The New York Giants and Jets have been in the playoffs in the same season only five times.
The Los Angeles Rams and Chargers could surpass that. They have achieved the feat for the second time in seven years.
The Chargers will open wild-card weekend, and the Rams will close it, the NFL announced Sunday night.
By virtue of clinching the fifth seed in the AFC, the Chargers will play at Houston in the early game Saturday at 1:30 p.m. PST, a familiar time slot for the Texans.
The Rams, winners of the NFC West, will play host to the Minnesota Vikings two days later on “Monday Night Football.” It’s a rematch of a game the Rams won earlier this season, and is an L.A. homecoming for Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold, a onetime USC standout.
The Vikings lost to the Detroit Lions on Sunday night in a high-stakes NFC North showdown, with the winner claiming the NFC’s No. 1 seed and loser hitting the road despite a gaudy 14-3 record.
The rest of the playoff schedule, times Pacific, is as follows:
Pittsburgh at Baltimore at 5 p.m. Saturday.
Denver at Buffalo at 10 a.m. Sunday, followed by Green Bay at Philadelphia at 1:30 p.m. and Washington at Tampa Bay at 5 p.m.
This postseason features two rising-star rookie quarterbacks, at least two Week 1 rematches and one big phew.
That sigh of relief comes from the Chargers, who won at Las Vegas to claim the No. 5 seed in the AFC and earn a trip to Houston in the first round of the playoffs instead of going to Baltimore.
The Ravens are as hot as their weather is cold. The Texans, meanwhile, are up and down, having lost two of three and lacking star receivers and solid offensive line play.
The Chargers stand a far better chance of winning at Houston — which would be the first playoff victory for quarterback Justin Herbert — than rolling into Baltimore and winning another coaching matchup of Harbaugh brothers.
The Packers and Eagles opened the season in Brazil — the first time the NFL has played in South America — with a Friday game won by Philadelphia, 34-29. In his debut with the Eagles, Saquon Barkley scored three touchdowns.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts and Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) talk after Philadelphia won their season opener. They will have a rematch in the NFC wild-card round Sunday.
(Chris Szagola / Associated Press)
As with that opener, this wild-card game pits quarterbacks Jordan Love of the Packers and Jalen Hurts of the Eagles. Both are banged up. Love took a blow to his right elbow Sunday that caused his throwing hand to go numb. Hurts still needs to clear concussion protocol.
Washington-Tampa Bay — a matchup the Buccaneers won 37-20 in a season opener — features star rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels of the Commanders and up-from-the-ashes Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield, two years removed from being released by the lowly Carolina Panthers. Mayfield, whose path back included a stint with the Rams, has had an outstanding season.
The other sizzling rookie in the postseason is Denver’s Bo Nix, who led the Broncos to a 38-0 stomping of Kansas City’s backups Sunday.
Rookie quarterback Bo Nix celebrates a blowout win over the Chiefs that advanced the Broncos to the playoffs.
(David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
That result extinguished the playoff hopes of the dark horse Cincinnati Bengals, who needed to couple their Saturday night win with losses by the Broncos and Miami Dolphins on Sunday.
Denver left no room for doubt, thrilling the home crowd with a decisive victory that sends the franchise back to the postseason for the first time since the Peyton Manning days nine years ago.
Denver has no simple task. The Broncos play at second-seed Buffalo, with top seed Kansas City earning the first-round bye.
In the other AFC matchup, it’s Pittsburgh facing the division-rival Ravens in Baltimore. The teams split during the regular season, but Baltimore has all the momentum. The Steelers have lost four in a row, including a home defeat to the Bengals on Saturday night that would have earned Pittsburgh a more preferable postseason start in Houston.
