Current:Home > ContactNFL schedule today: Everything to know about playoff games on Jan. 21 -Infinite Edge Learning
NFL schedule today: Everything to know about playoff games on Jan. 21
View
Date:2025-04-15 01:11:43
We’ve got two former No. 1 draft picks, and two of the best quarterbacks in the NFL taking center stage in two NFL playoff games on Sunday.
First up, Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions – fresh off their first postseason win in 31 seasons – will host another playoff game, this time against Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
And in prime time, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen could deliver another instant classic when the Kansas City Chiefs visit the Buffalo Bills.
Both games will decide who will meet the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC championship game and the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game next week.
Here’s what you need to know about the NFL playoff games on Jan. 21:
NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.
How to watch Buccaneers vs. Lions game?
The Buccaneers and Lions will kickoff at 3 p.m. inside Ford Field on NBC.
How to watch Chiefs vs. Bills game?
The Chiefs and Bills will kickoff at 6:30 p.m. inside Highmark Stadium on CBS.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Detroit Lions
Talk about an unlikely matchup, but it will be one to deliver.
The Lions feel like a team of destiny this postseason behind coach Dan Campbell, and their first playoff win in three decades last week was somewhat poetic.
Goff got some subtle revenge last week against the Rams – the team that drafted him No. 1 in 2016 and traded him. Goff also beat Rams quarterback Matt Stafford, the player he was traded for who happened to be Detroit’s former No. 1 pick in 2009.
Meanwhile, Mayfield’s journey as the 2018 No. 1 pick has landed him in Tampa Bay where he scored the Buccaneers’ first playoff win since Tom Brady retired.
While some Buccaneers players have recent playoff experience, the Lions have been one of the best teams in the NFL all season. They’ll play with a chance to reach the NFC championship game on the line.
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Buffalo Bills
Sunday’s main event is must-watch TV, just because of how these recent matchups have unfolded.
Chiefs receiver Kadarius Toney lining up offsides earlier this season. The Chiefs forcing overtime in a matter of 13 seconds in the 2021 playoffs. Their first matchup in the AFC championship game in 2020.
This will be Mahomes’ first playoff road game in the NFL, and the third matchup in the playoffs between these teams in the last four seasons.
The Bills have won the last two games in the series during the regular season, but the Chiefs have won the two playoff games.
Overall, Allen and Mahomes are 3-3 against each other. But the stakes are simple in this one: Winner advances to the AFC championship game and is one step closer to a Super Bowl.
Predictions for Sunday's NFL divisional games
Here are the USA TODAY Sports staff’s predictions for Sunday's playoff games:
- Jarrett Bell: Lions, Chiefs
- Chris Bumbaca: Lions, Chiefs
- Nate Davis: Lions, Chiefs
- Safid Deen: Lions, Bills
- Tyler Dragon: Lions, Chiefs
- Victoria Hernandez: Lions, Bills
- Jordan Mendoza: Lions, Bills
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz: Lions, Bills
- Lorenzo Reyes: Lions, Bills
veryGood! (69)
Related
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- What percentage of the US population is LGBTQ? New data shows which states have the most
- Americans opened their wallets for holiday spending, defying fears of a pullback
- Mega Millions now at $73 million ahead of Tuesday drawing; See winning numbers
- Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
- Top Wisconsin Republican wants to put abortion laws on a future ballot
- Over 50 French stars defend Gérard Depardieu with essay amid sexual misconduct claims
- Actors, musicians, writers and artists we lost in 2023
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Reese Witherspoon Has a Big Little Twinning Moment With Daughter Ava Phillippe on Christmas
Ranking
- What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
- Appeals court tosses ex-Nebraska Rep. Jeff Fortenberry's conviction for lying to FBI
- Colorado man sentenced in Nevada power plant fire initially described as terror attack
- Colorado man sentenced in Nevada power plant fire initially described as terror attack
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Frustration in Phoenix? Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Suns should be unhappy with results
- Actors, musicians, writers and artists we lost in 2023
- State Rep. Denny Zent announces plans to retire after current term
Recommendation
Federal court filings allege official committed perjury in lawsuit tied to Louisiana grain terminal
$1.58 billion Mega Millions winner in Florida revealed
Florida teen fatally shoots sister after argument over Christmas presents, sheriff says
Bodies suspected to be pregnant woman and boyfriend were shot, police in Texas say
A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
The New York Times sues OpenAI and Microsoft over the use of its stories to train chatbots
More cold-case sexual assault charges for man accused of 2003 Philadelphia rape and slaying
Takeaways from AP investigation into Russia’s cover-up of deaths caused by dam explosion in Ukraine