Wild Card NFL Power Rankings: Ranking All 14 Playoff Teams
The 2022 regular season is officially over, and the playoff field has been set. With that, it’s time to go over the postseason field and rank all 14 playoff teams in the Wild Card NFL power rankings.
1. Kansas City Chiefs, 14-3
- This Week: Bye
The Chiefs clinched the top seed in the AFC by putting a stomping on the Las Vegas Raiders, and once again, they swept the AFC West division. Heading into the playoffs, it’s hard to imagine a team upsetting the Chiefs in the AFC prior to the Championship Game.
2. Buffalo Bills, 13-3
- This Week: 1/15 vs. MIA
If there is a team that can upset the Chiefs, it’s likely the team that’s been a Super Bowl favorite all season long. Buffalo has had an emotional week with everything going on with Damar Hamlin, but they enter the playoffs as one of the best teams in the league. Perhaps they’ll be able to avenge last season’s heartbreaking loss to Kansas City.
3. San Francisco 49ers, 13-4
- This Week: 1/14 vs. SEA
The 49ers are unequivocally the hottest team in football right now, even with third string QB Brock Purdy under center. San Francisco is now 5-0 with the rookie as a starter, and after starting 3-4, they have now won 10 straight games en route to the No. 2 seed in the NFC.
4. Philadelphia Eagles, 14-3
- This Week: Bye
Jalen Hurts returned in Week 18, but the postgame comments suggest that he is still not at 100% yet heading into the playoffs. The Eagles will need their starting QB if they are to make a deep run in these playoffs, so it was very important that Philadelphia to get this bye week.
5. Cincinnati Bengals, 12-4
- This Week: 1/15 vs. BAL
The reigning AFC champions are going to have a very difficult road to another Super Bowl this year, but the talent on this roster cannot be understated. They have an extremely talented group on offense, and their defensive unit is far better than last year’s group. The main concern with them revolves around their offensive line once again, which is a patchwork unit heading into the Wild Card weekend.
6. Minnesota Vikings, 13-4
- This Week: 1/15 vs. NYG
The Vikings have been on “fraud” alert all season long, but they still won 13 games this season. K.J. Osborn has come on strong down the stretch of the season as a WR2 threat opposite Justin Jefferson, and they have an outstanding RB duo in Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison. Even still, the lapses in consistency are apparent. It might come back to bite them, but will it be this weekend?
7. Baltimore Ravens, 10-7
- This Week: 1/15 @ CIN
Much of the Ravens hopes for the playoffs revolve around the health of Lamar Jackson, and that could cause them to fluctuate up or down this list. Because of that, putting them right in the middle seems appropriate. Even if Jackson is healthy, it will be a challenge to go into Cincinnati and get a win this weekend, but this is a still a very talented group.
8. Dallas Cowboys, 12-5
- This Week: 1/16 @ TB
It seemed to have gotten lost in the shuffle this past weekend, but the Dallas Cowboys got embarrassed by the Washington Commanders this past weekend. Dak Prescott has now thrown interceptions in seven straight games and being on a turnover trend is not ideal with a matchup against Tom Brady looming.
This is still a strong team with stars all over the field, but they are not heading into the playoffs on a great note. In fact, following their 54-19 win over the Indianapolis Colts, here’s how they closed the season:
- 27-23 win vs. HOU
- 40-34 loss @ JAX
- 40-34 win vs. PHI (no Jalen Hurts)
- 27-13 win vs. TEN
- 6-26 loss @ WSH
9. New York Giants, 9-7-1
- This Week: 1/15 @ MIN
The New York Giants are going to be a very popular upset pick this week, and for good reason. QB Daniel Jones has been consistent as a game manager, and he had career lows in both fumbles and interceptions. Combine that with a star RB like Saquon Barkley, and they’ve been able to hold onto the ball for long stretches of games, ranking among the top 10 in time of possession.
10. Los Angeles Chargers, 10-7
- This Week: 1/14 @ JAX
The Los Angeles Chargers are making their first playoff appearance in the Justin Herbert era despite going through a season with many ups and downs. This group could probably be described as the Minnesota Vikings of the AFC, but they don’t have the benefit of playing a home game this weekend.
11. Jacksonville Jaguars, 9-8
- This Week: 1/14 vs. LAC
After the Jaguars defense helped seal a win against the Tennessee Titans to win the AFC South title, Trevor Lawrence and Jacksonville will play host to those Chargers we just got done talking about. In his second season, Lawrence has made some big strides as a QB, and it will be interesting to see what kind of poise the former collegiate national champion will bring to the NFL playoffs.
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 8-9
- This Week: 1/16 vs. DAL
The NFC South has been the butt of a lot of jokes throughout this season, and rightly so. The division, as a whole, has been bad, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are no exception to that. However, having Tom Brady at QB heading into the playoffs is a great security blanket, so that puts the Bucs ahead of the two No. 7 seeds.
13. Seattle Seahawks, 9-8
- This Week: 1/14 @ SF
The Seahawks very narrowly escaped defeat from the Los Angeles Rams this past weekend, which saved their playoff spot. Heading into San Francisco, they are going to be massive underdogs (currently 10-point dogs at the time of this writing), but Pete Carroll has historically dominated this matchup prior to this season. Does he have one more miracle left in him?
14. Miami Dolphins, 9-8
- This Week: 1/15 @ BUF
The Dolphins would be a much scarier team if Tua Tagovailoa was at full health, but he’s not, and Miami may end up running Teddy Bridgewater out as their starting QB this weekend. Bridgewater is a fine QB, but this is a much less intimidating matchup now, especially on the road in Buffalo.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. He also earned minors in History, Human Biology, and Journalism. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys marathon training, playing video games, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. For more of his opinions, check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.