Week 6 of the NFL season saw some dominant performances from certain teams, while others showed that they have plenty of deficiencies and must correct them immediately.
The gap between the “haves” and “have-nots” in the league is starting to get bigger. That separation will only grow in the next few weeks. The contenders will stand tall; the pretenders will continue to fall.
It’s never too early, though, to look at how the NFL playoff picture stacks up. With Week 6 in the books, let’s take a look at the postseason picture right now.
Week 6 NFL Standings and Playoff Picture
AFC Playoff Picture
1. Indianapolis Colts, 5-1 (beat Cardinals on Sunday)
2. Pittsburgh Steelers, 5-1 (beat Browns on Sunday)
3. Los Angeles Chargers, 4-2 (beat Dolphins on Sunday)
4. New England Patriots, 4-2 (beat Saints on Sunday)
5. Buffalo Bills, 4-2 (lost to Falcons on MNF)
6. Jacksonville Jaguars, 4-2 (lost to Seahawks on Sunday)
7. Denver Broncos, 4-2 (beat Jets on Sunday in London)
In the Hunt
8. Kansas City Chiefs, 3-3 (beat Lions on SNF)
9. Houston Texans, 2-3 (bye week)
10. Cincinnati Bengals, 2-4 (lost to Packers on Sunday)
11. Las Vegas Raiders, 2-4 (beat Titans on Sunday)
12. Baltimore Ravens, 1-5 (lost to Rams on Sunday)
13. Miami Dolphins, 1-5 (lost to Chargers on Sunday)
14. Cleveland Browns, 1-5 (lost to Steelers on Sunday)
15. Tennessee Titans, 1-5 (lost to Raiders on Sunday)
16. New York Jets, 0-6 (lost to Broncos on Sunday in London)
NFC Playoff Picture
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 5-1 (beat 49ers on Sunday)
2. Green Bay Packers, 3-1-1 (beat Bengals on Sunday)
3. San Francisco 49ers, 4-2 (lost to Buccaneers on Sunday)
4. Philadelphia Eagles, 4-2 (lost to Giants on TNF)
5. Seattle Seahawks, 4-2 (beat Jaguars on Sunday)
6. Detroit Lions, 4-2 (lost to Chiefs on SNF)
7. Los Angeles Rams, 3-2 (beat Ravens on Sunday)
In the Hunt
8. Atlanta Falcons, 3-2 (beat Bills on MNF)
9. Minnesota Vikings, 3-2 (bye week)
10. Chicago Bears, 3-2 (beat Commanders on MNF)
11. Washington Commanders, 3-2 (lost to Bears on MNF)
12. Carolina Panthers, 3-3 (beat Cowboys on Sunday)
13. Dallas Cowboys, 2-3-1 (lost to Panthers on Sunday)
14. Arizona Cardinals, 2-4 (lost to Colts on Sunday)
15. New York Giants, 2-4 (beat Eagles on TNF)
16. New Orleans Saints, 1-5 (lost to Patriots on Sunday)
NFL Teams on the Rise
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been utterly decimated by injuries, and they still find themselves with a 5-1 record after a strong 30-19 win over the 49ers on Sunday. Injuries cast some doubt for how they’ll perform in future weeks, but they’ve remained victorious through every ailment their roster has felt to this point.
Baker Mayfield threw for 256 passing yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions in Week 6, and he’s remained at a very high level all season. The Buccaneers are coming off of consecutive wins against top NFC teams, in which they’ve surpassed 30 points scored.
The Buccaneers now have an 89.3% chance of making the playoffs and a 79.9% chance of winning the NFC South, according to PFSN’s NFL Playoff Predictor. Our model also gives Tampa Bay a 7.1% chance of winning the Super Bowl and 24.5% chance of securing the NFC’s No. 1 seed.
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts continued their strong start to the 2025 NFL season on Sunday, defeating the Cardinals 31-27 to boost their record to 5-1 going into Week 7. It was a close game, but their offense helped propelled them to yet another win.
