NFL Playoff Bracket 2019: Dates, Matchups, Updated Schedule for Divisional Round

Three division winners fell on NFL Wild Card Weekend, which makes the upcoming divisional round look much different than many expected. 

On Saturday afternoon, two AFC South teams faced off in the postseason for the first time. The No. 6-seeded Indianapolis Colts went into Houston and humiliated the Texans, who wore the 2018 regular-season AFC South crown. 

Sunday saw upsets in both the AFC and NFC. First, the Baltimore Ravens saw their season end at the hands of the visiting fifth-seeded Los Angeles Chargers. Just one week removed from winning the AFC North, rookie Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson struggled immensely against a Chargers defense that sacked him seven times.

And finally, the most surprising result of Wild Card Weekend came in the finale between the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles. The NFC North champions lost by one point in devastating fashion to the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles as Bears kicker Cody Parkey missed a field goal with five seconds left. 

The ball hit the left upright and the crossbar. 

The way the wild-card slate shook out sets up the oldest pair of starting quarterbacks facing off in NFL playoff history as well as a rematch from Week 11. 

Below is an early look ahead to next weekend's divisional round dates and matchups. 

Updated Schedule

Saturday, January 12

AFC: No. 6 Indianapolis Colts at No. 1 Kansas City Chiefs, 4:35 p.m. ET on NBC

NFC: No. 4 Dallas Cowboys at No. 2 Los Angeles Rams, 8:15 p.m. ET on FOX

Sunday, January 13

AFC: No. 5 Los Angeles Chargers at No. 2 New England Patriots, 1:05 p.m. ET on CBS

NFC: No. 6 Philadelphia Eagles at No. 1 New Orleans Saints, 4:40 p.m. ET on FOX

In addition to the broadcast networks, the divisional-round games can be viewed on FuboTV.

Matchups to Watch

Chiefs Look to Avenge Historic 2014 Playoff Loss

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In January 2014, Colts quarterback Andrew Luck—then in his second year—mounted what was at the time the second largest comeback in NFL postseason history. In a wild-card game against the Chiefs, Luck led Indy from 28-10 down to win 45-44. 

The Colts have not been in the playoffs since 2014. In the years between then and now, Luck has gone through the injury gamut. But the 29-year-old Comeback Player of the Year frontrunner has finally returned to full health, and the Colts are as hot as anybody heading into Arrowhead.

The quarterback worth discussing here, though, wasn't present for the 2014 classic (Alex Smith was quarterbacking for Kansas City). Chiefs second-year quarterback Patrick Mahomes is in his first season as a full-time starter and a major NFL MVP candidate. 

Combined, Mahomes (50) and Luck (39) threw for 89 touchdowns in the regular season. From the outset, this game feels like it will be an offensive back-and-forth. The Chiefs certainly hope so, as their defense is porous at best. 

The one advantage the Chiefs defense has is pressuring the passer, as defensive end Chris Jones finished the regular season with at least one sack in an NFL-record 11 games in a row, can very easily be canceled out by the Colts' stout offensive line—a unit that had no issue staving off J.J. Watt and Jadeveon Clowney in the wild-card round.

According to Hall of Fame running back LaDainian Tomlinson, the matchup to watch will take place between the Chiefs' historic offense and the Colts' secondary. Tomlinson said the following on NFL Network:

"We know, the Colts, they're gonna play zone. And (Travis) Kelce and Tyreek Hill up the middle of the field, that's gonna be the matchup to watch. And if that happens, and Kansas City starts scoring—now, Andrew Luck can't get into a scoring battle. He still needs to manage the game. He needs to try to keep Patrick Mahomes off the field." 

Can Nick Foles Really Do This Again?

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Just to be clear: we would not be having this conversation if Eagles head coach Doug Pederson didn't call timeout right before Bears kicker Cody Parkey hit his first attempt at a 43-yard field goal. His second attempt—the one that counted—doinked both the upright and crossbar. As a result, the Bears lost 16-15.

And so, Philadelphia will travel to New Orleans next Sunday. The last time the Eagles visited the Saints, the Saints buried the defending Super Bowl champions 48-7 in Week 11. Of course, Carson Wentz was still under center for the Eagles in Week 11. 

Enter: Nick Foles.

Having already led the Eagles to a Super Bowl last season and being named Super Bowl MVP in the process, Foles reprised his role as savior in Week 15 of this season when Wentz went out again due to injury. Since then, the Eagles are undefeated. 

And it's not as if Foles and Co. have had an easy schedule. So far since Week 15, the Eagles have defeated the Rams and Bears. The Saints are about as scary an opponent as there is in the NFL when at home, but Foles—for whatever reason—inspires blind confidence. 

In December, January and February games during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, the Foles-led Eagles are 9-1. Their lone loss came in the 2017 regular-season finale when Nate Sudfeld replaced a struggling Foles in a game where most Eagles starters were resting.  

Brady and Rivers Represent Class of Veteran QBs

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Tom Brady and Philip Rivers have faced each other a total of seven times. The Patriots have won all seven times.

Even so, Rivers spoke highly about the opportunity to go into New England after the Chargers defeated the Ravens in Baltimore. According to The Boston Globe, Rivers said the following:

"To get an opportunity again to go against them, 11 years after we had the opportunity in the 2007 season, yeah, it’s awesome. Looking forward to it. 

"I’ve got to focus on defense. I’m not playing Tom by any means. But is it special to go to New England against a Hall of Fame coach and arguably the best quarterback ever to play and get another shot at ‘em? Heck, yeah. Heck, yeah, it is special." 

If the same Chargers defense that showed up in Baltimore also shows up in Foxborough, Rivers has a chance to beat the Patriots for the first time in his career. In the wild-card round, the Chargers sacked Lamar Jackson seven times—the most sacks in a playoff game by a Chargers team since 1992.

The attack was led by defensive end Melvin Ingram, who secured the game-sealing fumble with 28 seconds left to go.

Brady's health has come into question down the stretch in the regular season—with reporters speculating he's injured even though Brady publicly denied playing hurt. Even when fully healthy, Brady is a significantly less mobile quarterback than Jackson, who the Chargers contained very well. That said: he's Tom Brady.

Dallas Defense Set For Another Major Test

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If the Cowboys hadn't already beaten the New Orleans Saints in Week 13, there would be much more concern about Dallas' chances against a mostly potent Los Angeles Rams offense. But the 'Boys did beat the Saints 13-10, and the Rams showed weakness in a 15-6 loss at Chicago in Week 14—so, we've got a game.

It's no secret: the Cowboys offense goes as running back Ezekiel Elliott goes. In Dallas' wild-card win over Seattle, Elliott carried the ball 26 times for 137 yards and a touchdown. Diagnosing the offense as running smoothest when the running back runs rampant also applies to L.A.

Only, Rams running back Todd Gurley's health is a factor here.

Gurley sat out the final two regular-season games due to a knee injury but is expected to return to action on Tuesday leading up to the divisional round. The last time Rams quarterback Jared Goff faced a vicious defense and Gurley was contained, Goff threw four picks and L.A. was held to six points.

The Cowboys rank No. 5 overall in rushing defense, allowing just 94.6 yards per game in the regular season. Against the Seahawks' first-ranked rushing offense in the wild card, Dallas kept running back Chris Carson to 20 yards on 13 carries and Seattle as a whole to 73 yards.

This Cowboys defense is up for the test, as shown already against an offense like the Saints, and have a chance to walk out of The Coliseum with a major upset.

The Rams' rushing defense, on the other hand, gave up 122.3 yards per game in the regular season. 

Feed Zeke.