Updated NFL Playoff bracket after Eagles, Bills punch tickets to Championship Weekend

The 2024 season has ended in heartbreak or disappointment for 28 NFL teams. Only four teams remain standing after a wild slate of divisional-round matchups, and they’ll battle in the conference championships for an opportunity to advance to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans.

The divisional round only produced one upset, but all four matchups provided plenty of drama. The top seeds from each conference battled on Saturday, and only one team survived beyond their opening game. While Saturday’s games were played in ideal playoff weather, snowy conditions led to sloppy affairs and bitter defeats on Sunday. 

The Los Angeles Rams battered Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, but their defensive front had no answers for Eagles running back Saquon Barkley. The Southern California team struggled to hold onto the ball as snowfall began to accumulate at Lincoln Financial Field, and the game slipped away. Barkley gashed the Rams for 205 rushing yards and carried his team to the NFC Championship Game.

While the Eagles soared, the Baltimore Ravens had their wings get clipped by the Buffalo Bills. Baltimore entered the game as slight favorites, but the Bills were in their element as lake effect snow fluttered over the field at Highmark Stadium. Two costly turnovers early in the game sunk the Ravens into an early hole, and a fumble by tight end Mark Andrews resulted in the team’s third turnover. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson and Andrews did their best to make up for their mistakes, but Andrews sealed the team’s fate with a dropped pass on a failed two-point conversion attempt. 

Updated NFL playoff bracket after Eagles, Bills advance to championships

Here’s a look at the results heading into the conference championships.

Wild Card Round:

• Houston Texans 32, Los Angeles Chargers 12
• Baltimore Ravens 28, Pittsburgh Steelers 14
• Buffalo Bills 31, Denver Broncos 7
• Philadelphia Eagles 22, Green Bay Packers 10
• Washington Commanders 23, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20
• Los Angeles Rams 27, Minnesota Vikings 9

Divisional Round:

• Kansas City Chiefs 23, Houston Texans 14
• Washington Commanders 45, Detroit Lions 31
• Philadelphia Eagles 28, Los Angeles Rams 22
• Buffalo Bills 27, Baltimore Ravens 25

Here’s the remaining playoff schedule for the upcoming conference championships and Super Bowl LIX.

The NFL playoffs featured plenty of teams that outperformed their talent, and they were proven not to be legitimate contenders in convincing fashion. Five of six games in the wild-card round resulted in a double-digit margin of victory.

Competition became noticeably stiffer in the divisional round. Only one of the four divisional-round games ended with a double-digit margin of victory, and that contest was likely the most exciting game of the weekend.

The Washington Commanders upset the Detroit Lions, whose immense potential was unfortunately wiped away by a slew of injuries. Detroit’s lack of depth was too much to overcome, which will allow the Eagles to host their sixth-seeded division rivals in the NFC Championship Game.

The Buffalo Bills will once again travel to face the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game. Buffalo was the only team to defeat the Chiefs in the regular season, excluding the Week 18 loss in which Kansas City rested their starters. Still, the Bills have seen more talented rosters struggle to get past the Chiefs in the postseason.