NFL Playoff Schedule 2014: Dates and Matchup Predictions for AFC and NFC

The conclusion of the 2013 NFL regular season is nearly here and soon the much-anticipated playoffs will begin.

Two teams are still attempting to secure a postseason berth, but it’s not too early to take a look at the key dates in the upcoming playoffs.

Current Standings

AFC Division Leaders and Wild Card

Seed No.	Team	W-L Record
1	Denver Broncos (AFC West)	13-3
2	New England Patriots (AFC East)	12-4
3	Cincinnati Bengals (AFC North)	11-5
4	Indianapolis Colts (AFC South)	11-5
5	Kansas City Chiefs	11-5
6	San Diego Chargers	9-7

NFC Division Leaders and Wild Card

Seed No.	Team	W-L Record
1	Seattle Seahawks (NFC West)	13-3
2	Carolina Panthers (NFC South)	12-4
3	Philadelphia Eagles (NFC East)	10-6
4	Green Bay Packers (NFC North)	8-7-1
5	San Francisco 49ers	12-4
6	New Orleans Saints	11-5

 Let’s take a look at the schedule, plus make some predictions on the potential matchups in both the AFC and NFC for the 2014 NFL postseason.

Round	Dates
Wild Card Weekend	Jan. 4-5
Divisional Round	Jan. 11-12
Conference Championships	Jan. 19
Super Bowl XLVIII	Feb. 2

Home (Seed)	Away (Seed)	When
Cincinnati Bengals (No. 3)	San Diego Chargers (No. 6)	1:05 EST, Sunday, Jan. 5
Indianapolis Colts (No. 4)	Kansas City Chiefs (No. 5)	4:35 EST, Saturday, Jan. 4

Home (Seed)	Away (Seed)	When
Philadelphia Eagles (No. 3)	New Orleans Saints (No. 6)	8:10 EST, Saturday, Jan. 4
Green Bay Packers (No. 4)	San Francisco 49ers (No. 5)	4:40 EST, Sunday, Jan. 5

Saturday, Jan. 11	Away	Home
Saturday, Jan. 12
4:35 EST	TBA	Seattle Seahawks (FOX)
8:15 EST	TBA	New England Patriots (CBS)
1:05 EST	TBA	Carolina Panthers (FOX)
4:40 EST	TBA	Denver Broncos(CBS)

AFC Wild Card Matchup to Watch: No. 3 Cincinnati Bengals vs. No. 6 San Diego Chargers

The last AFC wild-card spot came down to the Miami Dolphins, Baltimore Ravens, San Diego Chargers and Pittsburgh Steelers. Between these four teams it was San Diego that emerged from the chaos with the AFC's final berth.

Unfortunately, San Diego has the misfortune of running into a surging Cincinnati Bengals squad playing at home and looking to advance out of the Wild Card Round for the first time since 1990.

Regardless, the home team will prevail if this ends up being the matchup.

Cincy has put up more than 40 points in four of its last five home games and will not be stopped by a streaky San Diego team.

NFC Wild Card Matchup to Watch

No. 3 Philadelphia Eagles vs. No. 6 New Orleans Saints      

This offensive battle will be one for the ages, with the Saints having to travel to Philly to take on the soaring Eagles.

New Orleans got a Week 17 “W” to get in.

Philadelphia won the de facto NFC East championship game against the Tony Romo-less Dallas Cowboys to punch a postseason ticket. The Eagles have won seven of their last eight games and are one of the hottest squads in the entire league at this juncture.

It will be Philly’s No. 1 rushing offense trading blows with NOLA’s No. 2-ranked passing attack. The Saints are beatable on the ground—giving up 114.1 yards per game to opposing rushers—and rock-solid against aerial assaults, limiting passers to just 192.7 yards per contest. The Eagles are soft against the pass, ranking 30th in the league by conceding 285.2 yards per game on average.

Don’t be surprised if the Saints attack this group through the air and try to get a few quick scores. The goal will be to put this one out of reach before LeSean McCoy and the Philadelphia rushers can do much damage on the ground.

Home-Field Advantage and Bye Week

AFC

The Denver Broncos locked up the best record in the AFC with a win over the lowly Oakland Raiders.

Meanwhile, Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots locked up the No. 2 seed and a bye with their 34-20 win over the Buffalo Bills. Belichick's team survived a strong initial push by the Bills to ensure at least one playoff game occurs at Gillette Stadium.

NFC 

The Seattle Seahawks had an immensely tough matchup with the St. Louis Rams to close out the 2013 campaign, but they got it done and avoided consecutive home losses.

While the Rams sacked star quarterback Russell Wilson seven times and almost won in the waning seconds earlier this season, things were different this time around in the 27-9 blowout. 

There was simply too much for Seattle to lose by not taking care of business.

The Carolina Panthers are another team that needed nothing more than a simple win to secure home-field advantage in the second round and get a week of rest. Not many expected this at the start of the year, but head coach Ron Rivera has led his unit to this position and needed one more “W” to cap off an excellent season.

Unfortunately, the appeared Cam Newton and the rest of his teammates overlooked the Atlanta Falcons, because the Panthers only escaped with a one-point victory.

Regardless, the disparity in talent was large, so the Panthers were able to slip past and secure the No. 2 seed.