Ty Predicts the 2026 NFL Playoffs

Now that the NFL playoffs are officially set I am coming to you all with my predictions and preview. I'll do what I normally do, pick each round, pick the Super Bowl matchup and winner and then pick the MVP of the Super Bowl. Enough preamble, let's get to it.

I'll start with the AFC.

The Denver Broncos are the number 1 seed and that means they have earned the first round bye. I think the bye will be a much needed break and they will get everyone right before their first playoff game.

The 2-7 matchup features the New England Patriots facing the Los Angeles Chargers. This is an interesting matchup. The Patriots are a very, very good team. They are also very inexperienced. This will be a lot of the players' first time in the playoffs, and that is a whole other animal. The Chargers are up and coming and they were in the playoffs last season. Jim Harbaugh is a very good coach as well and he will have his guys ready to play. He rested them all yesterday as well, so they will be good to go. Drake Maye is younger and more mobile than Justin Herbert. Herbert has a better arm though. Both teams have a very solid run game with two guys that bring different elements. The Chargers have a better receiving corps in my opinion. I think both defenses are pretty good too. The Chargers frustrate their opponents to no end and the Patriots like to hit and cause turnovers. I'm going with the Chargers here because they have more experience. The Patriots are coming, but they have to feel some pain before they feel the glory.

The 3-6 game has the Buffalo Bills heading to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars. The Jags are having a remarkable season. I didn't expect this from them this season. I figured they needed one season under their new coach before they got good. They are good now. The Bills have been up and down all season. The offense comes and goes and the defense is not as reliable as they were in the past. Josh Allen is still very good and they have the NFL's leading rusher, James Cook. This game is very similar to the 2-7 matchup. We have youth and inexperience going up against inconsistency and experience. I'm going with the experience again. I'm taking the Bills. here.

The 4-5 game is pretty solid with the Houston Texans going to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. Look, the Steelers lucked their way into this game. Mike Tomlin is a great coach, they have an okay defense, but they are relying on an old QB and they have no run game. The Texans have been on a heater and that is going to continue this weekend. I would go as far to say that they are going to smoke the Steelers. Houston is young but experienced. They have the better QB and receiving corps. Their defense is overall better too. I'm going with the Texans.

So that means the Texans would face the Broncos and the Bills will play the Chargers. The Bills are going to beat the Chargers. The game will be in Buffalo, the Chargers don't like the cold and Josh Allen and James Cook can control the game on the ground. The Broncos and Texans could be a high scoring affair, with Stroud and Nix taking turns going up and down the field. I'm going to go with the Texans since they are an experienced team with something to prove.

That means I have the Texans and Bills playing in the AFC title game and I'm going to go with the Bills, The game will be in Houston, but that means that it will be indoors, and the Bills can once again control the clock with their run game. The Bills will represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.

On to the NFC.

The Seahawks are the one seed, which they earned this past weekend, and they get the bye in the NFC.

The 2-7 game has the Chicago Bears facing the Green Bay Packers for the third time this season. The Bears are proving to be a better team this year. And with the injuries to Jordan Love and Josh Jacobs, who knows who will end up playing for Green Bay this weekend. The Packers have played the Bears well all year, but they weren't able to close them out in their last matchup. Caleb Williams is having a very good season, he has a solid o line and weapons on the outside. And the Bears defense is very opportunistic. The Packers have really stumbled to end the season and they will go out with a whimper in Chicago.

The 3-6 game has the San Francisco 49ers going to Philadelphia to face the Eagles. This will be a good, hard fought low scoring game. The 49ers couldn't move the ball on the Seahawks last week, and they will struggle to do the same here. Brock Purdy is so much better when he doesn't have to win a game. He needs to game manage. Christian McCaffrey is still good, but a step slower. The wideouts are mediocre and George Kittle is too busy complaining about hip drop tackles. The Eagles have been wildly inconsistent and their offense has looked sloppy. Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley are not having the same year as they had last year. AJ Brown is disgruntled and Devonta Smith is getting the targets he has earned. That being said, the Eagles defense is better than the 49ers defense and the game is in Philly. The Eagles will advance to the next round.

The 4-5 game has the Carolina Panthers hosting the LA Rams. How on Earth is Carolina here? They needed someone else to win to get them in this game. Bryce Young was better this year, but he still has a lot of work to do. Rico Dowdle is an effective pass catcher. They are too reliant on a rookie wideout and the defense is blah. The Rams have stumbled to the end of the year, but they are so, so much better than the Panthers. Stafford has won a Super Bowl. Puka Nacua is one of the better wideouts in the league. Kyren Williams and Blake Corum are an awesome one two punch out of the backfield. And Sean McVay is the best coach in all of football. This is an easy pick. The Rams advance.

That means I have the Rams playing the Seahawks and the Eagles playing the Bears. I would have easily picked the Rams a few weeks ago to beat the Seahawks, but not anymore. The Seahawks have a relentless defense and they cause turnovers. The offense is capable and solid. Sam Darnold has proved his worth and their run game is very good. The Seahawks defense is so much better than the Rams and that will lead them to a win. The Bears-Eagles game will be fascinating. The Eagles have been so underwhelming, but the Bears are so inexperienced. The game will be in Chicago, but the Eagles don't seem to care about where they play. I'm going to go with the Eagles, but I bet this game will finish with a score of something like 10-7. It will be sluggish and dull.

So that means I have the Seahawks and Eagles in the NFC title game. At the start of the season I picked a Bills-Eagles Super Bowl, but that's not the case anymore. I think the Seahawks will crush the Eagles, especially at home. They are a much better team as of right now and they have a much more invested coaching staff. The Seahawks will make their way to the Super Bowl.

That means my Super Bowl matchup will be the Bills from the AFC playing the Seahawks from the NFC. And I'm still going with the Bills, my preseason pick. If they can get through the AFC relatively unscathed I think they can turn that into a Super Bowl victory. I have the Bills winning it all this year, and in a twist of fate, give me James Cook who I think will have a big game running and catching the ball.

There you have it, my NFL playoff preview and predictions. Enjoy the playoffs everyone. 

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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