2021 NFL season

102nd season of the National Football League (NFL)

The 2021 NFL season was the 102nd season of the National Football League (NFL). This is the first season to have 17 games.[1] The regular season games started on September 9, 2021. The regular season games ended on January 9, 2022. The playoffs started on January 15 and ended with Super Bowl LVI on February 13.

2021 National Football League season
Regular season
DurationSeptember 9, 2021 (2021-09-09) – January 9, 2022 (2022-01-09)
Playoffs
Start dateJanuary 15, 2022
Super Bowl LVI
DateFebruary 13, 2022
SiteSoFi Stadium, Inglewood, California
Pro Bowl
DateFebruary 6, 2022
SiteAllegiant Stadium, Paradise, Nevada

Regular season standings

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Division

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Conference

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# Team Division W L T PCT DIV CONF SOS SOV STK
Division winners
1[a] Tennessee Titans South 12 5 0 .706 5–1 8–4 .472 .480 W3
2[a] Kansas City Chiefs West 12 5 0 .706 5–1 7–5 .538 .517 W1
3 Buffalo Bills East 11 6 0 .647 5–1 7–5 .472 .428 W4
4 Cincinnati Bengals North 10 7 0 .588 4–2 8–4 .472 .462 L1
Wild cards
5[b] Las Vegas Raiders West 10 7 0 .588 3–3 8–4 .510 .515 W4
6[b] New England Patriots East 10 7 0 .588 3–3 8–4 .481 .394 L1
7 Pittsburgh Steelers North 9 7 1 .559 4–2 7–5 .521 .490 W2
Did not qualify for the postseason
8[c] Indianapolis Colts South 9 8 0 .529 3–3 7–5 .495 .431 L2
9[c][d] Miami Dolphins East 9 8 0 .529 4–2 6–6 .464 .379 W1
10[c][d] Los Angeles Chargers West 9 8 0 .529 3–3 6–6 .510 .500 L1
11[e] Cleveland Browns North 8 9 0 .471 3–3 5–7 .514 .415 W1
12[e] Baltimore Ravens North 8 9 0 .471 1–5 5–7 .531 .460 L6
13 Denver Broncos West 7 10 0 .412 1–5 3–9 .484 .357 L4
14[f] New York Jets East 4 13 0 .235 0–6 4–8 .512 .426 L2
15[f] Houston Texans South 4 13 0 .235 3–3 4–8 .498 .397 L2
16 Jacksonville Jaguars South 3 14 0 .176 1–5 3–9 .512 .569 W1
Tiebreakers[g]
  1. 1.0 1.1 Tennessee finished ahead of Kansas City based on head-to-head victory.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Las Vegas finished ahead of New England based on win percentage in common games.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Indianapolis finished ahead of Miami and Los Angeles based on conference record.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Miami finished ahead of LA Chargers based on win percentage in common games.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Cleveland finished ahead of Baltimore based on division record.
  6. 6.0 6.1 NY Jets finished ahead of Houston based on head-to-head victory.
  7. When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest ranked remaining team from each division.
# Team Division W L T PCT DIV CONF SOS SOV STK
Division winners
1[a] Green Bay Packers North 13 4 0 .765 4–2 9–3 .479 .480 L1
2[a] Tampa Bay Buccaneers South 13 4 0 .765 4–2 8–4 .467 .443 W3
3[b] Dallas Cowboys East 12 5 0 .706 6–0 10–2 .488 .431 W1
4[b] Los Angeles Rams West 12 5 0 .706 3–3 8–4 .483 .409 L1
Wild cards
5 Arizona Cardinals West 11 6 0 .647 4–2 7–5 .490 .492 L1
6 San Francisco 49ers West 10 7 0 .588 2–4 7–5 .500 .438 W2
7[c] Philadelphia Eagles East 9 8 0 .529 3–3 7–5 .469 .350 L1
Did not qualify for the postseason
8[c] New Orleans Saints South 9 8 0 .529 4–2 7–5 .512 .516 W2
9 Minnesota Vikings North 8 9 0 .471 4–2 6–6 .507 .434 W1
10[d] Washington Football Team East 7 10 0 .412 2–4 6–6 .529 .420 W1
11[d][e] Seattle Seahawks West 7 10 0 .412 3–3 4–8 .519 .424 W2
12[d][e] Atlanta Falcons South 7 10 0 .412 2–4 4–8 .472 .315 L2
13 Chicago Bears North 6 11 0 .353 2–4 4–8 .524 .373 L1
14 Carolina Panthers South 5 12 0 .294 2–4 3–9 .509 .412 L7
15 New York Giants East 4 13 0 .235 1–5 3–9 .536 .485 L6
16 Detroit Lions North 3 13 1 .206 2–4 3–9 .528 .627 W1
Tiebreakers[f]
  1. 1.0 1.1 Green Bay finished ahead of Tampa Bay based on conference record.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Dallas finished ahead of LA Rams based on conference record.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Philadelphia finished ahead of New Orleans based on head-to-head victory.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Washington finished ahead of Atlanta and Seattle based on head-to-head sweep.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Seattle finished ahead of Atlanta based on win percentage in common games.
  6. When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest ranked remaining team from each division.

Postseason

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Bracket

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Jan 16 – AT&T Stadium Jan 22 – Lambeau Field
6 San Francisco 23
3 Dallas 17
6 San Francisco 13
Jan 30 – SoFi Stadium
Jan 17 – SoFi Stadium 1 Green Bay 10
NFC
5 Arizona 11 6 San Francisco 17
Jan 23 – Raymond James Stadium
4 LA Rams 34 4 LA Rams 20
NFC Championship
Jan 16 – Raymond James Stadium 4 LA Rams 30
2 Tampa Bay 27
7 Philadelphia 15
Divisional playoffs Feb 13 – SoFi Stadium
2 Tampa Bay 31
Wild Card playoffs
N4 LA Rams 23
Jan 15 – Paul Brown Stadium Jan 22 – Nissan Stadium A4 Cincinnati 20
Super Bowl LVI
5 Las Vegas 19
4 Cincinnati 26
4 Cincinnati 19
Jan 30 – Arrowhead Stadium
Jan 15 – Highmark Stadium 1 Tennessee 16
AFC
6 New England 17 4 Cincinnati 27*
Jan 23 – Arrowhead Stadium
3 Buffalo 47 2 Kansas City 24
AFC Championship
Jan 16 – Arrowhead Stadium 3 Buffalo 36
2 Kansas City 42*
7 Pittsburgh 21
2 Kansas City 42


* Indicates overtime victory

References

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  1. "NFL owners approve enhanced schedule with 17 regular-season games per team". NFL.com. Retrieved 2021-03-30.