NFL playoffs 2023: Houston Texans, Kansas City Chiefs, Miami Dolphins in action on Super Wild Card weekend on road to Super Bowl LVIII | NFL News

The 2023 NFL playoffs are here! Here is your quick guide to the final 14 teams as we enter Super Wild Card weekend – every game of which you can watch live on Sky Sports NFL…

The Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers enter their bye week as the respective No 1 seeds, the Kansas City Chiefs resume the defence of their crown against the Miami Dolphins on Saturday night, CJ Stroud leads the Houston Texans into the postseason amid his sparkling rookie campaign and Matthew Stafford is primed for an emotional return to Detroit.

1) Baltimore Ravens

AFC North division champions – 13-4 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: First-round bye

Head coach: John Harbaugh is in the middle of his 16th season in charge of the Ravens, 11 of which have seen him reach the playoffs as well as winning one Super Bowl title. He has recorded just two losing campaigns during his time in Baltimore, establishing himself among the NFL’s premier coaches. Harbaugh’s Ravens sealed the No 1 seed with the league No 1-ranked scoring defense as well as the fourth-most prolific offense.

Key player: There is a reason Lamar Jackson has propelled himself into pole position to clinch league MVP. The Ravens quarterback has been every defensive coordinator’s worst nightmare across another dominant campaign in which he has starred as the front man to Todd Monken’s offense, showcasing the best of his pocket poise and precision while remaining the devastating threat with his legs on the move. His arm talent has dazzled and his ground threat has clobbered, lifting him to a career-best 3,678 passing yards and 24 touchdowns to just seven interceptions alongside 821 rushing yards and five scores.

Kyle Hamilton has meanwhile excelled within Mike Macdonald’s ascent to head coaching contention, the second year safety serving as his defensive coordinator’s multi-purpose asset as everything from bruising box tackler to downfield cover defender to late blitz threat. Geno Stone leads the team with seven interceptions, while defensive tackle Justin Madubuike has exploded in a contract year with a team-high 13 sacks.

Form guide: The Ravens boast a strong case for having been the NFL’s most consistent team across the course of the season, opening 9-3 before closing out the campaign with a run that included statement wins over the Rams, 49ers and Dolphins to lock in the No 1 seed in the AFC. Their win over San Francisco, in particular, amplified their Super Bowl credentials as Lamar Jackson out-duelled Brock Purdy while strengthening his MVP case to set the tone for what they hope becomes a deep and decorated playoff run.

Playoff history: The Ravens have won both of the Super Bowls they have taken part in, the first of those coming in 2000 on the strength of a stellar defense led by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis, who then bowed out of the game after securing a second ring in 2012. Baltimore have won only two playoff games since, however, with Jackson in particular enduring a tough time in the postseason in his otherwise exemplary NFL career, winning just once in his five playoff appearances.

Super Bowl prospects: Favourites. Here is Lamar’s chance to not only win his second MVP award, but take the Ravens to the Promised Land. They have everything they need.

2) Buffalo Bills

AFC East division champions – 11-6 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: vs Steelers, Highmark Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 6pm, Sunday

Head coach: Sean McDermott has missed out on the playoffs just once since taking over as Buffalo Bills head coach in 2017, influencing one of the NFL’s most potent defensive units as well as overseeing the rise of quarterback Josh Allen and the franchise’s return to Super Bowl contention while winning four successive AFC East division titles.

Key player: Josh Allen… As long as Josh Allen remains under center, the Bills are Super Bowl contenders. Buffalo’s all-action quarterback embodies McDermott’s Bills with his bombs-away arm talent and bruising running style having buried rookie doubts to assert himself as the closest contender to Patrick Mahomes among the league’s top passers. He ranks fourth in the league with 4,306 passing yards having thrown for 29 touchdowns to 18 interceptions; turnovers have been an hindrance, but not enough to deter him from abandoning the full throttle approach that has thrust the Bills among the elite.

