NFL Playoff Schedule 2015: Viewing Info and Preview for Divisional Round

For all of the anticipation surrounding the start of the NFL playoffs, Wild Card Weekend was, well, underwhelming. 

Arizona vs. Carolina was a turnover- and mistake-riddled exhibition only enjoyable for masochists. Cincinnati vs. Indianapolis was a one-sided fight. Baltimore vs. Pittsburgh was a mostly compelling game, but even that was slightly tarnished by the absence of Le'Veon Bell. 

Detroit and Dallas finally put on a truly entertaining battle, but with the top seeds in action next weekend, the divisional round will surely serve as an improvement. 

Let's take a look. 

Schedule

AFC Matchup	Date	Time (ET)	TV
NFC Matchup	Date	Time (ET)	TV
Baltimore at New England	Sat, Jan. 10	4:35 p.m.	NBC
Indianapolis at Denver	Sun, Jan. 11	4:40 p.m.	CBS
Carolina at Seattle	Sat, Jan. 10	8:15 p.m.	FOX
Dallas at Green Bay	Sun, Jan. 11	1:05 p.m.	FOX

AFC Preview

Steven Senne/Associated Press

It's a bunch of familiar faces at quarterback: Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Andrew Luck, Joe Flacco. 

Brady and Manning are two of the best to ever play the position, Flacco has won his past five playoff games with a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 13-to-0, and Luck, who led the NFL in touchdown passes this season, has the talent to do things like this:

“The one magical play to Moncrief was Andrew at his finest,” head coach Chuck Pagano said, via Colts.com's Tom Rietmann. “He's a maestro back there.”

Luck, the only one of the divisional-round quartet without a Super Bowl victory, was transcendent during Sunday's win over the Cincinnati Bengals, completing 70.5 percent of his throws for 376 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions. 

Around the NFL put it simply:

With the way the Broncos defend the run—third in Football Outsiders' rush defense rankings; Cincinnati was 28th—Luck is going to have to be nearly perfect to keep up with Peyton Manning and an explosive, rested Denver offense. 

As we saw Sunday, and so many times during the regular season, that's not out of the realm of possibility. 

In the conference's other matchup, the Patriots are early seven-point favorites, per Odds Shark. That's understandable, as they have lost just once at home in the past two years, and Brady's teams are usually quite difficult to beat this time of the year, per NFL.com's Ian Rapoport:

Still, don't overlook Playoff Joe. 

Flacco's teams are 10-4 in the playoffs and 8-4 on the road. He hasn't throw an interception in his past 166 postseason pass attempts, the fourth-longest streak in NFL history. And, as Fox Sports' Peter Schrager pointed out, he has had plenty of success at Gillette Stadium: 

Moreover, while both defenses rank near the top of the league in scoring defense, they have both been susceptible to the pass. In terms of yards per pass allowed, the Patriots are 15th and the Ravens are 17th. 

While Indianapolis vs. Denver has the larger over/under, don't be surprised if this one turns into a shootout. 

NFC Preview

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

Carolina at Seattle will undoubtedly feel like the most lopsided of the weekend. The defending champion Seahawks have been steamrolling opponents over the last month, while the .500 Panthers were far from convincing—three turnovers and a slew of mental mistakes—in their win over an injury-riddled Arizona Cardinals squad on Saturday. 

Still, CBS Sports' Will Brinson isn't ready to write off Ron Rivera's squad: 

The Panthers are sort of Seahawks-lite. They run the ball extremely well (Jonathan Stewart has hit 100 yards in three of the last five games), they have a tough, fast defense, and they feature a quarterback who can make plays with his legs. 

When the teams met in October, Seattle won 13-9 thanks to a touchdown in the game's final minute. 

So, yeah, it might be close. But that's as far as I'll go. Seattle's offense is more consistent and has one of the most dangerous running backs in the league. Its defense is playing on another level (as in, a historically dominant level), and at home, the 'Hawks should be able to create pressure on Carolina's shaky offensive line, forcing Cam Newton into a couple of key mistakes.

Finally, we have Green Bay and Dallas, two of the most dynamic, balanced offenses in the league. 

Tom Lynn/Associated Press

For the Packers, Aaron Rodgers, a legitimate MVP candidate, has thrown 25 touchdowns and zero (!) interceptions at home this year. He has one of the league's top WR duos in Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb, and he can hand the ball off to Eddie Lacy, who averaged over 5.0 yards per carry in the second half of the season. 

Dallas counters with Tony Romo (first in QB rating), Dez Bryant (eighth in receiving yards), DeMarco Murray (first in yards from scrimmage) and a bruising offensive line.

Green Bay is first in Football Outsiders' offensive rankings, while Dallas is fourth. Expect some fireworks in this one.