Month: January 2026

The two top seeds, Seattle and Denver, both won their first playoff games and will be home for the conference title games Sunday .

But Denver suffered a major setback when quarterback Bo Nix suffered a broken leg at the end of the victory over Buffalo. Now Jarrett Stidham will make his first start this year after not throwing a pass all year. The loss of Nix changed the odds from the Broncos being a slight favorite to a four- or five-point underdog against the Patriots. In the AFC title game. But the Broncos remain confidence they can still win with Stidham at quarterback. Meanwhile, Drake Maye has to play better than he did last week against Houston when the poor play of quarterback C.J. Stroud helped hand the victory to the Patriots.  

In the NFC title game, Seattle will host the Los Angeles Rams and is favored by a field goal after routing the 49ers last week. This will be the third meeting of the season between the two teams and it should be virtually a tossup. They split the first two games but the Rams had a 30-14 lead in the second game before the Seahawks rallied to win in overtime with a two point conversion. This should be a good duel between quarterbacks Matthew Stafford and Sam Darnold and is likely to be decided in the fourth quarter if not overtime. The winner of this game will be favored to win the Super Bowl.

A Seattle-New England Super Bowl would be interesting because it would bring back memories of how the Seahawks were a yard away from winning the Super Bowl in 2015 before Malcolm Butler intercepted the Russell Wilson pass that gave the Patriots and Tom Brady the victory.

The two top seeds, Denver and Seattle, both posted victories in their first playoff games to advance to the conference title games Sunday.

But Denver’s  overtime 33-30 victory over the Bills was a costly one for the Broncos because quarterback Bo Nix suffered a broken leg late in the game and will miss the rest of the playoffs. They will now try to beat the New England Patriots in the AFC title game with Jarrett Stidham, a former Patriot who hasn’t thrown a pass in the regular season, at quarterback.

The loss was devastating for Buffalo as Josh Allen had one of his worst games, throwing two picks and fumbling twice. And in the aftermath, coach Sean McDermott was fired after nine years. There was a lot of controversy over the officiating, particular a Denver interception when the defender ripped it out of the receiver’s hands when the Bills thought it was a catch and down by contact. That set up the game winning field goal along with the help of a controversial pass interference call. But the Bills got a break when a lineman wasn’t called for an apparent hold in the end zone that would have given the Broncos the victory and kept them from getting Nix hurt. 

The Patriots beat the Texans, 28-16, in a mistake-filled game as Drake Maye fumbled four times and lost two while C.J. Stroud threw four picks. It put the Patriots back in the conference title game for the first time since Tom Brady left. With Nix out, they have a good shot at the Super Bowl but have to play better than they did against the Texans.

In the NFC, the Seahawks routed the 49ers, 41-6, who beat the Eagles in Philadelphia a week ago to end their bid for a repeat but were no match for the Seahawks. All the injuries finally caught up with the 49ers.

By contrast, the Rams beat the Bears in Chicago in an overtime. Caleb Williams made one of the best plays of the year on fourth down at the Rams 14. He retreated to the 40 with three Rams chasing him and heaved a pass in the end zone for a touchdown. Coach Ben Johnson decided not to go for two to try to win and sent the game into overtime. Williams then threw a pick in overtime to send up the Rams’ game winning drive although D.J Moore ran a poor route on the play. Now the Rams will try to win their third straight road playoff game in Seattle to make the Super Bowl. They are the only wild card team left in the playoffs.

I’ve often said the dirty little secret of the NFL is that the main goal isn’t winning the Super Bowl. The goal is staying competitive and avoiding those 5-12 seasons that erode the fan base and make it harder to sell tickets.

But things are changing now. Just winning isn’t enough. Owners and fans want Super Bowl titles.

Buffalo coach Sean McDermott found that out when he was fired Monday after the Bills lost in overtime at Denver despite winning 10 or more games for the past seven years. 

That follows the firing of Baltimore coach John Harbaugh, who coached the Ravens for 18 years and won a Super Bowl. He  was fired just two years after he had the Ravens in the AFC title game. The Ravens didn’t make  the playoffs this year because of a missed field goal against Pittsburgh on the final play of the regular season.

It didn’t take him long to find a new job. He was hired by the New York Giants and will report to the owner instead of the general manager.

And Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin decided to step down after 19 years as the head coach. He won a Super Bowl but hadn’t won a playoff game since 2016 and the fans have been calling for a new coach for the last two or three years even though owner Art Rooney II was going to stick with him if he hadn’t stepped down. Unlike Harbaugh, Tomlin is still under contract and will sit out a year.

In Buffalo, general manager Brandon Beene was promoted to the role of director of football operations and is under pressure to find the right coach and to get a better supporting cast around Josh Allen.

