2016–17 NFL playoffs
| Dates | January 7 – February 5, 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 2016 | ||||
| Teams | 12 | ||||
| Games played | 11 | ||||
| Super Bowl LI site | |||||
| Defending champions | Denver Broncos (did not qualify) | ||||
| Champion | New England Patriots (5th title) | ||||
| Runner-up | Atlanta Falcons | ||||
| Conference runners-up | |||||
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The National Football League playoffs for the 2016 NFL season began on Saturday, January 7, 2017. The postseason tournament concluded with Super Bowl LI on Sunday, February 5, 2017, when the New England Patriots defeated the Atlanta Falcons at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.
This was the first time since 2010 that the Cincinnati Bengals and Denver Broncos did not qualify for the playoffs and the first time since 2012 that the Carolina Panthers did not qualify for the playoffs.
The Oakland Raiders and Miami Dolphins made the playoffs for the first time since 2002 and 2008, respectively.
As of the 2024–25 playoffs, this is the last postseason in which the third and fourth seeds from both conferences all won a playoff game, the opposite outcome of the previous year when every wild-card team advanced to the second round.
This was the first postseason that the Super Bowl went into overtime, and the last until the 2023–24 playoffs.