The NFL regular season is just about a wrap. Week 18 is upon us and that means we get the final 16 games of the season. The 2025 NFL Playoffs start next weekend, but before that, the playoff bracket will be finalized. Of course, so will the order of the first 18 picks of the 2025 NFL Draft.
This weekend will be a tough one for predictions. Some teams have nothing to play for, some have everything to play for, and several have at least a little something to play for in their regular season finales. Likely the easiest predictions are that the Chiefs, Bills, Texans, and Eagles will allow likely rest some number of starters. They have each secured a playoff berth, and more importantly, have locked in a specific seed in the playoff bracket and thus have nothing to play for this weekend.
The teams fighting to get into the playoffs include the Falcons, Buccaneers, Broncos, Dolphins, and Bengals. The Falcons and Bucs are competing for the NFC South title, with only one of them having a shot at a playoff berth. The Broncos, Dolphins, and Bengals are competing for the final wild card berth.
The Ravens, Steelers, Vikings, and Lions have all secured a playoff berth, but they will be competing for the AFC North and NFC North division titles. The Ravens face the Browns while the Steelers face the Bengals on Saturday. The Vikings and Lions face off on Sunday Night Football.
Last week was a solid week, but I took a hit on my low confidence picks in my Week 17 confidence picks. I went 11-5 overall, but was 2-4 with my low confidence picks. I missed out on all four of my upset picks.
We’re back now for my final weekly confidence picks of the regular season. Below is my full list of picks for Week 18. A game with three asterisks (***) after it indicates a game where I’m picking the betting underdog to get the win. I’ll potentially update these as inactives news comes in if certain teams surprise us and rest some starters.
High confidence (40-14)
Ravens over Browns
Bucs over Saints
Medium confidence (92-28)
Falcons over Panthers
Packers over Bears
Broncos over Chiefs
Chargers over Raiders
Dolphins over Jets
Low confidence (41-42)
Bengals over Steelers
Commanders over Cowboys
Titans over Texans
Colts over Jaguars
Bills over Patriots
Giants over Eagles***
Seahawks over Rams
Cardinals over 49ers
Vikings over Lions***