With Daniel Jones looking like a potential MVP candidate and Jonathan Taylor performing at an elite level, the Colts’ offense has been extremely tough to stop this year. In the six games they’ve played so far this season, they’re averaging 32.3 points per game. That’s an extremely high bar for opposing teams to outperform.
The Colts have a 94.7% chance of making the playoffs and a 72.7% chance of winning the AFC South, according to PFSN’s NFL Playoff Predictor. Our model also gives Indianapolis an 11.6% chance of winning the Super Bowl and a 31.4% chance of securing the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots have won three games in a row, getting them to 4-2 this season after their Sunday win over the Saints. Drake Maye continued his stellar start to Year 2 in Week 6, throwing for 261 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions in their win over New Orleans.
Through six games, the Patriots have allowed more than 21 points in a single game just once. With that solid play combining with Maye’s strong season, there’s plenty of upside for this team to climb up the rankings in the coming weeks.
The Patriots now have a 76.1% chance of making the playoffs and a 27.4% chance of winning the AFC East, according to PFSN’s NFL Playoff Predictor. Our model also gives New England a 2.7% chance of winning the Super Bowl and 6.1% chance of securing the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
Los Angeles Chargers
It took a last-second field goal to get them there, but the Los Angeles Chargers narrowly avoided a three-game losing streak with their 29-27 victory over the Dolphins on Sunday. The Week 6 win puts them at 4-2 for the season.
There’s still plenty for the Chargers to clean up, as made evident by their previous two losses and their narrow victory over a collapsing Miami squad. But a win is a win in the NFL, and it’ll be much nicer to head into a key matchup against the Colts next week with another notch in the victory column.
The Chargers now have a 74.7% chance of making the playoffs and a 42% chance of winning the AFC West, according to PFSN’s NFL Playoff Predictor. Our model also gives Los Angeles a 3.7% chance of winning the Super Bowl and a 6.6% chance of securing the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
Teams on the Decline
Philadelphia Eagles
After a strong 4-0 start, the Philadelphia Eagles dropped their second game in a row in Week 6, falling to the Giants in a major upset on Thursday night. Not only did they lose that game, but they lost by 17 points against a team that’s been significantly less successful in recent years.
Something isn’t clicking with Jalen Hurts and the Eagles’ passing attack this season. This time, their run game and defense couldn’t bail them out. The defending Super Bowl champions are too talented to count out, but they slid out of the top ten of PFSN’s power rankings.
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions fell to the Chiefs in primetime on Sunday, but they stay narrowly ahead of the team they beat in the power rankings due to a superior record. That said, Kansas City was pretty decisively the better team in Week 6.
Jared Goff came away with a 79.3% completion percentage with 203 yards and two touchdowns, but the Lions’ lack of explosive plays on offense couldn’t overcome their porous defense against the Chiefs. Still, they factor as one of the best teams in the NFL going into Week 7.
Cleveland Browns
Dillon Gabriel logged his second career NFL start Sunday, and it had the same end result as his first start: a Cleveland Browns loss. The Browns’ 23-9 loss to the Steelers in Pittsburgh dropped them to a 1-5 record so far this season.
The Browns didn’t hold a lead all afternoon against the Steelers, and playing from behind forced them into a pass-heavy approach. As one could expect from a struggling offense led by a third-round rookie at quarterback, that game plan didn’t play out in Cleveland’s favor.
The Browns now have a 4% chance of making the playoffs and a 1.4% chance of winning the AFC North, according to PFSN’s NFL Playoff Predictor.
New Orleans Saints
It’s likely not of much consolation, seeing as though the New Orleans Saints are now 1-5 and sitting as one of the worst teams in the NFL. However, Spencer Rattler is admittedly doing more with a subpar supporting cast than many likely predicted coming into the season.
That’s not to say Rattler necessarily looks like a franchise QB. But it’s clear the Saints have a flawed roster, and they’re at least keeping things competitive in some of their losses, as they did at home against the Patriots on Sunday.
The Saints now have an 3% chance of making the playoffs and a 1.3% chance of winning the NFC South, according to PFSN’s NFL Playoff Predictor.
