These 6 Playoff Teams from 2023 Won’t Make the Postseason in 2024
Annually, almost like clockwork, the NFL turns over its playoff combatants from the year prior by half.
These 6 Playoff Teams from 2023 Won’t Make the Postseason in 2024
That is — six or seven teams that made the dance in one season don’t follow up the playoff trip with a sequel.
There’s no reason for 2024 to be an exception, so these six teams won’t reach the postseason in 2024 after reaching the tournament in 2023. They’re ranked in ascending order (No. 1 = most likely to miss out on the playoffs).
6. Baltimore Ravens
Lamar Jackson is right at the age (27) when Cam Newton began to slow down a bit, and with his style of play, injuries could arise. No stranger to injury, Jackson will hope to remain healthy like last year and guide his team deep into the postseason.
However, with Jackson healthy in 2023, Baltimore fired up an utterly lifeless home AFC Championship showdown. That might’ve been Jackson’s one big shot to get a ring. The AFC North remains ultra-competitive, so let’s assign a 9-8 record to the Ravens — on the outside looking in at the No. 8 seed.
5. Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys added two free agents this offseason: Eric Kendricks (LB) and Royce Freeman (RB). They did not improve via the open market.
Dallas feels like it’s headed back to an era when it finished 8-8 (8-9 or 9-8 in 2024 speak) instead of its recent custom of living at 12-5. The Cowboys won’t be a laughingstock, but they’ll struggle to stay afloat as one of the league’s best regular season teams.
4. Los Angeles Rams
Los Angeles surprised many in 2023 by reaching the dance, but with hungry would-be Wildcard teams like the Chicago Bears, Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals, and Seattle Seahawks, for example, the Rams could be ousted from the sixth or seventh seed.
Like the three teams above on the list, Los Angeles won’t play poorly, but with an 8-9 record, for instance, or a possible Matthew Stafford injury, the Rams may not be honest-to-goodness contenders.
3. Cleveland Browns
The AFC North teams will beat up on each other — they’re all quite good — and something just isn’t right about the Deshaun Watson experiment. And per Sharp Football Analysis, the Browns have the NFL’s third toughest schedule.
The defense won’t carry Cleveland all the way to mid-January this year, and Kevin Stefanski’s men will finish 7-10 or 6-11.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers
The quarterback battle between Russell Wilson and Justin Fields will be fun and earn the Steelers a 9-8 record. The problem? That will net the AFC’s No. 8 or 9 seed, and teams like the New York Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars will grab those playoff tickets.
Meanwhile, per the same Sharp strength of schedule metric, the Steelers have the hardest schedule in the business.
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
In 2023, the Buccaneers ranked 12th per offensive EPA/Play and 18th on defense. They scooted into the playoffs as an unforeseen participant, but that won’t happen again this season.
Tampa Bay has a little bit of a target on its back, and the Atlanta Falcons — the Falcons have the league’s easiest schedule — will take the Buccaneers’ spot in the postseason tournament.
Todd Bowles’ team will finish 7-10.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His MIN obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, Basset Hounds, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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