2025 NFL playoffs: One reason why each postseason team can win Super Bowl LIX, including Steelers, Packers

In many ways, the start of the NFL playoffs is similar to the first week of the regular season. There’s a feeling of newness in the air, along with the optimism from fan bases that this might be the year when something special takes place. 

With that in mind, we decided to list one reason why each team in the 2025 postseason can win the Super Bowl. The Kansas Chiefs and Detroit Lions may be the front-runners in their respective conferences, but each team in the playoffs has something that makes them a legitimate threat to win Super Bowl LIX. 

Teams listed in order of their seedings 

AFC

(1) Kansas City Chiefs: Patrick Mahomes 

Need we say more? Yes, the Chiefs are much more than a one-man show. The Chiefs’ depth at the skill positions, after all, is a big reason for their 15-2 regular-season record and will be a big component to their success if they are able to win an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl. Kansas City’s defense also enjoyed a stellar regular season, ranking in the top 10 in the NFL in fewest points allowed. 

The Chiefs’ success stops and ends with Mahomes, who despite not even being 30 has already won two league MVPs and three Super Bowl MVP awards. This wasn’t his best year from a statistical standpoint, but like Tom Brady, Mahomes would gladly trade individual accolades for championship trophies. There are more prolific quarterbacks, but Mahomes is still the king of the hill, with a 15-3 playoff record to boot. 

(2) Buffalo Bills: Josh Allen’s playmaking abilities 

Allen is coming off the best regular season of his career, a season that saw him cut back drastically on his turnovers while still putting up big numbers. This season, Allen became the first quarterback in NFL history with multiple seasons with at least 25 touchdown passes and 12 touchdown runs. 

Allen’s ability hasn’t led to a Super Bowl appearance for the Bills yet; what makes this season different? Like Mahomes, Allen’s team has depth at the skill positions, led by running back James Cook, who led the NFL in rushing touchdowns. Allen will need one of his wideouts to step up as the No. 1 target this postseason, though. 

(3) Baltimore Ravens: Derrick Henry-led ground attack

Henry, who celebrated his 31st birthday during Baltimore’s division-clinching win over Cleveland, appears to be the same player who enjoyed a historic postseason run with the Titans in 2019 that fell just short of the Super Bowl. Henry ran for a whopping 446 yards in three postseason games, and there’s nothing that would suggest that he isn’t capable of mimicking that type of success over the next month. 

During the season, the Ravens monitored Henry’s workload in an effort to keep him fresh for the stretch run. Following Baltimore’s Week 14 bye, Henry ran for 514 yards while helping the Ravens close out the regular season with four straight wins. Included in that stretch was a 162-yard outing against the Steelers, the team the Ravens will play host to on Saturday night in the wild-card round. 

We’d be remiss not to mention Henry’s quarterback, Lamar Jackson, who is coming off his best season to date (which is saying something, given that he is already the owner of two league MVP awards). Henry’s presence should take a considerable amount of the burden off of Jackson, whose previous playoff failures are largely due to him trying to do too much. 

(4) Houston Texans: Formidable pass rush duo 

The Texans are known more these days for their offense, led by quarterback C.J. Stroud, but it’s the duo of pass rushers Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. that may be the main thing that keeps Houston alive in the playoffs beyond the wild-card round. 

A four-time Pro Bowler, Hunter (who was acquired this past offseason) tallied 12 sacks and 17 tackles for loss during his first season in Houston. Anderson, who recorded 11 sacks in 14 games, is healthy after injuries hindered him at times during the regular season. 

The duo led a Texans pass rush that finished the season one sack shy of 50. Houston’s pass rush will be vital this weekend against Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, who, like Anderson, battled through his own injuries earlier this season. 

(5) Los Angeles Chargers: Top-ranked scoring defense 

Jim Harbaugh has certainly improved the Chargers during his first season in Los Angeles. The unit, 24th in the NFL in points allowed last year, was tops in the league in that department in 2024. Not surprisingly, the Chargers are fifth in the NFL in third-down efficiency and first in red-zone efficiency. 

