NFL Championship Sunday: Patriots-Broncos and Rams-Seahawks set the Super Bowl field

The NFL’s postseason reaches its final step before the Super Bowl on Sunday, January 25, 2026, with the AFC and NFC Championship Games set to determine the two teams that will play for the title. In the AFC, the New England Patriots travel to face the Denver Broncos in an afternoon matchup. In the NFC, the Los Angeles Rams visit the Seattle Seahawks in the evening game. The winners advance to Super Bowl LX, scheduled for February 8 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

This year’s Championship Sunday has a notably different look than many recent seasons, with matchups that reflect significant shifts across the league. Both conferences feature teams that navigated new leadership, roster changes and late-season momentum to reach this stage. For fans, it’s the most compressed, high-stakes day on the calendar: two games, win-or-go-home pressure, and an immediate ticket to the Super Bowl for the winners.

In the AFC title game, New England and Denver meet with a Super Bowl berth on the line, renewing a rivalry that has produced major postseason moments. For Denver, the home-field environment at Mile High is a key factor, and the matchup is expected to revolve around pass protection, pressure and red-zone efficiency. For New England, execution and limiting turnovers are essential, particularly against a defense that has been credited with generating consistent disruption. Both teams have leaned on complementary football—defense, special teams and controlled offense—to get here.

The NFC championship pits the Rams against the Seahawks, a matchup shaped by contrasting identities and a long history between the franchises. Seattle enters with the advantage of hosting and the energy of a home crowd, while the Rams rely on a veteran-driven approach and a playoff-tested style. Weather and travel always add uncertainty in late January, and the broader winter storm impacting large parts of the U.S. has also become part of the weekend’s backdrop, though game operations remain on schedule.

• AFC Championship (Jan. 25): Patriots at Broncos
• NFC Championship (Jan. 25): Rams at Seahawks
• Super Bowl LX (Feb. 8): AFC champion vs. NFC champion at Levi’s Stadium

Beyond the matchups themselves, Championship Sunday is also a referendum on team-building choices—whether investing in defense, leaning on experienced quarterbacks, or prioritizing depth across the roster can survive postseason variance. A single broken tackle, a third-down conversion, or a special-teams swing can decide a season. By the end of the night, the league will have its two finalists, and the focus will shift immediately to the two-week sprint toward Super Bowl preparations, media days and injury management.