An explosion in the production of pass-catching running back James Cook has added a fresh dimension to the Bills offense since Joe Brady was elevated to offensive coordinator following the firing of Ken Dorsey, while star receiver Stefon Diggs lurks knowing he is due a big game having not produced a 100-yard outing since Week Six. On defense, defensive tackle Ed Oliver has starred with 9.5 sacks in the absence of key contributors as McDermott’s most instrumental cog up front.

Form guide: The Bills came out of Week 12 having just suffered a 37-34 overtime defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles, leaving them 6-6 and staring at the prospect of missing out on the playoffs amid their Championship window. It typified a run of five defeats in eight games dating back to their lacklustre performance in defeat to the Jaguars in London. With a bye week to rest, they emerged from the break to topple the Chiefs before dismantling the in-form Cowboys 31-10 as part of a five-game winning streak that would end in their decisive 21-14 final-day win over the Dolphins to secure the No. 2 seed in the AFC. They now march on as one of the most frightening playoff propositions.

Playoff history: The wait continues, but for how much longer? The Bills became the first team to reach four consecutive Super Bowls between 1990 and 1993 – famously losing on all four occasions as one of 12 teams yet to win the ultimate prize in football. Buffalo went 17 seasons without reaching the playoffs between 2000 and 2016, but have since featured in the postseason in all but the 2018 campaign. For five years they have been knocking on the Super Bowl door, the closest they have come being the 2020 playoffs when they were beaten by the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game. They have since been eliminated in the Divisional Round two years in a row, falling to the Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals.

Super Bowl prospects: It is difficult to look beyond them as one of three favourites alongside the Ravens and 49ers, such has been their scintillating finish to the season. They are every playoff opponent’s worst nightmare in current form, Allen the quarterback capable of dissecting any team and McDermott’s bruising defense tailor-made for postseason intensity.

3) Kansas City Chiefs

AFC West division champions – 11-6 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: vs Dolphins, Arrowhead Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 1.15am, Sunday

Head coach: Andy Reid is into his 11th season with the Chiefs, and this team has known only success since he’s been there, winning two Super Bowl titles and missing out on the playoffs just once in 2014 – albeit still securing a winning record at 9-7, the only time his team failed to reach 10 wins.

Key player: Patrick Mahomes, of course. Or could you make an argument for Taylor Swift?! The pop music superstar, dating tight end Travis Kelce, has arguably provided more entertainment while watching on in her box than the Kansas City players have provided on the field this year. This usually explosive offense has, for much of the season, failed to get out of first gear, ranking 15th in points per game (21.8) and only just sneaking into the top 10 in terms of yards per game (351.3) Mahomes has tried his best to carry this team on his back but he’s been let down by a poor crop of receivers at his disposal, who have made a habit of dropping passes delivered on the numbers.

Form guide: Despite all of the above, the Chiefs won the AFC West division title for an eighth-straight season, with an 11-6 record – the longest active streak in the league and second-longest in NFL history behind only the 11-straight years the Patriots won the AFC East from 2009 to 2019. But it hasn’t been all smooth sailing for the defending champions this season, heading into the playoffs off the back of five defeats in their last 10 and with their usually so dependable offense faltering.

Playoff history: The Chiefs have made it all the way to the Super Bowl on five occasions, losing to the Packers in the very first Super Bowl, before triumphing over the Vikings three years later… though then came a 50-year drought, one which was finally ended in the 2018 season as Kansas City famously fought back from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to beat the 49ers 31-20. The Chiefs missed the chance to go back-to-back as they were beaten by Tom Brady and the Buccaneers the following year, but Mahomes would rally the team to their second ring in four seasons with an epic 38-35 victory over the Eagles in Arizona last year.

Super Bowl prospects: The Chiefs live for the Conference Championship. It’s five-straight seasons in which they’ve hosted the AFC title game. But, seeded third this year, it’s unlikely they’ll earn that honour for a sixth campaign, with Mahomes set to play a road playoff game in his career after Wild Card Weekend – should they make it through.

