The NFL playoffs has reached its penultimate weekend. Only four teams remain in the hunt, and they will face off in the NFC and AFC championship games.
Videos by FanBuzz
The winner of the NFC and the winner of the AFC will move on to Super Bowl 60 at Levi's Stadium (Santa Clara, California) on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. They will face off for the biggest prize in professional football, the Lombardi Trophy.
AFC championship - New England Patriots at Denver Broncos (3 p.m. ET on CBS)
Photo credit: Getty Images
Sunday's NFL action kicks off at 3 p.m. ET with the AFC East champion New England Patriots (14-3) visiting the NFC West champion Denver Broncos (14-3). This game takes place in Colorado after the Broncos won the AFC's No. 1 seed and secured home-field advantage.
This Broncos team will have a major difference from the one that defeated the Bills in the divisional round. Quartertback Bo Nix is now on Injured Reserve after breaking his ankle. This means that backup Jarrett Stidham will get his first start since the 2023 season.
The Patriots, for comparison, will get a wide receiver back from Injured Reserve. The team activated Mack Hollins, putting him in line to see his first game action since a Dec. 21 win over the Ravens when he caught seven passes for 69 yards.
The Broncos and Patriots have played 55 times but not since the 2023 season. They have met five times in the playoffs.
The most recent playoff game between these two teams took place on Jan. 24, 2016. The Peyton Manning-led Broncos defeated the Tom Brady-led Patriots to lock up a spot in Super Bowl 50, which also took place at Levi's Stadium.
NFC Championship - Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawsk (6:30 p.m. ET on Fox)
Photo credit: Getty Images
The second game of the conference championship round takes place in Washington State. The NFC's top seed, the Seattle Seahawks (14-3), will host the NFC West rival Los Angeles Rams (12-5).
These two teams have played twice this season already while following their normal schedule. The Rams defeated the Seahawks 21-19 in November.The Seahawks then defeated the Rams 38-37 in overtime in December.
This NFC championship game will provide one of the two teams with an opportunity to win another Lombardi Trophy. The Rams last went to the Super Bowl during the 2021 season. They defeated the Bengals.
The Seahawks made consecutive appearances in the Super Bowl in 2013-2014. They defeated the Broncos in 2013 but lost to the Patriots the following season.
These two rivals have only met in the playoffs two times before. The Jared Goff-led Rams defeated the Russell Wilson-led Seahawks in the wild-card round on Jan. 9, 2021. The Marc Bulger-led Rams defeated the Matt Hasselbeck-led Seahawks in the wild-card round on Jan. 8, 2005.
