The number of Super Bowl contenders is down to 12.
Six teams each in the AFC and NFC will fight it out over the next month to be crowned Super Bowl champion.
The Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots have home-field advantage in their respective conferences, but at least one of those teams is far from a surefire favorite to advance to U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4.
Beneath the top seeds in each conference is a plethora of teams few expected to qualify for the postseason, including the Buffalo Bills, who clinched their first playoff berth since 1999 thanks to a late touchdown by the Cincinnati Bengals that eliminated the Baltimore Ravens.
Below is a complete look at the field for the NFL postseason.
AFC Playoff Seeds
1. New England
2. Pittsburgh
3. Jacksonville
4. Kansas City
5. Tennessee
6. Buffalo
NFC Playoff Seeds
1. Philadelphia
2. Minnesota
3. Los Angeles Rams
4. New Orleans
5. Carolina
6. Atlanta
Wild-Card Schedule
AFC
No. 6 Buffalo at No. 3 Jacksonville (Sunday, January 7, 1 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 5 Tennessee at No. 4 Kansas City (Saturday, January 6, 4:35 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC)
NFC
No. 6 Atlanta at No. 3 Los Angeles Rams (Saturday, January 6, 8:15 p.m. ET, NBC)
No. 5 Carolina at No. 4 New Orleans (Sunday, January 7, 4:40 p.m. ET, Fox)
Divisional-Round Schedule
AFC
Lowest-remaining seed at No. 1 New England (Time, Date TBD)
Highest-remaining seed at No. 2 Pittsburgh (Time, Date TBD)
NFC
Lowest-remaining seed at No. 1 Philadelphia (Time, Date TBD)
Highest-remaining seed at No. 2 Minnesota (Time, Date TBD)
Championship Round Schedule
Sunday, January 21
AFC Championship (Time, Location TBD)
NFC Championship (Time, Location TBD)
Super Bowl
Sunday, February 4
AFC champion vs. NFC champion
8 New Playoff Teams Headline Field
The New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs and Atlanta Falcons are the only four teams to return to the postseason after making it a year ago.
New England and Pittsburgh are perennial contenders in the AFC, and they are joined on the list of contenders by the Jacksonville Jaguars, who experienced a decade-long playoff drought.
The Tennessee Titans, who beat the Jaguars to clinch a playoff berth in Week 17, are in the postseason for the first time since 2008.
But the biggest surprise of them all came in the form of the Bills, who secured a playoff berth by way of a victory over the Miami Dolphins and the Bengals' late come-from-behind win over the Ravens.
Four new division winners with a quartet of interesting quarterback scenarios headline the field in the NFC. Nick Foles, Case Keenum, Jared Goff and Drew Brees will each get to play at least one home game, but the most dangerous quarterback in the NFC playoffs might be the Atlanta Falcons' Matt Ryan.
Although the Falcons put together a worse record than they did a season ago, they have plenty of postseason experience following a trip to the Super Bowl.
With the bad taste of their Super Bowl failure still rotting in their mouths, Atlanta will be on a mission to represent the NFC again in the final game of the season, this time as the No. 6 seed.
Eleven of the 12 postseason participants have made it to the Super Bowl previously, with the Jaguars being the only franchise looking to secure their first spot in the championship game.
Road to Minneapolis Goes Through Philadelphia and New England
As recently as Dec. 10, the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots were preparing for a showdown in the Super Bowl, with Carson Wentz and Tom Brady shining in the spotlight.
Entering the postseason, the Patriots still have one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time gracing their pocket, but the Eagles are struggling without Wentz, as backup Nick Foles has failed to impress.
Regardless of how the final month of the regular season went for the Eagles, they need just two wins at home to return to their first Super Bowl since they lost to the Patriots in 2004.
The challengers are lining up behind the Eagles to knock them out and make their own paths to the Super Bowl. The most intriguing team beneath Philadelphia is the Minnesota Vikings, who have a chance to become the first team to play a Super Bowl in their home stadium.
Also lingering in the NFC are the upstart Los Angeles Rams, led by quarterback Jared Goff and running back and MVP candidate Todd Gurley. Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints can't be counted out, either, but Brees may not be the reason the Saints win in the postseason. The running back tandem of Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram could pave the way to Minneapolis, with the experienced quarterback playing a supporting role.
The Patriots are the No. 1 seed in the AFC for the seventh time in franchise history, and they are on a quest to advance to the Super Bowl for the eighth time since the turn of the century.
After a thrilling affair with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 15, many are hoping to see a rematch in the AFC Championship, but Jacksonville may have something to say about that.
The Jaguars are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2007, when they won at Pittsburgh in the Wild Card Round before falling to the Patriots in the divisional round. Although this is a different team than the ones from the past, the Jags have earned three of their five postseason victories in franchise history on the road and have qualified for two AFC Championship Games.
The Titans and Bills go into the postseason as the underdogs in the AFC, but they both have nothing to lose. That could make those teams dangerous on the road in the first weekend of the playoffs.
Super Bowl Prediction: Patriots vs. Saints
The AFC is New England's to lose, while the NFC is wide open because of Wentz's injury.
While a Super Bowl LI rematch is a possibility, the Patriots will be taking on another team from the NFC South as they look to repeat as NFL champion.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
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