Updated Super Bowl 2025 Predictions: New Favorite for AFC Championship

The NFL regular season is reaching the final three weeks, and there are still questions looming on who are the contenders and the pretenders for the 2025 Super Bowl. 

Below we will take a look at the teams who have the best shot at making the Super Bowl and give our 2025 Super Bowl predictions, including a new pick to win the AFC Championship.

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AFC Contenders for Super Bowl 2025

The Kansas City Chiefs have looked vulnerable all regular season, but still hold the league’s best record. Some teams can take them down though, including the Buffalo Bills, whose offense is firing on all cylinders with QB Josh Allen leading the way to win MVP. 

Let’s take a look at the AFC contenders for the 2025 Super Bowl.

Kansas City Chiefs (13-1, 1st in AFC)

Compared to years past, the Chiefs have looked anything like a powerhouse. They have scraped by many games, including ones where it came down to the last play, such as their blocked field goal against the Denver Broncos earlier in the year and missed toe-tap by Ravens TE Isaiah Likely.

The team still struggles on the offensive end, especially as TE Travis Kelce has slowed, but they got some reprieve with the return of RB Isaiah Pacheco. Pacheco’s return paired with Kareem Hunt gives them a solid backfield duo they can rely on in different scenarios. 

Their defense is what has stood out all season though. The Chiefs have allowed the fifth least yards and points per game this season. Their pressure rate is also fourth highest in the league this season as well. If their offense can get going just a bit more — which isn’t that far-fetched with Patrick Mahomes under-center — they will be back competing for the Super Bowl.

Buffalo Bills (11-3, 2nd in AFC)

The Bills are the only blemish on Kansas City’s record and with three games to go, they need the Chiefs to drop two games if they want home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Their offense is firing on all cylinders over the last couple of games, scoring 92 points in the last two weeks.

The 48-42 win over the Lions was especially impressive, as QB Josh Allen threw for 362 yards and added 68 rushing yards with four total touchdowns. The Bills punted only once against the Lions.

The Bills’ defense leaves more to be desired though, conceding 84 points in these last two games as well. They are 23rd in yards allowed, but even after those two barnburners, they are still 12th in opposing points per game. The pass defense is especially problematic in recent games, ranking 28th in dropback success rate (50.7%) since Week 10.

That could cause problems against high-powered offenses in the AFC Playoffs, whether it’s Chargers QB Justin Herbert, Ravens QB Lamar Jackson (who put up 35 points on this defense in Week 4), or Mahomes.

The play of MVP-favorite Josh Allen could be the difference in terms of making the Super Bowl or not, even if the defense does not figure it out. Allen will just need to potentially overcome his playoff drought against Mahomes and the Chiefs to get to the big game. 

Playing a potential AFC Championship in Arrowhead Stadium is a tall task for Allen, though Allen and the Bills have won three of the last four games in Kansas City since the 2021 season.

Other Top AFC Contenders for Super Bowl 2025

The AFC Playoff picture is almost set, as the 7th-seeded Chargers (8-6) are at 87% probability to make the Playoffs, while the 6-8 Dolphins, Colts, and Bengals all have probabilities of 10% or less.

Here are more AFC contenders to make the Super Bowl 2025, including their AFC Playoff seeding. 

• #3 Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4) — The Steelers felt the loss of WR George Pickens in their first home loss to the Eagles, as they failed to really get any offense going.
• #4 Houston Texans (9-5) — The Texans are one of the only teams to beat the Bills this year, and their defense looked impressive in the 20-12 win over the Dolphins in Week 15.
• #5 Baltimore Ravens (9-5) — The Ravens are well-rested after their bye week and a dominant win over the Giants where they rested starters in the second half. The next two games against the Steelers and Texans will give a lot of insight into whether they’re a real contender.
• #7 Los Angeles Chargers (8-6) — The Chargers fell apart in the second half of the loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this week, but this is still a well-coached, balanced team that can hang with any team in the AFC behind QB Justin Herbert.

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NFC Contenders for Super Bowl 2025

The NFC has a good number of teams in contention to make it to the 2025 Super Bowl, especially for the No. 1-seed Philadelphia Eagles. The loaded NFC North currently occupies three of the seven NFC playoff spots and has a solid chance to be the NFC representative in the Super Bowl in New Orleans. Below we’ll be taking a look at the NFC contenders.

