Wait, check your calendar. It is Thursday, January 15, 2026. If you’re frantically searching for who won in the nfl today, you might notice the scoreboard is actually quiet. There were no games played on this specific Thursday. We are currently in that weird, tense "eye of the storm" period between a chaotic Wild Card weekend and the upcoming Divisional round.
Honestly, if you missed the action from a few days ago, you missed some of the most lopsided and nail-biting finishes in recent memory. The Wild Card round wrapped up on Monday, January 12, leaving us with eight teams left standing. People are already arguing about whether the upsets we saw were flukes or a shift in the league's power structure.
The Wild Card Winners: Who Actually Advanced?
The most recent game—the one everyone is still talking about—happened Monday night. The Houston Texans absolutely dismantled the Pittsburgh Steelers 30-6. It wasn't even close. C.J. Stroud and Christian Kirk were essentially playing catch while the Steelers' offense looked stuck in mud. Houston’s defense, led by Will Anderson Jr., turned the game into a nightmare for the Pittsburgh front office.
But that wasn't the only shocker.
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The Chicago Bears pulled off a vintage "voodoo magic" comeback against the Green Bay Packers. Down 21-3 at one point, Caleb Williams orchestrated his seventh fourth-quarter comeback of the season. They ended up winning 31-27. It’s the kind of game that makes Packers fans want to throw their remotes through the window.
Here is the quick rundown of everyone who survived the opening round:
- Houston Texans (Beat Steelers 30-6)
- Chicago Bears (Beat Packers 31-27)
- Buffalo Bills (Beat Jaguars 27-24)
- San Francisco 49ers (Beat Eagles 23-19)
- Los Angeles Rams (Beat Panthers 34-31)
- New England Patriots (Beat Chargers 16-3)
Why No Games Today?
The NFL doesn't usually do Thursday games during the playoffs. They like to save the prime-time slots for the weekend to maximize those massive TV ratings. Right now, the players are basically in recovery mode. The Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks are just sitting back, watching the film, and enjoying the fact that they had a first-round bye.
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It's sort of the calm before the storm. Coaches are grinding through tape while fans are debating point spreads on Reddit. If you're looking for a winner today, the only winners are the New York Giants, who apparently just won the "John Harbaugh sweepstakes" by hiring him as their new head coach. That’s the big news today—coaching carousels and draft declarations.
Looking Ahead: The Divisional Matchups
Since nobody won a game today, let’s look at who will win in a few days. The Divisional Round schedule is set, and it’s arguably better than the Wild Card slate.
Saturday, January 17:
The Buffalo Bills travel to the high altitude of Denver to face the top-seeded Broncos. Josh Allen is banged up, and the Broncos' defense—which set a franchise record with 68 sacks this season—is licking its chops. Later that night, it’s an NFC West showdown with the 49ers visiting the Seahawks. San Francisco is playing without George Kittle (Achilles), so they’ll need more magic from Jauan Jennings and Christian McCaffrey.
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Sunday, January 18:
The Texans head to Foxboro to face the Patriots. This is a battle of elite defenses. Then, the Rams go to Chicago to see if they can stop the Caleb Williams hype train. Matthew Stafford is the only Super Bowl-winning QB left in the bracket, which is a wild stat when you think about it.
The Actionable Insight for Fans
If you’re trying to stay ahead of the curve, keep an eye on the injury reports for Nico Collins (Texans) and the 49ers' defensive stars like Nick Bosa and Fred Warner. Their availability will completely change the betting lines by Friday night.
Basically, the "winner" today is any team that stays healthy during practice. If you want to see live scores, you’ll have to wait until Saturday afternoon when the Bills and Broncos kick off at 4:30 PM ET on CBS.
For those of you tracking the draft, the New York Jets are the big "winners" of the offseason so far, holding both the No. 2 and No. 16 overall picks for 2026. The landscape is shifting fast.
Your next steps: 1. Check the status of Christian McCaffrey’s workload—he’s been carrying the Niners' offense, but fatigue might be an issue in Seattle.
2. Monitor the weather in Denver—a snowy Saturday could turn the Bills/Broncos game into a ground-and-pound struggle that favors Denver’s elite run defense.
3. Set your DVR for Saturday at 4:30 PM ET so you don't miss the start of the next round.