The matchups are officially set for Wild Card Weekend. For the first time in more 10 years, every playoff team has 10+ wins, a feat not accomplished since 2012, when there were only 12 teams in the playoffs. Concurrently, it is the 35th consecutive season that there are at least four teams that made the playoffs who did not make it the year prior. This year's teams are the Chargers, Broncos, Vikings and Commanders.
Below is a look at each wild-card matchup, with insights from NFL Research.
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- WHERE: NRG Stadium (Houston)
- WHEN: 4:30 p.m. ET, Saturday | CBS, Paramount+, Nickelodeon, Â鶹¹ú²ú
NFL Research highlight:
This is a game of firsts. The first-ever meeting between the Chargers and the Texans in the playoffs, the first matchup between Justin Herbert and C.J. Stroud, and the first coaching duel between Jim Harbaugh and DeMeco Ryans. A win here for Herbert also would mark his first-career playoff win.
Meanwhile, Stroud and the Texans are facing a top-ranked defense in their third consecutive playoff appearance. They faced the Browns (No. 1 total defense) in the 2023 wild-card round, followed by the Ravens (No. 1 scoring defense) in the 2023 Divisional Round. Now they face the Chargers, the top-ranked scoring defense in 2024.
- WHERE: M&T Bank Stadium (Baltimore)
- WHEN: 8 p.m. ET, Saturday | Prime Video, Â鶹¹ú²ú
NFL Research highlight:
In addition to this being a storied rivalry, and the third time this season we will be watching these AFC North teams face off, Saturday's game marks the fifth playoff battle between Pittsburgh and Baltimore since 2001. The Steelers beat the Ravens in the playoffs in 2001, 2008 and 2010 and Baltimore won the most recent postseason meeting in 2015. However, the Ravens have never hosted the Steelers in the postseason before, making this game a first.
An MVP favorite this season, Lamar Jackson has the largest difference between his regular-season win percentage and playoff win percentage of any QB since at least 1950. Conversely, Russell Wilson has nine career playoff wins, which is the second-most among QBs on this year’s playoff teams. Wilson has more playoff wins than Jackson has playoff starts (six).
- WHERE: Highmark Stadium (Orchard Park, N.Y.)
- WHEN: 1 p.m. ET, Sunday | CBS, Paramount+, Â鶹¹ú²ú
NFL Research highlight:
This will be the third time in four seasons that the Bills will face a rookie QB in the wild-card round. Sean McDermott is 2-0 in those circumstances. Rookie QBs are 1-9 on the road against the Bills since 2019 (including playoffs).
Bills LB Von Miller is another storyline worth paying attention to in this game. Not only is he playing his former team, but the last time the Broncos made a playoff appearance was when they won Super Bowl 50 with Miller taking home the game's MVP honors.
- WHERE: Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia)
- WHEN: 4:30 p.m. ET | FOX, FOX Deportes, Â鶹¹ú²ú
NFL Research highlight:
The Eagles are the well-deserved No. 2 seed in the NFC this year, but it’s worth noting that the Packers have not lost in a wild-card game since the 2013 season when they lost to the 49ers. Last year, the Packers were the No. 7 seed and upset the No. 2-seeded Dallas Cowboys in the wild card round to become the first No. 7 seed to win a playoff game since the expansion in 2020. Green Bay is tied for the second-most playoff wins in NFL history.
The Eagles have lost each of their last three wild-card games, but are 2-1 against the Packers in the playoffs all-time. Michael Vick and Aaron Rodgers were the quarterbacks last time these two played in the playoffs.
- WHERE: Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Fla.)
- WHEN: 8 p.m. ET | NBC, Peacock, Universo, TeleXitos, Â鶹¹ú²ú
NFL Research highlight:
The Commanders are back in the playoffs for the first time since the 2020 season, when they lost to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the Buccaneers, in the Wild Card Round. If they were to win here, it would Washington’s first playoff victory since the 2005 season, when, ironically, they beat the Buccaneers. They have lost five straight playoff games, which is the longest streak in franchise history.
Also, this will be just the second playoff meeting since 1950 between starting quarterbacks who each won the Heisman Trophy in college (Mayfield: 2017 winner at OKLA; Daniels: 2023 winner at LSU).
- WHERE: SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, Calif.)
- WHEN: 8 p.m. ET, Monday | ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN+, ESPN DEPORTES, Â鶹¹ú²ú
NFL Research highlight:
These two teams haven’t met in the playoffs since the 1999 season, but they’ve met seven times in total, with the Vikings winning five of those matchups. Although, it’s worth noting that the Rams have not lost a home playoff game since the 2017 wild-card round.
Perhaps what makes this game the most interesting is the coaching matchup. Prior to becoming the Vikings head coach, Kevin O’Connell served under Sean McVay as the Rams’ offensive coordinator in 2020 and 2021. He was the offensive coordinator in the Rams’ most recent Super Bowl win in 2021, which was his last game before becoming the head coach in Minnesota.
