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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) runs with the ball during the first half of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo\/Gene J. Puskar)<\/p>\n
Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers sent Lamar Jackson and the Ravens home for the playoffs. The Panthers are NFC South champions for the first time in 10 years. The Broncos are the AFC\u2019s No. 1 seed.<\/p>\n
Rodgers threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Austin III with 55 seconds left and Pittsburgh secured the AFC North title with a 26-24 victory when Baltimore\u2019s Tyler Loop missed a 44-yard field goal wide right as time expired on Sunday night in the final game of the NFL\u2019s regular season.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s pretty emotional,\u201d said Rodgers, who is heading to the playoffs for the first time since the 2021 season. \u201cI\u2019m thankful for these guys. \u2026 It\u2019s been an absolute blessing to be here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Carolina clinched its division title when the Falcons beat the Saints 19-17 on Sunday to eliminate the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.<\/p>\n
Denver 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\u2019s No. 1 seed on Saturday night, defeating San Francisco 13-3.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Wild-card weekend will feature these matchups (all times EST):<\/p>\n
\u2014 Los Angeles Rams (12-5) at Carolina Panthers (8-9), Saturday, 4:30 p.m.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Green Bay Packers (9-6-1) at Chicago Bears (11-6), Saturday, 8 p.m.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Buffalo Bills (12-5) at Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4), Sunday, 1 p.m.<\/p>\n
\u2014 San Francisco 49ers (12-5) at Philadelphia Eagles (11-6), Sunday, 4:30 p.m.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Los Angeles Chargers (11-6) at New England Patriots (14-3), Sunday, 8 p.m.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Houston Texans (12-5) at Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7), Monday, 8 p.m.<\/p>\n
Led by second-year coach Dave Canales and third-year quarterback Bryce Young, the Panthers are making their first playoff appearance under owner David Tepper and first since 2017, when they lost a wild-card game two years after they went 15-1 and lost the Super Bowl.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m so grateful to have one more opportunity to get back to work where we can get on the grass, go through the preparation and have our meetings,\u201d Canales said Sunday. \u201cOnce we are in cleats and on that grass it\u2019s like the next thing becomes clear, the focus of what we are doing. \u2026 It\u2019s like here we go, we get one opportunity and let\u2019s make this statement true: 1-0 with a chance to win a championship. How long can we keep that statement true?\u201d<\/p>\n
The Buccaneers (8-9) beat Carolina on Saturday to stay alive for an extra day but lost a three-team tiebreaker with the Falcons also finishing 8-9. Tampa Bay started 6-2 before losing seven of nine, failing to win its fifth straight division title.<\/p>\n
While Sam Darnold and the Seahawks (14-3) earned a first-round bye, Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey and the injury-depleted 49ers missed an opportunity to play at home the rest of the way. Levi\u2019s Stadium, which is San Francisco\u2019s home field, hosts the Super Bowl on Feb. 8.<\/p>\n
AFC East<\/p>\n
New England won its first division title since Tom Brady led the franchise to 11 straight from 2009-19.<\/p>\n
Buffalo\u2019s run of five consecutive division crowns ended, and the Bills will go on the road in the playoffs.<\/p>\n
AFC North<\/p>\n
The Steelers won their first division title since 2020.<\/p>\n
AFC South<\/p>\n
Jacksonville won the division for the first time since 2022, when first-year coach Doug Pederson guided them to a 9-8 record and a wild-card playoff victory over the Chargers, overcoming a 27-0 deficit.<\/p>\n
The Texans secured the No. 5 seed with a 38-30 victory over Indianapolis. Houston is in the playoffs for the third straight season under coach DeMeco Ryans and QB C.J. Stroud.<\/p>\n
AFC West<\/p>\n
The Broncos ended Kansas City\u2019s nine-year run. Denver hasn\u2019t been the No. 1 seed since Peyton Manning and a stifling defense beat Carolina in the Super Bowl 10 years ago.<\/p>\n
The Chargers are in the playoffs for the second straight season under Jim Harbaugh.<\/p>\n
NFC East<\/p>\n
The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles became the first team to win this division in consecutive seasons in two decades. They missed a chance to be the No. 2 seed when they rested starters and lost 24-17 to Washington.<\/p>\n
NFC North<\/p>\n
The Bears clinched their first division championship since 2018. They lost 19-16 to Detroit but secured the No. 2 seed because the Eagles lost.<\/p>\n
The Packers were locked into the No. 7 seed after Week 17.<\/p>\n
NFC South<\/p>\n
The Panthers backed into a division title but are ahead of schedule in their rebuilding process.<\/p>\n
NFC West<\/p>\n
The Seahawks earned the No. 1 seed for the fourth time in team history. They reached the Super Bowl the first three, winning once.<\/p>\n
The Rams beat the Arizona Cardinals 37-20 to secure the No. 5 seed and a rematch at Carolina. The Panthers beat them 31-28 on Nov. 30.<\/p>\n
After falling to secure a bye, the 49ers dropped to the No. 6 seed and will face Philadelphia in a rematch of the NFC championship game following the 2022 season.<\/p>\n
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