Through Week 14, there are quite a few NFL teams fighting for a postseason spot and the NFL playoff picture is starting to take shape.
However, there are several teams that have already been eliminated from the NFL playoffs. Let’s examine those squads and what went wrong.
Teams Eliminated From the NFL Playoffs
Through Week 14, there are seven NFL teams that have been eliminated from the postseason.
New York Giants (Week 13)
The New York Giants were eliminated from the NFL playoffs on Thanksgiving following a 27-20 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, extending their losing streak to seven games. After some costly roster maneuvers, the season was one to forget for the Giants.
New York drafted quarterback Daniel Jones with the sixth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. After an up-and-down start to his NFL career, New York gave Jones a four-year, $160 million deal with $81 million fully guaranteed. It was widely regarded as one of the NFL’s worst contracts.
Jones started the first 10 weeks of the 2024 season. Following a Week 10 overtime 20-17 loss to the Carolina Panthers in Munich, Germany, Jones was benched during the Giants’ bye week in favor of backup Tommy DeVito.
Following his demotion, Jones requested a release from the Giants, which was granted, and he signed with the Minnesota Vikings after clearing waivers. DeVito started in the Week 12 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and wound up being sacked four times and hit an additional nine. With just four days until the Thanksgiving throwdown against Dallas, the Giants were forced to start Drew Lock in his place.
Combine the quarterback struggles with the front office’s insistence on letting RB Saquon Barkley walk in free agency, and it’s been a rough year for the Giants. While head coach Brian Daboll has had a few tough outings, plenty of franchises would be ready to hire him in an instant if the Giants chose to fire him.
Las Vegas Raiders (Week 13)
The Las Vegas Raiders came close to keeping their playoff hopes alive in Week 13, but a fumbled snap late in the fourth quarter helped the Kansas City Chiefs escape yet another scare and officially end any chances for the Raiders to make the playoffs.
After missing out on a quarterback in the NFL Draft and free agency, the Raiders wound up bringing in Gardner Minshew after the six-year veteran had just finished a 17-game season for the Indianapolis Colts in 2023. Former franchise running back Josh Jacobs departed in free agency, signing with the Green Bay Packers.
Furthermore, the Raiders had an awkward head-coaching search after firing Josh McDaniels in 2023. Interim head coach Antonio Pierce was able to rally the troops to some late wins, and after missing out on Rich Bisaccia a few years back, there was sentiment from some around the franchise they needed not to make the same mistake.
However, while Bisaccia had a long-term NFL coaching career to back him up, Pierce did not, but they went with him anyway. The inexperience has been on display through some coaching decisions and comments this season. However, the overall lack of talent on the roster is holding the team back.
Minshew is now out for the year, so second-year QB Aidan O’Connell is once again starting under center. Rookie TE Brock Bowers has blossomed, but despite his contributions, the Raiders are currently on an eight-game losing streak with no end in sight. Finding an identity will be the most essential thing for Las Vegas this offseason.
New England Patriots (Week 13)
After another rough season in 2023, legendary head coach Bill Belichick and the franchise decided to part ways as former defensive captain and linebackers coach Jerod Mayo took over the franchise.
Armed with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Patriots selected QB Drake Maye from UNC to hopefully become the signal-caller of the future.
However, his debut would not happen in Week 1, as a lack of weapons on the outside and talent on the offensive line were not the greatest scenarios for a brand-new rookie. New England signed former 2016 third-round pick Jacoby Brissett to serve as a bridge while Maye prepared to take over.
Brissett grabbed a win in Week 1, but it became clear even he was not equipped to do much in this offense. He would lose the next four games before getting benched in favor of the rookie in Week 6. Despite losing to the Houston Texans 41-21, Maye was slinging the ball and moved the offense well.
Since then, Maye has looked sharp despite the losses. They will need to make some additions in the upcoming offseason, but with another high draft pick coming their way, the Patriots should be able to make another quality addition in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Jacksonville Jaguars (Week 13)
Entering this season, Jaguars owner Shad Khan described this as “the best team assembled by the Jacksonville Jaguars ever” after making some key offseason additions (Brian Thomas Jr., Gabe Davis, Arik Armstead, etc.) and signing Trevor Lawrence to a five-year, $275 million deal that made him one of the NFL’s highest-paid quarterbacks.
It’s safe to say that the Jaguars’ season hasn’t gone as planned. In Week 13, they were eliminated from the playoffs thanks to their loss to the Texans, coupled with wins by the Los Angeles Chargers and Denver Broncos.
Jacksonville is the 29th-ranked team in PFN’s PR+ metric, which is meant to remove subjectivity from power rankings. This metric combines our internal Offense+ and Defense+ metrics, sprinkles in some special teams, and then applies a level of correction for the teams’ strength of schedule and win-loss record.
In PFN’s Offense+ and Defense+ metrics, Jacksonville currently has the NFL’s 19th-ranked offense and 31st-ranked defense.
It remains to be seen if the Jaguars will fire head coach Doug Pederson, who has been on the hot seat for much of the season.
Tennessee Titans (Week 14)
With the Tennessee Titans’ 10-6 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 14, they’ve officially been eliminated from the playoffs.
Even with Trevor Lawrence out for the remainder of the season while dealing with head and shoulder injuries, the Titans couldn’t defeat the Jaguars while at home.
Entering Week 14, the Titans had the NFL’s 31st-ranked offense, 16th-ranked defense, and 27th-ranked special teams, according to PFN’s metrics.
It’s worth noting that Tennessee’s schedule hasn’t done them any favors, as they had the NFL’s second-toughest schedule through last week.
It remains to be seen if the Titans will stick with quarterback Will Levis in 2025 or if they will draft (or sign) a new QB to lead this team going forward.
Cleveland Browns (Week 14)
After losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, the Cleveland Browns’ postseason hopes are officially dead. This isn’t a huge surprise, as this is a team that lost eight of their first 10 games.
Cleveland was dreadful when Deshaun Watson was under center. He was arguably the worst starting quarterback in the league this season, throwing for 1,148 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions with a 63.4% completion percentage.
Through seven weeks, Watson not only had zero 300-yard passing games, he had zero 200-yard passing games. And he averaged a mere 21.1 rushing yards per game, accounting for six touchdowns and six turnovers.
Watson ranks No. 40 in PFN’s QB+ metric, receiving an F grade. Even before getting hurt, Watson was in the bottom five for nearly every metric, including third-down conversion rate, nYPA, passing from a clean pocket, and passing when under pressure.
While the Browns improved when Jameis Winston took over as the team’s starting quarterback when Watson ruptured his Achilles — pulling off shocking upsets over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 8 and Steelers in Week 12 — this team dug themselves too deep of a hole earlier in the season.
New York Jets (Week 14)
From acquiring four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers, three-time All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams, and All-Pro pass rusher Haason Reddick to parting ways with head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas midseason, the New York Jets have made aggressive moves in hopes of making the playoffs and turning around this franchise.
When the Adams trade occurred and Reddick agreed to end his holdout shortly after in October, there was a ton of excitement about the Jets potentially salvaging their season.
Instead, with Sunday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins, New York has officially been eliminated from the postseason. This was the Jets’ fourth-straight loss, and they are now 3-10 on the season.
For a team that entered the season with Super Bowl aspirations, this is a huge disappointment. Remember, this was a team that won seven games last year despite starting Zach Wilson, Trevor Siemian, and Tim Boyle at quarterback.
This will be a very interesting offseason for the Jets, and it seems likely that Rodgers’ (and Adams’) days with the team are numbered.