4) Houston Texans

AFC South division champions – 10-7 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: vs Browns, NRG Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 9.30pm, Saturday

Head coach: The Texans believed they were onto a winner when they nabbed former San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans as their new head coach last offseason, and how right they were. Ryans has asserted himself as one of the most gifted young coaching minds in the league, piloting one of the stories of 2023 to the playoffs in his first campaign in charge.

Key player: From first-year head coach to first-year quarterback, CJ Stroud has dazzled across a historic rookie campaign that has handed the Texans immediate reassurance that they found their play-caller of the future with the second overall pick of last year’s Draft. Stroud has demonstrated the accuracy, the field diagnosis, the downfield aggression, the anticipation, the outer-pocket creativity and the leadership of a franchise face, throwing for a franchise-rookie record 4,108 passing yards for 23 touchdowns to just five interceptions while tying the NFL record for most 350-yard passing games by a rookie. While No 1 overall pick Bryce Young has struggled within a flailing Carolina Panthers team, Stroud has blossomed to begin his ascent towards the league’s elite.

Form guide: Houston enter the playoffs having just pipped the Jacksonville Jaguars to the AFC South title after edging out the Indianapolis Colts before seeing Doug Pederson’s side suffer a costly defeat to the Tennessee Titans on the final day of the regular season. The Texans won seven of their last 11 games following their Week Seven bye, divisional wins over the Titans and Colts over the final month ultimately securing their path to the postseason.

Playoff history: The Texans return to the playoffs for the first time since the 2019 campaign, when they were beaten 51-31 by the eventual-champion Chiefs in the Divisional Round having been leading 24-0 at one stage in the first half. Houston have been to the playoffs on just six occasions in their short history, losing in the Divisional Round four times and on wild card weekend twice.

Super Bowl prospects: Playoff football represents an accelerated schedule for the Texans behind Ryans and Stroud, who between them have turned a broken franchise into one of the league’s most exciting. They are bold, physical, explosive and inventive, but face a daunting first hurdle in the form of a league-leading Cleveland Browns defense. It feels a little early in the process for a Super Bowl charge, but this Stroud-inspired unit fears nobody.

5) Cleveland Browns

Wild Card – 11-6 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: @ Texans, NRG Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 9.35pm, Saturday

Head coach: Kevin Stefanski is somewhat unheralded as a head coach in the NFL, but the job he has done with this team can’t be underestimated, especially considering they’ve used as many as four starting quarterbacks over the course of this season and yet are still one of the most competitive teams in the league.

Key player: This team is Myles Garrett. There is simply no-one more imposing than Garrett in a Browns uniform, perhaps even the entire NFL. The pass-rush extraordinaire has followed up back-to-back seasons of 16 sacks with 14 more in this campaign, along with four forced fumbles.

But, also, as bizarre as it is to say, this Browns side will only go as far as Joe Flacco takes them. The 38-year-old veteran QB has been either ineffective on the field or floating around on the bench for much of the decade since his Super Bowl win with the Ravens back to cap the 2012 season – until landing in Cleveland midway through the season, that is. Flacco has led this team to four victories in his five starts, also becoming the first Browns quarterback in history to throw for over 300 yards in four-straight games, tossing up 13 touchdowns (albeit with eight interceptions) in the process. Can Flacco’s fairytale run with the Browns continue into the playoffs?

Form guide: As mentioned, Flacco fired this team to four-straight wins to confirm a playoff berth for the Browns, before a much-changed lineup lost heavily to the Bengals on the final week of the season, with many of the starters rested.
This Cleveland team is built around their defense, the league leaders, giving up a paltry 270.2 yards per game.

Playoff history: The Browns are one of just four NFL teams – along with the Jaguars, Lions and Texans – to have never reached a Super Bowl before, let alone won one.
And, since 1994, Cleveland has been back to the promised land of the playoffs on only two occasions, with this season representing a third. They lost to the Steelers in a 2002 wild card clash, having to wait nearly 20 years to gain their revenge in 2020 before Mahomes and the Chiefs edged them out in the divisional round that year.

