The top-seeded Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos will both be in action on Saturday as part of a four-pack of NFL divisional round games.
The latest: Seattle comes off its bye to face the thinning San Francisco 49ers for a third time. Denver, meanwhile, looks like it could be laying a point or two against the Buffalo Bills. The Broncos enjoyed an 8-1 record at Mile High this season.
Check out the NFL divisional schedule and our odds for the second-round matchups on Jan. 17-18, 2026.
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NFL divisional schedule and odds
Buffalo Bills vs. Denver Broncos: Saturday, Jan. 17 (4:30 p.m. ET)
- The Broncos opened as very modest underdogs, which is an exceedingly rare spot for a team coming off a bye. According to The Action Network, Denver would be just the fourth underdog in the playoffs coming off a bye, and each of the previous three teams won straight up.
- Reigning NFL MVP Josh Allen took a beating against the Jaguars’ physical defence. He went to the medical tent early on for a head injury assessment and later appeared to injure his knee on a touchdown run.
He’ll play as long as Hell doesn’t freeze over, but this matchup is a daunting one. Denver leads the NFL in sacks (4.0/game) and QB knockdown rate (13.5%).
- Unders have gone 4-2 in Buffalo’s past six road games, and the under cashed in Buffalo’s 31-7 win over Denver in the wild-card round last year.
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San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks: Saturday, Jan. 17 (8:00 p.m. ET)
- Interestingly, both Seattle and San Francisco won and covered as road favourites against each other during the regular season. Both of those spreads were inside of 4 points, though, so this -7.5 line stands out.
- George Kittle suffered a torn Achilles tendon and will be out for six-plus months. That’s a devastating blow for the 49ers, who will hope to see wideout Ricky Pearsall back in action. Pearsall has missed three of San Francisco’s past four games.
- Saturday’s game has a projected total of 45.5 points. Both regular-season matchups between the Seahawks and Niners hit the under, with just 46 combined points being scored.
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Sunday’s NFL divisional round matchups
Houston Texans vs. New England Patriots: Sunday, Jan. 18 (3:00 p.m ET)
- New England’s defence was superb in their 16-3 wild-card win over the Los Angeles Chargers, holding L.A. to a measly 3.5 yards per play. The Chargers also went a combined 2-for-13 on third and fourth down while taking six sacks.
- Houston’s No. 1 defence was even better against Pittsburgh. The Steelers had just 175 total yards and went 2-for-13 on third down with a pick-six and a fumble-six.
- C.J. Stroud got bailed out by that unit, after throwing an interception and losing two fumbles in an ugly game.
- Though the Pats’ offence had some bumps in the road, they unlocked something with Drake Maye as a runner. He scampered for a season-high 66 yards on 10 carries while also throwing for 268 yards and one TD.
- New England is now 8-3-1 ATS as a favourite. Houston has won 10 straight and is 4-3 ATS as an underdog.
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Los Angeles Rams vs. Chicago Bears: Sunday, Jan. 18 (6:30 p.m. ET)
- Well, the Bears did it again, erasing a fourth-quarter deficit for a seventh time this season to keep their season alive. Twice in the past month, they’ve overcome double-digit margins in the fourth against the Packers.
- If you’re buying into Chicago’s highly unlikely surge, you can do so while banking some points on Sunday. The Bears, who have a 7-1-1 ATS record in their past eight, are home underdogs against a Rams team that has looked a bit shaky on the road.
- Los Angeles needed a last-minute touchdown to push past the Carolina Panthers in the wild-card round — despite laying 10.5 points. In their past five road games, the Rams are 2-3 ATS and SU.
