NFL playoff picture Week 14: Eagles' loss leaves Cowboys in play for NFC East

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NFL playoff picture Week 14: Eagles' loss leaves Cowboys in play for NFC East

NFL playoff picture Week 14: Eagles' loss leaves Cowboys in play for NFC East

Nate Davis, USA TODAY · USA TODAY Sports

Sun, Dec 7, 2025 ·

8 min read

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Every week for the duration of the 2025 regular season , USA TODAY Sports will provide timely updates to the NFL 's ever-evolving playoff picture − typically starting Sunday afternoon and then moving forward for the remainder of the week (through Monday's and Thursday's games or Saturday's, if applicable. And, when the holidays roll around, we'll be watching then, too).

What just happened? What does it mean? What are the pertinent factors (and, perhaps, tiebreakers) prominently in play as each conference's seven-team bracket begins to crystallize? All will be explained and analyzed up to the point when the postseason field is finalized on Sunday, Jan. 4.

Here's where things stand with Week 14 now complete:

Week 1: Detroit Lions wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa (18) makes a catch for a touchdown against the Green Bay Packers during the fourth quarter at Lambeau Field. The play was originally ruled an incomplete pass, but the call was overturned. Despite TeSlaa's effort, the Packers won the game 27-13.

(Jeff Hanisch, Imagn Images)

Week 1: The New England Patriots' Robert Spillane (14) and Christian Elliss (53) tackle Las Vegas Raiders tight end Michael Mayer (87) during the second half at Gillette Stadium. The Raiders won the game, 20-13.
(Bob DeChiara, Imagn Images)

Week 1: New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson (3) fumbles the ball on a tackle by Washington Commanders safety Will Harris (3) during the first quarter at Northwest Stadium. It was a rough Giants debut for Wilson (17 of 37 passing for 168 yards) as the Commanders won the game, 21-6.
(Peter Casey, Imagn Images)

Week 1: Fireworks go off before the NFL Kickoff Game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys at Lincoln Financial Field. The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles opened the season with a 24-20 victory over their longtime NFC East rivals.
(Eric Hartline, Imagn Images)

AFC playoff picture

1. Denver Broncos (11-2), AFC West leaders: They beat the Raiders on Sunday, winning their 10th in a row, matching New England 's victory total and overtaking the Patriots for possession of the top seed by virtue of a conference record (7-2) that is a half-game better. Remaining schedule: vs. Packers , vs. Jaguars , at Chiefs , vs. Chargers

2. New England Patriots (11-2), AFC East leaders: The first team in the league to reach 11 wins thanks to Week 13's rollover of the Giants , the Pats remain in a very tight race with Denver, the teams' airtight tiebreakers now in effect with the Broncos playing their 13th game Sunday. New England will officially wrap up its division by sweeping the Bills on Sunday. Remaining schedule: vs. Bills , at Ravens , at Jets , vs. Dolphins

3. Jacksonville Jaguars (9-4), AFC South leaders: They claimed first place outright by smashing the depleted Colts on Sunday in Duval County. But the Texans now loom as the bona fide threat. Remaining schedule: vs. Jets, at Broncos, vs. Colts , at Titans

4. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6), AFC North leaders: They jumped up five spots, from out of the field back into the division lead by winning at Baltimore on Sunday. Remaining schedule: vs. Dolphins, at Lions , at Browns , vs. Ravens

5. Los Angeles Chargers (9-4), wild card No. 1: They've won five of six after surviving the Eagles on Monday night. A one-win advantage in AFC games (7-2) moves them ahead of Buffalo. Remaining schedule: at Chiefs, at Cowboys , vs. Texans , at Broncos

6. Buffalo Bills (9-4), wild card No. 1: Massive win over Cincinnati solidifies their playoff standing heading into a notable showdown at Foxborough in Week 15 to face the AFC East-leading Pats. Remaining schedule: at Patriots, at Browns , vs. Eagles, vs. Jets

7. Houston Texans (8-5), wild card No. 3: They've won six of seven, including five in a row. Beating the Chiefs at Arrowhead moved Houston into a wild-card slot by virtue of their Week 13 defeat of Indianapolis . Remaining schedule: vs. Cardinals , vs. Raiders , at Chargers, vs. Colts

8. Indianapolis Colts (8-5), in the hunt: They've dropped four of their past five and lost QB Daniel Jones to an Achilles injury Sunday in Jacksonville. Houston's win Sunday night dropped Indy from the projected field entirely. And the schedule doesn't let up the rest of the way. Remaining schedule: at Seahawks , vs. 49ers , vs. Jaguars , at Texans

9. Baltimore Ravens (6-7), in the hunt: Consecutive losses − and to AFC North foes ( Bengals , Steelers) − has them on the outside looking in. A 4-5 record in AFC games places them ahead of K.C. and Miami . Remaining schedule: at Bengals , vs. Patriots, at Packers , at Steelers

