The 14-team playoff field is set, and a jam-packed NFL Wildcard Weekend is nearly upon us, with six games over three days to decide which teams will advance to the Divisional Round, with the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks enjoying a week of rest as the #1 seeds.

On Saturday, the action kicks off with a mismatch on paper: Bryce Young and the 8-9 Carolina Panthers hosting Matthew Stafford and the 12-5 Los Angeles Rams. Despite finishing with a losing record, the Panthers did beat the Rams earlier in the season, so hey, you never know.

On Saturday night, a classic NFC North rivalry takes the stage, as Caleb Williams and the division-winning Chicago Bears take on Jordan Love and the 9-8-1 Green Bay Packers.

To kick off a Sunday triple-header, Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills will go toe-to-toe with Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Sakmann Sports Game of the Week.

Then, the two teams that have combined to represent the NFC in the last three Super Bowls – the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles – will face off, with one team facing an early exit despite high expectations for the postseason.

In the Sunday Night Football, its the #2 seed vs. the #7 seed as Drake Maye and the New England Patriots host Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers. But as a playoff newbie, can Maye hold his own against Herbert and a seasoned Chargers team?

Finally, on Monday Night Football, the 12-5 Houston Texans, winners of nine straight games, will face the 10-7 Pittsburgh Steelers, who reached the postseason by the skin of their teeth following a last-second missed field goal attempt by the Ravens in Week 18.

Could the eventual Super Bowl 60 winner be playing on Wildcard Weekend? Which teams will advance to the next round and keep their dreams alive? Read on for my 2025-26 NFL Wildcard Weekend Picks, and if you’d like to debate or discuss any picks, join the conversation with @SakSports on Twitter/X, on Facebook, or by commenting directly on this post!

Picks Record

Week 18 Picks: 9-7

Week 1: 10-6

Week 2: 13-3

Week 3: 11-5

Week 4: 10-5-1

Week 5: 5-9

Week 6: 9-6

Week 7: 11-5

Week 8: 10-3

Week 9: 8-6

Week 10: 11-3

Week 11: 11-4

Week 12: 8-6

Week 13: 11-5

Week 14: 7-7

Week 15: 10-6

Week 16: 8-8

Week 17: 10-6

Week 18: 9-7

Overall Record: 171-100-1 (63%)

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Saturday Games

#5 Los Angeles Rams (12-5) at #4 Carolina Panthers (8-9)

(NFL.com)

Time: 4:30 PM ET on FOX

Spread: Rams by 10.5 points

The Carolina Panthers did beat the Los Angeles Rams earlier in the season, and will have homefield advantage in this game despite an 8-9 record. But Bryce Young and the Panthers couldn’t get it done against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week with a 16-14 loss that could have eliminated Carolina from winning the NFC South (they were of course, saved by Atlanta’s win over New Orleans.) Facing Matthew Stafford and the playoff-tested Rams, the Panthers may be in over their heads.

Rams win 27-17

#7 Green Bay Packers (9-7-1) at #2 Chicago Bears (11-6)

(670 The Score)

Time: 8:00 PM ET on Prime Video

Spread: Packers by 1.5 points

I have been reluctant to trust Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears all season long, after years of “winning the offseason” and then failing to show up in the regular season. But time and time again, Chicago has proven me wrong.

The Green Bay Packers ended the season on a four-game losing streak, and haven’t looked impressive in quite some time now. The Packers and Bears split their season series, with each team winning their home game. Jordan Love will be ready to go for the Packers, and I honestly think his playoff experience outweighs any rust. But this is the Bears’ game to lose, with a strong homefield advantage (6-2 at Solider Field this season) and the best team they’ve had in years. While Chicago may have lost that epic 42-38 shootout with the 49ers in Week 17, it may have been the iron sharpening iron moment they needed to keep the offense flowing in January.

Bears win 27-20

SEE ALSO: Post-Week 18 Power Rankings

Sunday Games

Sakmann Sports Game of the Week: #6 Buffalo Bills (12-5) at #3 Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4)

(WKBW Buffalo)

Time: 1:00PM ET on CBS

Spread: Bills by 1.5 points

This game couldn’t be tougher to pick. It shouldn’t be: this is quite possibly the worst team Josh Allen has ever led to the playoffs for the Buffalo Bills. But it’s Josh freaking Allen we’re talking about here. With Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs out of the picture, this may be Allen’s best chance yet to reach the Super Bowl (ironic given the roster shortcomings we just mentioned.)

