2026 AFC and NFC Championship Winners, Losers and Takeaways

It's the second-biggest Sunday of the NFL calendar: conference championship weekend.

Just four teams remained in the hunt to reach Super Bowl LX entering Sunday's action. In the early game, the AFC's top two seeds squared off in Denver, with the New England Patriots looking to finish their remarkable turnaround against a top-seeded Broncos team starting a backup quarterback in Jarrett Stidham.

In weather that went from ideal to atrocious in the blink of an eye, the Pats moved on in a defensive battle.

On the NFC side, two familiar foes who split the regular-season series met in Seattle, where MVP front-runner Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams travelled north to face the NFL's No. 1 scoring defense in the Seahawks.

Defense was optional Sunday night, and in a third barn-burner between these two teams, Sam Darnold and the Seahawks came out on top.

It's a pair of heavyweight battles with the highest of stakes, and Bleacher Report NFL analysts Gary Davenport, Kris Knox, Maurice Moton and Brent Sobleski have the biggest takeaways, winners and losers from the AFC and NFC Championship games.

AFC Championship Game Takeaways

AP Photo/Ashley Landis

Patriots HC Mike Vrabel

Score: (2) Patriots 10, (1) Broncos 7

Patriots Takeaway: Mike Vrabel's Patriots are One Win Away From One of the NFL's All-Time Turnarounds

When Mike Vrabel was named head coach of the Patriots, it injected a jolt of enthusiasm into a franchise that desperately needed it after back-to-back 4-13 seasons.

Vrabel was a Pats legend and a proven winner.

But no one thought the 50-year-old would lead the Patriots to a 14-3 record and the team's 12th Super Bowl. No one.

Granted, it helps to have good players, and New England has plenty. This isn't the first time the Pats made the Super Bowl in a young quarterback's second season. The last time turned out OK.

The Pats have adopted their coach's mentality, though: tough, hard-nosed and physical on both sides of the ball.

Vrabel will probably be named Coach of the Year at the NFL Honors.

He's earned the accolade.

Broncos Takeaway: Denver Will be Back After Disappointing Loss

The last thing Broncos fans want to hear right now is, "Hold your heads high." Losing the AFC title game, no matter how it happened, is gut-wrenching.

But this was a game where Denver started a quarterback who had as many NFL pass attempts this year as we did, in weather that became near-apocalyptic in the second half, against a 14-win team.

And the Broncos were in it to the end.

There is work to be done in the offseason. The team needs more consistency offensively, especially on the ground, and the AFC West isn't getting any easier.

However, the Broncos appear to have their franchise quarterback in Bo Nix and a fantastic young defense.

The window is open at Mile High, and it will stay that way for a while.

AFC Championship Game Winners and Losers

AP Photo/John Locher

Broncos HC Sean Payton

Winner: QB Drake Maye, New England Patriots

Maye didn't have a great game throwing the ball—he completed less than half of his passes, threw for less than 100 yards, and was sacked five times. But the second-year pro avoided the turnovers that plagued him in the divisional round, and his legs were the difference in the game: 10 carries, 65 yards, and the Patriots' only touchdown.

Loser: Broncos Run Defense

In a game where both quarterbacks threw for fewer than 220 yards combined, the team that stopped the run was going to advance to the Super Bowl. For the second straight playoff game, that team was not the Broncos. In the regular season, Denver ranked second in the league against the run, allowing just 91.1 rushing yards per game. In the postseason, the Broncos surrendered over 160 rushing yards per game, including 141 in the AFC Championship Game.

Winner: Patriots Front Seven

The Patriots were solid defensively in the regular season: eighth in yards per game allowed, sixth against the run, and fourth in scoring defense. And while Denver's defense disappointed on the ground in the postseason, the Pats wouldn't let a Broncos team that badly needed to run the ball do anything—22 carries for just 70 yards and 3.2 yards per carry.

Loser: HC Sean Payton, Denver Broncos

Jarrett Stidham's first-half fumble was a killer and led to New England's only touchdown. But he is a backup quarterback, and given that reality, Denver head coach Sean Payton's decision to eschew an easy field goal that would have put the Broncos up 10-0 in the second quarter was a major blunder—one that was amplified tenfold when the weather turned nasty and neither team could do anything offensively.

NFC Championship Game Takeaways

AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez

Seahawks QB Sam Darnold

Score: (1) Seahawks 31, (5) Rams 27

Seahawks Takeaway: Sam Darnold's Redemption is Complete

Sam Darnold has led a team to the Super Bowl.

That's a remarkable turnaround given his career arc.

When Darnold imploded in the playoffs against the Rams last year, plenty were ready to discount his 14-3 season with the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings themselves chose J.J. McCarthy over him.

Now, the 2018 No. 3 overall pick on his fifth NFL team is one win from a ring.

Yes, Darnold led all quarterbacks in turnovers during the regular season. But he didn't just get the Seahawks to the Super Bowl—he carried them there.

In a game where Seattle's vaunted defense was roasted by Matthew Stafford and the Rams, Darnold arguably outplayed him, throwing for 346 yards and three touchdowns without a turnover.

Whatever happens in Santa Clara, Darnold has arrived.

Rams Takeaway: Los Angeles Will be a Fascinating Team to Watch This Offseason

Let's get the $64 question out of the way. It's possible Stafford calls it a career, but it's highly unlikely. He just came within a game of his second Super Bowl, will more likely than not be named MVP at the NFL Honors, and at 37 has shown he can still play at an elite level.

Even then though, it's going to be quite the offseason in Los Angeles.

Stafford's cap number for 2026 is a whopping $48.3 million, and while Rams have about $45.6 million in cap space, per Over The Cap, the team is also staring down the barrel of extensions for wide receiver Puka Nacua and edge-rusher Byron Young that could sail past $30 million a season.

Les Snead is widely regarded as one of the NFL's best general managers, but he faces a challenging cap-management offseason.

NFC Championship Game Winners and Losers

AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez

Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Winner: WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks

Sunday's NFC title tilt featured the NFL's two most productive receivers in 2025, and neither disappointed. Puka Nacua and Smith-Njigba combined for 19 catches for 318 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Those numbers are not made up. Both young receivers made highlight-reel plays, but it's Smith-Njigba and the Seahawks who are moving on—and nothing says "winner" more than winning.

Loser: Rams Defense

To be clear, both defensive coordinators will be burning the tape of this game—the Rams and Seahawks combined for well over 800 yards of offense and 58 points. But the Rams did nothing well defensively. They didn't stop the run, defend the pass or generate consistent pressure on Darnold. The Rams were 1-of-8 on third down. The Seahawks were 7-of-13. Ballgame.

Winner: RB Kenneth Walker III, Seattle Seahawks

When the Seahawks lost Zach Charbonnet to a season-ending injury in the divisional round, there was reason for concern about how Walker would handle a sizable uptick in touches. So far, the fourth-year pro is doing just fine—he had double-digit touches in the first quarter alone as the Seahawks started red-hot and finished the game with 111 total yards and a touchdown.

Loser: Rams Special Teams

Special teams being a calamity this year for the Rams is nothing new. You name it, it has happened: blocked kicks, blocked punts and long returns. And Xavier Smith's muffed punt wasn't the sole reason they lost Sunday. But turning the ball over inside your own red zone and then allowing a touchdown on the next play in a close contest is not how teams make it to the Super Bowl.