Overview
- With Kansas City eliminated, this postseason will be the first since the 1998 season without Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady or Peyton Manning at quarterback.
- Across the past 26 seasons the trio combined for 42 playoff berths, 96 postseason starts, 66 playoff wins and 12 Super Bowl titles, with at least one reaching the conference title round in 20 of those years.
- The open field creates a pathway for veterans like Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson and for younger starters such as Drake Maye, C.J. Stroud, Trevor Lawrence, Bo Nix, Caleb Williams and Brock Purdy, with Bryce Young still a possibility.
- Buffalo underscored the season’s unpredictability by erasing a 21-point deficit to beat New England 35-31 for its first such comeback since 2011.
- Week 15 produced six wins after double-digit deficits and a rare double-shutout weekend, with Cincinnati losing 24-0 despite 39:19 of possession and Las Vegas limited to 75 total yards in a 31-0 defeat.