Will they or won’t they? That’s the question surrounding the Kansas City Chiefs in their quest towards becoming the first team in NFL history to win three straight Super Bowls.
It’s also one of many questions heading into the 2024 NFL season. Pro Football Network’s Playoff Predictor gives the Chiefs a favorable road towards a three-peat with a projected No. 1 seed in the AFC Playoffs.
What else did PFN’s Playoff Predictor reveal about this upcoming season, including who claims the NFC’s top seed? From final division standings to playoff seeds, here are its 2024 season predictions.
Predicting the 2024 NFL Regular-Season Standings in the AFC
AFC East
- Buffalo Bills (10-7)
- New York Jets (9-8)
- Miami Dolphins (8-9)
- New England Patriots (8-9)
Despite losing Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis on offense and Tre’Davious White, Jordan Poyer, and Micah Hyde on defense, the simulation still likes Buffalo to win its fifth straight AFC East title. While the Dolphins, Jets, and Patriots are all no more than two games behind the Bills, none of them will join the Bills in the playoffs.
The Jets are projected to finish with a winning record for the first time since 2015, but Aaron Rodgers won’t be able to snap the Jets’ playoff drought. Miami and New England are both projected to finish under .500 at 8-9, which means the Dolphins will take a step back by missing the playoffs, and the Patriots will show promise in their first season with Jerod Mayo as their head coach.
AFC North
- Baltimore Ravens (12-5)
- Cincinnati Bengals (9-8)
- Cleveland Browns (9-8)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (5-12)
The AFC North was the first division since 1935 to have every team finish with a winning record in 2023. In this simulation, PFN’s Playoff Predictor likes three teams to finish with a winning record in 2024, but only the Ravens and Bengals will make the playoffs.
Even with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields in the Steelers quarterback room, Mike Tomlin will suffer his first losing season in his 18th campaign as the Steelers head coach.
AFC South
- Jacksonville Jaguars (12-5)
- Houston Texans (11-6)
- Indianapolis Colts (8-9)
- Tennessee Titans (2-15)
The Jaguars looked poised to win their second straight AFC South title in 2023 after an 8-3 start, but a 1-5 finish cost them not only the AFC South but a playoff berth altogether. This season, the Jaguars reclaim the AFC South by winning 12 games for the first time since 2005.
MORE: Simulate the NFL Season With PFN’s Playoff Predictor
After a tremendous rookie season leading the Texans to the AFC South title and playoff win, C.J. Stroud and the Texans will make it back to the playoffs as a Wild Card team in 2024.
The Colts, with a healthy Anthony Richardson, will finish just under .500, and the Titans will struggle mightily under first-year head coach Brian Callahan and second-year quarterback Will Levis.
AFC West
- Kansas City Chiefs (13-4)
- Los Angeles Chargers (10-7)
- Las Vegas Raiders (9-8)
- Denver Broncos (6-11)
Kansas City will win its ninth straight AFC West title in 2024, earning the AFC’s top seed in the playoffs as the Chiefs go for the first Super Bowl three-peat in NFL history.
Perhaps the bigger story, though, is the simulation having the Chargers make the playoffs in their first season with Jim Harbaugh as their head coach. Harbaugh’s last stint in the NFL, with the 49ers, began with San Francisco going 13-3 in 2011 and going to the NFC Championship. With a healthy Justin Herbert, the Chargers will make the playoffs in 2024, according to the simulation.
Projecting the AFC Playoff Picture
- Kansas City Chiefs
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Baltimore Ravens
- Buffalo Bills
- Houston Texans
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Cincinnati Bengals
After only hosting one playoff game in 2023, Arrowhead Stadium will reestablish itself as the venue where the road to Super Bowl LIX will go through in 2024.
Jacksonville, with its highest playoff seed since 1999, will host Joe Burrow and the Bengals in what could be an exciting matchup.
But the biggest headline on Super Wild Card Weekend will be another Harbaugh Bowl, with the Chargers traveling to Baltimore to take on the Ravens.
C.J. Stroud and the Texans will travel north to face Josh Allen and the Bills in a classic warm weather vs. cold weather playoff matchup.
Predicting the 2024 NFL Regular-Season Standings in the NFC
NFC East
- Philadelphia Eagles (10-7)
- Dallas Cowboys (8-9)
- New York Giants (7-10)
- Washington Commanders (6-11)
For the 20th straight season, the NFC East will not feature a defending champion. Philadelphia will unseat Dallas as the NFC East Champions in 2024 by being the only team in the division with a winning record. Kellen Moore and Vic Fangio, the Eagles’ new offensive and defensive coordinators, will lead the Eagles to a resurgent 2024 and a home playoff game.
Dallas, New York, and Washington will all finish with losing records. Additionally, major changes could be coming to Dallas and New York next offseason after the simulation’s projections of both teams falling short of expectations again in 2024.
NFC North
- Detroit Lions (12-5)
- Minnesota Vikings (9-8)
- Green Bay Packers (8-9)
- Chicago Bears (7-10)
The simulation likes the Lions to prove that 2023 was not a fluke by duplicating their record in 2024. Despite losing Kirk Cousins to free agency, the Vikings will scratch and claw their way to a winning record in 2024 at 9-8. Meanwhile, despite extending Jordan Love this offseason, Green Bay will take a slight step back and finish under .500 at 8-9.
Caleb Williams will look to revolutionize the position in Chicago in his rookie season in 2024. Despite a much-improved roster, the simulation has the Bears duplicating their 7-10 record from 2023.
NFC South
- Atlanta Falcons (11-6)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9)
- Carolina Panthers (6-11)
- New Orleans Saints (6-11)
Following the Kirk Cousins signing, the Falcons return to the postseason with an 11-6 record and an NFC South division title. Their championship will end Tampa Bay’s streak of three straight NFC South titles, as the simulation has Tampa Bay finishing 8-9 for the second time in three seasons.
Carolina and New Orleans are both projected to finish 6-11. That’s three fewer wins for the Saints than in 2023 but a four-win improvement for the Carolina Panthers from 2023.
NFC West
- Los Angeles Rams (12-5)
- San Francisco 49ers (12-5)
- Seattle Seahawks (6-11)
- Arizona Cardinals (3-14)
The simulation buys into the Rams’ resurgence last season by projecting them to win the NFC West in 2024 at 12-5. They’ll own the tiebreaker over the 49ers, who will also finish at 12-5 for the second straight season.
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Seattle and Arizona are both projected to finish under .500, which would be the first time in three seasons that the Seahawks end a season with a losing record. Despite having a healthy Kyler Murray and adding Marvin Harrison Jr. to the offense, Arizona actually takes a step back, losing one more game this season than it did in 2023.
Projecting the NFC Playoff Picture
- Los Angeles Rams
- Detroit Lions
- Atlanta Falcons
- Philadelphia Eagles
- San Francisco 49ers
- Minnesota Vikings
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
For the first time since 2001, the Rams will be the NFC’s No. 1 seed. The Playoff Predictor believes in the Rams with their alpha talent in Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp, and Sean McVay.
Tampa Bay will travel to Detroit for a rematch of last season’s NFC Divisional playoff matchup, but that may pale in comparison to the other two Wild Card matchups.
Kirk Cousins will face his former team when the Falcons host the Vikings. This would be the first playoff game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium since opening in 2017.
San Francisco and Philadelphia have been two of the NFC’s top teams the last couple of seasons, and a Wild Card matchup between the 49ers and Eagles could produce some fireworks in Philadelphia.
