Beginning a new year tends to generate an influx of positivity, marked by expectations, resolutions, and the close of the holiday season spent with loved ones. With that comes the close of the NFL regular season, which can evoke a melancholy feeling, as the end of the football season is swiftly approaching.
Nevertheless, we are about to kick the NFL playoffs into overdrive, so let’s finish this NFL regular season review on a high note by reviewing the news and notes of Week 18!
Myles Garrett Breaks the Single-Season Sack Record
By far one of the most noteworthy storylines entering the regular season finale was the pursuit of 23 sacks in a single season by the Cleveland Browns’ world-class pass-rusher, Myles Garrett. He was mostly neutralized the week prior against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but their fellow divisional foe, the Cincinnati Bengals, didn’t have the same success.
If you somehow haven’t seen the sack in all of its glory, it’s nearly impossible to ignore the get-off, even with the caption tracking timing his get-off. It felt poetic that his 23rd sack came from a get-off of 0.23 seconds
Garrett’s 37 splash plays and a PFSN EDGE Impact score of 94.9 are second only to Maxx Crosby among edge players, while the 32 tackles for loss credited to him by PFSN lead the league.
A Few Historic Run Games
The creator of defense-adjusted value over average (DVOA) and general analytics guru, Aaron Schatz, released a chart highlighting adjusted line yards in an effort to disassociate blocking efforts from those of a running back. As you can see, three teams in 2025 have posted some of the best marks over the last three decades.
The Seahawks defense becomes just the 8th to ever finish 1st in both pass and rush defense via DVOA, and only the 4th since the year 2000. pic.twitter.com/TpVjqO9okK
— Brian Nemhauser (@hawkblogger) January 5, 2026
It’s also no surprise that the Los Angeles Rams posted the ninth-best Offensive DVOA since 1978, along with a league-best 90.3 OL Impact Score via PFSN. The Chicago Bears came in right behind Los Angeles in OL Impact Score (87.8) while posting a top-10 team offensive grade, and the Buffalo Bills also ranked top-seven in both OL Impact Score (5th) and team offensive grade (3rd).
It should come as no surprise that Chicago was, heading into Week 18, one of the two teams with four offensive linemen who exceeded 1,000 snaps, along with the Denver Broncos, which also ranks 15th in OL Impact Score. This will be a key storyline for all four franchises entering the post-season.
Denver and Seattle Secure the One Seeds
The Seahawks and the Broncos seem to be playing like it is 2013. Both teams enter post-season play as the leaders in their respective divisions, doing so in history-repeating form. They also secured one seed twelve years ago when they met in Super Bowl 48, when the vaunted Seahawks defense halted a (literally) historic Denver offense led by Peyton Manning, winning the season finale 43-8. This time around, they seem more similar than different.
This Seahawks team also boasts a very good defense; they have surrendered the second-fewest points and the fewest yards per carry in the league this season. This rounds out a defense that ranks third in PFSN’s Defense Impact Score.
The offenses share some similarities, as both can score points and rely on strong ground games. However, the 2025 Seahawks’ passing version is notably shakier than the Russell Wilson-led version of yesteryear. Quarterback Sam Darnold’s 20 giveaways (most in the NFL) have contributed to a turnover mark that ranks 31st in the league with 28; their 13 fumbles lead the league.
Week 11, specifically, seemed to have set Darnold down a path of instability: he closed out the regular season with PFSN’s 13th-best QB Impact Score, a mark of 78.7 that he has posted equal to or better than just once since Week 10. Interestingly enough, Broncos QBÂ Bo Nix ranks 12th with his 79.0 mark.
Nix has been good this season, notwithstanding an offense that generally isn’t looking to win down the field or generate its explosives in the passing game: he’s 13th in EPA per dropback and 26th in CPOE among qualified passers via NextGen Stats. The run game has been, statistically, mostly middle-of-the-pack.
Turnover differentials for 2025 playoff teams…
1. Bears (+22)
2. Texans (+15)
3. Jaguars (+13)
4. Steelers (+12)
5. Rams (+11)
6. Eagles (+6)
7. Patriots (+3)
8. Chargers (+2)
9. Packers (+1)
9. Bills (+1)
11. Panthers (-2)
12. Seahawks (-3)
12. Broncos (-3)
14. 49ers (-6) https://t.co/wgOxgsOnyD— NFL Researcher (@NFL_Researcher) January 5, 2026
Defensively, however, the Broncos shine. That aforementioned league leader in PFSN’s Defense Impact Score is the Broncos, with their newly minted franchise record of 68 sacks. They are seventh in both the fewest EPA per pass and rush allowed per NextGen Stats, while registering NGS’ top mark in Quarterback Pressures with 285, a mark 20 pressures better than their league-leading 265 in 2024. The 285 are also the most in the NFL Pros NGS database dating back to 2018.
Many believe that Denver possesses the best combination of offensive and defensive line play amongst the 14-team playoff field. Nik Bonitto posted the fifth-best pressure percentage amongst defenders who logged a minimum of 100 snaps. At the same time, the team as a whole entered Week 18 in the top quarter of the NFL in all four of ESPN’s Win Rate metrics (pass block, run block, pass rush, and run stop).
Seattle, however, is the leader in the clubhouse in the fewest EPA per rush allowed, while coming in right behind Denver in EPA per pass. Again, very good on defense. Once the dust settles, it will be interesting to revisit the routes these two teams tooks given Seattle’s propensity to give the ball away and Denver’s struggles to take it away. Let the fun begin!