The Chargers’ defense has a lot of good players, led by safety Derwin James, who filled the stat sheet this season with 93 tackles, 5.5 sacks and an interception. James and Co. have consistently put Justin Herbert and the Chargers’ offense in favorable situations this season, and that should continue to be the case in the postseason. 

(6) Pittsburgh Steelers: Boz and the defense 

Pittsburgh’s season has been full of ups and downs, but two constants have been Chris Boswell and a defense that has been among the league’s best when healthy. 

Boswell is coming off arguably his best regular season to date that included his second Pro Bowl selection. The Steelers’ defense, which was without several key players during the team’s late-season swoon, should be near full strength on Saturday with starting cornerback Donte Jackson (back) being a full participant during Wednesday’s practice. 

Boswell and Pittsburgh’s defense might be just enough to get them past Baltimore in the wild-card round, but Mike Tomlin’s team will need his offense to perform better than they have in recent weeks if the Steelers are going to make a Super Bowl run. They especially need more from wideout George Pickens, who caught just one pass for zero yards in Pittsburgh’s Week 18 loss to the Bengals. 

(7) Denver Broncos: Emerging offense 

Led by its pass rush (which led the NFL with 63 sacks during the regular season), the Broncos’ defense has been stellar for most of the year. But the unit has had some hiccups in recent weeks, allowing a combined 64 points in consecutive games against the Chargers and Bengals late in the season. 

The offense, though, has continued to improve as the season has progressed, with rookie quarterback Bo Nix being a big reason why. After being held to 20 points or less six times during its first 10 games, Denver’s offense averaged nearly 33 points during its final seven regular-season games. 

To be fair, a lot of that success came against some of the NFL’s weaker defenses. It’ll be interesting to see if Nix and Co. can emulate their recent success against a Bills defense that thrives on getting turnovers. 

NFC

(1) Detroit Lions: History-making quartet 

Detroit’s top-ranked scoring offense includes some history-makers in running backs David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs and wideouts Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. The quartet became the first teammates in NFL history to each record over 1,000 all-purpose yards in a season. Montgomery is slated to return for the divisional round after suffering an MCL injury back in Week 15. 

The Lions’ offense has been humming all season, but injuries led to some struggles defensively during the back half of the season. Detroit’s defense is coming off of an inspiring performance against the Vikings. The Lions allowed just nine points that was largely the result of blanketing coverage of Minnesota’s wideouts. 

(2) Philadelphia Eagles: Saquon Barkley’s presence

Barkley was brought to Philadelphia to help infuse life into a team that ended the 2023 season with six losses in its last seven games. Barkely did just that and more while making NFL history in the process. 

The former New York Giant brought fun back to the Eagles in his pursuit of Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record. Barkley’s offensive line especially took delight in helping him become the ninth player in history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season. Barkley’s team-first approach in Week 18 (he agreed to rest with several other teammates instead of trying to break Dickerson’s record) will likely pay dividends when the Eagles host the Packers on Sunday. 

Barkley’s presence looms even larger now with Jalen Hurts working his way back from a concussion that sidelined him for Philadelphia’s last two preseason games. Like 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey did a year ago, Barkley is more than capable of leading his team to the Super Bowl. 

(3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Shake and Bake 

Led by Baker Mayfield, the Buccaneers’ offense is capable of keeping pace with any team in the league. Mayfield, whose career has been revitalized in Tampa Bay, became the second quarterback in NFL history this season to throw for at least 40 touchdowns in a season. Mayfield did that — in addition to leading the NFL’s fourth-highest scoring offense — despite Chris Godwin suffering a season-ending injury in Week 7. 

Mayfield’s primary target continues to be Mike Evans, the ageless wonder who last week tied Jerry Rice’s NFL record of 11 consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons. Evans has been complemented by the emergence of tight end Cade Otton, rookie receiver Jalen McMillan and fellow rookie Bucky Irving, who amassed over 1,500 all-purpose yards this season. 