So far, four of the 10 teams who will have new coaches besides the Giants have hired a new coach. The Falcons hired former quarterback Matt Ryan to run the football operations, and he hired Kevin Stefanski, who was fired by Cleveland; the Titans hired Robert Salah, formerly of the Jets; the Dolphins hired Jeff  Hafley; and the Steelers hired Mike McCarthy to replace Tomlin.

When it is all said and done, 10 of the 32 teams will have new coaches. It remains to be seen if the new way of doing things is Super Bowl or bust for coaches.

The two top seeds, Denver and Seattle, come off the bye well rested and both play on Saturday against teams (Buffalo and the 49ers) who both played last Sunday and must travel on a short week.

Former coach Tony Dungy, now an NBC broadcaster, said this week that this is unfair and the league is putting TV ratings ahead of what is fair for the teams. But putting TV ratings first is business as usual for the league. Houston has to play on a short week Sunday because it played Monday night.

Dungy suggested eliminating the Monday night game on the wild card weekend, but the league wants the extra prime time game so teams who travel on a short week have to deal with it.

Here is a look at the four games:

—Buffalo at Denver Bills at 4:30 p.m. Saturday: Denver is a top seed and Buffalo is a wild card team but the game is pick em. That is because the Bills have superman Josh Allen at quarterback and the Broncos have second year quarterback  Bo Nix. Allen played with foot, hand and knee injuries and still led the Bills to a fourth quarter comeback against the Jaguars last week. The odds are that Allen will outduel Nix.

—San Francisco at Seattle 8 p.m. Saturday: The key to this game is how the 49ers cope with their injuries. They will have Trent Williams back, who didn’t play in their loss to Seattle two weeks ago in the season finale. But they lost George Kittle last week and Nick Bosa is out for the year and Fred Warner is out at least another week. Still, they beat the Eagles in Philadelphia last week so they could pull off another upset, especially if Sam Darnold makes some mistakes.

—Houston at New England 4:30 p.m. Sunday: The Texans have the better defense, but the Patriots have the better quarterback in Drake Maye so this should be an interesting matchup. The Texans managed to beat the Steelers even though C.J. Stroud fumbled five times while the Texans got two defensive touchdowns. If Stroud plays better and the Texans dominant defense keeps Maye in check, the Texans could pull off an upset.

—Los Angeles Rams at Chicago 8 p.m. Sunday: The Rams were dominating the Panthers last week until Matthew Stafford suffered a finger injury and struggled and gave the Panthers a chance to get back in the game. But Stafford still managed to pull out the game in the fourth quarter. As long as he doesn’t have any lingering effect from the injury, the Rams figure to beat the Bears. The Bears pulled off a victory over Green Bay despite falling behind 21-3, but if they fall behind the Rams, they are not likely to pull off another comeback.

There had never been more than six or more fourth quarter lead changes in a single playoff round. It was also the first time since they started playing wild card games that four games were decided by four or fewer points in a single postseason round.

The Rams beat the Panthers by three, the Bears beat the Packers by four, The Bills beat the Jaguars by three and the 49ers beat the Eagles by four.

In the first three games, the team that had the lead with two minutes left lost.

The Eagles almost made it four when they had the ball on first down on the 49ers 20 at the end but couldn’t score.

The Bears had the best comeback in team history and became one of 12 playoff winners to come back from 18 or more points to beat the Packers, 31-27.

Josh Allen was superman again as he brought the Bills from behind in the fourth quarter twice to beat the Jaguars despite playing with foot, hand and knee injuries. He set up the winning touchdown by driving the pile almost 10 yards to the Jaguars 1. He has now gotten at least one win in six different playoff years (only Tom Brady with eight and Patrick Mahomes with seven have had more)

The only two one-sided games were the Patriots beating the Chargers 16-3 and the Texans beating the Steelers 30-6, although it was a 7-6 game for about three quarters before the Texans scored two defensive touchdowns

. On what may have been his last NFL throw, Aaron Rodgers threw a pick six. It also turned out to be the last Steeler game for Mike Tomlin, who resigned as the head coach after 19 years.

The Chargers were the seventh seed and the Packers, the NFC’s seventh seed, also lost so the seventh seeds are 1-11 since they added a seventh seed six years ago. 

Just 10 days ago, Mike Tomlin and John Harbaugh, the veteran Pittsburgh and Baltimore coaches, were going against each other for the NFC North title and the fourth seed in the AFC.

The two coaches had a lot in common. Tomlin was in his 19th year and Harbaugh his 18th and both had won Super Bowls, but Tomlin hadn’t won a playoff game since 2016, while Harbaugh had taken the Ravens to the AFC title game just two years ago.   

