The final week of the NFL regular season has arrived — and there’s still a lot to be decided as the playoffs near.

While 12 of the 14 postseason berths have already been clinched, just one playoff-bound team is locked into a seed. And the two remaining playoff spots are undecided division races — the AFC North is down to the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers, while the NFC South is down to the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Also up for grabs in Week 18 are division titles in the AFC South and NFC West, along with the coveted No. 1 seed in each conference.

So, what could the finalized playoff bracket look like? Here’s a guide to the Week 18 clinching scenarios and seeding possibilities:

What NFL teams are in the playoffs?

Playoff-bound teams from the AFC South — the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans — and the NFC West — the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers — will be vying for division titles in Week 18.

Here’s the full postseason field to this point:

AFC

NFC

What’s the NFL playoff bracket?

Here’s what the bracket looks like entering Week 18, with the Broncos and Seahawks currently occupying the No. 1 seeds which come with a first-round bye:

AFC

No. 7 Bills at No. 2 Patriots

No. 6 Chargers at No. 3 Jaguars

No. 5 Texans at No. 4 Steelers

NFC

No. 7 Packers at No. 2 Bears

No. 6 Rams at No. 3 Eagles

No. 5 49ers at No. 4 Panthers

AFC playoff picture, seeding possibilities

Six of the seven playoff spots in the AFC have at least three potential outcomes:

Broncos/Patriots/Jaguars

Patriots/Broncos/Jaguars

Jaguars/Broncos/Patriots/Texans

Steelers/Ravens

Texans/Jaguars/Chargers/Bills

Chargers/Jaguars/Texans/Bills

Bills/Jaguars/Texans/Chargers

There’s a three-team race for the AFC’s top seed between the Broncos, Patriots and Jaguars. Denver has the inside track, though, needing just a home win over the Chargers to clinch. The Broncos and Patriots can finish no worse than third, but the Jags could fall all the way down to seventh.

That’s because Jacksonville is still battling Houston for the AFC South title. The Jags have the easier path to the division crown, with a win or tie at home against the lowly Tennessee Titans being enough to clinch the division and a top-three seed. The Texans, meanwhile, need a home win over the Indianapolis Colts along with a Jacksonville loss to Tennessee. If the Texans win a third straight division title, they’ll be the No. 3 seed.

The No. 4 seed will go to the AFC North champion, which will be decided in the final game of the regular season between the Ravens and Steelers in Pittsburgh on Sunday Night Football.

The AFC South runner-up, along with the Bills and Chargers, will occupy the fifth, sixth and seventh playoff spots in some order.

AFC playoff clinching scenarios for Week 18

Here are the top clinching scenarios in the AFC, according to the NFL:

Broncos to clinch No. 1 seed: Win vs. Chargers OR tie vs. Chargers and Patriots loss/tie vs. Dolphins OR Patriots loss and Jaguars loss/tie vs. Titans

Patriots to clinch No. 1 seed: Win vs. Dolphins and Broncos loss/tie vs. Chargers OR tie vs. Dolphins and Broncos loss

Jaguars to clinch No. 1 seed: Win vs. Titans and Broncos loss vs. Chargers and Patriots loss vs. Dolphins

Jaguars to clinch AFC South: Win/tie vs. Titans OR Texans loss/tie vs. Colts

Texans to clinch AFC South, No. 3 seed: Win vs. Colts and Jaguars loss vs. Titans

Steelers to clinch AFC North, No. 4 seed: Win/tie vs. Ravens

Ravens to clinch AFC North, No. 4 seed: Win at Steelers

NFC playoff picture, seeding possibilities

The NFC playoff picture is much clearer:

Seahawks/49ers

Bears/Eagles

Eagles/Bears

Panthers/Buccaneers

49ers/Seahawks/Rams

Rams/49ers

Packers

The No. 1 seed, along with the NFC West title, will come down to a showdown between the Seahawks and 49ers hosted by San Francisco. The 49ers need to beat Seattle in order to obtain home-field advantage throughout the postseason, including in Super Bowl 60 being played at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

If the Seahawks lose, they will drop to the No. 5 seed and the Rams will finish sixth. A 49ers loss combined with a Rams home victory over the Arizona Cardinals would see Los Angeles leapfrog San Francisco for the No. 5 seed.

The Bears and Eagles will finish second and third in some order, but Chicago controls its own destiny for the No. 2 seed after beating the Birds in Philadelphia on Black Friday. The Eagles need a win or tie against the Washington Commanders at home and also have the Bears lose at home to the Detroit Lions. The No. 2 seed will host the No. 7 Packers in the Wild Card Round.

The No. 4 seed will be the NFC South champion, either the Panthers or Buccaneers. Carolina can secure their first division title since 2015 and first playoff berth since 2017 with a win or tie against the Bucs in Tampa, or with an Atlanta Falcons home win over the New Orleans Saints. The Bucs, meanwhile, have to beat Carolina and then need New Orleans to record a win or tie in Atlanta.

If Atlanta and Tampa Bay both win, it would set up a three-way tie for first place in the division with the Panthers owning the tiebreaker.

Week 18 NFC Seed Grid @NFLPlus

The Buccaneers cannot clinch the NFC South on Saturday – they need to beat the Panthers AND have the Falcons lose or tie vs the Saints on Sunday in order to win the division pic.twitter.com/TRaQgSkuCS

— Jack Andrade (@RealJackAndrade) December 30, 2025

NFC playoff clinching scenarios for Week 18

Here are the top clinching scenarios in the NFC, per the NFL:

Seahawks to clinch No. 1 seed: Win/tie at 49ers

49ers to clinch No. 1 seed: Win vs. Seahawks

Panthers to clinch NFC South title, No. 4 seed: Win/tie at Buccaneers OR Falcons win vs. Saints

Buccaneers to clinch NFC South title, No. 4 seed: Win vs. Panthers and Falcons loss/tie vs. Saints

How do the NFL playoffs work?

Teams are seeded No. 1 through No. 7 in each conference, with the four division winners ranked by regular-season record followed by the three wild-card teams ranked by regular-season record.

The matchups in the opening round of the playoffs are No. 2 vs. No. 7, No. 3 vs. No. 6, and No. 4 vs. No. 5.

Who gets a bye in the NFL playoffs?

Only the top seed in each conference gets a bye to the Divisional Round.

Does the NFL reseed in the playoffs?

Yes, the NFL reseeds in the playoffs. That means the top seed in each conference will draw the lowest-seeded team to advance beyond the opening round.

When do the NFL playoffs start?

The postseason is slated to begin with the Wild Card Round from Saturday, Jan. 10 to Monday, Jan. 12.

What’s the NFL playoff schedule?

The Divisional Round will then follow from Saturday, Jan 17 to Sunday, Jan. 18, setting up the AFC and NFC Championship Games on Sunday, Jan. 25.

When is the Super Bowl 2026?

The AFC and NFC champions will square off in Super Bowl LX on Sunday, Feb. 8.

Where is the Super Bowl 2026 being played?

Levi’s Stadium, home of the 49ers, in Santa Clara will host the Big Game.

When and where is Super Bowl 60? Here’s what to know about the NFL’s Big Game.