CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WTVD) — The Carolina Panthers are playoff-bound for the first time in seven years and will host an NFC wild-card game against the Los Angeles Rams.

Dee Alford’s red-zone interception stopped a potential go-ahead drive by New Orleans, and the Atlanta Falcons beat the Saints 19-17 on Sunday to give the NFC South title to the Panthers.

By closing the season with four consecutive wins, the Falcons (8-9) finished in a three-way tie with Carolina and Tampa Bay for first place in the NFC South. The Panthers won the tiebreaker with the best record within the division.

Watching on TV, second-year Panthers coach Dave Canales was locked in.

“We were just excited, following it every single play. (We) couldn’t take our eyes off the game.” Canales said. “Just the turn of events, I wouldn’t expect anything less from this matchup. Playing the Saints and knowing the type of football they’ve been playing down the stretch, and the Falcons are really putting things together.”

Tampa Bay stayed alive with a 16-14 home win over Carolina on Saturday. The Buccaneers needed a win or a tie by the Saints on Sunday to win the division. The Panthers made the playoffs for the first time since 2017 and won the division for the first time in a decade.

Canales said his brother called him after Alford’s interception.

“He’s ready to celebrate, and I’m like, ‘Call me back. This ain’t over!’ Because if I’m (the Saints), I’m thinking I’ve got a shot here. Let’s go down and get the first points, get the onside kick, and see what we can do,” Canales said. “So I got kind of (ticked) at him. But it was amazing. We all yelled like crazy. Just really fortunate and proud.”

Minutes later, it wasn’t his brother who called. It was owner David Tepper, who hasn’t seen a Panthers playoff game since buying the team in 2018.

“When I answered the phone, I said, ‘Is this the owner of the NFC South champion Panthers?’ He got a good kick out of that. But you know, it’s about all of us competing, treating every day like it’s fourth-and-1,” Canales said.

The Panthers became the first team since at least 1990 to clinch a playoff spot in the final week of the season despite losing their final game and finishing with a losing record

Later Sunday, the Panthers learned they will host the Rams after Los Angeles defeated the Arizona Cardinals 37-20 on Sunday.

“I’m just so excited to be in Bank of America Stadium one more time,” Canales said. “The energy that’s been there at the end of our season as we continue to build momentum, and the fans showing up early, being loud, causing problems for the opponents’ offense. I know what type of advantage that can be for us, so I’m so excited to be here.”

The Panthers beat the Rams 31-28 on Nov. 30.

REST OF THE PLAYOFF PICTURE

The Broncos (14-3) secured a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs with a 19-3 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. Seattle earned the NFC’s No. 1 seed on Saturday night, defeating San Francisco 13-3.

The Jaguars won the AFC South with a 41-7 rout of Tennessee. Rookie coach Liam Coen and Trevor Lawrence led the Jaguars to a major turnaround after going 4-13 in 2024.

The AFC North is still up for grabs with a winner-take-all game Sunday night between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Wild-card weekend will feature these matchups:

In the AFC, it’ll be the Chargers (11-6) at the New England Patriots (14-3); the Buffalo Bills (12-5) at the Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4); and the Houston Texans (12-5) at the AFC North winner.

In the NFC, it’ll be the Green Bay Packers (9-6-1) at the Chicago Bears (11-6); the San Francisco 49ers (12-5) at the Philadelphia Eagles (11-6); and the Los Angeles Rams (12-5) at the Panthers.

ESPN and The Associated Press contributed.

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