The Green Bay Packers will take their Super Bowl dreams into Soldier Field and battle the rival Chicago Bears in the only intra-division matchup of the NFL’s wild-card weekend.
The Bears (11-6) landed the No. 2 seed in the NFC from Sunday’s Week 18 results, while the Packers (9-7-1) were locked into the seventh and final seed in the conference before the weekend began.
The NFL slotted the historic rivalry in the Saturday night window when the wild-card weekend schedule was revealed late Sunday. The Packers and Bears will kick off at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT, airing on Amazon Prime Video.
The Packers and Bears have played since 1921 but will meet in the playoffs for only the third time. Chicago defeated Green Bay in the 1941 NFL postseason, and the Packers prevailed in the 2010 NFC Championship Game en route to their Super Bowl XLV victory with Aaron Rodgers at the helm.
NBC revealed the schedule during the halftime show of “Sunday Night Football,” a game the Pittsburgh Steelers won 26-24 over the rival Baltimore Ravens to claim the final playoff spot by winning the AFC North to take the No. 4 seed.
The Steelers’ reward will be a home game against the red-hot Houston Texans, who won their ninth in a row Sunday over Indianapolis to finish 12-5 and claim the fifth seed in the AFC bracket.
NFL wild-card weekend schedule (times ET):
Saturday, Jan. 10
NFC No. 5 Los Angeles Rams at No. 4 Carolina Panthers, 4:30 p.m., FOX
NFC No. 7 Green Bay Packers at No. 2 Chicago Bears, 8 p.m., Prime Video
Sunday, Jan. 11
AFC No. 6 Buffalo Bills at No. 3 Jacksonville Jaguars, 1 p.m., CBS
NFC No. 6 San Francisco 49ers at No. 3 Philadelphia Eagles, 4:30 p.m., FOX
AFC No. 7 Los Angeles Chargers at No. 2 New England Patriots, 8 p.m., NBC
Monday, Jan. 12
AFC No. 5 Houston Texans at No. 4 Pittsburgh Steelers, 8 p.m., ESPN/ABC
How it happened:
The eliminated Detroit Lions beat Chicago on a late field goal Sunday evening, but the Bears’ only competition for the No. 2 seed, the Philadelphia Eagles, also ended on a losing note against the Washington Commanders.
The third-seeded Eagles (11-6) draw the sixth-seeded San Francisco 49ers (12-5) and the NFC South champion Carolina Panthers (8-9) will welcome the Los Angeles Rams (12-5) in the 4-5 game. The Seattle Seahawks (14-3) locked up the conference’s No. 1 seed by beating San Francisco on Saturday night.
The AFC playoff picture grew clearer when the Denver Broncos secured the top seed and first-round bye with a win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.
Both Denver and New England finished 14-3 after the Patriots’ season-ending win over Miami, but the Broncos hold the tiebreaker over the Patriots thanks to a better record over common opponents.
The No. 2 seed Patriots will host the No. 7 Chargers (11-6). The Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4) locked up the AFC South and will host the sixth-seeded Buffalo Bills (12-5).
–Field Level Media
