The Super Bowl LX picture has been turned upside down due to Bo Nix’s stunning season-ending ankle injury, hurting the Broncos and boosting the Patriots in the AFC postseason.
1. Seattle Seahawks (15-3) | Last week: 2 (+1)
For the Seahawks to come off their bye week the way they did was incredibly impressive, with a complete all-around showing while looking like a juggernaut versus the rival 49ers. Zach Charbonnet’s ACL tear is an unfortunate and under-the-radar blow to the offense, but Kenneth Walker III is running really well to help power a formula of running the ball and controlling the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. The definite concern is Sam Darnold’s struggles against the Los Angeles defense over the past couple of years, but hopefully his performance in the shootout Thursday Night Football win in December has him confident.
2. Denver Broncos (15-3) | Last week: 1 (-1)
There was some thought to moving the Broncos down to No. 4, but keeping them at No. 2—despite being sizable home underdogs with the line moving a ton due to the Nix injury—has to do with how fired up I think they could be on Sunday. They certainly hear all the noise and feel people have counted them out. The offense is elevated a ton by Nix and the pinpoint accuracy he throws with through coverage while also avoiding sacks at an ultra-elite level, but if Sean Payton has kept anything up his sleeve now is the time to bring it all out. Plus, Jarrett Stidham is one of the top backup quarterbacks in the league.
3. Los Angeles Rams (14-5) | Last week: 8 (+5)
Frigid Soldier Field was going to be a major challenge for the Rams, but they survived an overtime thriller to set up a Round 3 against the Seahawks—which is a total toss up before the NFC winner will likely be favored in the Big Game. It was surprising that Puka Nacua and Davante Adams were limited by the Bears for much of the Divisional Round, so look for them to have a bigger impact from start to finish this weekend.
4. New England Patriots (16-3) | Last week: 6 (+2)
Again, Denver could’ve been down here at No. 4, but the trip to Mile High is not an easy one. The New England defense might be able to stuff a struggling Broncos ground game to make things very difficult on an offense basically carried by its now-injured quarterback in the Divisional Round, but Drake Maye must take care of the ball on the other side versus a Denver pass rush that’s gotten home for 71 sacks this year.
5. Buffalo Bills (13-6) | Last week: 3 (-2)
The overwhelming player response (both former and current players) from the Bills pretty much says it all about the decision to fire Sean McDermott. It’s been obvious for years that the Bills roster is not close to a championship roster, with Josh Allen covering up issues. Nevertheless, they had opportunities to win at Denver and didn’t come through again. I’m back and forth on the catch or non-catch by Brandin Cooks, but it’s definitely something that should’ve been reviewed and follows a trend of things seemingly going against Buffalo in critical moments (like the quarterback sneak last postseason).
However, and this is nothing against Cooks—who has had a ton of success in the NFL and is known as a great teammate and talented player—but him being an aging player picked up in middle of the season after being released by the Saints as the go-to deep target for Allen is an indictment on the roster decisions and construction, is it not?
6. Chicago Bears (12-7) | Last week: 4 (-2)
They ultimately couldn’t complete the victory in overtime, but the Bears once again showed they’ll be a real threat in the league and not the team to count out with Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson leading the way. We’ll see how Chicago handles the increased expectations and a target on their back in 2026, but the future is bright.
7. San Francisco 49ers (13-6) | Last week: 5 (-2)
I think the 49ers pretty much ran out of gas, playing this season with so many injuries and such a heavy workload for Christian McCaffrey. It’s disappointing to have it end the way it did, but even in a game that wasn’t close guys like McCaffrey showed they have the hearts of champions. San Francisco can be proud of the way they played during a tough year.
8. Houston Texans (13-6) | Last week: 7 (-1)
Heading into the Divisional Round matchup at the Patriots, I thought the approach following the turnover-filled Wild Card Round win would be just take care of the ball and let the defense win it. So that performance by C.J. Stroud was shockingly disappointing for a squad that certainly could’ve gotten to Super Bowl LX. It sounds like there aren’t questions about Stroud’s status as Houston’s franchise guy, but they must figure things out to get him playing closer to the promising start he had as a rookie.