Every year, NFL fans are treated to some great football in the NFL Playoffs. No matter how lopsided the matchups appear on paper and no matter how good some teams look heading into the postseason, the playoffs always find a way to surprise us. However, success in the NFL is fleeting, and chances at winning the Super Bowl aren’t guaranteed; just ask the Cincinnati Bengals.
With so much at stake in what should be another fantastic rendition of the NFL Playoffs, here are the five teams under the most pressure to raise the Lombardi Trophy.
Teams Under Most Pressure in 2025 NFL Playoffs
5) Denver Broncos
With the news of the Los Angeles Chargers sitting quarterback Justin Herbert for their Week 18 matchup against the Denver Broncos, it’s widely assumed that Denver will be able to move to 14-3 and capture the top seed in the AFC. With last year’s playoff appearance being their first since their Super Bowl 50 win over the Carolina Panthers in 2015, there hasn’t been any success in Denver for a long time.
This year, the Broncos sport one of the best defenses in recent memory, and look out at a conference that doesn’t provide many true tests for them. The New England Patriots have beaten just two teams above .500 this year, and only the Houston Texans have a defense that comes even remotely close to theirs. With the best defense in the NFL, home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, and possibly no Patrick Mahomes or Lamar Jackson standing in the way, this is the best chance the Broncos will have in quite some time. While Broncos fans will certainly just be happy to be back in the playoffs again, they are also very aware of what can happen if you miss your championship window, and how much time it can take to get back to the playoffs even after you win it all.
4) Chicago Bears
You may be wondering how a team that was a combined 15-36 in the three years prior to this year, sporting an 11-5 record through Week 17, could possibly have pressure to win it all this year. The answer is simple: the Chicago Bears are a product of circumstance and luck, and may never have a chance like this again. I’m not trying to say the Bears aren’t a good team, as you don’t simply “luck” into 11 wins; however, every single close game they’ve had has gone their way. The Bears have beaten the Las Vegas Raiders, Washington Commanders, New York Giants, Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers by a combined 11 points. To put their +29 point differential into perspective, the Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts, and Kansas City Chiefs have a combined 22-26 record and yet their point differential on average is +54. As of now, the only two playoff teams with a lower point differential would be whoever wins the AFC North and the NFC South.
The game of football ebbs and flows. Last year, the Bears lost all of their close games, while this year they are winning them all. The issue is the fact that the Bears will face the top-ranked schedule for the NFC North next year, while all the teams in the division will either be getting better or at least healthier. Remember how good the Bears looked set up for the future in 2018 after a 12-4 finish? Since then, this is their first season with nine or more wins. While it’s not a given that history will repeat itself, these types of opportunities don’t come often for the Bears, so they will feel the pressure to take advantage.
3) Seattle Seahawks
With the Seattle Seahawks only making the playoffs twice since the 2020 season, it may be hard to rationalize why they could possibly have any pressure on them this postseason. They are a young team with an exciting future, but they will still feel the need to produce in the NFL Playoffs this year. Seattle went to back-to-back Super Bowls in 2013 and 2014 with a loaded team, but has failed to make the conference championship game since. They are a healthy team that currently holds the top seed in a tumultuous NFC, which is exactly why they need to win now. Success is fleeting in the NFL, and opportunities like the one they have now don’t come around often.
The Chicago Bears have struggled to beat some bad teams this year and needed overtime to beat a Green Bay Packers team without Micah Parsons and with Malik Willis at quarterback for three quarters at home. The Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers have looked like shells of themselves lately, while the San Francisco 49ers have just about every key player injured right now. With the Los Angeles Rams in the midst of a slump and the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers looking awful as well, the conference is wide open. Nothing is guaranteed in sports, and this may be the best shot they have to make a deep run in quite some time.
2) Pittsburgh Steelers/Baltimore Ravens
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens will meet in Week 18 to determine who takes the AFC North crown, and with it, the four seed in the AFC and a home playoff game. No matter who wins that game, the pressure will be on to finally make a deep run in the playoffs.
Starting with the Pittsburgh Steelers, head coach Mike Tomlin deserves a lot of credit for his 19th consecutive season without a losing record. For as impressive as that is, he has had absolutely no success in the playoffs for quite some time. Since their Super Bowl XLV loss to the Green Bay Packers, the Steelers are just 3-9 in their last nine playoff appearances, have lost five straight playoff games, and they have won more than one playoff game just once, coming all the way back in 2016. In their last five playoff games, they are 0-5 and have lost by an average of 12.6 points per game. For a franchise as storied as the Steelers, simply pushing out 9-7 or 9-8 seasons with no playoff success to go along with it is not good enough, and it may cost Tomlin his job.
While the Steelers have never had one of the more talented teams on paper, the Baltimore Ravens have, which makes the playoffs incredibly important should they make it. Since 2018, the Baltimore Ravens have made the playoffs every year but 2021, when quarterback Lamar Jackson was hurt most of the year. In those six appearances, the Ravens are just 3-6 and have only made the conference championship game once. With the Chiefs out of the way, the AFC is wide open. With Derrick Henry starting to get hot and the team starting to get healthier, there is no reason Baltimore shouldn’t be able to go on a run. If they fall short again, head coach Jon Harbaugh will likely be the first of many dominoes to fall in what could be a tumultuous offseason for the Ravens.
1) Buffalo Bills
Over the last five years, including the 2020 NFL Playoffs, the Buffalo Bills have a 7-5 record. They have made the AFC Championship game twice and have won at least one playoff game each year. Out of those five losses, four of them came against the Kansas City Chiefs. Shockingly, the Chiefs did not make the playoffs this year. Looking at the AFC playoff teams, the Buffalo Bills are the team with by far the most playoff experience and also have the reigning NFL MVP in Josh Allen.
The Denver Broncos, New England Patriots and Houston Texans have a combined four playoff appearances since 2019. The Jacksonville Jaguars, Pittsburgh Steelers and Los Angeles Chargers have two combined playoff wins since 2017. The Baltimore Ravens, who may not even make it depending on the outcome of their Week 18 game against Pittsburgh, are the most “successful” team of the bunch and have just a 3-6 playoff record since 2014. Although the past is just the past, the Bills’ “boogeyman” is out of the picture and they have the best player in the AFC playoffs. Although they will have to go on the road, this is their best opportunity to finally get back to the Super Bowl. With an aging core and key players such as Joey Bosa, Matt Milano, David Edwards and Conner McGovern about to be pending free agents this year, the Bills may never get a shot as good as this one for another decade or even longer.
