NFL Week 18 Preview: Playoff variations and what to watch for on the final Sunday of the regular season

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Josh Allen (L), Bill Belichick (C) and Jordan Love (R) will headline the final day of the regular season

Dates: September 7, 2023 – January 7, 2024
` coverage: Listen to live commentary every Sunday on ` Radio 5 Sports Extra and the ` Sport website.

Almost anything is possible heading into the final week of the NFL regular season, with 20 of the 32 teams still in the hunt for the Super Bowl and five playoff spots and four division titles up for grabs.

We're assured of a vibrant end to a particularly exciting season that saw 109 games won by a margin of six points or fewer – the second most in NFL history – with 13 of the final 16 games having direct playoff implications .

And since they're all division games, that means there are some big rivalries, some big winner-take-all matches, and some complicated permutations to solve.

There's also the prospect that one of the greatest coaches in NFL history, Bill Belichick, could be in charge of his final game in New England.

The Ravens and 49ers are top seeds

The San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens have been the standout teams in the NFL this season, and the road to the Super Bowl runs through them as they will play the entire playoffs at home if they reach the top seed.

Both teams will also receive the only byes on offer in the first round. So not only can they rest their top stars this week, but they can also sit back and relax next week as the remaining six teams from each conference compete in the wild card round.

Current play-off picture

Seeds (Bold secured the play-off spot)
1. Baltimore Ravens (13-3)
3. Kansas City Chiefs (10-6)	Won AFC East and third place
4. Jacksonville Jaguars (9-7)
5. Cleveland Browns (11-5)
7. Indianapolis Colts (9-7)
9. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-7)

Four teams have secured playoff spots, with the Ravens, Chiefs and Browns already clinching first, third and fifth spots, while Miami faces Buffalo in this week's game.

One of the Jaguars, Texans and Colts will take fourth place, while one of the others will probably go seventh and the other will miss out, while the Steelers will need a lot to prevail.

Seeds (Bold secured the play-off spot)
1. San Francisco 49ers (12-4)
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-8)
5. Philadelphia Eagles (11-5)
6. Los Angeles Rams (9-7)
7. Green Bay Packers (8-8)
8. Seattle Seahawks (8-8)
9. New Orleans Saints (8-8)
10. Minnesota Vikings (7-9)
12. Atlanta Falcons (7-9)

San Francisco takes Baltimore's position as the top seed, while Dallas will finish second with a win, but could trade places with Philadelphia if the Eagles lose and win – and given how much better the Cowboys are at home than away, they could An exit from this game will mean huge for their chances.

Tampa Bay needs a win to secure fourth place, but a loss opens the door for the Saints and Falcons, who despite being 12th can still prevail in their division with a win.

Green Bay faces a nice and easy win-and-in game, but the Vikings need a win and a lot of help elsewhere to pull off a minor miracle.

Buffalo vs. Miami headlines must-win games

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The Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins meet in the big game of the weekend

The Buffalo Bills have looked like one of the best teams in the league over the last month, but while they could win the AFC East with a win against Miami, a loss would see them miss the playoffs entirely.

Quarterback Josh Allen has been playing at an MVP level since 2008, but Miami has a strong offense and has been aiming for a major league title since 2008 – plus the winner gets second place and at least two home playoff games, which is a crucial one advantage is.

The Green Bay Packers will reach the playoffs if they win at home against the Chicago Bears – whom they have beaten in nine straight games – while they will need plenty of help after a loss.

However, Chicago has been in good shape in the second half of the season and Justin Fields is trying to convince his team not to use the top pick of the 2024 draft on a new quarterback.

His counterpart, Jordan Love, would like to achieve where Aaron Rodgers failed last season when the Packers lost to the Lions in a similar scenario.

Both the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts have improved dramatically this year and the winner of their game Saturday night will advance while the loser will go home.

The winner could also win the AFC South if the Jacksonville Jaguars lose on Sunday and they sweat over the fitness of their quarterback Trevor Lawrence before their game against the Tennessee Titans.

Is this Belichick's last game with the Patriots?

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Bill Belichick could be refereeing his final New England Patriots game

The end of Bill Belichick's 24th season as coach of the New England Patriots could well be his last, as he has already posted his worst record in his 29-year head coaching career with 12 losses.

Snow is forecast Sunday in New England, where a loss to great rival, the New York Jets, whom Belichick's team has beaten 15 times in a row, would just about put a miserable end to a legendary Pats stay.

“Well, I've always appreciated the opportunity and I'm just looking forward to Sunday's game against the Jets,” Belichick said when asked about his future on Friday.

“Like I said, we’re trying to play our best game this year. That’s what we’re working towards.”

“I'm sure we can talk about other things again, but right now we're just trying to focus on the Jets.”

With six Super Bowls under his belt, Belichick will go down in history as one of the all-time greats no matter what, but even he sounds like the end is near – and whether he wants to catch fellow coach Don Shula for the most wins as a head coach in the NFL -History, they may have to leave New England.

All smiles for the long-suffering Browns & Lions

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Joe Flacco sends the Cleveland Browns into the playoffs with a win over the New York Jets

And finally, a word about the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions, the only two teams to ever go 0-16 in a season, and two fan bases that have lacked any success.

The last time both teams made the playoffs in the same year was 1994 (when Belichick was head coach of the Browns) and since then, Detroit has had a playoff record of 0-6 and the Browns have gone 1-2.

However, Detroit won its first division title since 1993 this year, while Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski worked wonders to get to the playoffs despite having to use four starting quarterbacks due to injuries.

The Browns are just the eighth team to make the playoffs with four starting quarterbacks, and they will be the first team in 35 years to have five starters when they welcome their new hero, the 2012 Super Bowl champions , Joe Flacco, rested for the final game.

It just goes to show you that anything really can happen in the NFL, and with so much at stake in so many games, there are sure to be plenty of twists and turns as the curtain falls on another eventful regular season.