Overview
- New England visits Denver at 3 p.m. ET on CBS and Los Angeles visits Seattle at 6:30 p.m. ET on Fox, with winners advancing to Super Bowl 60 on Feb. 8 in Santa Clara.
- Broncos rookie Bo Nix suffered a broken right ankle against Buffalo, Jarrett Stidham has been named the starter, and a hamstring issue for Troy Franklin clouds Denver’s receiving group.
- The Patriots reached the AFC title game by beating Houston 28-16 behind Drake Maye and a defense credited with four takeaways, with Sporting News highlighting Maye’s strong road form this season.
- Seattle crushed San Francisco 49-6 as Sam Darnold earned his first playoff win and Kenneth Walker III scored three rushing touchdowns, while the Rams advanced with a 20-17 overtime win at Chicago.
- Sporting News’ predictions, using Caesars odds, call for New England (-5.5) over Denver 24–16 and a Rams upset of Seattle 26–23, citing Denver’s quarterback change and turnover chances as key factors.