NFL Playoff Schedule 2026, Wild Card Matchups, Bracket Dates and Start Times

The Pittsburgh Steelers held on to beat the Baltimore Ravens and clinch the NFL's final playoff spot on Sunday night.

Pittsburgh set up a wild-card round home game against the Houston Texans with its 26-24 victory over the Baltimore Ravens.

Before Pittsburgh's win, the Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills each moved up a spot in the wild-card standings in their respective conferences with wins on Sunday.

Sean McVay's team was the biggest beneficiary among the wild-card teams in Week 18, as it now has to visit the NFC South champion Carolina Panthers instead of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Philadelphia plays host to the San Francisco 49ers, while the Green Bay Packers square off with the Chicago Bears, who held on to the No. 2 seed with the Eagles' loss in Week 18.

Buffalo heads to Jacksonville for the opening round, while the Los Angeles Chargers take on the New England Patriots.

Wild-Card Schedule

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Dates and times to be announced.

Saturday, January 10

No. 5 Los Angeles Rams at No. 4 Carolina (4:30 p.m. ET, Fox)

No. 7 Green Bay at No. 2 Chicago (8 p.m. ET, Prime Video)

Sunday, January 11

No. 6 Buffalo at No. 3 Jacksonville (1 p.m. ET, CBS)

No. 6 San Francisco at No. 3 Philadelphia (4:30 p.m. ET, Fox)

No. 7 Los Angeles Chargers at No. 2 New England (8 p.m. ET, NBC)

Monday, January 12

No. 5 Houston at No. 4 Pittsburgh (8 p.m. ET, ESPN)

NFC Wild-Card Matchups

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No. 7 Green Bay Packers at No. 2 Chicago Bears

The Packers and Bears split the regular-season series in the NFC North.

Green Bay was only a minute away from securing the regular-season sweep until Chicago manufactured a comeback to win in overtime in Week 16.

That was Chicago's most-recent win. The Bears dropped a shootout to the 49ers in Week 17 and fell to the Detroit Lions in Week 18.

Green Bay is in worse shape, though, as it enters the postseason on a four-game losing streak. Its last win was in Week 14 against the Bears.

No. 6 San Francisco 49ers at No. 3 Philadelphia Eagles

Philadelphia rested its starters in Week 18, a decision that cost it the shot at the No. 2 seed. The Eagles had an up-and-down season to get to the NFC East title, but they are the reigning Super Bowl champion and have a defense that allowed 30 points from Weeks 15-17.

San Francisco struggled against Seattle's defense in Week 18, which is a bad sign for the 49ers in a matchup against another tough defensive unit.

The 49ers can match the Eagles in offensive playmaking ability, but its defense gave up 102 points in the last four weeks.

No. 5 Los Angeles Rams at No. 4 Carolina Panthers

The Los Angeles Rams head back to Bank of America Stadium, where they lost to the Carolina Panthers in Week 13.

The Rams outgained Carolina 379-358, but they came up short because of three turnovers, including two interceptions from Matthew Stafford.

Since that game, the Panthers are 1-3 and they needed help from the Atlanta Falcons to claim the NFC South title. Bryce Young is at a severe disadvantage in playoff experience in comparison to Stafford.

The edge in experience plus Carolina's recent form should make the Panthers a clear underdog in the matchup.

AFC Wild-Card Matchups

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No. 7 Los Angeles Chargers at No. 2 New England Patriots

New England comes into the postseason with one loss since Week 4. The Patriots only went 2-1 against teams locked into the playoff field during that stretch. The record moves to 3-1 if the Baltimore Ravens lock up the AFC North.

The Chargers dropped to the No. 7 seed after they decided to rest their starters in Week 18. They suffered three losses dating back to Week 11, all of which were against playoff qualifiers.

Los Angeles' biggest shortcoming in its losses was its run defense. It gave up over 160 rushing yards in three of those defeats and over 100 rushing yards in all of its losses. New England can exploit that weakness with the TreVeyon Henderson-Rhamondre Stevenson duo.

No. 6 Buffalo Bills at No. 3 Jacksonville Jaguars

Josh Allen holds a significant edge in playoff experience over any AFC quarterback outside of whomever wins the AFC North.

Allen's playoff experience could be the X-factor against the Trevor Lawrence-led Jacksonville Jaguars. Lawrence is 1-1 in the postseason with five touchdowns and five interceptions.

Lawrence's lone playoff win occurred in a double-digit comeback against the Chargers, but he also threw four picks in that game.

Lawrence is a more polished passer under Liam Coen, but he's going up against a Buffalo defense that's held eight of its nine opponents under 200 passing yards.

No. 5 Houston Texans vs. No. 4 Pittsburgh

Houston has the most ideal matchup of the three wild-card teams as the No. 5 seed facing the AFC North champion.

The Texans take on the Steelers, who escaped with a tight win over Baltimore on Sunday to clinch the AFC North.

Pittsburgh closed with four wins in its final five games. It will face one of the league's best defenses, but it does get DK Metcalf back for Monday after he served a two-game suspension.