Although the 2024 NFL season only just got underway, it's never too early for fans to envision their team's trip to the playoffs.
Envisioning that, of course, would require a fan to know the playoffs format and just how many teams end up making it to the postseason. The NFL changed its rules regarding the format of the playoffs as recently as 2020, so it's never a bad idea for a quick refresher.
How many teams make the NFL playoffs?
As of 2020's rule change, there are 14 teams that make the NFL playoffs, including seven from each conference. The winner of each division earns an automatic bid to the postseason, as well as the three non-division winning teams with the best record from each conference. The three teams that earn a playoff spot without winning their division are known as the wild-card teams.
The wild-card teams will be the No. 5, No. 6 and No. 7 seeds for in their respective conferences. The No. 1 overall seed from each conference will earn a first-round bye, while the remaining six teams play in the opening round.
The format of the matchups would be as follows:
No. 7 seed vs. No. 2 seed
No. 6 seed vs. No. 3 seed
No. 5 seed vs. No. 4 seed
The No. 1 seed would then play the highest seeded winning team from the wild-card round.
The winners of games in the wild-card round will advance to the divisional round, after which there will be the conference championships, and of course, the Super Bowl.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as How Many Wild-Card Teams Are There in the NFL Playoffs?.
