Panthers win the NFC South. Broncos clinch AFC's No. 1 seed. Jaguars secure the AFC South

The Carolina Panthers are NFC South champions for the first time in 10 years. The Denver Broncos are the AFC's No. 1 seed. And all but one playoff matchup is locked in.

The Panthers (8-9) clinched the division title when the Falcons beat the Saints 19-17 on Sunday to eliminate the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Broncos (14-3) secured a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs with a 19-3 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. Seattle earned the NFC's No. 1 seed on Saturday night, defeating San Francisco 13-3.

The Jaguars won the AFC South with a 41-7 rout of Tennessee. Rookie coach Liam Coen and Trevor Lawrence led the Jaguars to a major turnaround after going 4-13 in 2024.

The AFC North is still up for grabs with a winner-take-all game Sunday night between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Wild-card weekend will feature these matchups (all times EST):

— Los Angeles Rams (12-5) at Carolina Panthers (8-9), Saturday, 4:30 p.m.

— Buffalo Bills (12-5) at Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4), Sunday, 1 p.m.

— San Francisco 49ers (12-5) at Philadelphia Eagles (11-6), Sunday, 4:30 p.m.

— Los Angeles Chargers (11-6) at New England Patriots (14-3), Sunday, 8 p.m.

— Houston Texans (12-5) at the AFC North winner, Monday, 8 p.m.

Led by second-year coach Dave Canales and third-year quarterback Bryce Young, the Panthers are making their first playoff appearance under owner David Tepper and first since 2017, when they lost a wild-card game two years after they went 15-1 and lost the Super Bowl.

The Buccaneers (8-9) beat Carolina on Saturday to stay alive for an extra day but lost a three-team tiebreaker with the Falcons also finishing 8-9. Tampa Bay started 6-2 before losing seven of nine, failing to win its fifth straight division title.

While Sam Darnold and the Seahawks (14-3) earned a first-round bye, Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey and the injury-depleted 49ers missed an opportunity to play at home the rest of the way. Levi's Stadium, which is San Francisco's home field, hosts the Super Bowl on Feb. 8.

AFC East

New England won its first division title since Tom Brady led the franchise to 11 straight from 2009-19.

Buffalo's run of five consecutive division crowns ended, and the Bills will go on the road in the playoffs.

The Steelers beat the Ravens 27-22 at Baltimore on Dec. 7. They have to beat them again or tie them on Sunday night without wide receiver DK Metcalf to get into the playoffs.

Derrick Henry and backup quarterback Tyler Huntley led the Ravens to a win at Green Bay last Saturday night that kept Baltimore in the race and made Pittsburgh's loss to Cleveland the next day matter. Lamar Jackson returned from a back injury to start for the Ravens, who were 3 1/2-point favorites on the road, according to BetMGM Sportsbook.

AFC South

Jacksonville won the division for the first time since 2022, when first-year coach Doug Pederson guided them to a 9-8 record and a wild-card playoff victory over the Chargers, overcoming a 27-0 deficit.

The Texans secured the No. 5 seed with a 38-30 victory over Indianapolis. Houston is in the playoffs for the third straight season under coach DeMeco Ryans and QB C.J. Stroud.

The Broncos ended Kansas City's nine-year run. Denver hasn't been the No. 1 seed since Peyton Manning and a stifling defense beat Carolina in the Super Bowl 10 years ago.

The Chargers are in the playoffs for the second straight season under Jim Harbaugh.

NFC East

The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles became the first team to win this division in consecutive seasons in two decades. They missed a chance to be the No. 2 seed when they rested starters and lost 24-17 to Washington.

NFC North

The Packers were locked into the No. 7 seed after Week 17.

NFC South

The Panthers backed into a division title but are ahead of schedule in their rebuilding process.

NFC West

The Seahawks earned the No. 1 seed for the fourth time in team history. They reached the Super Bowl the first three, winning once.

After falling to secure a bye, the 49ers dropped to the No. 6 seed and will face Philadelphia in a rematch of the NFC championship game following the 2022 season.

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AP Sports Writer Steve Reed contributed to this report.

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