NFL Playoff Bracket 2021: Updated Picture, Schedule After Saturday's Wild Card

The NFL's expanded Wild Card Weekend kicked off with plenty of action Saturday as the Buffalo Bills, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Los Angeles Rams each advanced to next week's divisional round with resounding victories.

Buffalo was the only home team to pull out a win, as both the Washington Football Team and Seattle Seahawks were eliminated after winning their respective divisions. The Rams pulled off the biggest surprise of the day, silencing the Seahawks offense despite losing one quarterback to a neck injury and inserting another only weeks after his thumb surgery. 

The playoffs began with a triple-header for the first time, and none of the contests disappointed. Here's a look at how the first half of Wild Card Weekend played out and what's up next. 

Saturday Wild-Card Results

No. 2 Buffalo Bills def. No. 7 Indianapolis Colts 27-24

No. 6 Los Angeles Rams def. No. 3 Seattle Seahawks 30-20

No. 5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers def. No. 4 Washington Football Team 31-23

Sunday Wild-Card Schedule

No. 5 Baltimore Ravens at No. 4 Tennessee Titans: 1:05 p.m. ET on ABC/ESPN

No. 7 Chicago Bears at No. 2 New Orleans Saints: 4:40 p.m. ET on CBS

No. 6 Cleveland Browns at No. 3 Pittsburgh Steelers: 8:15 p.m. ET on NBC 

Saturday Recap

Buffalo Bills 27, Indianapolis Colts 24

The Bills didn't play their best on Saturday, but considering Buffalo hasn't won a playoff game since 1995, that hardly matters. 

Bills quarterback Josh Allen willed his team to victory after the Colts continued to gash the defense for big plays. Allen completed 26 of 35 pass attempts for 324 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for another 54 yards and a score.

Indianapolis seemed primed to take control after grabbing an early 10-7 lead, but an inability to convert in the red zone doomed the Philip Rivers-led offense. The Colts converted just twice on five appearances inside the 20-yard line, and the play-calling didn't help matters. 

With a three-point lead late in the first half, the Colts couldn't convert on 4th-and-goal as a Rivers pass fell just out of the reach of Michael Pittman Jr. After Indianapolis found itself back in the red zone on its first possession of the second half, the Colts got conservative and attempted to kick a field goal that clanked off upright and out. 

Buffalo responded with a nine-play, 77-yard touchdown drive to take a 24-10 lead that all but closed the door on a Colts comeback. 

A failed attempt at a Hail Mary didn't get close to the end zone and sent Indy home empty-handed. 

Rivers passed for 309 yards and two touchdowns in what may have been the final NFL game of his 17-year career. 

Los Angeles Rams 30, Seattle Seahawks 20

Whatever question marks remain about the Los Angeles Rams offense, the defense seems to make up for them and more. 

Against Russell Wilson, DK Metcalf and the high-powered Seattle Seahawks, the Rams went on the road and held the Hawks to just 278 total yards while forcing two turnovers. Aaron Donald proved he's one of the fiercest defensive linemen in football with two sacks, as he kept pressure on Wilson until a rib injury in the third quarter forced him off the field. 

As the Seattle offense fell apart, the Rams were barely able to hold theirs together. 

Second-string quarterback John Wolford was tabbed to start but only lasted until the team's second drive when a neck injury forced him out of the game and, temporarily, sent him to the hospital for further evaluation. That meant Jared Goff, who underwent surgery on Dec. 28, was forced back into action. 

Goff completed nine of 19 pass attempts for 115 yards and a touchdown, while tailback Cam Akers did most of the heavy lifting with 131 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries. 

Wilson finished with 174 yards, two touchdowns and one interception while taking five sacks. 

The Rams' quarterback situation and Donald's health will remain the most pressing issues for L.A. over the next few days. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31, Washington Football Team 23

Washington continued the trend of quarterback issues Saturday as Taylor Heinicke made his postseason debut for the Football Team after Alex Smith was ruled inactive. 

None of it mattered to Tom Brady, who became the oldest QB in NFL history to record a touchdown pass in a playoff game as Tampa Bay never trailed in the road win. 

Brady passed for 381 yards and two touchdowns, while Heinicke put up 306 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception to go with 46 yards rushing with another score on the ground. That was despite an apparent shoulder injury that sent the WFT QB back to the locker room in the third quarter in obvious pain. He was able to return and keep his team in the game, regardless.

The Bucs, meanwhile, suffered their biggest injury shock during warm-ups when starting tailback Ronald Jones II tweaked his quad. Jones was listed as active for the game but didn't see the field for any snaps and didn't appear to even be an option for Brady's offense. 

Instead, Leonard Fournette rushed 19 times for 93 yards and a score with Jones sidelined. 

Tampa wideouts Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown each hauled in a touchdown pass as the Bucs moved onto the divisional round. 

Divisional-Round Schedule

(Highest-seeded team in each conference plays the lowest remaining seed)

No. 7 Chicago Bears OR No. 6 Los Angeles Rams at No. 1 Green Bay Packers: Time TBD

No. 5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers at No. 2 New Orleans Saints OR No. 6 Los Angeles Rams at No. 5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Time TBD

No. 6 Cleveland Browns OR No. 5 Baltimore Ravens OR No. 4 Tennessee Titans at No. 1 Kansas City Chiefs: Time TBD

No. 3 Pittsburgh Steelers OR No. 4 Tennessee Titans OR No. 5 Baltimore Ravens at No. 2 Buffalo Bills: Time TBD