Super Bowl prospects: The AFC is wide open this year and this is a ferocious Browns defense that is made for the rough and tumble of January football. As the old cliché goes, “Defense wins championships”… in which case Cleveland stand a very good chance indeed.

6) Miami Dolphins

Wild Card – 11-6 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: @ Chiefs, Arrowhead Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 1.15am, Sunday

Head coach: Mike McDaniel has schemed, quirked and charmed his way to universal admiration as one of the NFL’s genius offensive minds and loveable personalities. He embodies unfiltered football nerd as a glistening branch to the famed Shanahan tree, shifting Miami into Super Bowl contention in his second season in charge since moving across from his post as 49ers offensive coordinator. What has been refreshing is the acknowledged room for growth in his first top job; whether they win it or not this year, the Dolphins are in fine, fine hands.

Key player: Between Tua Tagovailoa’s snappy release and slick play diagnosis, and Tyreek Hill’s devastating chunk play speed, in-breaking routes and yards-after-catch, the Dolphins duo make up one of the NFL’s most electric quarterback-receiver pairings. Tagovailoa led the NFL in passing yards, while Hill topped the receiving charts having seen his pursuit of a 2,000-yard campaign slowed only by injury. In a time of two-safety coverages designed to blunt deep plays, they continue to feast.

Miami have endured their fair share of rotten luck with injuries of late, losing their chief edge rushers in Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb. With that comes heightened importance for both Christian Wilkins and Zach Sieler up front, alongside off-ball linebacker David Long and cornerback Jalen Ramsey.

Form guide: For all their firepower and their traits of a contender, Miami continue to face questions over their ability to get over the line against the league’s best. They arrive on the back of a 56-19 defeat to the Ravens and a 21-14 loss to the Bills, the latter of which would cost them the AFC East title. The Dolphins flexed their muscles with a 70-20 demolition job over the Denver Broncos in Week Three, before losing 48-20 to the Bills the next week amid a 6-3 start that would see them miss an opportunity against the Chiefs in Frankfurt. They have finished the campaign with five wins in their last eight, but there is no doubting that the absence of Phillips and Chubb has inflicted a major dent to their postseason threat.

Playoff history: The Dolphins are without a playoff victory since 2000 and have reached the postseason just six times in that period. Led by the great Don Shula, Miami made it to the Super Bowl three years in a row from 1971-1973, winning twice while amassing a perfect 17-0 record in 1972. Shula guided them back there in both 1982 and 1984, only to lose to Washington and the 49ers.

Super Bowl prospects: When this offense is firing, healthy and in full uninterrupted flow, it looks every bit like a serious contender capable of terrifying the rest of the league. But between struggles against their closest Super Bowl rivals and some marquee injuries down the stretch, they may just come up shy.

7) Pittsburgh Steelers

Wild Card – 10-7 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: @ Bills, Highmark Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 6pm, Sunday

Head coach: Mike Tomlin has done it again. The Steelers were down and out, staring at uncomfortable offseason questions after a tumultuous campaign in which effort levels have been criticised and quarterback play has stumbled. And yet here is Tomlin celebrating an NFL-record 17th straight winning record to begin his coaching career, leading Pittsburgh to a stunning playoff berth when considering their season.

Key player: TJ Watt would usually slot quite nicely into this gap, but the Steelers are set to be without their 19-sack edge rusher after he suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain during Pittsburgh’s crucial win over the Baltimore Ravens. With his absence, the onus heightens for the likes of Alex Highsmith and Cam Heyward to lead the disruption up front, perhaps with the assistance of rookie linebacker Nick Herbig in light of recent flashes from the Wisconsin man.

In a year of the backup quarterback, Mason Rudolph’s entrance in place of Kenny Pickett and Mitch Trubisky has remarkably sparked an up-turn in production for a Steelers offense that has verged on miserable to watch for much of the campaign. His ball security and ability to stretch the field over the past three weeks has ignited the best of star receiver George Pickens, while Jaylen Warren has been a rare source of explosiveness out of the backfield.

