There are now eight teams left in the NFL as the Divisional Round approaches, and there are absolutely some surprises. The playoffs have been everything we have hoped they'd be thus far, and there are still a ton of games left.
The Divisional Round is really when things begin to heat up as well, as the stakes are that much higher, and a win in this round really does put a berth into the Super Bowl right into view. Both of the no. 1 seeds will begin their playoff action this weekend, but we also have both no. 5 and no. 6 seeds still alive.
Funnily enough, each conference features a no. 1 vs. no. 6 matchup and a no. 2 vs. no. 5 matchup. Let's talk about why the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams both have the most to lose as the second round of the 2025 NFL Playoffs soon begin.
The Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams have the most to lose approaching the Divisional Round
The Buffalo Bills being a team with a ton to lose is pretty obvious - for the first time in the Josh Allen era, the Bills will not have to deal with the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs, and they've fallen to KC too many times to count in the postseason.
Heck, Buffalo has even lost to Cincy at home, but they haven't been to the dance since 2022. Overall, many have said that this is the year for the Bills to make a Super Bowl push, and I am sure the players have heard some of the national chatter. The Bills still have to win two more away games to get to the Super Bowl, and the team's win over the Jaguars in the Wild Card Round was the first away playoff win of the Josh Allen era.
If the Bills again fall short in the playoffs, it would be considered perhaps the most disappointing season in quite some time, and there is always a chance that Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs find their way back into the playoffs in 2026.
The Rams are another team with a lot to lose, and it really centers around Matthew Stafford. He's now in his age-37 season, and it's not a guarantee that he's this good in 2026. Stafford's Rams career might just be enough to get him into the Hall of Fame, but it's perhaps not a slam-dunk right now.
Another Super Bowl title would easily be enough for Stafford to reach the HOF, but another key thing to note here is that the Rams do not appear to have any sort of plan to replace Matthew Stafford just yet, so that's another reason why the urgency is quite high and why the Rams could have a lot to lose here.