We are starting to wind down the regular season of the National Football League, now going into week 14. I want to give some insight into local NFL teams and if they will make the playoffs.
San Francisco 49ers
Starting with the 49ers, they just came off a surprising 42-19 win after playing the Philadelphia Eagles this past Sunday. Let’s dive into what I think the 49ers remaining schedule looks like.
Seahawks vs. 49ers (L)
49ers @ Cardinals (W)
49ers vs. Ravens (L)
49ers @ Commanders (W)
49ers vs. Rams (L)
Right now, the Niners are just a powerhouse. However, winning streaks always end. Therefore, I predict that the Seattle Seahawks will win against the 49ers this coming Sunday.
The following week, they head to Glendale, AZ to face the Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. The Cardinals pulled off an upset as they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 24-10. However, the Cardinals still have a 3-10 record. The 49ers will most likely win this game.
After that, they head home on Christmas night for a highly anticipated game versus the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens have just been winning all season long. This will be an uphill battle for the 49ers. The Ravens have been scoring an average of 27 points per game.Â
Following this game, they travel across the country to face the Washington Commanders in Landover, MD. I believe this will be another unsurprising win for SF as the Commanders have been performing poorly in the past few weeks as they have a losing streak of 4 right now, most recently against the Miami Dolphins, who blew the Commanders out 45-15.              Â
Finally, they have their last game at home against the Rams. The Rams are now (unfortunately) 2nd in the NFC West. This can pose a threat as the 49ers beat them only by a 7-point margin last game at SoFi Stadium (30-23). The Rams have also been playing very well in the past few weeks and I have to give this game to the LA Rams to win.
With all of this settled, I am predicting that the 49ers will have a record of 11-6 going into the playoffs. They will most likely receive the 2nd or 3rd playoff seed in the NFC Conference.
Seattle Seahawks
Next, I would like to talk about my favorite team that I may have a bias about. The Seattle Seahawks. These past few weeks, it has been a rough schedule for us, and still have an uphill battle for the next 2 weeks. In the past 3 weeks, we have suffered losses from the Rams, 49ers, and the Cowboys. These next 2 games are against the 49ers and the Eagles. Without further ado, let me get into my predictions.
Seahawks @ 49ers (W)
Seahawks vs. Eagles (W)
Seahawks @ Titans (W)
Seahawks vs. Steelers (W)
Seahawks @ Cardinals (W)
I like to think that my team will win against the 49ers at Levi’s Stadium. This is because I think the 49ers will lose momentum from the Eagles game and the Seahawks have gained momentum from their Thursday night football game against the Cowboys. Therefore, this game is a win in my book.
Next up, the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football. The Eagles will be coming off a matchup against the Cowboys. The Eagles have had a phenomenal season so far, only losing 2 games, one to the Jets and one to the 49ers. But, they may start to slip up, especially facing the Cowboys the week before, as Dallas has had a 14-game win streak at home. This does help narrow that gap, considering this is another home game for Seattle. My prediction is that Seattle will win this game by a considerably close margin.Â
The next game is on Christmas Eve when the Seahawks will head to Nashville for a game against the Tennessee Titans. This is a very winnable game for Seattle, as they have the better record right now. The Titans haven’t performed well and are 4th in the AFC South. This leads me to believe that this will be a winning game for Seattle.
The Seahawks will be heading back to Seattle for their final home game of the regular season against the Pittsburgh Steelers. This might be another tough matchup as the Steelers have been playing very well recently (except for the Cardinals-Steelers game). This is still a winnable game for Seattle if they can play well enough.
For the final game of the regular season, Seattle heads to Glendale, AZ for a game against the Arizona Cardinals. This is a game that Seattle will most likely win due to Arizona’s very poor performance, only winning three games in the season so far. If Seattle does win this game, they will have swept the Cardinals this season.
If everything goes according to plan, the Seahawks will reach the 4, 5, or 6 seed in the NFC playoffs. The regular season prediction is 11-6.
Las Vegas Raiders
For the Las Vegas (Oakland) Raiders fans out there, here is my prediction for your team.
Unfortunately, the Las Vegas Raiders only have around a 1% chance of clinching a playoff spot and a very specific set of game results must happen for the Raiders to continue into the postseason. Without further ado, here are my predictions for the Las Vegas Raiders remaining games.
Raiders @ Vikings (W)
Raiders vs. Chargers (L)
Raiders @ Chiefs (L)
Raiders @ Colts (L)
Raiders vs. Broncos (W)
I have a slight feeling that the Raiders will win against the Vikings because the Vikings tend to lose against teams that they should win against. Plus, the all-time Vikings-Raiders record is 9-6 with the Raiders leading.
The Raiders head back to Allegiant Stadium to have a matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. Most likely, this will be a tight game, but the Chargers will probably gain a lead somewhere in the 4th quarter and ultimately win the game.
The Chiefs, well, do I have to explain? Kansas City is not surprising for having another great season, especially considering they won the Superbowl last year against the Eagles. So, I’ll predict that the Chiefs will win this one easily.
The Raiders head over to Indiana where they will play the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts have exceeded my expectations this season. Last season, they went 4-12-1 for their record. The Colts as of now have a decent record of 7-5. This will be an uphill battle for the Raiders. I am choosing the Colts to win this game.
Finally, the Raiders head back home for the final game of the season against the Denver Broncos. This will probably be another 1-3 point margin win for the Raiders. Also, the Broncos have not won a single game against the Raiders for the past 12 games they have played against each other. The last time the Broncos won was in Denver in the 2019-2020 season. So, I have to say that the Raiders will win this game.
Playoff Predictions
Moving on from predicting records of some West Coast teams to who might make the playoffs. I’ll start with NFC.
Here is the current order of the playoff picture.
Philadelphia Eagles
San Francisco 49ers
Detroit Lions
Atlanta Falcons
Dallas Cowboys
Minnesota Vikings
Green Bay Packers
IN THE HUNT
Los Angeles Rams
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Now here is my predicted end-of-regular season NFC playoff picture:
Philadelphia Eagles (13-4)
Detroit Lions (12-5)
San Francisco 49ers (11-6)
Atlanta Falcons (10-7)
Dallas Cowboys (13-4)
Green Bay Packers (11-6)
Seattle Seahawks (11-6)
This would be ideal for both the Seahawks and the 49ers as they would be in the playoffs and teams that would be somewhat easy to defeat and continue their playoff run for the potential Superbowl.
Finally, here is the current AFC playoff picture going into week 14 of 18.
Miami Dolphins
Baltimore Ravens
Kansas City Chiefs
Jacksonville Jaguars
Pittsburgh Steelers
Indianapolis Colts
Cleveland Browns
IN THE HUNT
Houston Texans
Denver Broncos
Buffalo Bills
Now, here is my prediction for the end of the regular season AFC playoff picture:
Kansas City Chiefs (13-4)
Miami Dolphins (13-4)
Baltimore Ravens (13-4)
Jacksonville Jaguars (11-6)
Cleveland Browns (11-6)
Houston Texans (10-7)
Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
That is all for my predictions regarding the NFL playoff and predictions, I may update this article every week for updated information and predictions.Â