Form guide: Having lost three straight in December, the Steelers closed out the campaign with three successive wins to squeeze into the playoffs following their victory over the Ravens and Jacksonville’s upset defeat to the Tennessee Titans. Consistency has been non-existent while the offense is still yet to really convince of its ability to compete in the postseason, but Tomlin continues to find a way of keeping his teams competitive.

Playoff history: The Steelers remain just one of two teams in NFL history to win six Super Bowl titles alongside the New England Patriots, while they have reached the AFC Championship Game a record 16 times. Between 1974 and 1979 they notably won the Super Bowl four times, their last visit ending in defeat to the Packers in 2010 and their most recent win coming over the Cardinals in 2008.

Super Bowl prospects: Everything points to their season ending on wild card weekend, where they will encounter a fired-up Bills team working desperately to end the franchise’s long wait for a Super Bowl.

1) San Francisco 49ers

NFC West division champions – 12-5 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: First-round bye

Head coach: Kyle Shanahan is considered one of the best head coaches in the league, and perhaps the game’s greatest offensive mind, with his team again ranking towards the top of the league – second in total offense (398.4 yards per game) and third in scoring (28.9 points per game). This is San Francisco’s fourth trip to the postseason in the past five years under Shanahan, with each of the prior trips taking them to the NFC Championship game (at least), though he is yet to win a Super Bowl for his efforts. Is this the year?

Key player: It’s hard to pick, with this 49ers squad loaded with top-tier talent. That said, the two names certainly getting the most buzz as potential league MVPs are quarterback Brock Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey.
This offense runs through McCaffrey, illustrated by his 2,023 total yards from scrimmage and 21 TDs, which included one in an NFL joint-record streak of 17 consecutive games, dating back to last season. Purdy, meanwhile, has been sensational in his sophomore season, the former seventh-round draft pick ranking third in the NFL in passing touchdowns (31), first in passing yards per attempt (9.6) and passer rating (113.0).

Form guide: The 49ers are one of the hottest teams in the NFL right now, with many tipping them as favourites to win the whole thing – that is until they were punched in the mouth with a 33-19 loss at home to the Ravens in Week 16 in a possible Super Bowl preview matchup between the two respective No 1 seeds. They remain one of the frontrunners though.

Playoff history: The 49ers are one of the most successful franchises in Super Bowl history, with their five wins placing them level with the Cowboys and seeing them bettered only by the Steelers and Patriots (both six) – and Tom Brady’s seven! That said, San Francisco last tasted success nearly three decades ago in the 1994 season, and have lost their two trips since – to the Ravens in 2012 and to Mahomes’ Chiefs in 2019. They very nearly made it back to the big dance in each of the last two years, only to lose out in back-to-back NFC Championship appearances, to their division-rival Rams in 2021 and the Eagles last year as they lost Purdy to an early injury.

Super Bowl prospects: The overwhelming favourite to make it back there from the NFC. The Cowboys are likely their biggest threat to that eventuality but the 49ers have beaten them in each of their last two postseason trips and absolutely hammered them 42-10 in Week Five of this campaign.

2) Dallas Cowboys

NFC East division champions – 12-5 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: vs Packers, AT&T Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 9.30pm, Sunday

Head coach: Mike McCarthy is in his fourth season in Dallas, in three of which the former Packers head coach has led the Cowboys to the playoffs. McCarthy previously led the Packers to the playoffs nine times from 2006 to his departure in 2018, winning one Super Bowl while reaching the NFC Championship Game on three other occasions.

Key player: Until a few weeks ago and Lamar Jackson’s ascension as favourite, Dak Prescott was widely considered one of the top candidates to win MVP amid a while on his way to a league-high 410 passes for 4,516 yards and a league-leading 36 touchdowns to just nine interceptions. He has adjusted and manipulated game tempos with his expert field diagnosis pre-snap, while sizzling in tandem with top wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, who has enjoyed a career year with 1,749 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns on the league’s most prolific scoring offense.

