NFL Playoffs Bracket 2021: Wild Card Round matchups, schedule set

The 2021 NFL Playoffs bracket is officially set for Wild Card Weekend.

Some doubted that a full season would be played but, 17 weeks later, the 2021 NFL Playoffs are here with 14 teams still having the chance to compete for a Super Bowl. Now it’s onto Wild Card Weekend, which will be even more hectic than normal with the addition of an extra Wild Card team in each conference. That will make for three games on both Saturday and Sunday and just one team in both the AFC and NFC getting a first-round bye.

The Kansas City Chiefs and Green Bay Packers will have the Wild Card Round off as they earned the respective No. 1 seeds. Meanwhile, it was the Indianapolis Colts, thanks to a win over the Jaguars and a Dolphins loss, that earned the final Wild Card spot in the AFC. Despite a loss, the Chicago Bears backed into the NFL Playoffs as the No. 7 seed in the NFC.

Elsewhere in Week 17, we saw the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens secure their playoff berths with wins in the AFC while the Los Angeles Rams did the same in the NFC. The rest of the postseason teams were simply jockeying for positioning in the final week of the regular season.

But now it’s time for the 2021 NFL Playoffs, so let’s look at the bracket for each conference in addition to the schedule for what should be a jam-packed and entertaining Wild Card Weekend.

NFL Playoffs Bracket: AFC Wild Card Round

First-Round Bye: 1 Kansas City Chiefs
7 Indianapolis Colts at 2 Buffalo Bills — Saturday, Jan. 9, 1:05 p.m. ET | CBS
6 Cleveland Browns at 3 Pittsburgh Steelers — Sunday, Jan. 10, 8:15 p.m. ET | NBC
5 Baltimore Ravens at 4 Tennessee Titans — Sunday, Jan. 10, 1:05 p.m. ET | ESPN

No team in the NFL appears hotter than Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills, which might be bad news for the Indianapolis Colts in the first game of the 2021 NFL Playoffs. Having said that, the experience and balance of Indy’s roster could push the home team that’s looking to get over the hump in the postseason.

While some may say that the Cleveland Browns should be happy for their first playoff berth in nearly two decades, Baker Mayfield and Co. have bigger goals. They’ll face a full-strength Steelers team after beating a short-handed version in Week 17 but will look to make a statement against a stumbling division rival.

Finally, there should be some fireworks as the Ravens and Titans meet for the second straight year in the postseason. Tennessee upset Baltimore a year ago and Derrick Henry is looming large heading into the playoffs once again. Will history repeat itself or has Baltimore found another gear for the postseason? Time will tell.

NFL Playoffs Bracket: NFC Wild Card Round

First-Round Bye: 1 Green Bay Packers
7 Chicago Bears at 2 New Orleans Saints — Sunday, Jan. 10, 4:40 p.m. ET | CBS
6 Los Angeles Rams at 3 Seattle Seahawks — Saturday, Jan. 9, 4:40 p.m. ET | FOX
5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 4 Washington Football Team — Saturday, Jan. 9, 8:15 p.m. ET | NBC

Mitchell Trubisky won three straight games prior to Week 17 but he and the Bears were blasted by the Packers in the regular-season finale. As they backed into the 2021 NFL Playoffs, it’s hard to think that they’re going to be much of a challenge for the Saints in New Orleans on Sunday.

The status of Jared Goff looms large for the Rams and their chances of going on the road and beating the Seahawks. At the same time, Seattle has undoubtedly been inconsistent and, facing a hungry LA defense, this is a divisional matchup that should be highly fascinating.

As for the nightcap on Saturday, you would expect Tom Brady and the Buccaneers to roll the 7-9 Football Team. But Washington, though they were seemingly gifted a win by the Eagles to clinch the NFC East, has been feisty this season. Playing at home, don’t be surprised if they test Tampa Bay in the Wild Card Round.