It is a massive Saturday for anyone who lives and breathes sports. Between the high-stakes drama of the NFL Divisional Round and a loaded slate of NBA and NHL matchups, keeping track of everything is basically a full-time job today. Whether you’re trying to see if your bracket is still alive or just checking if the home team covered the spread, the energy is electric.
Honestly, the biggest story today is the return of playoff football to the Mile High City and the rainy Pacific Northwest. We've got two huge games that will decide who moves one step closer to the Super Bowl.
NFL Divisional Round: The Big Ones
The NFL schedule today is lean but mean. We aren't dealing with a dozen games; we're dealing with the best of the best.
Buffalo Bills vs. Denver Broncos
The early window kicked off at 4:30 p.m. ET on CBS. Denver, coming in as the top seed in the AFC, is hosting a Buffalo team that looks like it’s playing with house money. The atmosphere at Empower Field is predictably rowdy. Early reports from the field had the Broncos as a narrow 1.5-point favorite. If you're looking for what's the score on the game tonight, keep an eye on how the Bills' defense handles the altitude in the fourth quarter. Buffalo has been explosive, but Denver's home-field advantage in January is a different animal.
San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks
This is the late-night dessert. Kickoff is set for 8:00 p.m. ET on FOX. It’s an NFC West showdown at Lumen Field, and you know that place is going to be deafening. Seattle earned that #1 seed, and the 49ers had to scratch and claw through the Wild Card round to get this shot. This is the third time these two have met this season, and as the saying goes, it’s hard to beat a good team three times. We’ll see.
✨ Don't miss: Lo que nadie te cuenta sobre los próximos partidos de selección de fútbol de jamaica
Saturday Night NBA: Hoop Dreams and Heartbreaks
While the football world is hyper-focused on the playoffs, the NBA is quietly putting on a show with a nine-game marathon.
The Utah Jazz and Dallas Mavericks got things started early at 5:00 p.m. ET. Dallas has been hovering around the .500 mark lately, and they desperately need a win to stay relevant in a brutal Western Conference.
Later tonight, at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Boston Celtics are visiting the Atlanta Hawks. Boston has the second-best offensive rating in the league right now, while Atlanta plays at the second-fastest pace. Basically, expect a lot of running and a lot of threes.
Other NBA Matchups to Watch:
- Phoenix Suns at New York Knicks (7:30 p.m. ET): Madison Square Garden is always a vibe for a Saturday night game.
- Indiana Pacers at Detroit Pistons (7:30 p.m. ET): A battle for the basement? Maybe, but Indiana's offense is always fun to watch.
- Oklahoma City Thunder at Miami Heat (8:00 p.m. ET): A clash of styles that usually goes down to the wire.
- Minnesota Timberwolves at San Antonio Spurs (8:00 p.m. ET): Watching the young stars in San Antonio try to handle Minnesota's size is the main draw here.
- L.A. Lakers at Portland Trail Blazers (10:00 p.m. ET): The late-night special on NBA TV.
NHL: A Frozen Saturday
The hockey world didn't get the memo about taking it easy. We have a massive 13-game slate today.
🔗 Read more: Listen to Dodger Game: How to Catch Every Pitch Without a Cable Bill
The New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers already got into it earlier today. In the first period, the Rangers jumped out to a 3-1 lead, looking to silence the Philly crowd. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Wild took a 3-1 lead over the Buffalo Sabres heading into the second.
If you're looking for the late-night "After Dark" hockey, the Nashville Predators are at the Vegas Golden Knights at 10:00 p.m. ET. Vegas is sitting comfortably near the top of the standings, and T-Mobile Arena is arguably the toughest place to play in the league right now.
What Most People Get Wrong About Saturday Scores
A lot of fans make the mistake of checking a score once and assuming the game is over. In the NFL playoffs, especially in the Divisional Round, the "middle eight" (the last four minutes of the first half and the first four of the second) is where most games are actually won or lost.
If you’re betting or just following along, don't get discouraged by a slow first quarter. The Seahawks, for example, are notorious for starting slow and then turning into a juggernaut in the second half when the 12th Man gets involved.
💡 You might also like: LeBron James and Kobe Bryant: What Really Happened Behind the Scenes
How to Stay Updated
If you can't be glued to a TV, here is how you should be tracking what's the score on the game tonight without losing your mind:
- Use Live Activities: If you're on an iPhone or a newer Android, enable "Live Activities" for your sports app of choice. It puts the score right on your lock screen so you don't have to keep refreshing.
- Radio is Underrated: If you're driving, the Westwood One broadcast for the NFL games is world-class. There's something about playoff football on the radio that just feels right.
- Check the "Salami" in the NHL: With 13 games, keep an eye on the "Grand Salami" (the total goals scored across all games). It's a fun way to track the entire league at once.
The best way to enjoy tonight is to pick a "main" screen for the NFL and have a "secondary" screen or tablet for the NBA/NHL scores. We’re heading into the final stretch of the winter sports season where every single game carries massive weight for the standings.
Your Next Steps:
Check your local listings for the 49ers vs. Seahawks kickoff at 8:00 p.m. ET on FOX, and if you’re a basketball fan, sync your league pass to the Lakers vs. Blazers game to close out the night. For real-time box scores, refreshing the official league apps (NFL, NBA, NHL) every 15 minutes is the most reliable way to catch momentum shifts as they happen.