We’re now five years into the NFL’s expanded playoff format featuring 14 teams and additional No. 7 seeds. Somehow, despite a half-decade in the books, we have yet to see much of any quality returns on this expanded (inflated?) field.
Sunday’s initial two wild-card games further served as a referendum on the idea of a No. 7 seed ever seriously rocking the playoff boat.
In Western New York, Josh Allen’s Buffalo Bills systematically dismantled the AFC’s No. 7-seeded Denver Broncos. They turned their attention to Lamar Jackson’s Baltimore Ravens without breaking a sweat in a decisive 31-7 win. In Southeast Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia Eagles were much shakier as the favorite. Still, they were never seriously threatened by the NFC’s No. 7 seed, the Green Bay Packers, who looked like they didn’t belong in the playoffs in the first place.
With both No. 7 seeds out of the picture before the divisional round for the fourth time in five years, it’s worth noting that none of this is unexpected. The NFL’s expanded playoff field was not necessarily about the good-natured spirit of competition and guaranteeing more quality football to fans. The NFL knew that No. 2