One the Buccaneers’ most lethal assets is the fact that they are tops in the NFL on third down. It’s hard to score if you don’t have the ball, and that is what the Buccaneers will try to do to opposing teams this postseason, starting with Sunday’s game against the Commanders. 

(4) Los Angeles Rams: Life on the edge 

It’s safe to say that the Rams are built for the pressure cooker that is the NFL playoffs. Of the Rams’ 10 regular-season wins, eight came in one-score games. The Rams won in a multitude of ways, too, which is another reason why Sean McVay’s team will be a tough out. 

The Rams can beat you in a shootout or in a defensive duel. Just don’t count on the Rams beating themselves as Los Angeles has committed just three turnovers in its last eight games. In order to beat the Rams, you need to beat them. 

Don’t count on scoring a bunch of touchdowns in the red zone against them, either. The Rams boasted the NFL’s fifth-ranked scoring defense in the regular season. A big reason why was the play of their young defensive backs, led by Kamren Kinchens. Linebacker Christian Rozeboom has been a stud, too, filling the stat sheet with 135 tackles, a sack and an interception. 

(5) Minnesota Vikings: Embarrassment of offensive riches 

It should be noted that the Vikings have one of the league’s top defenses that leads the NFL with 24 picks, is fourth in third-down efficiency and first on fourth down. The Vikings’ defense has largely been overlooked this year, but they won’t be if the Vikings are able to make a playoff run. 

Offensively, a lot of the focus has rightfully been on Sam Darnold and his breakout season. Darnold has taken advantage of one of the NFL’s deepest receiving corps, led by Justin Jefferson, who is arguably the league’s best receiver. Darnold also has a proven postseason performer at his disposal in Aaron Jones, who ran for over 100 yards in each of Green Bay’s two playoff games last year. 

Darnold had an off night against the Lions in Week 18. But as long as Donald is accurate, it’s hard to fathom a defense shutting down the Vikings’ offense, which should bode well for Minnesota’s Super Bowl chances. 

(5) Washington Commanders: Jayden Daniels magic

Football is a team sport, but it’s hard to not focus on Daniels when looking at the Commanders’ playoff prospects. Daniels has enjoyed a historic rookie campaign while leading Washington to its first playoff berth since 2020. Along with being a highly efficient passer, Daniels led the Commanders in rushing while averaging a whopping 6 yards per carry. 

Daniels has enjoyed an instant rapport with Terry McLaurin, the Commanders’ talented wideout who caught a career-high 13 touchdowns. Daniels also had a successful partnership with veteran tight end Zach Ertz, whose seven touchdown grabs this year is his highest total since 2018. 

Not surprisingly, defenses have tried to take both players away, especially McLaurin. Daniels has countered by spreading the ball around more to his other playmakers, including Olamide Zaccheaus, a 5-foot-8, former undrafted rookie who caught three touchdowns in Washington’s final three regular-season games. Look for Daniels to continue to try to spread the wealth during the playoffs in an effort to keep defense’s off-guard. 

(7) Green Bay Packers: Presence of physical, former rushing champion

This weekend’s showdown between the Eagles and Packers is a throwback in that it features two of the NFL’s best running backs in Jacobs and Barkley. Both players thrived on new teams this season and are looking to continue that success during the playoffs. 

Green Bay will lean even more on Jacobs now given the injuries it is having on both sides of the ball, including at receiver. A former rushing champion, Jacobs played in just one playoff game in five years with the Raiders, so you can rest assured that he is chomping at the bit to get his first carry on Sunday at 4:05 p.m. ET.

Jacobs is versatile, but he is first and foremost a physical back who has a nose for the end zone. He ran for 14 touchdowns in Green Bay’s final 10 regular season games that included at least one in the final eight games. Jacobs’ tough running and Green Bay’s opportunistic defense is good enough to lead Green Bay to an upset in Philadelphia, and possibly more than that.