NFL Divisional Round: Schedule, how to watch, odds and more

bet365 News Team Updated: Jan 19 2024 20:15

The 14-team playoff field has been cut to eight ahead of the Divisional round, as the race to win the NFL Championship continues.

The top seeds in each conference - the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC and the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC - are back in action after their bye weeks, along with the six winning teams from the Wild Card weekend.

The four matchups are spread over two days, with two games each on Saturday and Sunday.

Here are the key details you need to know about the second week of NFL playoff action:

NFL Divisional round schedule

Home	Away	Location	Time (ET)	TV	Spread
Baltimore Ravens	Houston Texans	M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD	Saturday, 4:30 PM	ESPN, ABC	Ravens -9.5
San Francisco 49ers	Green Bay Packers	Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, CA	Saturday, 8:15 PM	FOX	49ers -9.5
Detroit Lions	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Ford Field, Detroit, MI	Sunday, 3 PM	NBC	Lions -6.5
Buffalo Bills	Kansas City Chiefs	Highmark Stadium, Orchard Park, NY	Sunday, 6:30 PM	CBS	Bills -2.5

Tough test for Texans in Baltimore

What	Houston Texans @ Baltimore Ravens
Where	M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD
When	4:30 PM ET, Saturday, January 20
How to watch	ESPN, ABC
Odds	Ravens -9.5, Texans +350 ML

Five of the six games on Super Wild Card Weekend were won by the home teams and the Baltimore Ravens are hot favorites to keep that trend going when they return to action on Saturday.

The Ravens had last week off to prepare after posting the best record in the AFC this season at 13-4 and they will be at home again in the AFC Championship game next week if they win, while the Texans would go on the road to the winners of the Chiefs vs Bills game if they can cause an upset.

The Texans reversed the form of their 36-22 home loss to the Browns in the regular season in spectacular fashion, winning their wild-game game 45-14 at NRG Stadium.

Their offense, led by impressive rookie quarterback CJ Stroud, sliced apart a Browns defense which had led the league in yards allowed in the regular season. Their defense also stepped up, scoring two pick-sixes in the second half as the Texans pulled clear.

These teams faced each other in Week One of the regular season with the Ravens winning 25-9. Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh nailed it when he said after that game: "They're going to win a lot of football games this year. That's a good, young team".

Saturday's game will allow us to see just how far the Texans have progressed in head coach DeMeco Ryans' first season as they bid to win as underdogs for the second straight week.

Packers get a shot at NFC top dogs

What	Green Bay Packers @ San Francisco 49ers
Where	Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, CA
When	8:15 PM ET, Saturday, January 20
How to watch	FOX
Odds	49ers -9.5, Packers +350 ML

The Packers caused the biggest upset of the Wild Card round as they crushed the Dallas Cowboys 48-32, having been underdogs of more than a touchdown.

The Cowboys had gone 8-0 at AT&T Stadium in the regular season, but soon went 27-0 behind and became the only home team to lose in the six Wild Card games.

Packers quarterback Jordan Love was showered in praise for his performance, after he had three passing touchdowns, while RB Aaron Jones ran for 118 yards and three touchdowns.

Matt LaFleur's team are heavy underdogs again, though, as they now face NFC top seeds the San Francisco 49ers on the road.

The 49ers finished the regular season at 12-5 and, while they lost two of their last three games, one of those was to fellow NFL Championship contenders the Ravens and the other was when they fielded their backups against the Rams in Week 18.

The teams did not face each other in the regular season, but while the 49ers lost three games at home, the Packers tended to struggle on the road, going 4-5 when playing away from Lambeau Field.

Lions fired up for another Ford Field game

What	Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Detroit Lions
Where	Ford Field, Detroit, MI
When	3 PM ET, Sunday, January 21
How to watch	NBC
Odds	Lions -6.5, Buccaneers +240 ML

The Detroit Lions won the best game of the Wild Card round, holding off the Los Angeles Rams to win 24-23 and secure their first playoff victory for 32 years.

Their reward was even greater than expected as the Cowboys' loss to the Packers means that the Lions get to host another game in the divisional round, when NFC South champions the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will go to a fired-up Ford Field.

The Bucs were the final team to clinch their spot in this round, landing the final blow in the spectacular collapse of Philadelphia's season as the Eagles lost 32-9 in their sixth defeat in seven games.

The Buccaneers joined the Texans in winning as home underdogs as QB Baker Mayfield passed for 337 yards and three long touchdowns.

The teams met at Ford Field in Week Six of the regular season, when the Lions won 20-6 with touchdowns from wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams.

Awesome showdown in prospect in Buffalo

What	Kansas City Chiefs @ Buffalo Bills
Where	Highmark Stadium, Orchard Park, NY
When	6:30 PM ET, Sunday, January 21
How to watch	CBS
Odds	Bills -2.5, Chiefs +125 ML

The showdown between the Chiefs and Bills provides a mouthwatering finale to the divisional round, as the teams renew a rivalry that has produced some epic games.

The Chiefs overcame an early deficit to beat the Bills 38-24 in the AFC Championship game in the 2020-21 season, and the following year they won a classic encounter 42-36 in overtime in the divisional round.

Both of those games were at Arrowhead Stadium, as have all 11 of their pre-NFL Championship playoff games over the last five seasons.

That means quarterback Patrick Mahomes will be playing a true road playoff game for the first time.

The Chiefs had few problems at home when beating the Dolphins 26-7 last week, while the Bills were finally able to host the Steelers a day later than scheduled due to a severe winter storm and won 31-17 on Monday night.

The Bills won the teams' regular-season meeting 20-17 on the road in Week 14 to start their current six-game winning run and they are favored by 2.5 points for this week's meeting at Highmark Stadium.

Odds displayed within this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.