NFL Previews

Matthew Stafford returns to Detroit in a Los Angeles Rams uniform. Jared Goff faces the team that gave up on him. The Lions are hosting a playoff game for the first time in 30 years. The preamble to Sunday night’s first-round playoff matchup has all the fixings of a script, but neither team wants to discuss much more than the primetime wild-card meeting and the spot in the conference semifinals at stake. The Rams are

Quarterback Dak Prescott and the NFL’s highest-scoring offense enter the playoffs with a confidence that can only be found at home. The Cowboys host the Green Bay Packers in a wild-card matchup Sunday afternoon at AT&T Stadium, where Dallas had a perfect 8-0 record during the regular season. Dallas averaged a league-high 29.9 points per game, posted a 12-5 record and won the NFC East for the second time in three years. Prescott threw 36

The Buffalo Bills were one of the NFL’s hottest teams during the stretch drive of the season and went from playoff outsiders to the AFC’s No. 2 seed. After winning five straight games to win the AFC East and earn home-field advantage, the Bills will look to continue their scorching run when they host the seventh-seeded Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday afternoon at Orchard Park, N.Y. The Bills (11-6) had a .500 record after 12 games

All the Miami Dolphins had to do was protect a fourth-quarter lead in the season finale and they could have stayed in South Florida and played an AFC wild-card game in temperatures near 80 degrees. Instead, the Dolphins saw the lead get away and packed up portable heaters, parkas, gloves and a game plan for how to deal with the elements and a hostile crowd when they visit the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday night

When the Houston Texans hired DeMeco Ryans as their coach last January and drafted quarterback C.J. Stroud with the second overall pick three months later, they were hoping that duo would someday lead the franchise to success. Little did Houston know that “someday” would arrive much sooner than expected. After securing a playoff berth for the first time since 2019, the Texans will look to keep exceeding expectations on Saturday when they face the visiting

Ascending in the NFC playoff picture, the Dallas Cowboys visit the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y., on Sunday with a lot on the line for each side. Winners of five in a row, the Cowboys (10-3) moved into a tie atop the NFC East with the Eagles after posting a 33-13 victory over Philadelphia last Sunday. Dallas averaged a robust 40.2 points a game during its winning streak, and the Cowboys can clinch a

Lamar Jackson is hearing his name mentioned in the MVP conversation, but that doesn’t impress him much. The Baltimore Ravens star is more interested in making a run for the Lombardi Trophy, and his top-seeded AFC team can take a big step in that direction when the Ravens visit the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday night. Baltimore (10-3) holds a one-game lead over the Miami Dolphins at the top of the conference. There are nine scenarios

Much was made of two missed blocks in the back Sunday when the Baltimore Ravens walked off the Los Angeles Rams in overtime with a 76-yard punt-return touchdown by Tylan Wallace. Whether it was to avoid a big fine from the NFL or because the film told him something fans and pundits might have overlooked, Rams coach Sean McVay took that conversation in a different direction ahead of this Sunday’s visit from the Washington Commanders.

It’s homecoming weekend for Brock Purdy as his San Francisco 49ers continue the chase for the No. 1 NFC seed on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals in Glendale, Ariz. The 49ers (10-3) are the first team to clinch a playoff spot. They also are on a five-game winning streak during which they have outscored opponents 162-65. The Cardinals (3-10) are rested after a bye week, have won two of their last four games since Kyler