The 2024 NFL season is almost here, which means it’s time for fans to do what they do best: imagine possible scenarios for their favorite team that may or may not come true.
Fans can create their own 2024 NFL season predictions by using PFN’s NFL Playoff Predictor. This tool simulates every single game of the 2024 regular season, spitting out a simulation of how the season could go.
In this instance, we’ll examine a recent simulation to see who is projected to win each division and what the playoff picture looks like in each conference.
Predicting the 2024 NFL Regular-Season Standings in the AFC
AFC East
- Buffalo Bills (13-4)
- New York Jets (7-10)
- Miami Dolphins (7-10)
- New England Patriots (6-11)
While the Bills had an offseason that suggests they’re in for a regression year, Josh Allen and Co. pick up right where they left off last season, winning the AFC East for the fifth time in a row.
No other team comes out of the AFC East with a winning record, even after the Dolphins gave Tua Tagovailoa a $212.4 million extension and the Jets get a full season of Aaron Rodgers.
Besides the Bills, New England finds itself with a favorable ending to the season, winning two more games than it did the previous year.
AFC North
- Baltimore Ravens (11-6)
- Cincinatti Bengals (10-7)
- Cleveland Browns (9-8)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (8-9)
In one of the top divisions in the NFL, every team besides the Steelers finishes the season with a winning record, ending Mike Tomlin’s 17-season streak of coaching the Steelers to a non-losing record. This would be poor timing for Tomlin’s streak to end, just one season after Pittsburgh signed him to a three-year extension.
Baltimore ends up winning the AFC North for the second season in a row, while Cincy and Cleveland post strong enough records to make the playoffs.
AFC South
- Houston Texans (13-4)
- Tennessee Titans (9-8)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (8-9)
- Indianapolis Colts (4-13)
After C.J. Stroud’s historic rookie season, he and the Texans return to a similar spot, winning the AFC South with a staggering 13-4 record. In Stroud’s sophomore season in the NFL, he leads the Texans to a league-leading 444 points and a point differential of +78 points.
MORE: Simulate the NFL Season With PFN’s Playoff Predictor
In their first full season with Will Levis as the starting quarterback, the Titans make the playoffs, just squeezing in as the No. 7 seed.
Surprisingly, both the Jaguars and Colts ended the season with losing records, meaning neither team qualified for the postseason. While Anthony Richardson is expected to have a strong bounce-back season, this simulation had a different idea.
AFC West
- Kansas City Chiefs (13-4)
- Las Vegas Raiders (8-9)
- Denver Broncos (5-12)
- Los Angeles Chargers (4-13)
An outcome that’s seemingly become inevitable at this point is Kansas City winning the AFC West. It has been doing it since Patrick Mahomes took the reigns, and it seems unlikely that trend will end anytime soon. As long as Mahomes and Andy Reid have each other, the Chiefs should continue to dominate.
As for the rest of the division, the Raiders go 8-9 for the second season in a row, and the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers each finish with terrible records.
While the Raiders’ biggest question mark surrounds the quarterback position, Gardner Minshew showed an ability to perform at a more than adequate level with Indianapolis when Richardson went down last season. With the addition of Brock Bowers in the draft, there’s a good chance the Raiders’ offense has an uptick in production this year.
Predicting the AFC Playoff Picture
- Kansas City Chiefs
- Houston Texans
- Buffalo Bills
- Baltimore Ravens
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Cleveland Browns
- Tennessee Titans
The defending champions take back the AFC throne, earning a first-round bye and home-field advantage. Stroud and Levis face off in the first round in an AFC South matchup, while Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson battle in a postseason meeting of AFC North teams. The Browns make their second consecutive playoff run, facing off against Allen and the Bills.
Predicting the 2024 NFL Regular-Season Standings in the NFC
NFC East
- Philadelphia Eagles (12-5)
- Dallas Cowboys (9-8)
- New York Giants (4-13)
- Washington Commanders (4-13)
In their first season with former Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, Jalen Hurts and the Eagles end the season by winning the division by three games. In a crucial season for the Cowboys, they miss out on the playoffs, making Mike McCarthy’s seat even hotter.
New York and Washington remain near the bottom of the league, with both teams slotted to make their 2025 NFL Draft selections within the first four picks. It appears the Giants could spend their offseason looking for a Daniel Jones replacement, while the Commanders could target playmakers on the defensive side after allowing the fourth-most points (406) on the season.
NFC North
- Green Bay Packers (11-6)
- Minnesota Vikings (10-7)
- Detroit Lions (9-8)
- Chicago Bears (9-8)
Similar to the AFC North, the NFC North is one of the more competitive divisions, and in the simulation, no team finishes with a losing record.
Half of the NFC North makes the playoffs, with former No. 1 pick Caleb Williams and the Bears just missing out on a playoff run in Williams’ rookie season. Detroit also misses out on the playoffs just one season after winning the NFC North for the first time since the division was created in 2002.
After Green Bay’s historic playoff run last season as the youngest playoff team since the 1974 Bills and the youngest team to win a playoff game since the 1970 NFL/AFL merger, they take the next step in the Jordan Love era by winning the division.
Minnesota (No. 7), Detroit (No. 8), and Chicago (No. 9) all follow each other in the conference standings, with Minnesota as the only additional NFC North team in the playoffs.
NFC South
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7)
- New Orleans Saints (8-9)
- Carolina Panthers (6-11)
- Altanta Falcons (6-11)
For the fourth consecutive season, the Buccaneers are the NFC South champions. Of the playoff-bound teams, the Buccaneers scored the fewest points (359) while having the lowest positive point differential of +4. The division was relatively close at the top; however, three of the four teams ended the season with losing records.
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Bryce Young’s sophomore season went a bit better than his first, as the Panthers end the season with three times as many wins as the prior year. On the other hand, the Falcons surprisingly regress as they began the Kirk Cousins era, finishing the year at the bottom of the division.
NFC West
- Los Angeles Rams (13-4)
- San Francisco 49ers (13-4)
- Arizona Cardinals (11-6)
- Seattle Seahawks (2-15)
The NFC West saw the largest range of outcomes in the simulation. The division has both the NFC’s No. 1 seed and the team with the first pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The 49ers topped the NFC in points scored (435), with the Rams close behind (428). With three teams from this division filling the playoff bracket, they tie the AFC North for most playoff representation.
After a 4-13 season last year, the addition of Marvin Harrison Jr. appears to be what Kyler Murray and the Cardinals’ offense needed to take their game to the next level, as they managed to win 11 games.
Predicting the NFC Playoff Picture
- Los Angeles Rams
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Green Bay Packers
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- San Francisco 49ers
- Arizona Cardinals
- Minnesota Vikings
Despite losing one of the best defenders in NFL history to retirement, the Rams take the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
The Eagles secure second place thanks to their new-look offense under Moore, and they’ll take on Minnesota to begin the playoffs.
Green Bay and Arizona face off as the desert-ridden Cardinals visit the Frozen Tundra in Lambeau Field.
In the final matchup of the first round, No. 5 seed San Francisco and their high-scoring offense take on the No. 4 seed Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
Of the seven playoff teams coming out of the NFC, three come from the NFC West, two represent the NFC North, and the playoff picture is closed out by the two divisional champions from the NFC East and NFC South.
This simulation sees a little shake-up from last year’s NFC playoff picture, as the two lowest seeds make the playoffs after missing out on last season’s postseason action.
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