NFL Playoff Bracket: Patriots, Steelers, Falcons, Bears Await Wild Card Results

Here’s the NFL playoff bracket for the AFC. The Patriots and Steelers have first-round byes and will await games between the Jets and Colts and the Ravens and Chiefs to determine who their first opponents will be. All we know for sure is that the Patriots will take the lower-seeded of the two surviving teams and the Steelers will take the higher-seeded, which means the Patriots will not play the third-seeded Colts and the Steelers will not play the sixth-seeded Jets.

Wild Card round
(6) Jets Vs. (3) Colts at Indianapolis
(5) Ravens Vs. (4) Chiefs at Kansas City

Divisional round
Lower-seeded survivor vs. (1) Patriots at New England
Higher-seeded survivor vs. (2) Steelers at Heinz Field

The Patriots have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Steelers will play their first game at home, but will play for the AFC championship at home only if the Patriots lose their first game.

Here’s the NFC bracket:

Wild Card round
(6) Packers vs. (3) Eagles
(5) Saints vs. (4) Seahawks

Divisional round
Lower-seeded survivor vs. (1) Falcons
Higher-seeded survivor vs. (2) Bears

Like the Patriots, the Falcons have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

NFL Playoff Odds: Jets Vs. Colts, Ravens Vs. Chiefs

SB Nation's OddsShark has the lines on this week's NFL playoff games, so here's how things shake out. It rates the Colts as three-point favorites over the Jets and the Ravens as three-point favorites over the Chiefs. That seems reasonable, although I might make the Ravens somewhat bigger favorites, especially after the Chiefs were dominated by the Raiders in their final regular-season last week. The Ravens' good rushing defense should give the Chiefs' run-centric offense trouble. The Jets have been very inconsistent this year and obviously don't have Indianapolis' offense, and the Colts will also have home-field advantage.

The Jets, Ravens or Chiefs could be the Steelers' first playoff opponent on the 15th.

In the NFC, the Saints are about 11-point favorites against the Seahawks - no surprise, since Seattle is the worst playoff team in the history of ever. The Eagles are two-point favorites against the Packers. The Steelers, Patriots, Falcons and Bears will await the results and play their first opponents next week.