Panthers win the NFC South, will host Los Angeles Rams in wildcard playoff game

Associated Press,

The Carolina Panthers are NFC South champions for the first time in 10 years. The Denver Broncos are the AFC’s No. 1 seed. And all but one playoff matchup is locked in.

The Panthers (8-9) clinched the division title when the Falcons beat the Saints 19-17 on Sunday to eliminate the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Broncos (14-3) secured a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs with a 19-3 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. Seattle earned the NFC’s No. 1 seed on Saturday night, defeating San Francisco 13-3.

The Jaguars won the AFC South with a 41-7 rout of Tennessee. Rookie coach Liam Coen and Trevor Lawrence led the Jaguars to a major turnaround after going 4-13 in 2024.

The AFC North is still up for grabs with a winner-take-all game Sunday night between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Wild-card weekend will feature these matchups:

In the NFC, it’ll be the Green Bay Packers (9-6-1) at the Chicago Bears (11-6); the San Francisco 49ers (12-5) at the Philadelphia Eagles (11-6); and the Los Angeles Rams (12-5) at the Panthers.

Led by second-year coach Dave Canales and third-year quarterback Bryce Young, the Panthers are making their first playoff appearance under owner David Tepper and first since 2017, when they lost a wild-card game two years after they went 15-1 and lost the Super Bowl.

“I’m so grateful to have one more opportunity to get back to work where we can get on the grass, go through the preparation and have our meetings,” Canales said Sunday. “Once we are in cleats and on that grass it’s like the next thing becomes clear, the focus of what we are doing. … It’s like here we go, we get one opportunity and let’s make this statement true: 1-0 with a chance to win a championship. How long can we keep that statement true?”

The Buccaneers (8-9) beat Carolina on Saturday to stay alive for an extra day but lost a three-team tiebreaker with the Falcons also finishing 8-9. Tampa Bay started 6-2 before losing seven of nine, failing to win its fifth straight division title.

While Sam Darnold and the Seahawks (14-3) earned a first-round bye, Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey and the injury-depleted 49ers missed an opportunity to play at home the rest of the way. Levi’s Stadium, which is San Francisco’s home field, hosts the Super Bowl on Feb. 8.

Categories: South Carolina Sports, Sports

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