1986 NFL Season — Final Standings
Final regular-season standings under the pre-1990 playoff format: 3 division winners + 2 wild cards (5 seeds/conference, 10-team playoff). New York Giants and Chicago Bears both went 14-2, the league's two best teams by a wide margin. Four AFC teams (Jets, Chiefs, Bengals, Seahawks) tied at 10-6, with the Jets and Chiefs taking the two wild-card spots on conference-record tiebreakers.
AFC East
| Seed | Team | W | L | T | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | NEPNew England Patriots | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | - |
| 4 | NYJNew York Jets | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 1 |
| — | MDMiami Dolphins | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 3 |
| — | BBBuffalo Bills | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 7 |
| — | ICIndianapolis Colts | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 8 |
AFC Central
| Seed | Team | W | L | T | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CBCleveland Browns | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | - |
| — | CBCincinnati Bengals | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 2 |
| — | PSPittsburgh Steelers | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 6 |
| — | HOHouston Oilers | 5 | 11 | 0 | .312 | 7 |
AFC West
| Seed | Team | W | L | T | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | DBDenver Broncos | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | - |
| 5 | KCCKansas City Chiefs | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 1 |
| — | SSSeattle Seahawks | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 1 |
| — | LARLos Angeles Raiders | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 3 |
| — | SDCSan Diego Chargers | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 7 |
NFC East
| Seed | Team | W | L | T | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NYGNew York Giants | 14 | 2 | 0 | .875 | - |
| 4 | WRWashington Redskins | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 2 |
| — | DCDallas Cowboys | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 7 |
| — | PEPhiladelphia Eagles | 5 | 10 | 1 | .344 | 8.5 |
| — | SLCSt. Louis Cardinals | 4 | 11 | 1 | .281 | 9.5 |
NFC Central
| Seed | Team | W | L | T | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | CBChicago Bears | 14 | 2 | 0 | .875 | - |
| — | MVMinnesota Vikings | 9 | 7 | 0 | .562 | 5 |
| — | DLDetroit Lions | 5 | 11 | 0 | .312 | 9 |
| — | GBPGreen Bay Packers | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 10 |
| — | TBBTampa Bay Buccaneers | 2 | 14 | 0 | .125 | 12 |
NFC West
| Seed | Team | W | L | T | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | SF4San Francisco 49ers | 10 | 5 | 1 | .656 | - |
| 5 | LARLos Angeles Rams | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 0.5 |
| — | AFAtlanta Falcons | 7 | 8 | 1 | .469 | 3 |
| — | NOSNew Orleans Saints | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 3.5 |
Sources
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
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