NFL Wild Card weekend schedule: Complete bracket, dates and more

The most wonderful time of the year is here for NFL fans. The road to Super Bowl LIX is set to begin with Wild Card Weekend, which spreads six playoff games across three days while the top seeds in each conference, the Detroit Lions and Kansas City Chiefs, await their respective opponents.

Who is playing when and how can you watch all of the action? Read on to find out with a look at the full schedule for Wild Card Weekend.

NFL Wild Card Weekend Playoff Schedule

• Los Angeles Chargers (11-6) at Houston Texans (10-7)
• Date: Jan. 11
• Time: 4:30 p.m. ET
• How To Watch: CBS/Paramount+
• Announcers: Ian Eagle and Charles Davis
• Venue: NRG Stadium, Houston, TX

As is what feels like tradition, Wild Card weekend begins in Houston as the Texans host the Chargers in the AFC's 4-5 matchup. These teams did not meet during the regular season, so this will be a fresh look for both sides in this contest.

CBS has two Wild Card games this year so their B-crew of Ian Eagle and Charles Davis will call the action. The network has also chosen this game to be their Nickelodeon simulcast after rave reviews for the kid-friendly Super Bowl LVIII broadcast last February.

• Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7) at Baltimore Ravens (12-5)
• Date: Jan. 11
• Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
• How To Watch: Amazon Prime
• Announcers: Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit
• Venue: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD

The second game of the day on Saturday is Amazon Prime's first-ever playoff game and they got a good one with the third meeting of the 2024 season in the bitter Steelers-Ravens rivalry. This game features the largest spread of the weekend with Baltimore favored by 10 points at post time, which is likely a reflection of how one-sided the previous meeting in Week 16 was.

It is important to remember, however, that Pittsburgh also beat Baltimore 18-16 earlier in the year and has fared well against Lamar Jackson in his career. History would tell us that this game has a good shot to be far closer than the experts think right now.

• Denver Broncos (10-7) at Buffalo Bills (13-4)
• Date: Jan. 12
• Time: 1:00 p.m. ET
• How To Watch: CBS/Paramount+
• Announcers: Jim Nantz and Tony Romo
• Venue: Highmark Stadium, Orchard Park, NY

CBS' second game of Wild Card Weekend plays out in the last 1:00 window of the 2024 season as the Broncos play their first postseason game since Super Bowl 50 as they take on MVP front-runner Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills. These teams did not meet this season but played a memorable Monday night game during the 2023 campaign where Denver pulled off an upset in Orchard Park.

The stakes will be much higher in this meeting, particularly for a Bills team that has had a lot of cracks at the apple and failed to reach a Super Bowl in the Allen era. Losing at home to a Broncos team that beat only one playoff team that actually played its starters (at Tampa Bay back in Week 3) would raise alarm bells in Buffalo.

• Green Bay Packers (11-6) at Philadelphia Eagles (14-3)
• Date: Jan. 12
• Time: 4:30 p.m. ET
• How To Watch: FOX
• Announcers: Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady
• Venue: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, PA

The NFC Wild Card round features three rematches, beginning in Philadelphia as the Eagles host the Packers. These teams met way back in Week 1, with Philadelphia hanging on for a 34-29 win in the first-ever NFL game in Brazil, so this is the first time these teams will meet in the United States this year.

There is a big question mark hovering over this game with Eagles' quarterback Jalen Hurts in the concussion protocol entering the week. If Hurts cannot clear the protocol, either Kenny Pickett or Tanner McKee would be in line to start a postseason game for the No. 2 seed in the NFC.

• Washington Commanders (12-5) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7)
• Date: Jan. 12
• Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
• How To Watch: NBC/Peacock
• Announcers: Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth
• Venue: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL

NBC maintains its Sunday night slot for Wild Card weekend and gets to broadcast Jayden Daniels' postseason debut as the Washington Commanders head south to take on the NFC South champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. These two teams also met in Week 1, with Tampa Bay winning 37-20 in Daniels' first NFL game, but a lot has changed for both sides since then.

This contest will be one that could be determined by postseason experience as Tampa Bay still has a lot of core pieces from their Super Bowl LV championship roster. The Commanders haven't made the playoffs since 2020, when they were known as the Washington Football Team, and their roster has experienced significant turnover since that point.

• Minnesota Vikings (14-3) at Los Angeles Rams (10-7)
• Date: Jan. 13
• Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
• How To Watch: ESPN/ABC/ESPN+
• Announcers: Joe Buck and Troy Aikman
• Venue: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA

Wild Card weekend wraps up on Monday night as the NFC's 4-5 matchup sees the Vikings head to Los Angeles after the disappointing Game 272 loss in Detroit to take on the Rams, who had a chance to secure the No. 3 seed with a win but rested key players in a Week 18 loss in Seattle. Minnesota is hoping history doesn't repeat itself here since they followed their first loss to Detroit with a defeat in Los Angeles in Week 8 that was notable for a missed facemask call in the final minute that benefited the home team.

That matchup was on a Thursday night, however, so the Vikings will at least be more rested for this game. Fans of the Manningcast will also have an opportunity to watch Peyton and Eli break down this matchup on ESPN2.