The 2025 NFL Season is surely going to bring some different playoff teams. It's clear that these playoff teams aren't getting back there in 2025.
With all of the parity in the NFL, we see different teams in the postseason each season, and even division champions change year-to-year - this is going to remain the case in the 2025 NFL Season. For multiple reasons, we could see some solid playoff teams in 2024 fall out of the postseason entirely this season.
Let's get into three playoff teams that definitely won't make it back in 2025.
NFL Predictions: Playoff teams who definitely won't make it back in 2025
Minnesota Vikings
Winning 14 games in the 2024 NFL Season, the Minnesota Vikings do seem poised to get right back in the mix in 2025, but the team is now moving to a de-facto rookie QB in JJ McCarthy, so we should not expect the team to not skip a beat. There is a shot that McCarthy plays close to how Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix did in their first year as a starter, but those two had all-time great rookie QB seasons.
The Vikings finishing with a winning record, getting an encouraging season from McCarthy, but missing the playoffs is on the table.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
I might be totally wrong here, but could the Tampa Bay Buccaneers be due for a regression? They had an amazingly explosive offense in 2024 but did lose former offensive coordinator Liam Coen to the Jacksonville Jaguars, and with this roster not being elite and the team overall just being 'good,' there is room for the franchise to regress for a year.
And I am high on the Atlanta Falcons, personally, so there is a scenario where the high-octane Falcons offense could put the NFC South on notice and steal the division. Furthermore, with how prolific Baker Mayfield was in 2024, the odds he replicates that in 2025 are low, and despite him throwing for 4,500 yards and over 40 touchdowns, the Bucs won 10 games.
There could be a shocking team like Tampa missing the postseason in 2025.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers do seem to be more talented on paper now than they were in 2024, but the big issue here is Aaron Rodgers likely playing his last year in the NFL and him being 41 years old - what if this is the year that it all falls apart? Pittsburgh doesn't have a great offensive line and there has been a lot of change - sometimes, changes takes a while to get going.
There is a legitimate scenario where Pittsburgh begins to put it together quite late in the season, and it might just be too late. No one would be shocked if the Steelers weren't one of the seven teams in the playoffs, especially if the Cincinnati Bengals get their defensive players on the field and if another team like Jacksonville or Miami get back to their winning ways.