After one of the craziest seasons in NFL history, the playoffs are finally here, and so far, Wild Card Weekend has lived up to its name, because things have gotten wild.
The postseason kicked off on Saturday with a doubleheader that saw both games go down to the wire. Matthew Stafford threw a 19-yard touchdown pass with just 38 seconds left to lead the Rams to a 34-31 comeback win over the Panthers. In the second game, the Bears stormed back from an 18-point halftime deficit to stun the Packers, 31-27. Caleb Williams threw a 25-yard scoring pass with just under two minutes left to play for the game-winning score.
The win for the Bears was the largest postseason comeback in franchise history. It was also the third-largest fourth quarter comeback in NFL playoff history.
After a wild opening day, the drama continued on Sunday with the Bills pulling off a 27-24 win over the Jaguars in a game that saw four lead changes in the fourth quarter. The Bills will now head to the divisional round for the sixth straight year.
In the second game on Sunday, there was more madness with the 49ers pulling off the biggest upset of the opening round with a 23-19 win over the Eagles. With San Francisco’s win, that ends Philadelphia’s bid to become the NFC’s first repeat Super Bowl champ in more than 30 years. It also means that the NFC West is now just the second division over the past 25 years to send three teams to the divisional round. The 49ers will be joining the Rams and Seahawks.
The nightcap on Sunday was the only game that didn’t really have any drama with the Patriots rolling to a 16-3 win over the Chargers. With New England’s win, seven of the eight spots in the divisional round have now been filled. The last spot will go to the winner of Monday’s game between the Texans and Steelers.
With that in mind, let’s get to the full playoff schedule, including the dates for the divisional round.
Wild Card Weekend
Saturday, Jan. 10
(5) Rams 34-31 over (4) Panthers
- Rams vs. Panthers recap: The Panthers almost pulled off the upset, but they couldn’t stop Matthew Stafford with the game on the line. With the Rams trailing 31-27, Stafford engineered a 71-yard game-winning scoring drive that ended when he hit Colby Parkinson with a 19-yard touchdown with just 38 seconds left to play. Stafford threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns in the win.
(2) Bears 31-27 over (7) Packers
- Packers vs. Bears recap: The Bears pulled off the third-largest fourth-quarter comeback in NFL history. Going into the final quarter, the Bears were trailing by 15 points, but they were able to erase that deficit during a miracle quarter where they outscored the Packers, 25-6. Caleb Williams threw for more yardage (184) in the fourth quarter than he did in the first three quarters combined (177). Williams capped things off with a 25-yard score to DJ Moore with just 1:43 left to win the game.
Sunday, Jan. 11
(6) Bills 27-24 over (3) Jaguars
- Bills vs. Jaguars recap: For the first time in his career, Josh Allen led a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter of a playoff game. The Bills’ franchise quarterback scored the game-winning touchdown on a 1-yard run with just one minute left to play. Allen also threw a 15-yard TD pass in the fourth quarter to help propel Buffalo to the win. Allen totaled 306 yards and three touchdowns in the win. For the Bills, it was their first road playoff win in 33 years.
(6) 49ers 23-19 over (3) Eagles
- 49ers vs. Eagles recap: The 49ers pulled off a shocker by going on the road and knocking off the Eagles. After losing George Kittle, the 49ers had some unlikely heroes, including Demarcus Robinson, who caught six passes for 111 yards and a touchdown. Christian McCaffrey also came up big with two touchdowns, including the game-winning score, which came on a 4-yard pass from Brock Purdy with just 2:54 left to play.
(2) Patriots 16-3 over (7) Chargers
- Chargers vs. Patriots recap: The Patriots defense took over and carried New England to the win. Justin Herbert was sacked six times as the Patriots kept the Chargers out of the end zone and held them to fewer than 210 total yards.
The offense didn’t light up the scoreboard, but Drake Maye was impressive in his first career postseason start, throwing for 268 yards and rushing for 66 more. The Patriots are headed to the divisional round for the first time since 2018.
Monday, Jan. 12
Divisional Round
NOTE: The times for the divisional games will be revealed after the Ravens-Steelers game on Monday.
Saturday, Jan. 17 (4:30 p.m. ET or 8 p.m. ET)
- (6) Bills at (1) Broncos
- (6) 49ers at (1) Seahawks
Sunday, Jan. 18 (3 p.m. ET or 6:30 p.m. ET)
- Texans/Steelers at (2) Patriots
- (5) Rams at (2) Bears
Championship Sunday
Sunday, Jan. 25
- AFC Championship, 3 p.m. ET (CBS)
- NFC Championship, 6:30 p.m. ET (Fox)
Super Bowl LX
Sunday, Feb. 8
- AFC champion vs. NFC champion at Levi’s Stadium (Santa Clara, California), 6:30 p.m. ET (NBC)
