The 2023-24 NFL regular season will end after Week 18 on Sunday, January 7th, 2023. The NFL playoffs will begin January 13 with two games and Wildcard Weekend will run through January 15. The Super Bowl will be played Sunday, February 11, 2024.
The image above – which will be updated after each week of the 2023-24 NFL season – displays the 2023-24 NFL Playoff bracket and has been updated following Sunday Night Football of Week 14.
You’ll find much more NFL playoff information on this page. The only thing we don’t have here is NFL playoff odds, which include odds to make and miss the playoffs. You can jump to a specific section using the links below:
NFL Playoff Picture | NFL Playoff Dates & Schedule | Clinched Playoffs | Clinching Scenarios | Remaining Schedules | Eliminated | NFL Playoff FAQs
NFL Playoff Picture
The top seven teams from the AFC will make the playoffs. The 2023-24 NFL playoff picture shows a few new teams entering the fold in the AFC, but keep in mind there is still lots of football to be played.
The Chiefs, Ravens, Jaguars, and Dolphins are the teams who currently sit in a playoff spot in the AFC who also made the playoffs last season. The Steelers, Browns, and Colts would be three new faces if they were to hold onto their playoff spots. Notably, the Bills currently do not sit in a playoff position.
The top seven seeds in the NFC will make the playoffs. The NFC currently has four teams who sit in a playoff position for 2023-24 NFL playoffs who also made last year’s postseason: the Eagles, 49ers, Cowboys, Buccaneers, and Vikings. The Packers and Lions would be new faces.
NFL Playoff Dates & Schedule
The 2023-24 NFL Playoffs will be the third year to feature “Super Wild Card Weekend,” where there will only be two games played on the Saturday so there’s a game to be played on Monday night of Wild Card Weekend. It will be the fourth year of the “new” playoff format that sees seven teams get in from each conference and only the top seed from each conference receiving a bye.
The Super Bowl will kick off at 6:30pm ET on Sunday, February 11 at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada.
Teams Who Have Clinched a Playoff Spot
The order the teams are listed in above is not indicative of their playoff seeding, rather the order they clinched playoff berths in.
We didn’t see any team clinch a playoff spot last year until Week 14. We enter Week 14 of the 2023 season with no teams having clinched a playoff berth yet, but Philadelphia, Dallas, and San Francisco all have a chance to clinch this week
When we see more teams start to clinch 2023-24 NFL playoff berths, we will record them here.
Playoff Clinching Scenarios
Once we get to Week 16 (or so) of the 2023-24 NFL season, we will start filling out the playoff clinching scenarios above. For now, it is just too early in the season to have any clear view of a team clinching.
Remaining Schedules for Teams in Playoff Hunt
When we get later in the 2023-24 NFL season, we will start tracking the remaining opponents for all teams in the NFL playoff hunt.
Teams Eliminated from Playoff Contention
Just like last season, we saw our first team eliminated from postseason contention after Week 13. This year it was the Carolina Panthers. The New England Patriots became the second team eliminated from the playoffs, and the first AFC team eliminated, after Week 14.
How Many Teams Make the NFL Playoffs?
Starting in the 2020 NFL season (2021 NFL Playoffs), seven teams from each conference get into the NFL playoffs. This makes a total of 14 teams in the playoffs.
Prior to this, only six teams from each conference made the playoffs, and 12 total. The format change starting in the 2020-21 NFL season was made to add two more teams to the postseason, one in each conference.
How Many Teams Get a First-Round Bye in the NFL Playoffs?
The change to the NFL playoff format ahead of the 2020-21 NFL season also saw an adjustment to the number of teams who get a first-round bye. With seven teams from each conference making the playoffs, only one team—the top seed—from each conference gets a bye through the wildcard round.
Prior to the change, the top two seeds in each conference would get a bye through the wildcard round. With only one team from each conference getting a first-round bye, the NFL added another wildcard game to each conference, totaling six wildcard games now instead of four.
How Do the NFL Playoffs Work?
As mentioned above, seven teams from each conference (the AFC and NFC) make the NFL playoffs. Each team who makes the playoffs is seeded from 1-7 in their respective conference. The two conferences do not mix or meet until the Super Bowl.
The top four seeds in each conference are given to the teams who win their division. These four division winners are ordered 1-4 based on their records. The final three spots—seeds 5 to 7—in each conference are called “wildcard spots”. These are given to the three non-division winners who have the best records in their conference.
The NFL playoffs begin with the Wildcard Round. The top seed in each conference gets a bye through this round, leaving three games to be played in each conference. The matchups are as follows: 7-seed vs 2-seed, 6-seed vs 3-seed, and 5-seed vs 4-seed.
The NFL playoffs are not a traditional bracket, where teams move through to a fixed spot. The second round of the NFL playoffs is called the Divisional Round. The 1-seed in each conference, who was given a bye through the Wildcard Round, will get matched up with the worst remaining team in their respective conference. If the 7-seed were to upset the 2-seed, they would have to play the 1-seed in the Divisional Round. After setting the best-vs-worst matchup, the remaining two teams in each conference (second-best and second-worst seeds remaining) will battle it out in the other Divisional Round matchup.
After the Divisional Round comes the Conference Championships, where there are only two teams remaining in each conference. These two teams will play for the right to go to the Super Bowl and play the conference champion from the other side.
Best Promos for Betting on NFL Playoffs
Looking for the best promos for betting on the NFL playoffs? We’ve compiled a list of our favorites to help you get started.
Hit the links in the left column to get more information on the best promo codes from each sportsbook, or use the links in the right column to start the registration process and unlock the listed offer. If you’re looking for a new app to bet on the NFL this season, look no further than the ESPN Bet sportsbook with a bonus available using this ESPN Bet promo code for new users.
These sign-up promos will get you started at some of the best sportsbooks for betting on the NFL playoffs. Operators like DraftKings, Bet365, BetMGM, FanDuel, and Caesars Sportsbook offer attractive welcome offers to attract new customers who want to wager on all the post-season action.