10. Kansas City Chiefs (6-7), in the hunt: Their chances to win a 10th straight AFC West title are officially null and void. And Sunday night's loss to Houston means they'll likely miss the postseason for the first time since 2014 − Andy Reid's second year in K.C. And don't forget they've lost to the Broncos, Chargers, Bills, Texans and Jags, who are all ahead of them. Remaining schedule: vs. Chargers, at Titans, vs. Broncos, at Raiders

11. Miami Dolphins (6-7), in the hunt: They probably need to win the remainder of their games to even have a shot at postseason qualification but notched another one Sunday in New York. Remaining schedule: at Steelers, vs. Bengals, vs. Buccaneers , at Patriots

12. Cincinnati Bengals (4-9), in the hunt: They basically need to win the remainder of their games to even have a shot at postseason qualification ... though they probably have a better one than Miami by virtue of living in this year's surprisingly subpar AFC North. Remaining schedule: vs. Ravens, at Dolphins, vs. Cardinals , vs. Browns

NFC playoff picture

1. Los Angeles Rams (10-3), NFC West leaders: They regained the inside track for home-field advantage and a first-round bye by demolishing the Cardinals and benefiting from Chicago 's loss to Green Bay . The Rams' Week 11 defeat of Seattle remains pivotal. A win Sunday clinches a postseason berth. Remaining schedule: vs. Lions, at Seahawks , at Falcons , vs. Cardinals

2. Green Bay Packers (9-3-1), NFC North leaders: They got the best of the archrival Bears , a consequential win that put the Pack back on top of the division and just a half-game off the conference pace. Remaining schedule: at Broncos, at Bears, vs. Ravens, at Vikings

3. Philadelphia Eagles (8-5), NFC East leaders: Three losses in a row not only mean a lot more scrutiny but − beware − a team that could still fall into the Cowboys' clutches in the division if it's not careful. Remaining schedule: vs. Raiders, at Commanders , at Bills, vs. Commanders

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-6), NFC South leaders: They remain in first place despite a damaging loss to New Orleans . The Bucs currently have a one-game lead over Carolina in the common-games tiebreaker department. Remaining schedule: vs. Falcons, at Panthers , at Dolphins, vs. Panthers

5. Seattle Seahawks (10-3), wild card No. 1: Sunday's rout of Falcons moved them atop the conference ... for a few hours. But the Rams' win at Arizona pushed Seattle back to the wild-card echelon. All three of the 'Hawks' losses are against NFC opponents, including two in the division − defeats that don't serve them well in tiebreaker scenarios. Remaining schedule: vs. Colts, vs. Rams, at Panthers, at 49ers

6. San Francisco 49ers (9-4), wild card No. 2: They're in a precarious spot given their pursuers, yet are just behind the Rams and Seahawks for the NFC West lead also. Off last weekend, the Niners were in no danger of vacating the field. Remaining schedule: vs. Titans, at Colts, vs. Bears, vs. Seahawks

7. Chicago Bears (9-4), wild card No. 3: How tightly packed is the NFC? One narrow loss dropped the Bears from first place in the conference to seventh, just a game ahead of the division rival Lions. Remaining schedule: vs. Browns, vs. Packers, at 49ers, vs. Lions

8. Detroit Lions (8-5), in the hunt: Huge win over Dallas on Thursday night . It brought the Lions within a game of the NFC's final wild card and helped them in the division standings given Chicago's Sunday reversal. Remaining schedule: at Rams, vs. Steelers, at Vikings, at Bears

9. Carolina Panthers (7-6), in the hunt: Though on bye last week, the Panthers pulled even atop the NFC South and are in position to take over. Remaining schedule: at Saints, vs. Buccaneers , vs. Seahawks, at Buccaneers

10. Dallas Cowboys (6-6-1), in the hunt: Crippling loss Thursday in Motown . Dallas ' best bet now is to hope the Eagles continue to struggle and leave the NFC East in play, the Cowboys' chances to qualify creeping up to 10% on Monday, per the NFL's Next Gen Stats. Remaining schedule: vs. Vikings, vs. Chargers, at Commanders, at Giants

NFL playoff-clinching scenarios for Week 15

Denver clinches a playoff berth with:

Win OR
Houston loss or tie + Indianapolis loss or tie (but not if both teams tie) OR
There are also multiple scenarios that involve a Broncos tie combined with losses and/or ties by other teams

New England clinches AFC East title with:

▶ Win

New England clinches playoff berth with:

Houston loss or tie + Indianapolis loss or tie (but not if both teams tie) OR
There are also multiple scenarios that involve a Patriots tie combined with losses and/or ties by other teams

Los Angeles Rams clinch a playoff berth with:

▶ Win