The Jacksonville Jaguars, on the other hand, are red-hot and look like an AFC powerhouse in the making. Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars are 7-2 at home this season, and ended the season on an eight-game winning streak.

The oddsmakers are honestly doing the Jaguars dirty by making them home underdogs, given these circumstances. But I can’t help but agree that somehow, someway, the Bills will win their first road playoff game in three decades.

Bills win 26-23

#6 San Francisco 49ers (12-5) at #3 Philadelphia Eagles (11-6)

(NFL.com)

Time: 4:30 PM ET on FOX

Spread: Eagles by 5.5 points

On paper, I think the San Francisco 49ers are the better football team. In addition to finishing a win up on the Philadelphia Eagles, the 49ers also play in a much more competitive division, the NFC West.

But Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, Nick Sirianni, and the defending Super Bowl 59 champion Eagles know how to win close football games at an elite level. The Eagles don’t have to be the flashiest or most overwhelming team in the league to make another deep playoff game: they just have to keep the game close and take care of the football.

At risk of sounding wishy-washy, I think Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, and the 49ers have a great chance to win this game and make a deep playoff run themselves: heck, one of these two teams has represented the NFC in the Super Bowl for each of the last three seasons. In fact, whoever wins this game will probably be a co-favorite with the top-seeded Seattle Seahawks to win the NFC this year.

My gut is going with the Eagles, winning late in a chess match of a football game.

Eagles win 26-24

#7 Los Angeles Chargers (11-6) at #2 New England Patriots (14-3)

(NBC6 South Florida)

Time: 8:00 PM ET on NBC/Peacock

Spread: Patriots by 3.5 points

This may be the toughest matchup the New England Patriots have faced all year. “The Schedule” is real: besides two mandatory matchups against the Buffalo Bills (which New England went 1-1 in), the Patriots only faced two other playoff teams all season long – a 21-14 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, and a 42-13 win over the Carolina Panthers, who of course finished with a losing record.

Don’t get me wrong, Drake Maye and the Patriots have taken a huge step forward, but this will also be a huge test.

The Los Angeles Chargers, however, don’t really excite or move me. Justin Herbert and the Chargers finished just about where they always do: second in the AFC West, in the playoffs via the wildcard route. Los Angeles is a perennial double-digit-win team, but often fails to make noise come playoff time. In a big matchup Week 11 matchup with the Jaguars, the Chargers fell flat, 35-6. The Chargers also infamously blew a 27-point playoff lead in 2023, also to the Jaguars.

All things said, I think the Patriots will show they can beat a good team, and the Chargers will (hopefully) put up an entertaining fight on Sunday Night Football in New England.

Patriots win 27-20

SEE ALSO: Preseason Predictions for Playoffs and Super Bowl 60

Monday Night Football

#5 Houston Texans (12-5) at #4 Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)

(Spectrum News)

Time: 8:15 PM ET on ESPN/ABC

Spread: Texans by 3 points

You can’t find a hotter team in the league than C.J. Stroud and the 12-5 Houston Texans, who ended the season with nine straight victories. Even the Texans losses don’t seem so bad in retrospect: a 5-point loss to the playoff-bound Rams, a 1-point loss to the pre-injury Buccaneers, a 7-point loss to an elite Jaguars team, an 8-point loss to the #1 seeded Seahawks, and a 3-point loss to the #1 seeded Broncos.

For the Pittsburgh Steelers, I’ll say this: for all the memes of the Steelers finishing 9-8 or 10-7 every season, Mike Tomlin and Aaron Rodgers definitely exceeded expectations this season. Pittsburgh shouldn’t be a pushover in this game, the Texans are just too strong of a force right now, and clearly the better team with the better record despite the lower seed. Houston’s elite defense will secure the road win here, even if Pittsburgh keeps the score low as well.

Texans win 20-16

SEE ALSO: Playoff Bracket and Super Bowl 60 Prediction

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Header Photo Credit: NFL.com

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