NFL Playoff Schedule 2018: Postseason Standings, Bracket Guide and Predictions

After one of the wildest days in recent NFL playoff history, the stage is set for the conference championship matchups.

Three teams will be looking for their first Lombardi Trophy, with the other being a perennial contender. The New England Patriots are aiming to tie the Pittsburgh Steelers for the most Super Bowls in history (six).

Sunday's games should offer great entertainment, but until then, here's a look at the postseason schedule, the results thus far and predictions for the conference championship tilts.

Postseason Picture, Schedule and Results

AFC Wild Card

No. 3 Jacksonville Jaguars 10, No. 6 Buffalo Bills 3

No. 5 Tennessee Titans 22, No. 4 Kansas City Chiefs 21

NFC Wild Card

No. 6 Atlanta Falcons 26, No. 3 Los Angeles Rams 13

No. 4 New Orleans Saints 31, No. 5 Carolina Panthers 26

AFC Divisional Round

No. 1 New England Patriots 35, No. 5 Tennessee Titans 14

No. 3 Jacksonville Jaguars 45, No. 2 Pittsburgh Steelers 42

NFC Divisional Round

No. 1 Philadelphia Eagles 15, No. 6 Atlanta Falcons 10

No. 2 Minnesota Vikings 29, No. 4 New Orleans Saints 24

Conference Championship Schedule

Sunday, January 21, at 3:05 p.m. ET on CBS: No. 3 Jacksonville Jaguars at No. 1 New England Patriots

Sunday, January 21, at 6:40 p.m. ET on Fox: No. 2 Minnesota Vikings at No. 1 Philadelphia Eagles

Super Bowl Schedule

Sunday, February 4 at 6:30 p.m. ET on NBC: AFC champion vs. NFC champion at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis

Updated Postseason Standings

New England Patriots: 14-3

Philadelphia Eagles: 14-3

Minnesota Vikings: 14-3

Jacksonville Jaguars: 12-6

Jacksonville at New England

The Jacksonville Jaguars outplayed the favored Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday and deserved to win. However, Pittsburgh also shot itself in the foot numerous times with questionable offensive play calls.

Notably, the Steelers went to an empty-back set for the first three plays of the game, and they dialed up a deep ball to wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster instead of pounding the rock with running back Le'Veon Bell on a key 4th-and-1 in the fourth quarter.

Bell also rushed only 16 times in this game, which was notable considering the Jags defense ranks seventh-last in rushing yards per carry allowed but best in the league in passing yards per attempt allowed.

Part of that was due to the game script, as the Jaguars were ahead for nearly the entire game. But the Steelers went away from the run more often than not and could have used Bell between the tackles more frequently, as it proved to be successful.

Barring the Patriots coaching staff having a collective meltdown, it's unlikely the Jaguars will be facing a team making the same tactical mistakes in the AFC Championship Game. The Pats have a five-time Super Bowl-winning head coach in Bill Belichick and two coordinators who could land head-coaching gigs next year in Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia.

The Pats should follow the same blueprint they did against the Tennessee Titans: run the ball with Dion Lewis, hit James White out of the backfield and look for tight end Rob Gronkowski and slot man Danny Amendola over the middle. When the coverage allows, maybe take a couple deep shots with Chris Hogan and Brandin Cooks.

The Jacksonville defense has been fantastic all season, but it is up against one of the more talented and best-coached offenses in football.

Don't expect the Pats to score 35 unanswered points like they did against Tennessee, but they should keep the Jags at bay for four quarters.

Pick: Patriots 27, Jaguars 16

Minnesota at Philadelphia

Two of the best defenses will take center stage Sunday night, when the 14-3 Minnesota Vikings play the 14-3 Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field.

According to Football Outsiders, the Vikings and Eagles respectively ranked second and fifth in the NFL in defensive efficiency. Notably, both teams were the only two in the NFL to finish top seven in both run and pass defense.

Although anything can happen in the NFL (who, besides Jaguars lineman Calais Campbell, would have thought the Steelers-Jags game would finish with a 45-42 score?), it's hard to see this game becoming a shootout. Rather, it should come down to the turnover battle and special teams in a close, low-scoring matchup.

Neither team stood out on special teams this year (Football Outsiders ranked the Eagles 16th and the Vikings 18th), but Philadelphia has been a ball-hawking unit, with 31 takeaways, which ranks fourth in the NFL. Minnesota's defense is stout, but it hasn't been as lucky in forcing turnovers (19).

That being said, Philly has given the ball up six more times than Minnesota, and that was with starter Carson Wentz at the helm for 13-plus games before he suffered a torn ACL in Week 14.

Both kickers are hit-and-miss. The Eagles' Jake Elliott knocked home a 61-yarder to beat the New York Giants in Week 3, but he went just 4-of-7 on field goals between 30 and 39 yards and missed four extra points (including playoffs). Still, Elliott has shown tremendous talent as a rookie and can be called upon thanks to his excellent range.

The Vikings' Kai Forbath made one of the most clutch kicks of the season when he hit a 53-yard field goal with 1:29 left in the divisional round, but he's also missed six extra points on the year. Like Elliott, however, he has solid range and can hit field goals from 50 or more yards out.

It's hard to decipher who has the edge. The Vikings are probably the better team on paper, but the Eagles have the home-field advantage.

Give the slightest of edges to the Vikings, who have plus matchups on the outside, with wideouts Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs facing off against the Eagles' outside corners.

Pick: Vikings 17, Eagles 16