The journey to the Super Bowl in the NFC is now centered in Detroit.
On Sunday night, the Detroit Lions secured the coveted No. 1 seed with a dominating 31-9 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
Jahmyr Gibbs was a standout player, scoring four touchdowns and helping the Lions (15-2) not only clinch the NFC North title but also secure a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.
The Vikings (14-3), on the other hand, missed the chance to claim the top position and will finish as the fifth seed.
They are set to play on the road against the No. 4 seed, the Los Angeles Rams (10-7), next Monday evening.
Earlier that day, during Week 18, the Denver Broncos and Tampa Bay Buccaneers locked in the final two playoff spots.
Rookie quarterback Bo Nix guided the Broncos to a convincing 38-0 victory over the backups for Kansas City, marking Denver’s return to the postseason for the first time since the Super Bowl victory in the 2015 season, led by Peyton Manning.
The Buccaneers secured the NFC South title with a 27-19 comeback win over New Orleans, earning the No. 3 seed when the Los Angeles Rams fell to Seattle 30-25.
Tampa Bay (10-7) is set to host Washington (12-5) in the wild-card round next Sunday night.
With the Broncos finishing at 10-7, they claimed the seventh seed and will head to Buffalo (13-4) for the opening game on Sunday.
Denver’s victory also eliminated Cincinnati and Miami, who suffered a loss to the Jets.
Green Bay, after narrowly losing 24-22 to Chicago, secured the seventh seed as well and will face the No. 2 seed Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday during the middle slot of a playoff tripleheader.
Earlier in the season, the Eagles (14-3) defeated the Packers (11-6) in a thrilling opener held in Brazil, with a score of 34-29.
Meanwhile, the Washington Commanders edged out Dallas 23-19, thanks to backup quarterback Marcus Mariota throwing two touchdown passes.
Washington began the season with a loss to Tampa Bay but has seen noticeable progress from rookie QB Jayden Daniels since that first game.
The AFC playoff picture took shape on Saturday when the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Cleveland Browns to clinch the North division and the No. 3 seed.
The Kansas City Chiefs (15-2) had already secured a first-round bye, while the Buffalo Bills hold the No. 2 seed and the Houston Texans rank No. 4.
The Los Angeles Chargers managed to beat the Las Vegas Raiders, resulting in the No. 5 seed for them.
The Chargers (10-7) will face off against Houston (10-7) in the first wild-card game on Saturday afternoon. The Ravens (12-5) will host the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7) on Saturday night; the Steelers enter the playoffs having lost their final four games of the season, resulting in their drop to the No. 6 seed.
Additionally, the two division rivals split their regular-season matchups.
