NFL Playoffs Are Set: Patriots And Seahawks Claim Top Spots

The NFL playoffs have officially been set. Although they struggled for much of the year, the defending Super Bowl champs, the Seattle Seahawks, will return to the playoffs with a #1 seed.

The seeds in the NFC could have gone almost any way going into yesterday’s games, and unlike the AFC, the teams needed to get a win in order to get or keep a high seed.

There were also two teams, the Packers and Lions, fighting for the division title and the No.2 seed, while the Panthers destroyed the Falcons in order to get the final spot in the playoffs.

The NFL playoffs will begin next weekend with the first two wild card games on Saturday, and the second batch of games on Sunday. The Panthers host the Cardinals in the first game followed by the Steelers hosting their AFC North rival, the Ravens.

On Sunday, the Colts will host the Bengals, and the Cowboys will host the Lions. The AFC North had an incredibly competitive year, and with the Steelers and Bengals both clinching a spot in week 16, the Ravens won, and with some help from other teams, were able to clinch the final spot yesterday.

And then there were 12…

The #NFLPlayoffs are SET!
Full breakdown and schedule: http://t.co/zbRbyQDCdN http://pic.twitter.com/Wg2JYg2UWd

— NFL (@nfl) December 29, 2014

The way the standings look heading into the playoffs are as follows:

Seed AFC NFC

1. New England (12-4) Seattle (12-4)

2. Denver (12-4) Green Bay (12-4)

3. Pittsburgh (11-5) Dallas (12-4)

4. Indianapolis (11-5) Carolina (7-8-1)

5. Cincinnati (10-5-1) Arizona (11-5)

6. Baltimore (10-6) Detroit (11-5)

The Patriots had the top spot with home field advantage heading into the final game, and as a result, they simply rested their star Tom Brady and did not care about the result of the game.

The Steelers and Bengals fought hard for the No.3 spot, and although the Steelers came out on top, both teams lost potentially their best offensive weapons with Le’Veon Bell and AJ Green getting injured during the game.

There are also two major headlines in the NFC heading into the playoffs with Aaron Rodgers playing through an injury in their win against the Lions, and an under .500 Panthers team hosting the struggling Cardinals with third string quarterback Ryan Lindley.

When the NFL playoffs finally work themselves out over the coming weeks, the teams will be set for Super Bowl XLIX, which will be played on Sunday, February 1st, in Glendale, Arizona. When the playoffs begin, anything can happen, but are there any early predictions for the Super Bowl?

[Photo Credit: Facebook]

NFL Playoffs Are Set: Patriots And Seahawks Claim Top Spots