NFL 2025 NFL - Week 18

[balmainforever]

SUNDAY, JANUARY 4 @ 8:30 AM
Carolina at Tampa Bay LIVE

SUNDAY, JANUARY 4 @ 12:00 PM
Seattle at San Francisco LIVE

MONDAY, JANUARY 5 @ 5:00 AM
Cleveland at Cincinnati
Dallas at New York Giants LIVE
Green Bay at Minnesota LIVE
Indianapolis at Houston LIVE
New Orleans at Atlanta
Tennessee at Jacksonville

MONDAY, JANUARY 5 @ 8:25 AM
Arizona at Los Angeles Rams
Detroit at Chicago
Kansas City at Las Vegas
Los Angeles Chargers at Denver LIVE
Miami at New England LIVE
New York Jets at Buffalo
Washington at Philadelphia

MONDAY, JANUARY 5 @ 12:20 PM
Baltimore at Pittsburgh LIVE

AUSTRALIAN T.V. GAMES
LIVE ON ESPN/KAYO AT 8:30 AM ON 4/1: Carolina at Tampa Bay
LIVE ON ESPN/KAYO AT 12:00 PM ON 4/1: Seattle at San Francisco
LIVE ON ESPN/KAYO AT 5.00 AM ON 5/1: Indianapolis at Houston
LIVE ON ESPN2/KAYO AT 5.00 AM ON 5/1: Dallas at New York Giants
LIVE ON 7MATE AT 5.00 AM ON 5/1: Green Bay at Minnesota
LIVE ON 7MATE AT 8.25 AM ON 5/1: Miami at New England
LIVE ON ESPN/KAYO AT 8.25 AM ON 5/1: Los Angeles Chargers at Denver
LIVE ON ESPN/KAYO AT 12.20 PM ON 5/1: Baltimore at Pittsburgh

LIVE ON Disney+ AT 5:00 AM on 5/1: NFL RedZone

All Games live on TAB app

NB: VIC, NSW, TAS times
less 30 mins SA
less 1 hour QLD
less 1.5 hours NT
less 3 hours WA

 

[rumply]

Week 18 NFL playoff picture: A visual guide to every possible seed and scenario

Detailed diagrams map out every possible postseason outcome, team by team.

www.nytimes.com

https://archive.md/j7k6l

Nice layout

Couple of fun games on tomorrow, not much at stake...

 

[AmericanCrow]

Who would you like the Browns to hire?

You find a guy like this...plain and simple:

 

[exe ex machina]

Buccaneers are lucky to even be in this position today. Didn't they pull off a handful of last minute wins at the start and middle of the season? They could've been a 4-13 team. Still, it's a surprise that they're clinging to their life today. Their roster is loaded with talent across the board.

 

[imadodgyumpire]

Panthers vs Bucs.

Let's Rock n roll!

 

[TheGreatBarryB]

Buccaneers are lucky to even be in this position today. Didn't they pull off a handful of last minute wins at the start and middle of the season? They could've been a 4-13 team. Still, it's a surprise that they're clinging to their life today. Their roster is loaded with talent across the board.

Lucky? They’re in the worst division. Who else in that division are ‘unlucky’. They have beaten 49ers (injury depleted at the time) and Seattle this season.

 

[exe ex machina]

NFL playoff controversy: How Buccaneers or Panthers could spark a renewed debate about postseason format

By John Breech

Jan 2, 2026 at 2:16 pm ET


One of the biggest games in Week 18 will be going down in Tampa Bay with the Buccaneers hosting the Panthers in a game where there will be a lot on the line.

If the Panthers win, they'll clinch the NFC South, but if they lose, that means we'll see an NFL rarity: A team with a losing record will make the playoffs. A loss by Carolina would guarantee that the NFC South winner would go into the postseason with a losing record at 8-9. Whether it's the Panthers or the Bucs, the winner of the division will get to host a playoff game on wild card weekend and that will likely spark a new debate about whether the NFL needs to change its playoff format so that a team with a losing record can't host a postseason game.

Over the past five years, there have been two teams that have won a division with a losing record and in that span, there's certainly been some outcry that the NFL shouldn't award a home playoff game to a team with a losing record or to a team that has a much worse record than its opponent.

After the 14-win Vikings were forced to play a road playoff game last season, the Lions decided to propose a new playoff format for 2025.

Under the Lions' proposal, the seven teams in each conference would still consist of four division champions and three wild card teams. However, the big change is that the teams would be seeded by who has the best record. Under this proposal, a wild card team could be seeded ahead of a division winner if the wild card team has a better record. This means that a wild card team could be seeded as high as No. 2. Under the current format, the four division winners get the top four seeds followed by the three wild card teams. In the current format, no wild card team can be seeded higher than fifth.

The Lions decided to withdraw their proposal just before it was set to be vote on back in May, so no changes were made to the NFL's existing playoff format for this year.

If this new proposal would have been in place this year, the NFL playoff race would have a much different look, especially in the NFC.

