A Power Ranking of the 14 NFL Playoff Teams
Josh Frey
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The 2023 regular season came to an end over the weekend, and now, 14 teams will compete for a chance at the Super Bowl in February.
It promises to be a very entertaining tournament over the next several weeks, and before the playoffs officially begin on Saturday, here is a power ranking of all 14 teams in terms of their chances at actually raising the Lombardi Trophy.
Power Ranking the 14 NFL Playoff Teams
1. Baltimore Ravens
- Regular Season Record: 13-4
- Last Five Games: 4-1
- This Week: Bye
The Baltimore Ravens should be the Super Bowl favorites as the playoffs begin. They fielded the No. 1 scoring defense in the league this season, and Lamar Jackson made plays when they needed him to in order to win games. For once, the Ravens did a great job of putting wide receiver weapons around Jackson, and with home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, they will be a very tough team to beat.
2. San Francisco 49ers
- Regular Season Record: 12-5
- Last Five Games: 3-2
- This Week: Bye
It feels like health could be the only thing that holds San Francisco back from representing the NFC in the Super Bowl. They already have proven that they are plenty capable of rolling through the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles. As long as their stars stay healthy, it’s going to be very difficult for anyone to match their power on both offense and defense for a full 60 minutes.
3. Cleveland Browns
- Regular Season Record: 11-6
- Last Five Games: 4-1
- This Week: 1/13 @ HOU
If there is a team equipped to go through a road playoff schedule and make the Super Bowl, it is these Cleveland Browns. Joe Flacco has come in and completely revolutionized their passing offense, and despite losing Nick Chubb, the duo of Jerome Ford and Kareem Hunt has proven satisfactory in the running game. Meanwhile, this defense has been truly incredible against the pass and is fully equipped to play cold January football.
4. Buffalo Bills
- Regular Season Record: 11-6
- Last Five Games: 5-0
- This Week: 1/14 vs. PIT
Despite everything that they went through this season, the Buffalo Bills own the No. 2 seed in the AFC and won the AFC East by going 5-0 following their bye week. They still make some of the same silly mistakes that plagued them throughout the year, but they’ve done a great job of winning despite that. They probably won’t make the Super Bowl in a tough AFC, but they can certainly win a game or two.
5. Dallas Cowboys
- Regular Season Record: 12-5
- Last Five Games: 3-2
- This Week: 1/14 vs. GB
It wasn’t always smooth sailing for the Dallas Cowboys this season, but they managed to emerge on top of the NFC East by the end of the season, and other than the possibility of traveling to San Francisco for the NFC Championship Game, they will play at home throughout the playoffs. If the 49ers hit a hiccup along the way, Dallas has a great chance of making their first Super Bowl since the 1995 season.
6. Kansas City Chiefs
- Regular Season: 11-6
- Last Five Games: 3-2
- This Week: 1/13 vs. MIA
This Kansas City Chiefs team has not looked like the Chiefs teams of a few years ago. They struggled mightily on the offensive side of the ball all year long, and Patrick Mahomes will have to play a road AFC playoff game for the first time in his career. Still, it’s hard to fully write off this team because of the superpowers of Mahomes at QB. If they beat Miami and get on a roll, watch out.
7. Los Angeles Rams
- Regular Season: 10-7
- Last Five Games: 4-1
- This Week: 1/14 @ DET
The Rams were supposed to be in a rebuild this season, but Matthew Stafford came back fully healthy this season, and they got some incredible production from WR Puka Nacua and RB Kyren Williams. The Rams will have to win on the road to get back to the Super Bowl, but it’s hard to imagine a better place to start that path than Stafford’s old home in Detroit.
8. Detroit Lions
- Regular Season: 12-5
- Last Five Games: 3-2
- This Week: 1/14 vs. LAR
Detroit will host their first playoff game since 1994, but man, they get a tough draw in the Rams. The Lions’ success this season largely came from an elite offense, but there will inevitably be jitters with this young team as they head into the playoffs.
9. Green Bay Packers
- Regular Season: 9-8
- Last Five Games: 3-2
- This Week: 1/14 @ DAL
The Packers are playing their best football of the season right now, and unfortunately for any Cowboys (or Vikings) fans out there, that is exactly where a Wild Card team needs to be if they want to make a run. Aaron Jones looks like he’s healed up from his early season injuries, and the Joe Barry defense has played very well in recent weeks. Dallas probably beats them this weekend, but an upset in that game could prove to be the catalyst of an unforeseen run.
10. Philadelphia Eagles
- Regular Season: 11-6
- Last Five Games: 1-4
- This Week: 1/15 @ TB
The Eagles really could not have looked much worse over the final five weeks of the season. Injuries have piled up on the defensive side of the ball, and their offense is not nearly as overwhelming as it was during last year’s Super Bowl run. Still, the team that started the season 10-2 is still in there somewhere. Perhaps a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is exactly what this team needs to get back on track.
11. Houston Texans
- Regular Season: 10-7
- Last Five Games: 3-2
- This Week: 1/13 vs. CLE
Houston had an excellent season behind rookie QB C.J. Stroud. WR Nico Collins made a massive jump to become a bonafide WR1 this year, particularly after Tank Dell went down with injury. Will Anderson also made huge strides during his rookie season to become a very dangerous pass-rusher. They are running into a buzzsaw of a Cleveland Browns team, though, and this team may still be a year or two away from truly competing in the AFC.
12. Miami Dolphins
- Regular Season: 11-6
- Last Five Games: 2-3
- This Week: 1/13 @ KC
The Dolphins began the year looking like they had broken football with their high-flying offense. It all came to a head in Week 3 when they put up 70 points against the Denver Broncos. However, Week 3 is not when a team with Super Bowl aspirations wants to have their most memorable win. They did beat the Cowboys at home a few weeks ago, but the Dolphins will have to be on the road throughout the playoffs. They were a .500 team on the road this season, so it doesn’t feel like this team is going to be able to make a run.
13. Pittsburgh Steelers
- Regular Season: 10-7
- Last Five Games: 3-2
- This Week: 1/14 @ BUF
Mike Tomlin did it again. Let’s be clear: this Pittsburgh Steelers team is not an overly talented roster, especially without T.J. Watt on their defense. However, Tomlin found a suitable QB to replace Kenny Pickett in Mason Rudolph, and they played just well enough to sneak into the playoffs. The road likely comes to an end in Buffalo, though.
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Regular Season: 9-8
- Last Five Games: 4-1
- This Week: 1/15 vs. PHI
Whoever won the NFC South this year was going to find themselves at the bottom of this list, and Tampa Bay solidified that position with a truly ugly win over the Carolina Panthers. Ugly football has been the brand of the Buccaneers this season. Maybe they can beat the Eagles, but it will be a very tough path after that.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.