Elsewhere Micah Parsons has racked up 14 sacks while leading all defenders with 103 quarterback pressures, per Pro Football Focus. He represents the quintessential modern pass rusher, with the versatility to glide across the line of scrimmage while bludgeoning offensive lineman with a devastating speed-to-power transition. DaRon Bland has meanwhile flourished in the absence of the injured Trevon Diggs with a league-high nine interceptions, including an NFL-record five pick-sixes.

Form guide: The Cowboys have endured few blemishes on their path to the playoffs, winning eight of their final 11 games since the bye to beat the Eagles to the NFC East division title and secure crucial home-field advantage. Nonetheless, recent defeats to the Bills and Dolphins have resurfaced familiar fears of another premature postseason exit amid their agonising pursuit of a Super Bowl return.

Playoff history: There may not be a team under more pressure or burdened by Super Bowl expectations as much as the Dallas Cowboys, who have not been to the Big Dance since their last visit at the end of the 1995 campaign, which saw them emerge as champions thanks to their win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. That marked their third Super Bowl win in the space of four seasons, after which they would go on to win just five playoff games over the next 27 campaigns. Dallas have been to the NFC Championship Game on 14 occasions and featured in eight Super Bowls, five of which they have won.

Super Bowl prospects: Everything is in place. The quarterback, the defense, the weapons, the scheme, the playoff picture. A potential meeting with their famous foe 49ers could yet await, but this feels like another glorious opportunity to try and end their drought.

3) Detroit Lions

NFC North division champions – 12-5 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: vs Rams, Ford Field – live on Sky Sports NFL, 1.15am, Monday

Head coach: Dan Campbell certainly got everyone’s attention when, at his introductory press conference with the Lions in 2021, he said, among other things: “This team’s going to be built on: we’re going to kick you in the teeth, and when you punch us back… we’re going to bite a kneecap off.”

Campbell’s kneecap-biters took a while to work up an appetite, returning a 3-13-1 record in his debut campaign, before a 1-6 start to 2022 had him firmly on the hot seat. Eight wins followed over Detroit’s final 10 games of that season – the team agonisingly falling short of a playoff spot – and the Lions have only built on that further in 2023, claiming a first division title in 30 years under his stewardship.

Key player: The fulcrum of this Lions team, certainly their defensive unit, is second-year standout Aidan Hutchinson. The sophomore star has 11.5 sacks this year following the 9.5 the Michigan alumni registered in his rookie campaign, while he also has a pick to go with the three he logged last year.

On the offensive side of the ball, Amon-Ra St. Brown continues to be one of the most underrated receivers, despite returning career highs of 119 receptions, 1,515 yards and 10 touchdowns this season, while there are few better one-two punches at running back than David Montgomery (13 rush TDs) and rookie Jahmyr Gibbs (11 total TDs).

Form guide: It couldn’t be much better. This year represents the first 12-win Lions season in over three decades, since 1991, but more on that in a second…

Playoff history: Little to speak of, to be frank. The Lions are one of only four NFL teams – along with the Browns, Jaguars and Texans – to have never reached a Super Bowl before, let alone won one. Not only that, but in the Super Bowl era (since 1966), this is only the 13th time Detroit have made the postseason. And, of those prior visits, they’ve won just the one playoff game – a divisional round clash with the Cowboys in that 1991 campaign!

Super Bowl prospects: Don’t let that dismal Lions playoff record fool you, this is a very different Detroit outfit, one more than capable of causing a few upsets in the postseason, as their season-opening win over the defending champion Chiefs is testament to. While they might finally register another playoff victory, a trip to the Super Bowl itself is probably a step too far.

4) Tampa Bay Buccaneers

NFC South division champions – 9-8 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: vs Eagles, Raymond James Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 1am Tuesday

Head coach: Todd Bowles… For the second season running Todd Bowles has guided the Bucs to the playoffs after succeeding Bruce Arians as head coach in Tampa. The former Bucs defensive coordinator had unfinished business as a head coach in the NFL following a spell with the Jets from 2015-2018, and is exercising as much having found a way to get the best from Baker Mayfield while continuing to field one of the league’s most effective defenses.

