The Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks both clinched No. 1 seeds, earning an automatic bye into the Divisional Round and cutting their path to Super Bowl 60 down to just two victories.
> At a Glance
> – Denver (13-4) and Seattle (14-3) secured top seeds in AFC and NFC
> – Both teams skip Wild Card weekend and will host Divisional Round games
> – Divisional Round set for January 17-18
> – Why it matters: Home-field advantage plus the bye dramatically boosts each club’s odds of reaching the title game
Seattle set a franchise record with 14 wins after switching to Sam Darnold at quarterback and led the NFL in scoring defense (17.2 points per game). Jaxson Smith-Njigba topped all receivers with 1,793 yards.
Denver’s defense dominated with 68 sacks, 11 more than any other team, paced by Nik Bonitto’s 14. The Broncos allowed only 18.3 points and 278.2 yards per contest.
Divisional Round Opponents
Who the top seeds face depends on first-round upsets:
Broncos possibilities
- If No. 7 Chargers beat No. 2 Patriots, Denver hosts Los Angeles
- Otherwise, any of No. 6 Bills, No. 5 Texans, or No. 4 Steelers could travel to Denver
Seahawks possibilities
- If No. 7 Packers upset No. 2 Bears, Seattle hosts Green Bay
- If Chicago wins, potential visitors are No. 6 49ers, No. 5 Rams, or No. 4 Panthers
Key Takeaways
- Only two wins separate Denver and Seattle from Super Bowl 60
- Both clubs enter the postseason on the back of elite defenses
- Home-field advantage could prove decisive in conference title push
