As the journey to the Super Bowl commences, the NFL playoffs’ first weekend schedule and matchups are finalized, along with the schedules and TV channels.
On Sunday, the 14 playoff-bound teams were ultimately decided. The only question left going into the Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings Sunday Night Football game in Week 18 was which of those two teams would win the NFC North and secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and which would have to make do with a wild-card playoff berth. The Vikings were demoted to the No. 5 spot in the NFC as Detroit defeated Minnesota 31-9 to win the division and claim the top slot.
The AFC No. 5 seed Los Angeles Chargers will visit the No. 4 Houston Texans on Saturday, January 11, to kick off wild-card weekend. Then, No. 6 Pittsburgh will travel to play No. 3 Baltimore on Saturday night.
The tripleheader on Sunday begins with No. 7 Denver traveling to No. 2 Buffalo.
Then it’s the turn of the NFC. No. 6 Washington visits No. 3 Tampa Bay, while No. 7 Green Bay travels to Philadelphia to play the No. 2 Eagles.
On Monday, January 13, No. 5 Minnesota will travel to Los Angeles to play the No. 4 Rams, capping off the playoff weekend.
Each conference’s top seed, Detroit in the NFC and Kansas City in the AFC, receives a bye and gets the weekend off.
Here is the full NFL wild-card weekend schedule, complete with TV channels and times:
NFL wild-card weekend
Pacific time at all times
January 11, Saturday
AFC: (4) Houston (10-7) vs. (5) L.A. Chargers (10-7) at 1:30 p.m. (CBS, Paramount+)
AFC: (3) Baltimore (12-5) against. (6) Pittsburgh (10-7) at 5 p.m. (Prime Video)
Sunday, January 12
AFC: Second-place Buffalo (13-4) vs. Denver (10-7) at 10 a.m. (CBS, Paramount+)
NFC: (2) Philadelphia (14-3) vs. (7) Green Bay (11-6), 1:30 p.m. (Fox)
NFC: Tampa Bay (10-7) vs. Washington (12-5) at 5:00 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)
January 13, Monday
Minnesota at the Los Angeles Rams (10–7), NFC, 5 p.m. (ESPN/ABC/ESPN+)
Byes: (1) Detroit (NFC) and (1) Kansas City (AFC)
Note: Every piece of content is rigorously reviewed by our team of experienced writers and editors to ensure its accuracy. Our writers use credible sources and adhere to strict fact-checking protocols to verify all claims and data before publication. If an error is identified, we promptly correct it and strive for transparency in all updates, feel free to reach out to us via email. We appreciate your trust and support!