The Steelers won when Baltimore missed a last-second field goal and advanced to the playoffs, but lost to the Houston Texans 30-6 on Monday night.

And now both teams will have new coaches next year. Harbaugh was fired in a surprise move after the loss to Pittsburgh, while Tomlin resigned Tuesday. The Steelers had no plans to fire Tomlin, but the fan base had become frustrated with his lack of success in the playoffs in recent years even though he never had a losing season.

With nine jobs open, Harbaugh is the hottest candidate on the market and appears headed to the Giants, while Tomlin — who is under contract with the Steelers in 2026 — might take a year off to try broadcasting before returning to the sidelines in 2027.

Both Tomlin and Steeler owner Art Rooney II, who was apparently surprised by Tomlin’s decision, issued statements. Tomlin said he decided he decided to step down “after much thought and reflection.” Rooney said, “It is hard to put into words the level of respect and appreciation I have for Coach Tomlin.”  

Tomlin was only the third Steelers head coach the team has hired since 1969. That was the year Chuck Noll was hired. He won four Super Bowl in the 1970s and was followed by Cowher and Tomlin, who both won one Super Bowl and lost one. Like Cowher, Cowher also resigned and never returned to the sidelines and still appears on the CBS pregame show.

This will be the first time Art Rooney II has had to hire a head coach, so the pressure is on him to make the right choice. His late father, Dan Rooney, who hired Noll, Cowher and Tomlin, set a high bar. The new coach also has to find a quarterback for the future since Aaron Rodgers is likely to retire.

If he follows his dad’s model, Art II will hire an assistant coach in his 30s who will be on the job for more than decade.

Finding the right coach is easier said than done. But the Steelers like stability and  don’t want to become one of those teams that hires a new coach every few years. 

With the two top seeds, Seattle and Denver, getting a week off, the other 12 teams will be playing six games this weekend including three prime time games.

One of the big questions is whether the two seventh seeds, Green Bay or the Chargers,  can get a victory. Since the NFL went to seven playoff teams in each conference, the seventh seeds are 1-9.

Here is a look at the six games:

 –The weekend starts at 4:30 p.m. Saturday  with the Rams at Carolina on FOX. Look for the Rams to win this one even though the Panthers beat the Rams in the regular season. But the Panthers limped into the playoffs by losing three of their last  four games.

–The 8  p.m. game on Saturday night features the Packers at the Bears on Prime. The  two division rivals split in the regular seasons but the Bears had to overcome a 10-point deficit in final two minutes in the second game with the help of a recovered onside kick  and then won in overtime. This one figures to be close and there is a lot of pressure on Green Bay coach Matt LeFleur because he is in his seventh season and has yet to make the Super Bowl.

–The Sunday  tripleheader starts with Buffalo at Jacksonville at 1 p.m. on CBS. Jacksonville was a surprise team this year under new coach Liam Coen while Buffalo had a disappointing year and didn’t win their division title. It figures to be a close game. Jacksonville probably has the better team but the Bills have the  better quarterback with Josh Allen, although Trevor Lawrence improved in the second half of of the year. Buffalo coach Sean McDermott is in ninth season  and yet to get to the Super Bowl so he could be on the hot seat if the Bills lose.

–The 4;30 p.m game on FOX pits San Francisco at defending champion Philadelphia. The Eagles cost themselves the second second seed by resting their starters against Washington but probably have the edge in this game because of the 49ers’ injuries.

–The  8 p.m. Sunday game on NBC features the Chargers at New England. The Chargers will try to win as a seventh seed traveling across the country to cold weather site.  They have a difficult task. 

–The weekend  ends with the 8 p.m. Monday night game on ESPN/ABC with Houston at Pittsburgh. This figures  to be low-scoring defensive game decided in fourth quarter as Aaron  Rodgers tries to get one more playoff win. 

The final game of the regular season came down to the final play with a playoff berth on the line Sunday after Baltimore and Pittsburgh each traded two touchdowns in the final frantic minutes, Pittsburgh’s Chris Boswell missed an extra point with 55 seconds left so the Steelers had only a two-point lead and the Ravens had plenty of time to kick the game winning field goal. The Ravens got in position for the field goal with two  seconds left but Tyler Loop hit it wide right to send the Ravens home while the Steelers won the AFC North title and the fourth seed and will host the fifth-seed Texans in the wild card playoff round next weekend. The Texans nailed down the fifth seed by beating the Colts.

 –Seattle and Denver both won their season finales to win their division titles and get the top seed and a bye. The Seahawks used their strong defense to stop the 49ers 13-3 to get the NFC bye and the Broncos beat the Chargers 19-7 to clinch the AFC bye. The Chargers had clinched a wild card berth so they rested ailing starters like quarterback Justin Herbert.