Key player: It wasn’t so long ago that Baker Mayfield was at risk of a spiraling career having been brushes aside to make way for Deshaun Watson in Cleveland before spending short spells with the Carolina Panthers and Los Angeles Rams. The Bucs took a chance on him following Tom Brady’s retirement last offseason, and how it has paid off. Mayfield is playing some of the finest football of his career, throwing for 4,044 passing yards and 28 touchdowns to 10 interceptions to seemingly play his way to a new deal in the offseason. If he plays tidy, clinical football then the Bucs are a match for most.

Aiding a rejuvenated Mayfield has been lead wide receiver Mike Evans, who just posted 1,000 yards for the 10th successive season since entering the league. Tristan Wirfs has established himself as an indispensable cornerstone as Mayfield’s blind-side protector, while Vita Vea remains one of the league’s premier defensive tackles and formidable interior bulldozers.

Form guide: The Bucs have epitomised the rollercoaster division that is the NFC South, the lead for which has regularly exchanged hands between Tampa, the New Orleans Saints and the Atlanta Falcons. Bowles’ men looked to be hurtling towards disappointment when they lost six of seven games following their Week Five bye, only to hit back emphatically with six victories in their final nine to hold off their division rivals and lock in the No. 4 seed.

Playoff history: It is three years since Brady carried the Bucs to a staggering Super Bowl crown in his first season with the team in 2020, leading them to a 31-9 win over the Chiefs with the help of a suffocating performance from Bowles’ defense. They threatened a repeat in 2021 by reaching the Divisional Round, only to come up shy against the Los Angeles Rams. Tampa have won the Super Bowl twice in their history, lifting the Lombardi Trophy for the first time at the end of the 2002 season before reaching the playoffs just twice in the next 17 seasons until winning a second ring.

Super Bowl prospects: Such has been the level of play within their division that the Bucs enter without a win over a recognised contender. It is a tall ask of Mayfield to out-play the calibre of quarterback he could encounter, though both he and a relatively stingy defense they should not be counted out against a sliding Eagles outfit. Will they win it all? No. Can they cause one or two teams problems along the way? Certainly.

5) Philadelphia Eagles

Wild Card – 11-6 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: @ Buccaneers, Raymond James Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 1am Tuesday

Head coach: Is the pressure mounting on Nick Sirianni? A turbulent end to the regular season has raised questions of the Eagles head coach, just a year removed from helping Philadelphia reach the Super Bowl. Sirianni is in his third season at the helm, but returns to the playoffs having seen one of the league’s most sophisticated and innovative RPO offenses fall stale alongside a struggling defense. A big month awaits.

Key player: Stepping aside from the quarterback position momentarily, the dip in production from Eagles edge rushers Haason Reddick and Josh Sweat over the second half of the season has been a contributing factor to Philly’s recent slump. The pair played defining roles on a team that led the league in sacks on the road to the Super Bowl last year; a return to form would do well in reigniting the Eagles’ Super Bowl credentials.

Across from them, Jalen Hurts remains the key to an offense that has fallen short of the standards it set in 2022. He continues to threaten as one of the league’s most dangerous rushing quarterbacks behind one of the league’s most potent offensive lines, while continuing to push the ball downfield. For all the issues he may have faced against the blitz and with turnovers, Hurts was an MVP contender not so long ago, and is the same quarterback that went toe-to-toe with Mahomes in the Super Bowl.

Form guide: Philly looked in ominous form as they opened the campaign with a 10-1 record while overpowering the Dolphins, Cowboys, Chiefs and Bills. Everything looked pretty as they teased an immediate return to the Super Bowl, only to lose five of their last six including heavy defeats to the 49ers and Cowboys. Their Week 18 loss to the New York Giants underlined their concerns, though could yet prove the wake-up required.

Playoff history: The Eagles have reached the Super Bowl twice in the last seven seasons, famously edging out the New England Patriots in 2017 before losing out 38-35 to the Mahomes-inspired Chiefs last year. Philly famously lost in the NFC Championship Game three times in a row under Andy Reid from 2001-2003, before coming up second best to the Patriots at Super Bowl XXXIX at the end of the 2004 campaign.

