NFL playoff bracket 2023: Divisional round playoff matchups, schedule for AFC & NFC

Edward Sutelan

NFL playoff bracket 2023: Divisional round playoff matchups, schedule for AFC & NFC image

Super Wild Card Weekend doesn't always live up to its title. Often, there are several blowouts in the NFL playoffs' first round as the higher-seeded teams take out the teams that just barely reached the playoffs with relative ease.

That hasn't been the case in 2023. The only blowout happened in the first game of the postseason, when the 49ers pulled away from the Seahawks. Since then, each game has been decided by one score. The Jaguars made history against the Chargers with a 27-point comeback, the Bills and Bengals each survived against divisional foes, and the Giants stunned the Vikings in the only win by a wild-card team so far.

The lone game left on the schedule is the Buccaneers vs. Cowboys on Monday night, meaning the divisional round is taking shape. The Chiefs will be tasked with shutting down the high-flying Jaguars, while the Bills and Bengals will meet in Buffalo in a highly anticipated matchup. In the NFC, the Eagles will face a familiar foe in the Giants, and the 49ers await their opponent, which will either be a rematch of last year's wild-card matchup against the Cowboys or the chance to face Tom Brady and the Buccaneers.

Below is all the information you need for the divisional round of the playoffs, including information on matchups and a TV schedule of the games.

MORE: Watch NFL playoff games live with fuboTV (free trial)

NFL playoff bracket 2023

NFL divisional bracket
(SN illustration)

AFC

  1. Kansas City Chiefs vs. 4. Jacksonville Jaguars
  2. Buffalo Bills vs. 3. Cincinnati Bengals

NFC

  1. Philadelphia Eagles vs. 6. New York Giants
  2. San Francisco 49ers vs. 5. Dallas Cowboys

NFL divisional round matchups

AFC

Patrick Mahomes
Getty Images

1. Kansas City Chiefs vs. 4. Jacksonville Jaguars

Trevor Lawrence kept the Jaguars' season alive with an incredible comeback against the Chargers. Now, he'll be tasked with trying to take down another AFC West foe as he heads to Kansas City to face Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.

2. Buffalo Bills vs. 3. Cincinnati Bengals

The first edition of Bills vs. Bengals was canceled after Damar Hamlin's collapse and cardiac arrest in Week 17. The two teams will meet for the first time since the incident as Josh Allen and the Bills host Joe Burrow and the Bengals in a showdown of two of the AFC's premier teams.

NFC

Getty

1. Philadelphia Eagles vs. 6. New York Giants

It is an NFC East clash in the divisional round. The Giants' victory over Minnesota kept their breakout season alive and set up a third game against the Eagles. The Eagles won both games in the regular season, 48-22 in Week 14 and 22-16 in Week 18. 

2. San Francisco 49ers vs. 5. Dallas Cowboys

The 49ers went into the locker room against the Seahawks trailing by a point but left no doubt in the second half behind a big performance from Brock Purdy. They haven't lost since October but will get a challenge from the Cowboys, who looked rejuvenated in a dominant win over the Buccaneers in the wild-card round.

NFL playoff schedule: Divisional round

The NFL will have a full weekend of playoff games on Saturday and Sunday.

Each day, there will be two games, one in the mid-afternoon and another in the evening. The NFC matchups will be the nightcaps each evening, while the two AFC clashes will be in the afternoon. Fox will have both NFC games, NBC will carry Jaguars at Chiefs and CBS will carry Bengals at Bills.

Below is the full TV schedule for the divisional round.

Saturday, Jan. 21

Matchup Result
Jaguars vs. Chiefs KC 27, JAC 20
Giants vs. Eagles PHI 38, NYG 7

Sunday, Jan. 22

Matchup Time (ET) TV Live stream Tickets
Bengals vs. Bills CIN 27, BUF 10 CBS Paramount+, fuboTV Buy tickets
Cowboys vs. 49ers 6:30 p.m. Fox Fox Sports, fuboTV Buy tickets

NFL playoff bracket, seeds 2023

AFC

Seed Team Record First-round results
1. Kansas City Chiefs 14-3 First-round bye
2. Buffalo Bills 13-3 Def. No. 7 Dolphins 34-31
3. Cincinnati Bengals 12-4 Def. No. 6 Ravens 24-17
4. Jacksonville Jaguars 9-8 Def. No. 5 Chargers 31-30

NFC

Seed Team Record First-round results
1. Philadelphia Eagles 14-3 First-round bye
2. San Francisco 49ers 13-4 Def. No. 7 Seahawks 41-23
5. Dallas Cowboys 12-5 Def. No. 4 Buccaneers 31-14
6. New York Giants 9-7-1 Def. No. 3 Vikings 31-24

Edward Sutelan

Edward Sutelan Photo

Edward Sutelan joined The Sporting News in 2021 after covering high school sports for PennLive. Edward graduated from The Ohio State University in 2019, where he gained experience covering the baseball, football and basketball teams. Edward also spent time working for The Columbus Dispatch and Cape Cod Times.