–The Bucs beat the Pantherss 16-14, so they both finished 8-9.  But the Falcons beat the Saints, 19-17, to create a three-way tie at 8-9 and the Panthers won the tie breaker to win the division title and the fourth seed but have the daunting  task  of hosting the Rams  in the wild card round. If the Saints had won the Bucs would have won the division tittle.

–Philadelphia coach Nick Sirianni decided to rest some  of his starters and lost to the Commanders 24-17 and that cost him the second seed when the Lions beat the Bears 19-16. He said he has no regrets about being the third seed after losing the second seed but it could cost him a home game in the second round

–In the will card round besides Houston going to Pittsburgh and the Rams going to Carolina, the Packers go to the Bears, the Bills go to the Jaguars, the 49ers go to the Eagles and the Chargers go to the Patriots.

There won’t be a lot of drama for the final week  of the regular season. Having an 18 week season with each team playing 17 games hasn’t provided much dividends this year.

The final regular season game on Sunday night pits the Ravens at the Steelers for the AFC North Division title and a chance to host a first round playoff game as the fourth seed. The loser will not make the playoffs. But the winner isn’t expected to go deep in the playoffs since the Steelers are 9-7 and the Ravens are 8-8. 

–The best game of the weekend is Seattle at San Francisco for the NFC West title and the top seed. The loser will be a wild-card team. It is surprising the league decided to make this a Saturday night game instead of Sunday night since the winner will have a good shot at the Super Bowl.

–Denver can wrap up the top seed in the AFC by beating the Chargers Sunday and the Broncos are fortunate that Charger coach Jim Harbaugh decided to rest Justin Herbert. The Chargers are unlikely to beat the Broncos without Herbert.   

–In the first game Saturday at 4:30 p.m., Carolina will play at Tampa with both teams vying for the NFC South title but there is a twist. Carolina can clinch with a victory but will still win the division if it loses and Atlanta beat the Saints Sunday. So if the Bucs win, they have to wait until Sunday to find out if they are  the division winner and the fourth seed or miss the playoffs. It seems unusual the league didn’t schedule both games Sunday. But the winner is not likely to go deep in the playoffs.

–Jacksonville figures to win the AFC South title and the third seed by beating the Titans Sunday. But if they are upset, the Texans, who have clinched a wild card spot, can win the division title by beating the Colts.

In  some of the highlights of the second to last weekend of the season, the New England Patriots won their first division title since Tom Brady left, the Houston Texans clinched a playoff berth, the Pittsburgh Steelers lost a chance to clinch their division title and now face a prime time showdown next Sunday against the Ravens with the division title on the line and the two No. 1 seeds, Denver and Seattle, have to win their season finales to clinch first round byes.

The Patriots just needed to win their final two games to clinch their division title but they did it a week early when they routed the Jets as Drake Maye had the best quarterback day ever with five touchdown passes, 254 yards passing and a 90.1 percent completion rate as he threw only two incompletions. And then the Patriots clinched with the Bills lost to the Eagles, 13-12, when Josh Allen missed a wide open receiver in the end zone on a two point conversion try in an attempt to win the game instead of kicking an extra point to tie the game and go for overtime. The Bills have clinched a wild-card spot.

–Pittsburgh missed DK Metcalf, who was suspended for hitting a fan a week ago, as they lost  to the Cleveland Browns, 13-6, when the  Aaron Rodgers final pass from the seven went incomplete. And Baltimore routed Green Bay, 41-24, as Derrick Henry rushed for 216 yards and four touchdowns. So now the Steelers and Ravens will meet Sunday night for the NFC North, the fourth seed and the loser will go home.

–The top seeds, Seattle and Denver, both won as Seattle beat Carolina, 27-10, while holding the Panthers to 140 of offense and Bryce Young passed for only 54 yards and Denver beat the Chiefs, 20-13. Now both can clinch the No. 1 seed by winning their finales. Denver got a break when Chnarger coach John Harbaugh decided to rest Justin Herbert against the Bronnco.  The Seahawks have a tough game against the 49ers, who  edged the Bears, 42-38, in one of the most entertaining games of the year. The winner of the Seattle-49er game gets the top seed and the loser is a wild card team.

–Jacksonville edged the Colts 23-17 and now can clinch the division title and the third seed by beating the Titans. Houston beat the Chargers 20-16 to clinch a wild card spot and could still win the division if the Jaguars lose and the Texans beats the Colts.

–Carolina lost to the Seahawks but can still win the division title by beating the Bucs in the season finale. They can also win the division title if  they lose and the Falcons beat the Saints. So if the Bucs win they have to wait and see which teams wins the Falcons-Saints game to find out if they win the  division title.