NFL wild-card odds, spreads: Rams huge favorites; Packers-Bears and Bills-Jaguars nearly even
This is the New Year, and the NFL feels very different. The NFL playoffs feature a stacked card of games and several teams that, back when the season kicked off, few expected to be here.
The top seeds went to the Seattle Seahawks, who started the season at +3000 to win the NFC and +6000 to win the Super Bowl, and the Denver Broncos, who opened at +1400 odds to win the AFC and +3000 to win the Super Bowl. Now they both get a ticket straight to the divisional round.
In the wild-card round, a couple other stunners: The Carolina Panthers squeaked their way in; the New England Patriots and the Chicago Bears are No. 2 seeds, and the AFC’s 3-seed is the Jacksonville Jaguars, who are nearly even in their upcoming matchup against the Buffalo Bills. Welcome to the new NFL.
The odds for this week’s slate feature two essential toss-ups, three more close games nearly within a field goal and one lopsided affair.
The biggest spread is that first Saturday game with the Los Angeles Rams as 10-point favorites on the road in Charlotte. For much of the latter half of the season, the Rams held the top spot in the odds to win the Super Bowl and are still just a tiny bit behind their NFC West rivals, the Seahawks.
As of Monday morning, three games have a spread of 3.5 points, with the No. 3 Philadelphia Eagles favored at home over the No. 6 San Francisco 49ers, the No. 2 Patriots favored at home over the No. 7 Los Angeles Chargers and the No. 5 Houston Texans favored on the road at the No. 4 Pittsburgh Steelers.
That leaves us with the two games that, as of Monday morning, are virtual toss-ups: Green Bay Packers at Bears and Bills at Jaguars. All four teams opened at minus-odds on the moneyline, indicating no clear favorite or underdog. As of Monday morning, the Bills had shifted to 1.5-point favorites at -120 odds, with the Jaguars at +100.
Yes, the Packers-Bears rivalry matters again, and the Jaguars are threatening the Josh Allen machine. Welcome to 2026.
Here are the odds for each NFL playoff game this week.
NFL wild-card week odds
Los Angeles Rams at Carolina Panthers
Green Bay Packers at Chicago Bears
Buffalo Bills at Jacksonville Jaguars
San Francisco 49ers at Philadelphia Eagles
Los Angeles Chargers at New England Patriots
Houston Texans at Pittsburgh Steelers
