NFL 5 Things to Know Week 17: Coaches Fired, Playoffs Picture Set, Titans Number 1 Pick, Cam Newton MVP? Broncos, Panthers Top Seeds

Jan 04, 2016 05:04 PM EST

The NFL regular season is over with Week 17 in the books and that means the playoff picture is set in the NFC and AFC, with the Broncos and Panthers taking the number one overall seeds.

The Jets just missed out on the playoffs after losing to the Bills, while the Steelers took advantage of New York losing and made it in with a win over the Browns. The Tennessee Titans are now locked into the number one overall pick for the 2016 draft, while Cam Newton looks like the favorite for the MVP award with the regular season now over.

Here are 5 Things to Know from Week 17:

A number of teams have made head coaching changes

The Philadelphia Eagles got things started after parting ways with Chip Kelly and now a number of other teams have head coaching vacancies heading into the offseason. The Cleveland Browns have fired Mike Pettine, while the 49ers have moved on from Jim Tomsula after just one season. The Giants and head coach Tom Coughlin have parted ways, while the Dolphins fired Joe Philbin earlier in the season and are likely to bring in someone else over interim coach Dan Campbell. Chuck Pagano's contract is up and Sean Payton's status is still unclear.

AFC and NFC playoff picture is set

The playoff picture is complete after the Packers lost to the Vikings on Sunday night and now the Packers will play the Redskins in the wild card round. The Panthers and Broncos are the top overall seeds in each conference, while the Patriots and the Cardinals each earned first round byes. The Chiefs and Texans will play in one of the AFC wild card matchups, while the Steelers and Bengals will face off. The other game in the NFC is the Seahawks taking on the Minnesota Vikings.

Tennessee Titans clinch number one pick over the Browns

The Tennessee Titans picked number two last season and this year the team will pick number one overall. The team clinched the number one pick by the strength of schedule tiebreaker with the Cleveland Browns, who will pick number two. The Titans likely will go after an offensive lineman or the best player on the board that's not a quarterback after taking Marcus Mariota last season.

Cam Newton the MVP favorite?

Cam Newton led the Panthers to a 15-1 record and the top seed in the NFC and he likely will be the MVP for the season. Tom Brady and Carson Palmer both lost in Week 17 and Newton has put up some great numbers this year. Newton had four total TDs in Week 17 and has 45 total touchdowns this season, including 35 passing TDs.

Broncos, Panthers Top Seeds in AFC and NFC

The loss by the Patriots opened things up for the Broncos, who locked up the top seed in the AFC with a win on Sunday. The Panthers locked up the top seed with a win, but they would have gotten it with the Cardinals losing to the Seahawks.

Check here for the NFL playoffs schedule.

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