2026 NFL playoff format: Your guide to each round of the postseason

[ASFN Admin]

The NFL playoff race is officially on, with 14 teams set to compete for the coveted prize: a Super Bowl victory.

By Sunday, Feb. 8, we'll crown a new NFL champion.

Leading up to that date, a single-elimination tournament will unfold, slicing the contenders down to two: one from the AFC and one from the NFC. These two conference champions will clash in Super Bowl 60, to be held in Santa Clara, California.

The Super Bowl is the grand finale of the four-round NFL postseason. Here’s a closer look at how each round of the playoffs works:

NFL playoff format​

The NFL playoff format is a single-elimination tournament of seven teams in the AFC and NFC, including:

• Four division winners (South, North, East, and West)
• Three wild-card teams (best remaining teams by record)

The division winner with the best record receives the No. 1 seed in their conference, plays their playoff games at home and gets a bye in the first round (wild card) of the playoffs.

The remaining division winners are then ordered by regular-season record. The final three teams in each conference are considered wild cards, the best remaining teams by record.

Tiebreakers can be used if teams have the same record. For example, this year, the Houston Texans earned the No. 5 seed in the AFC over the Buffalo Bills despite having the same 12-5 record because the Texans won their head-to-head meeting with the Bills this season and also had a better conference win percentage (10-2 to 9-3).

The playoffs have four rounds: the wild-card round, the divisional round, the conference championship games and the Super Bowl. There is an extra week between the conference championship games and the Super Bowl.

Wild-card round

• No. 1 seed has a bye
• No. 2 seed hosts No. 7 seed
• No. 3 seed hosts No. 6 seed
• No. 4 seed hosts No. 5 seed

Divisional round

• The No. 1 seed hosts the lowest remaining seed.
• The second-highest remaining seed hosts the second-lowest remaining seed.

Conference championship game

• Divisional round winners (higher seed hosts)

Super Bowl

Conference championship winners play at a neutral site called the Super Bowl. This year's Super Bowl will be played at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

Here's how each round is formatted:

NFL wild-card round format​

• No. 1 seed has a bye
• No. 2 seed hosts No. 7 seed
• No. 3 seed hosts No. 6 seed
• No. 4 seed hosts No. 5 seed

NFL divisional round format​

• No. 1 seed hosts the lowest remaining seed from the wild-card round.
• The second-highest remaining seed hosts the second-lowest remaining seed.

NFL conference championship round format​

• Divisional round winners face off, with the higher seed hosting.

NFL Super Bowl format​

• Conference championship winners play at a neutral site.
  • Super Bowl 60 will be held at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara.

NFL playoff seeds​

AFC

• No. 1 seed: Denver Broncos (14-3, AFC West winners)*
• No. 2 seed: New England Patriots (14-3, AFC East winners)*
• No. 3 seed: Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4, AFC South winners)*
• No. 4 seed: Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7, AFC North winners)*
• No. 5 seed: Houston Texans (12-5, wild card No. 1)*
• No. 6 seed: Buffalo Bills (12-5, wild card No. 2)*
• No. 7 seed: Los Angeles Chargers (11-6, wild card No. 3)*

NFC

• No. 1 seed: Seattle Seahawks (14-3, NFC West winners)*
• No. 2 seed: Chicago Bears (11-6, NFC North winners)*
• No. 3 seed: Philadelphia Eagles (11-6, NFC East winners)*
• No. 4 seed: Carolina Panthers (8-9, NFC South winners)*
• No. 5 seed: Los Angeles Rams (12-5, wild card No. 1)*
• No. 6 seed: San Francisco 49ers (12-5, wild card No. 2)*
• No. 7 seed: Green Bay Packers (9-7-1, wild card No. 3)*

When do the NFL playoffs start?​

The NFL playoffs kick off on Saturday, Jan. 10, at 4:30 p.m. ET for the first game of the wild-card round.

Here's how the full schedule breaks down for the 2025-26 NFL playoffs.

• Wild-card round: Jan. 10-12, 2026
• Divisional round: Jan. 17-18, 2026
• Conference championship: Jan. 25, 2026
• Super Bowl: Feb. 8, 2026

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2026 NFL playoff format: How does the postseason work?

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