Super Bowl prospects: For the first 10 weeks they looked like the team to beat. Injuries and play-calling has hurt them, but this is still a roster with the talent, depth and quarterback to go all the way.

6) Los Angeles Rams

Wild Card – 10-7 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: @ Lions, Ford Field – live on Sky Sports NFL, 1.15am, Monday

Head coach: What an incredible coaching job Sean McVay has done in 2023. A year on from looking to move on from Los Angeles and potentially into broadcasting, McVay ultimately returned and had the unenviable task of trying to rebuild a decimated team only two years removed from their Super Bowl success in 2021, but that’s precisely what he did, making the Rams contenders again.

Key man: It would be easy to rattle off the familiar names of Aaron Donald, Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp here, but instead it’s an opportunity to highlight Puka Nacua, the rookie receiver who surely no NFL fan would have had on their radar prior to this season.

But the fifth-round selection out of BYU in the 2023 NFL Draft has been a revelation at the position, breaking a 63-year-old record for the most receiving yards by a rookie in NFL history (1,486) in Sunday’s season-ender against the 49ers, surpassing Bill Groman, who had 1,473 receiving yards in a 14-game season in 1960. On the very next play, Nacua then caught his 105th pass for the year, also earning him the rookie record for receptions in a season.

Form guide: Quite possibly the form team in the NFL! The Rams have won seven of their last eight since their bye, with their only defeat in that span coming in overtime against the Ravens, who many rate as the top team in the league heading into the playoffs.

Playoff history: The Rams are two-time Super Bowl champions, once when based out in St. Louis and delivering the world ‘The Greatest Show on Turf’ in 1999, and then again when McVay and his star-studded squad defeated Joe Burrow and the Bengals two years ago.

Super Bowl prospects: It might be asking too much for the Rams to earn a third Super Bowl ring and second under McVay. This outfit is very much in the early building-block stages of putting together another championship-winning side, but they could well pull off an upset or two in the postseason – no doubt!

7) Green Bay Packers

Wild Card – 9-8 regular-season record

Wild Card Weekend: @Cowboys, AT&T Stadium – live on Sky Sports NFL, 9.30pm, Sunday

Head coach: Matt LaFleur enters the playoffs amid his fifth season in charge of the Packers, with 2023 marking something of a new chapter for one of the league’s brightest offensive minds following the departure of four-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The Shanahan disciple has since reshaped his scheme around the talents of Jordan Love to turn the NFL’s youngest roster into up-and-coming contenders. He deserves a tremendous amount of credit for the job he has done this season.

Key player: The Packers enjoyed 30 years of franchise quarterback play from Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers while others around the league found themselves stuck in play-caller purgatory. Well, they might be about to enjoy another decade of success under center if Jordan Love’s sparkling season is anything to go off. Love finished the regular season with 4,159 passing yards and 32 touchdown passes to just 11 interceptions in his first year as starter after taking over from Rodgers following his trade to the New York Jets.

Form guide: Green Bay capped an impressive campaign by securing their place in the playoffs with a 17-9 victory over the Bears amid a three-game winning streak to finish the season. They have now won seven of their last 10 down the stretch, including standout wins over the third-seeded Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving and defending champion Chiefs over back-to-back weeks in two major statements as to their potential under Love.

Playoff history: The Packers have reached the playoffs in three of the previous four seasons, notably losing at the NFC Championship Game two years in a row in 2019 and 2020 amid their search for a first Super Bowl appearance since their triumph at the end of the 2010 campaign. They have missed out on the playoffs just seven times since 2000, reaching the NFC Championship Game five times in that period alongside their Super Bowl XLV win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Super Bowl prospects: While Green Bay’s young Love-driven offense has showcased its ability to challenge the best in the league, question marks continue to cloud Joe Barry’s much-maligned defense. Awaiting them are the Cowboys and their No 1-ranked scoring offense, coupled with an incredible home record that has seen Mike McCarthy’s side go unbeaten in Dallas since Week One of last season.