being consistent. The West and North are very good divisions, and their finishes should be exciting. The East is really just a matter of if Philadelphia can beat a couple of teams playing out the string the next two weeks, and the South is a dumpster fire where the Carolina Panthers feel like the hot hand. Remember back in September when the Buccaneers looked great and Baker was leading the MVP chase. That was fun.

Denver now has all two way tiebreakers over New England, which is insane to me, but whatever. Those two look great. Jacksonville has shocked everyone and taken over the South, but Houston is charging hard and has the best defense in the league right now. The Chargers and Bills are very alive, and I wouldn’t want them in that Wild Card round if I were one of these young upstart teams. Someone has to win the North. Increasingly that looks like Pittsburgh. Is this good for that franchise? Probably not. Nobody else seems to want this division title though. While I still wouldn’t be shocked if the Ravens win if it comes down to the head-to-head in the final game, right now Pittsburgh has the edge.

Now, this week’s rankings.

12/3 rankings. 11/26 rankings. 11/18 rankings. 11/11 rankings. 11/4 rankings. 10/28 rankings. 10/21 rankings. 10/15 rankings. 10/8 rankings. 9/30 rankings. 9/24 rankings. 9/16 rankings. 9/9 rankings.

1. Denver Broncos
2. New England Patriots
3. Los Angeles Rams
4. Green Bay Packers
5. Seattle Seahawks
6. Buffalo Bills
7. Jacksonville Jaguars
8. San Francisco 49’ers
9. Chicago Bears
10. Los Angeles Chargers
11. Houston Texans
12. Detroit Lions
13. Philadelphia Eagles
14. Indianapolis Colts
15. Carolina Panthers
16. Dallas Cowboys
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
18. Miami Dolphins
19. Pittsburgh Steelers
20. Baltimore Ravens
21. Kansas City Chiefs
22. Minnesota Vikings
23. Cincinnati Bengals
24. Atlanta Falcons
25. Cleveland Browns
26. New York Jets
27. Arizona Cardinals
28. New Orleans Saints
29. Washington Commanders
30. New York Giants
31. Tennessee Titans
32. Las Vegas Raiders

Serious question here- could you be watching a Bears-Patriots football game on Sunday, February 8th at 6:30pm Eastern. I’m going to still tell you probably not. The fact that it’s December and we can still discuss it means we’re well past the point of calling it ridiculous. By the way, you could substitute in the Seahawks, the Broncos, the Jaguars, and even far more remotely, the Panthers here. There are some teams that are not supposed to be this good that are now. Does this mean write off the Rams, Eagles, Bills, or any other early favorites? No, but as I told you last week, I was pumping the brakes on all the Rams talk. I’m kind of at the point I’m pumping the brakes on everyone though. Is anyone that great? If you had to bet your life on any of these teams, would you? I wouldn’t.

The Bears looked really good against the Eagles. Yes, the Eagles looked really bad too, and these last two games have shades of 2023, but don’t knock the Bears. They committed to the run and made the game much more simple for their second year QB in a hostile environment. Their coach, and more importantly their defense, did the job. The Patriots and Broncos had more trouble than they should have against weak NFC East teams this past week, but neither has lost in a couple months now. We’re going to rank them as if they’re legit this week. Even if I’m not convinced they’re going all the way.

11/26 Rankings. 11/18 Rankings. 11/11 Rankings. 11/4 Rankings. 10/28 Rankings. 10/21 Rankings. 10/15 Rankings. 10/8 Rankings. 9/30 Rankings. 9/24 Rankings. 9/16 Rankings. 9/9 Rankings.

1. Denver Broncos
2. New England Patriots
3. Chicago Bears
4. Los Angeles Rams
5. Green Bay Packers
6. Seattle Seahawks
7. Buffalo Bills
8. Jacksonville Jaguars
9. San Francisco 49’ers
10. Philadelphia Eagles
11. Los Angeles Chargers
12. Indianapolis Colts
13. Houston Texans
14. Detroit Lions
15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
16. Carolina Panthers
17. Dallas Cowboys
18. Baltimore Ravens
19. Kansas City Chiefs
20. Miami Dolphins
21. Pittsburgh Steelers
22. Cincinnati Bengals
23. Minnesota Vikings
24. Atlanta Falcons
25. Arizona Cardinals
26. Cleveland Browns
27. Washington Commanders
28. New York Jets
29. New Orleans Saints
30. New York Giants
31. Las Vegas Raiders
32. Tennessee Titans

Well, we got a bit of a shake up at the top, right? Philadelphia and Indianapolis lost kind of ugly games to annoying teams on the road. Sure. I’m not going to do what everyone is doing though and bump the Rams to the top, at least not yet. Do the Rams have a great record, winning coach, winning quarterback, and some decent wins lately? Sure. They even have a championship with this coach-QB combo. I’m just not totally shaking up the top over one week. The top two stay as the top two. Really the top 11 aren’t changing much.

The middle of the pack is way more interesting. You have 7-4 disappointments (Buffalo) and a ton of teams with 4 to 6 wins where how we talk about them is almost entirely lacking in any consideration of the fact that they all basically have the same record. Kansas City is “disappointing” at 6-5, but Carolina is on the up and up at 6-6. Really? We are just creating distinctions so we can interpret what “basically .500” means in this league. It’s silly and really belongs in a fiction aisle.

Anyway, here’s this week’s rankings.

11/18 rankings. 11/11 rankings. 11/4 rankings. 10/28 rankings. 10/21 rankings. 10/15 rankings. 10/8 rankings. 9/30 rankings. 9/24 rankings. 9/16 rankings. 9/9 rankings.

1. Denver Broncos
2. New England Patriots
3. Los Angeles Rams
4. Philadelphia Eagles
5. Indianapolis Colts
6. Chicago Bears
7. Buffalo Bills
8. Green Bay Packers
9. Seattle Seahawks
10. San Francisco 49’ers
11. Detroit Lions
12. Jacksonville Jaguars
13. Los Angeles Chargers
14. Baltimore Ravens
15. Houston Texans
16. Kansas City Chiefs
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
18. Pittsburgh Steelers
19. Carolina Panthers
20. Dallas Cowboys
21. Miami Dolphins
22. Minnesota Vikings
23. Atlanta Falcons
24. Cincinnati Bengals
25. Arizona Cardinals
26. Cleveland Browns
27. Washington Commanders
28. New Orleans Saints
29. New York Giants
30. New York Jets
31. Las Vegas Raiders
32. Tennessee Titans