NFL Wild Card Weekend!

First, I will overview what happened in the playoff-clinching scenarios in Week 18

1. The first game this Saturday was between the Panthers and Buccaneers, which was huge in deciding who would win the NFC South. Essentially, if the Panthers won, they would've clinched the NFC South, eliminating the Buccaneers from playoff contention. However, if the Buccaneers won, the fate of the NFC South would be decided by the Saints-Falcons game the next day. The Buccaneers ultimately won the game 16-14 (there were some controversial calls against the Panthers throughout). But nevertheless, it was up to the Saints-Falcons game to decide who would win the NFC South.

2. The second game on Saturday was between the Seahawks and 49ers. The winner would win the NFC West and earn the #1 seed and first round bye. In a highly defensive game, the Seahawks would win 13-3, and win the NFC West. The 49ers had wait until the next day for the Cardinals-Rams game, which would determine if the 49ers got the 5th seed or 6th seed.

3. The Saints and Falcons played on Sunday, to which the Falcons would win a close game, 19-17. This win officially eliminated the Buccaneers from playoff contention and clinched a division title for the Carolina Panthers.

4. The Jaguars defeated the Titans 41-7, which clinched them an AFC South title. In order to clinch the #1 seed in the AFC, they needed the Broncos and Patriots to lose.

5. The Texans defeated the Colts, solidifying their position as the 5th seed in the AFC.

6. In a game with no playoff implications, the Browns defeated the Bengals 20-18. Browns DE Myles Garrett got his 23rd sack of the season, which sets the record for most sacks in a single season in NFL history! The previous record was 22.5 sacks, tied between Michael Strahan in 2001 and TJ Watt in 2021.

7. The 2nd and 3rd seeds in the NFC were both up for grabs; with an Eagles win and Bears loss, the Eagles would clinch the 2nd seed and the Bears would clinch the 3rd seed. Any other scenario would result in the Bears getting the 2nd seed and the Eagles getting the 3rd.

8. Both the Bears and Eagles lost their respective Week 18 games (the Bears lost to the Lions, and the Eagles lost to the Commanders), which means the Bears are the 2nd seed and the Eagles are the 3rd seed.

9. The Bills dominated the Jets to solidify their position as the 6th seed in the AFC. The New York Jets also became the first team in NFL history to finish the season with ZERO defensive interceptions.

10. The Broncos clinched the #1 seed in the AFC with a 19-3 win over the Chargers.

11. The Las Vegas Raiders have clinched the #1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft.

12. Sunday Night Football (essentially the AFC North championship) between the Ravens and Steelers was a crazy game! The winner would win the division, and the loser would be eliminated from the playoffs. In an intense back-and-forth, Ravens' kicker Tyler Loop ultimately missed the game-winning field goal, and the Steelers won 26-24.

The schedule has been released for the Wild Card games

The Saturday, January 10 games will be

(5) Rams (12-5) at (4) Panthers (8-9) @ 4:30 PM ET

(7) Packers (9-7-1) at (2) Bears (11-6) @ 8:00 PM ET

The Sunday, January 11 games will be

(6) Bills (12-5) at (3) Jaguars (13-4) @ 1:00 PM ET

(6) 49ers (12-5) at (3) Eagles (11-6) @ 4:30 PM ET

(7) Chargers (11-6) at (2) Patriots (14-3) @ 8:00 PM ET

Then, there will be one game on Monday, January 12

(5) Texans (12-5) at (4) Steelers (10-7) @ 8:00 PM ET

1. The Panthers are now the 5th team in NFL history to make the playoffs with a losing record (excluding 1982, which had more teams in the playoffs because of a strike-shortened season), followed by the 2010 Seahawks (7-9), the 2014 Panthers (7-8-1), the 2020 Washington Football Team (7-9), and the 2022 Buccaneers (8-9).

2. The Rams and Panthers played earlier this year; in Week 13, the Panthers defeated the Rams 31-28

3. The Packers and Bears are the NFL's oldest rivalry, but this is only the third time that they've met in the playoffs (1941 West Divisional Playoff, Bears defeat Packers 33-14; 2010 NFC Championship, Packers defeat Bears 21-14).

4. Being division rivals, the Packers and Bears have already played twice this year, both in one-score games

5. In Week 14, the Packers defeated the Bears 28-21.

6. In Week 16, the Bears defeated the Packers 22-16 (OT).

7. The Jaguars now have 13 regular season wins, which is the second-most in franchise history, only behind 1999 when they were 14-2.

8. This is the first time the Bills did not win the division since 2019.

9. The Eagles and 49ers last met in the playoffs in the 2022 NFC Championship, in which the Eagles won 31-7.

10. 3 first-year coaches have brought their teams to the playoffs after missing the year before: the Jaguars' Liam Coen, the Patriots' Mike Vrabel, and the Bears' Ben Johnson.

Here are my predictions for the games:

Rams over Panthers

Packers over Bears

Bills over Jaguars

49ers over Eagles

Patriots over Chargers

Texans over Steelers

But what do you think? Who's winning these games? Did your favorite team make it to the playoffs? Which teams are going to the Super Bowl? Let me know your predictions!