Here's what the NFC playoff seedings look like right now:

1. Seahawks (13-3)
2. Bears (11-5)
3. Eagles (11-5)
4. Panthers (8-8)
5. 49ers (12-4)
6. Rams (11-5)
7. Packers (9-6-1)

If the Lions' proposal had passed, here's what the NFC standings would have looked like heading into Week 18:

1. Seahawks (13-3)
2. 49ers (12-4)
3.. Bears (11-5)
4. Eagles (11-5)
5. Rams (11-5)
6. Packers (9-6-1)
7. Panthers (8-8)

In this situation, the Seahawks would have already clinched a home game, but the NFC West would still be on the line when they play the 49ers on Saturday night. Also, the Panthers and Buccaneers would be going into Week 18 knowing that the winner of the NFC South would be getting the seventh seed and playing a road game in the opening round.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has been showing support for a possible change to the playoff format. When Goodell was asked about Detroit's proposal back in April, he seemed to be enthusiastic about it.

"I thought it is a very healthy proposal and a very healthy point that we need to evaluate and continue to look at," Goodell said. "It went through many different forms. There was some great data to show that we should really look at some form or version of this."

If the the NFL gets another team with a losing record hosting a playoff game this year, it certainly wouldn't be surprising if there's a new proposal to change the playoff format at the next owner's meeting in March.

That being said, the Panthers could make the playoffs with a winning record (9-8) if they beat the Bucs on Saturday, but even if that happens, there could still be a call for change. In 2024, the NFL didn't have a team with a losing record make the playoffs, but the Lions still made their proposal.

Last year, the Lions' proposal didn't have enough support, but that could change if another 8-9 team hosts a playoff game.
If the Buccaneers or Panthers do make the postseason with a losing record, it would mark just the seventh time in NFL history that a sub-.500 team has made the playoffs.

Here's the full list of teams that have gotten into the postseason with a losing record:

1982 Browns (4-5)
1982 Lions (4-5)
2010 Seahawks (7-9)
2014 Panthers (7-8-1)
2020 Commanders (7-9)
2022 Buccaneers (8-9)

Note: The Browns and Lions both made it during a strike-shortened season where the NFL expanded the playoff field to 16 teams. The other four teams on the list all won their division.

As you can see, both the Panthers and Buccaneers have already made the playoffs once with a losing record, which means if one of them makes it to the playoffs this year at 8-9, they'd become the first team in NFL history to do it twice.

For the Panthers to make the playoffs with a losing record, they'd have to lose to the Bucs on Saturday and then the Falcons would have to beat the Saints on Sunday. For the Bucs to get in at 8-9, they'd have to beat the Panthers and then have the Falcons lose to New Orleans.

 

[exe ex machina]

Sheesh that singer. Even I can sing better than that

 

[A11dAtP0w3R]

What a bunch of shit campaigners. Way too easy. Jaycee Horn being a bum again.

 

[exe ex machina]

1. Seahawks (13-3)
2. Bears (11-5)
3. Eagles (11-5)
4. Panthers (8-8)
5. 49ers (12-4)
6. Rams (11-5)
7. Packers (9-6-1)

If the Lions' proposal had passed, here's what the NFC standings would have looked like heading into Week 18:

1. Seahawks (13-3)
2. 49ers (12-4)
3.. Bears (11-5)
4. Eagles (11-5)
5. Rams (11-5)
6. Packers (9-6-1)
7. Panthers (8-8)

The irony tho. In both formats, the same games would be played: 49ers vs Panthers, Bears vs Packers, Eagles vs Rams.

 

[A11dAtP0w3R]

This is going to be a blowout. Unprepared shit show.

 

[exe ex machina]

Still can't get over how Allen beat out Jackson for MVP last season....

 

[exe ex machina]

This is going to be a blowout. Unprepared shit show.

That often appears at the start of games. It's very often we see just this on NFL Redzone thru the first half and then the Witching Hour the result flips

 

[A11dAtP0w3R]

That often appears at the start of games. It's very often we see just this on NFL Redzone thru the first half and then the Witching Hour the result flips

We arent built to be double digits down and win, especially in the rain. Need at least 3 points on the next drive and a defensive stop or we are ****ed.

 

[A11dAtP0w3R]

Why wouldnt you have long stops to start the game??

 

[exe ex machina]

Where has #87 been all season, looks good

 

[A11dAtP0w3R]

Where has #87 been all season, looks good

Tremayne. He has been good when hes in the game. Hes better than Legette.

 

[drd23]

Still can't get over how Allen beat out Jackson for MVP last season....

Because you had people using narratives like "he does more with less support" and "SoS doesn't matter" to justify giving it to someone new.

Hilariously, people like Dan Orlovsky who pushed that narrative last year is now using the opposite narratives to justify who he wants to vote for this year (Stafford over Maye)

 

[A11dAtP0w3R]

Got the defensive stop, need 7 points off this

 

[rumply]

 

[00Stinger]

Baker loves a turnover at the moment, doesn't he?

 

[srobbo]

Bang, Panthers D shows up, now stop with the boneheaded penalties Panthers & put 7 on the board.

 

[A11dAtP0w3R]

Good.

 

[rumply]

too easy

 

[A11dAtP0w3R]

The run game is garbage. Tampa's pass d is their weakness. Lean on the pass.

 

[exe ex machina]

Because you had people using narratives like "he does more with less support" and "SoS doesn't matter" to justify giving it to someone new.

Hilariously, people like Dan Orlovsky who pushed that narrative last year is now using the opposite narratives to justify who he wants to vote for this year (Stafford over Maye)

It's the one thing i hate about the NFL, the whole mvp thing — QB award, and then political and other narratives further compromise it.