Template:16TeamBracket-NFL/doc

This template is to generate a tournament bracket for a 16-team NFL playoffs. Although this bracket has only been used once for the 1982 NFL strike-shortened season, it is prepared for usage in the event that unforeseen circumstances arise and/or if the league expands the playoff field like they did for the 2020 season to 14 teams, this template is created well in advance since it has been used once before. This template is also based on the Template:12TeamBracket-NFL with modifications.

Re-seeding

The NFL does not use a fixed bracket playoff system. The highest surviving seed (seed 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5) will host the lowest surviving seed from the first round (seed 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8), while the second-highest surviving seed will host the second-lowest surviving seed.

Because of the 're-bracketing' done after the first round, second round match-ups are not determined until a minimum of two games are completed. This template will render dotted lines connecting the Wild Card winners to the Divisional round until at least one Divisional seed number is filled in for that conference, at which point the lines become solid. If either conference shows dotted lines, there is also a note at the bottom of the template that explains the re-bracketing process.

It is recommended to show the initial pairings under the assumption that the home team wins every game. During the course of the playoffs, if the team with the best seed in a round for a particular conference loses, the games for that conference in that round (and preceding rounds if any) need to be "flipped" to show the new pairings:

6              5                 8  
3              4  4              1  8

7              6                 7  
2              3  3              2  2  8

5              8                 5  
4              1  8              4  4

8              7                 6  
1              2  2              3  3  3

Super Bowl "home" team

The Super Bowl is played at a neutral site. The conference champions take turns being designated the 'home' team for the purposes of uniform selection and coin toss. This template assumes that the NFC champion will be the 'home' team in the Super Bowl, which is correct when played in odd-numbered bowls/years (LV:2021), so that the AFC is shown on top and the NFC on bottom. In even-numbered bowls/years (LVI:2022), this needs to be overridden; use the named parameters G1=NFC and G2=AFC.

Generic bracket example

The following is a generic bracket example:

{{16TeamBracket-NFL
|G1=AFC
|G2=NFC
<!--Date-Place/Visitor Seed/Visiting Team/Visitor Score/Home Seed/Home Team/Home Score-->
<!--Wild Card playoffs-->
|Jan. 4/5 – TBD|6|||3||
|Jan. 4/5 – TBD|7|||2||
|Jan. 4/5 – TBD|5|||4||
|Jan. 4/5 – TBD|8|||1||
|Jan. 4/5 – TBD|6|||3||
|Jan. 4/5 – TBD|7|||2||
|Jan. 4/5 – TBD|5|||4||
|Jan. 4/5 – TBD|8|||1||
<!--Divisional playoffs-->
|Jan. 11/12 – TBD||||||
|Jan. 11/12 – TBD||||||
|Jan. 11/12 – TBD||||||
|Jan. 11/12 – TBD||||||
<!--Conference championships-->
|Jan. 18 – TBD|||||| 
|Jan. 18 – TBD|||||| 
<!--Super Bowl-->
|RD4=Super Bowl
|Feb. 2 – TBD|AFC|||NFC|| 
}}

Jan. 4/5 – TBD

6

Jan. 11/12 – TBD

3

Jan. 4/5 – TBD

7

AFC

Jan. 18 – TBD

2

See Re-seeding below

Jan. 4/5 – TBD

5

Jan. 11/12 – TBD

AFC Championship

4

Jan. 4/5 – TBD

8

1

Feb. 2 – TBD

Wild Card playoffs

Divisional playoffs

AFC

NFC

Jan. 4/5 – TBD

Super Bowl

6

Jan. 11/12 – TBD

3

Jan. 4/5 – TBD

7

NFC

Jan. 18 – TBD

2

See Re-seeding below

Jan. 4/5 – TBD

5

Jan. 11/12 – TBD

NFC Championship

4

Jan. 4/5 – TBD

8

1

• Re-seeding: Home field is determined by seeding number, not position on the bracket. The NFL does not use a fixed bracket system. In every round, the highest remaining seed is always designated to face the lowest remaining seed, and continues until each matchup is set.
• Conference Championship home field goes to the higher seed remaining.