NFC Playoff Picture
The Seattle Seahawks secure the NFC’s No. 1 seed with a pivotal win over San Francisco, locking up the NFC West and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, per multiple reports including Adam Schefter and Tom Pelissero. It caps a surprising turnaround season led by Sam Darnold, who continues to defy expectations as Seattle’s starting quarterback. According to Nate Tice, the Seahawks have also executed all four designed runs that converted 3rd-and-15+ situations league-wide this season, highlighting innovative offensive playcalling.
For Darnold, the win also carries financial implications. As reported by Adam Schefter, he had $1.5 million in incentives on the line, including bonuses for touchdown totals, yardage, and passer rating benchmarks. His achievement of leading the team to the top playoff spot marks a strong finish and possibly a career-best season.
NFC South Playoff Scenarios
The NFC South remains unsettled heading into Sunday, with a three-way race marked by chaos and controversy. Per Tom Pelissero, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Panthers, opening multiple paths to the division title. The Bucs clinch if the New Orleans Saints beat or tie the Atlanta Falcons. If the Falcons win, the Carolina Panthers would clinch via a three-way tiebreaker despite today’s loss — illustrating one of the rarest playoff entry assortments in modern NFL history.
Gregg Rosenthal highlights that this weekend’s Falcons-Saints matchup will culminate a 49-year rivalry in a game that decides a division neither team may actually win. Meanwhile, as noted by Lindsay Jones, the division is guaranteed to send a team with a losing record (8-9) to the postseason, marking only the fifth time this has happened in a non-strike season. It will also be the first time a franchise makes the playoffs twice with sub-.500 records, following the 2014 Panthers and 2022 Buccaneers.
Controversy hovers over this race as well. Ryan Clark publicly criticized officiating in the Bucs-Panthers game, stating that Carolina was “getting jobbed” by egregiously poor calls, further fueling postgame debates about league consistency and referee impact in critical matchups.
Coaching News
Pete Carroll’s tenure as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders appears likely to be short-lived. According to Jordan Schultz, sources expect Carroll to be one-and-done in Vegas, pending either a firing or possible retirement. The Raiders are reportedly preparing for an expansive coaching search, with Tom Brady said to be involved in the process. Carroll, a longtime Seahawks coach, joined the Raiders this year, but disappointing results have created uncertainty around the team’s leadership moving forward.
Player Notes
Zach Charbonnet finishes the 2025 season having completed a third straight year without a fumble. The Seattle running back now has 522 career touches without a turnover, highlighting his consistency and ball security as part of the Seahawks’ backfield.
Theo Johnson of the New York Giants denies the team’s injury designation after being ruled out with an illness, despite being spotted courtside at a Knicks game. Johnson publicly stated, “I am not sick,” prompting questions about communication between the player and team medical staff. The incident resurfaces broader discussions about transparency in injury reports late in the season.