NFL Standings shake-up: Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Eagles headline wild playoff race
02.02.2026 - 13:23:15
The NFL Standings just got a full-blown makeover, and the AFC and NFC playoff picture looks more like a November madhouse than a calm march to January. With Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs back to looking like a Super Bowl Contender, Lamar Jackson putting the Ravens on his back, and the Eagles grinding out another clutch win, the Week’s results reset the race at the top and tightened the chase in the Wild Card hunt.
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What jumped out across the league was the combination of star power and chaos. Contenders flexed, pretenders got exposed, and a couple of fan bases went from dreaming about the No. 1 seed to nervously counting tiebreakers. The updated NFL Standings now tell a story of razor-thin margins where one busted coverage or missed field goal changes entire January scenarios.
Mahomes and the Chiefs remind everyone who runs the AFC
Patrick Mahomes put the league on notice again. After weeks of chatter about whether the Chiefs offense had lost its bite, Kansas City dialed up a vintage performance. Mahomes carved up coverages with poise in the pocket, hitting deep shots and shredding underneath zones to keep drives alive on third down. His command at the line, checking into favorable looks and manipulating safeties with his eyes, made the defense look a step slow all night.
The Chiefs offense found rhythm early, mixing in timely runs to stay in manageable down-and-distance. Defenders were left guessing between RPO looks, quick game concepts, and those classic scramble-drill plays where Mahomes buys time and receivers freestyle in the Red Zone. Each scoring drive felt like a reminder: as long as No. 15 is healthy, Kansas City is a perennial Super Bowl Contender, regardless of how uneven the previous month might have looked.
Defensively, Kansas City brought heat. Well-timed blitzes collapsed the pocket, and the secondary closed throwing windows on the boundary. A late drive-killing sack on third and long essentially sealed the game, turning what could have been a nail-biter into a exclamation mark win that reverberates through the AFC playoff picture.
Lamar Jackson fuels a statement win for the Ravens
Lamar Jackson answered Mahomes’ flex with his own. In a game that felt like a playoff atmosphere from kickoff, Lamar torched a quality defense with a dual-threat masterpiece. He extended plays beyond the structure, escaped what looked like sure-fire sacks, and delivered darts on the move. Whenever the pocket collapsed, his poise separated him from ordinary quarterbacks; he was either outrunning linebackers to the edge or hitting receivers on scramble adjustments downfield.
On the ground, Lamar kept the chains moving with designed QB runs and zone-read keepers that punished overaggressive edge rushers. Every time the defense looked like it had the perfect call, he slid through a crease or bounced it outside, flipping field position in an instant. One Red Zone drive, capped by a walk-in touchdown after a frozen linebacker bit on a fake, felt like a microcosm of his MVP Race résumé this season.
Postgame, the Ravens’ sideline vibe was clear: they know they belong at the center of the AFC conversation. Teammates talked about Lamar “controlling the whole tempo” and “breaking their will” by the fourth quarter. That kind of dominance shows up not just in the box score but in the body language of the opponent as the clock winds down.
Eagles grind, not glide, to stay atop the NFC
Over in the NFC, the Eagles once again survived a slugfest. It was not always pretty, but it was very Philadelphia. Jalen Hurts absorbed hits, stood tall in the pocket, and delivered key strikes on third down. The offense leaned on its physical identity, winning in the trenches and wearing down the front seven with inside zone and power runs that looked like body shots in a boxing match.
A signature moment came late in the fourth quarter, when the Eagles marched methodically into field goal range under the Two-Minute Warning. Hurts threaded a crucial sideline throw between the corner and safety, keeping the drive alive and the clock moving. Moments later, the stadium erupted as the go-ahead points split the uprights, and Philly’s sideline exploded like it was January, not just another regular-season Sunday.
Defensively, the Eagles’ pass rush finally found its groove in the second half. They harassed the opposing quarterback, collapsed the pocket with interior pressure, and forced off-platform throws that never had a chance. One late pick near midfield, essentially a gift-wrapped turnover after pressure up the middle, flipped the field and helped secure the win, protecting their grip on the NFC’s top seed.
How the playoff picture looks now
With the latest results locked in, the updated AFC and NFC picture shows both clarity at the top and chaos in the Wild Card Race. A handful of teams look firmly entrenched as Division Leaders, while a logjam of 6–7 and 7–win teams are clawing for the final spots. Strength of schedule and head-to-head tiebreakers are already looming over every conversation in team facilities.
