The NFL revealed the dates and times of the Divisional Round games for next week shortly after the Detroit Lions’ victory over the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card round.
On Sunday, January 21, the Lions take on the Detroit Lions at 3 p.m. ET on NBC.
Although the Lions’ opponent is still unknown, they currently own the second-highest remaining seed in the NFC playoff picture after the Dallas Cowboys, the second-seeded team, lost to the Green Bay Packers, the sixth-seeded team, on Sunday. That means the Packers will meet the 49ers (first seed) next week, while the Lions (third seed) will wait to face the winner of the Philadelphia Eagles (fifth seed) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (fourth seed) game on Monday night.
The Lions will play in the divisional round for the first time since 1991. That 1991 squad destroyed Dallas in the Divisional Round, but they were defeated by eventual Super Bowl winner Washington in the NFC Championship Game a week later.
Whatever the result, Detroit will host two playoff games in one summer for the first time in team history. The Lions defeated the Browns in Detroit to win the 1957 championship game after defeating them on the road in San Francisco during the Divisional Round. Similarly, in 1952, the Lions hosted one game (the Divisional triumph over Los Angeles) but not the other (the championship game in Cleveland vs the Browns).
The NFL Divisional round schedule is as follows:
Saturday Jan. 20
4:30 p.m. ET — Texans at Ravens or Chiefs (ESPN/ABC)
8 p.m. ET — Packers at 49ers (FOX)
Sunday, Jan. 21
3 p.m. ET — Eagles/Bucs at Lions (NBC)
6:30 p.m. ET — Chiefs at Bills or Steelers at Ravens (CBS)
