By: Jamal Smith Sports editor
The final day of the regular season in the NFL didn’t disappoint, and now after the dust has settled, all of the playoff matches are set in stone.
There are 32 teams in the NFL, and now, after waiting 11 months for the regular season to conclude, the remaining 12 playoff teams face a do-or-die, win-or-go home scenario.
The first two games, the AFC Wild-Card games, kick off on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016.
First, the No. 5 Kansas City Chiefs (11-5) travel to Texas to play the No. 4 Houston Texans (9-7). Kickoff is at 1:45 p.m. Then at 5:15 p.m., the No. 6 Pittsburgh Steelers (10-6) travel to Ohio to play the No. 3 Cincinnati Bengals (12-4).
On the final day of the regular season, the Denver Broncos (12-4) seized the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC with a victory over the San Diego Chargers, and with a New England Patriot (12-4) loss to the Miami Dolphins which slid New England into the No. 2 seed.
Both Denver and New England earned a first week bye. Denver will host the lowest seeded victor from the Wild-Card matchups on Sunday, Jan. 17. New England will play the highest ranked victor on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016.
The NFC Wild Card games will kick off on Sunday, Jan. 10.
The red-hot No. 6 Seattle Seahawks (10-6) travel to the east coast to face the No. 3 Minnesota Vikings (11-5) at 10:05 a.m. Then at 1:40 p.m., the No. 4 Washington Redskins (9-7) host the No. 5 Green Bay Packers (10-6).
After a surprising season, the Carolina Panthers (15-1) dominated the regular season and look to continue their momentum into the playoffs. Because Carolina seized the No. 1 seed in the NFC, they got a first round bye and will host the lowest seed winner of the NFC Wild-Card games on Sunday, Jan. 17 at 10:05 p.m.
The No. 2 Arizona Cardinals (13-3) also earned a first round bye and will host the highest seeded winner from the Wild-Card games on Saturday, Jan. 16 at 5:15 p.m.
What makes this NFL Playoff so exiting is there is no clear-cut favorite. There will be drama and there will be excitement. Twelve teams remain but there will be only one winner.