Philadelphia Eagles (12-2, 2nd in NFC)

The Philadelphia Eagles are 2nd in the NFC despite holding the same record as the Detroit Lions. They are second based on the tiebreaker of conference win percentage. However, they are the favorites to make it out of the NFC, especially after a masterclass performance against the Steelers last week. 

Unlike the Lions who we will get to, the Eagles so far have no major injuries and have shown es they can be elite on both sides of the ball. The Eagles are tied with the Chargers and Broncos with the least points per game allowed and are also number one in the least yards allowed. 

Philadelphia has a top-10 scoring offense and knows how to move the ball on the ground, with the number one rushing attack in the league. The dynamic duo of Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley should cause problems in the playoffs. 

Detroit Lions (12-2, 1st in NFC)

Despite being No. 1 in the NFC, there are looming questions over the Detroit Lions. Their historic season is being dampened by so many injuries, especially on the defensive side of the football. 

They lost pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson and LB Alex Anzalone earlier in the season. This week, they just lost RB David Montgomery, DL Alim McNeill, and CB Carlton Davis for the rest of the season. A total of 12 players are expected to be out for the season and currently have 22 on Injured Reserve. 

Even with all the injuries, the Lions still are a formidable team with some of the best coaching in the league, and they will not be an easy out. Detroit holds the top scoring offense and a top-six scoring defense. 

The loss of Montgomery will be felt with the “Sonic and Knuckles” backfield tandem with Jahmyr Gibbs going away. Gibbs however has proven he can shoulder a full workload, and he’s one of the best backs in the NFL with the ball in his hands.

Detroit was extremely close to making the Super Bowl last year. The injuries and them being so close will be used as bulletin board material to motivate themselves to punch their ticket this time around.

Minnesota Vikings (12-2, 5th in NFC)

The surprise of the season goes to the Minnesota Vikings, who many predicted to be toward the bottom of the NFC. QB Sam Darnold — who was expected to just be a gap-filler until rookie QB J.J. McCarthy returned from injury — has had his career rejuvenated under “QB Whisperer” Kevin O’Connell. The team sits in fifth based on head-to-head against the Lions but should still be a potential threat to make it to the Super Bowl.

The team has the offensive firepower to make a run to the Super Bowl with Darnold throwing to a plethora of weapons such as Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and TJ Hockenson. This is a top-10 scoring offense that could hang in any shootout.

The defensive side of the ball is where questions will loom. Minnesota has the number two run defense in the league but have been getting torched in the air. The Vikings are a bottom-five team against the pass and will need to at least get close to the league average by the end of the season if they are going to be true contenders.

Other Top NFC Contenders for Super Bowl 2025

Here are more NFC contenders to make the Super Bowl 2025, including their NFC Playoff seeding. 

• #3 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6) — The Bucs offense is firing on all cylinders right now with QB Baker Mayfield under-center. They laid 40 on a Chargers team that has only given up more than 20 points twice this season — to the Bengals and Ravens. Any game with the Bucs should be a shootout, as their secondary is one of the worst in the league.
• #4 Los Angeles Rams (8-6) — The Rams took control of the NFC West with a win over the 49ers and a Seahawks loss. If Seahawks QB Geno Smith misses time with his knee injury, the Rams should be able to win this division, and their dynamic offense will keep them in most games.
• #6 Green Bay Packers (10-4) — The Packers got hot at the right time last season, winning a Playoff game before falling to the 49ers, 23-21. It looks to be the same this year, as they’ve won four of their last five, with the only loss being 34-31 to the Lions at Ford Field.

Super Bowl 2025 Prediction: Eagles defeat Bills

The path through the AFC might run through Kansas City, but if there was a year where they could go down, this is the year. Bills QB Josh Allen has been playing at a new level this season, and they should finally make their playoff breakthrough against the Chiefs, who they already defeated once this season.

The Eagles look to be the most well-rounded team in all of football. That plus the best kind of ability — availability — will help their cause in a push for the Super Bowl. 

There isn’t much separating these two teams, but the Eagles’ defense will likely be the difference maker in a close matchup. Give me the Eagles to win the Super Bowl 2025 in New Orleans.

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