Here is a compact look at some key positions in the playoff race based on the current NFL Standings:
| Conference | Seed | Team | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| AFC | 1 | Chiefs | Division Leader, No. 1 seed in sight |
| AFC | 2 | Ravens | Chasing top seed, strong tiebreakers |
| AFC | 5 | Wild Card team | Firm in Wild Card, eyeing division slip-ups |
| AFC | 7 | Bubble team | On the bubble, tiebreakers critical |
| NFC | 1 | Eagles | Control own destiny for homefield |
| NFC | 2 | Top NFC challenger | Within striking distance of No. 1 |
| NFC | 6 | Wild Card team | Dangerous road opponent |
| NFC | 7 | Bubble team | Needs help and clean finish |
The Chiefs’ surge matters because it shifts pressure onto the Ravens and the rest of the AFC. One slip by a top seed can turn a first-round bye into a brutal Wild Card matchup against a hot, physical opponent. In the NFC, the Eagles’ slim cushion means every divisional game feels like a mini playoff test. One upset loss could cram the top of the conference and trigger a cascade of seeding changes.
MVP Race: Mahomes and Lamar front and center
With the regular season entering the stretch run, the MVP Race now feels like a two-man heavyweight bout headlined by Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, with a couple of other quarterbacks and one or two skill-position stars still hanging around on the fringes.
Mahomes’ latest performance featured efficient deep shots combined with ruthless execution in the intermediate game. He spread the ball around, trusted his receivers to win on option routes, and kept the offense ahead of the chains. In the Red Zone, his ability to extend plays and find late-developing windows separated him from almost everyone else at the position. For voters, the narrative is clear: without Mahomes’ week-to-week brilliance, Kansas City is not sitting atop the AFC.
On the other side, Lamar continues to build a résumé stuffed with highlight plays and winning drives. Whether it is a 40-yard strike off play action or a back-breaking scramble on third and long, he is delivering high-leverage plays that flip both field and momentum. Add in his role in the run game, where defenders must account for him on every snap, and you have a statistical and eye-test case that is hard to ignore in any MVP conversation.
Beyond those two, a couple of star receivers and pass rushers are making noise. A dominant edge rusher who racks up multiple sacks, QB hits, and drive-stalling tackles for loss every week can tilt a game the way a star quarterback does. The difference is that voters often gravitate toward offensive stats. If a defensive star keeps stacking strip-sacks and pick-sixes in primetime, that could shift the narrative late.
Injury Report shakes Super Bowl hopes
The most sobering part of this week’s action came from the Injury Report. A couple of marquee players limped off, leaving their teams holding their breath while MRI results came in. One starting quarterback took a big shot while stepping up in the pocket, stayed down, then left for the locker room. The offense immediately looked more conservative with the backup in, limiting explosive plays and shrinking the playbook.
Elsewhere, a Pro Bowl-level wide receiver left with a lower-body injury after an awkward cut on a routine out route. Without his ability to stretch the field vertically and win contested catches, his team’s passing attack became compressed, inviting safeties to creep downhill and squeeze the short and intermediate windows. For a team trying to stay in the Wild Card Race, that is a brutal development.
Coaches around the league will spend the next few days juggling rest versus reps. Some front offices will quietly scan practice squads and the free-agent market for depth, especially at offensive line and cornerback, where a single injury can expose an entire scheme. For real Super Bowl Contender status, staying healthy is often as vital as scheme and talent.
Game highlights that defined the week
The week’s slate delivered everything: walk-off field goals, late-game picks, and a couple of blowouts that said plenty about the gap between true contenders and everyone else. One thriller swung on a fourth-quarter pick-six, when a corner jumped an out route, housed it, and flipped a three-point deficit into a stunned home crowd silence. Another game saw a rookie receiver torch single coverage for multiple chunk plays, forcing the defense into two-high shells and opening up rushing lanes.
Special teams also stepped into the spotlight. A clutch 50-plus-yard field goal at the gun turned what looked like overtime into pure jubilation. On the flip side, a muffed punt deep in Field Goal Range was the turning point in a divisional game, serving up free points that ultimately decided the outcome. Those hidden-yardage plays rarely lead SportsCenter, but they shape the playoff race as much as anything in the box score.
Looking ahead: must-watch games next week
The next slate already feels like a mini postseason. A heavyweight AFC showdown featuring Mahomes and another top-5 quarterback could reshape the race for the No. 1 seed. Every snap in that game will feel like it carries tiebreaker weight, and both coaching staffs know one mismanaged challenge or timeout could haunt them in January.
Over in the NFC, a prime-time clash involving the Eagles and a surging challenger looms large. If the Eagles keep leaning on their trenches and late-game resilience, they can stay in the driver’s seat. But if they stumble under the lights, the hunt for the top seed could turn into a three-team sprint with no margin for error.
Fans should also circle a couple of games that feature fringe playoff hopefuls in pure elimination-mode football. Bubble teams in the AFC and NFC are about to play what amount to de facto playoff games. One more loss, and they will be on the outside looking in, scoreboard-watching and hoping for chaos elsewhere.
The bottom line: as the NFL Standings tighten and the playoff picture crystallizes, every drive, every snap, every hit matters a little more. Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, the Eagles, and the rest of the league’s heavyweights are locking in, knowing one misstep could change everything. Clear your Sunday schedule, keep an eye on the Injury Report, and do not miss the next wave of statement games that will decide who is still a real Super Bowl Contender when January kicks off.
