NFL wild card berths and playoff seeds are settled by a published list of tiebreakers rather than by extra games. Ties within a division are always broken first, so that only the highest-ranked club from each division is left, and then the conference criteria are applied. Divisional finish on its own is not a tiebreaker: a division runner-up is compared with another division’s third-place team purely on the criteria below.
Divisional tiebreakers
Applied in order to two or more teams in the same division:
- Head-to-head (best won-lost-tied percentage in games between the clubs)
- Best won-lost-tied percentage in games played within the division
- Best won-lost-tied percentage in common games
- Best won-lost-tied percentage in games played within the conference
- Strength of victory (combined record of all teams the club defeated)
- Strength of schedule (combined record of all teams the club played)
- Best combined ranking among conference teams in points scored and points allowed
- Best combined ranking among all teams in points scored and points allowed
- Best net points in common games
- Best net points in all games
- Best net touchdowns in all games
Conference tiebreakers
Applied in order to teams from different divisions, which is the case for most wild card races:
- Apply the divisional tiebreaker to eliminate all but the highest-ranked club in each division
- Head-to-head, if applicable (for three or more teams, only if one club has beaten each of the others or lost to each of the others)
- Best won-lost-tied percentage in games played within the conference
- Best won-lost-tied percentage in common games, minimum of four
- Strength of victory
- Strength of schedule
- Best combined ranking among conference teams in points scored and points allowed
- Best combined ranking among all teams in points scored and points allowed
- Best net points in conference games
- Best net points in all games
- Best net touchdowns in all games
If every criterion fails, a coin toss or drawing of lots is used.
How multi-team ties are resolved
When three or four teams are tied and one of them qualifies or is eliminated at any step, the procedure restarts at step one for the teams still tied. If more than one playoff spot is at stake, the criteria are applied until the first team qualifies or is eliminated, and the process then begins again for the rest.
Once seeds have been assigned, they do not change. If three division winners tie for the second, third and fourth seeds, the team awarded the third seed hosts a later-round game against the fourth seed even if it lost the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Sources: Wikipedia, “NFL playoffs”, citing the NFL’s published tiebreaking procedures.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is the first NFL tiebreaker for a wild card spot?
For teams in different divisions, the division tiebreaker is applied first so that only the highest-ranked club from each division remains. Head-to-head record is then the first conference criterion, if applicable.
Does the NFL play a tiebreaker game?
No. Ties in the standings are broken by the published criteria, and a coin toss or drawing of lots is used only if every criterion fails.
Does a division runner-up rank ahead of another division's third-place team?
Not automatically. Divisional finish is not itself a tiebreaker, so the two records are compared under the conference criteria.