Who do the 49ers play in the NFL Playoff? San Francisco's postseason schedule explained

The last few pieces of the NFL playoff picture came together as the regular season concluded on Sunday. The San Francisco 49ers secured the NFC's top seed before Week 18's regular season games, meaning they won't have to worry about playing in the postseason's first round.

For the divisional round, the team with the lowest seed that advances past the Wildcard Round will play the 49ers, the top-seeded NFC team. This implies that San Francisco will have four matchup options when the divisional round begins on Jan. 20.

We shall now select each prospective opponent of San Francisco one at a time and discuss the possibilities that could pit the 49ers against them.

#1 - No. 4 seed Tampa Bay Buccaneers

If the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeat the Philadelphia Eagles, who are seeded fifth, in the Wildcard Round, and the Detroit Lions, who are seeded third, defeat the LA Rams, who are ranked sixth, then the 49ers will have the opportunity to play the Bucs in the divisional round. For this scenario to pass, the No. 2 seed Dallas Cowboys must also defeat the No. 7 seed Green Bay Packers.

The Buccaneers will automatically be the lowest seed remaining in the NFC divisional round if all of these things occur, which means they will have to travel to play the 49ers.

#2 - No. 5 seed Philadelphia Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers met in the NFC championship game last season; this year, they might meet each other again in the divisional round.

In the divisional round, San Francisco will only play Philly if the Eagles, Lions and Cowboys triumph in their Wildcard Round games.

#3 - No. 6 seed LA Rams

The 49ers' 2021 NFC championship opponent, the LA Rams, may play San Francisco in this year's divisional round, but they must first defeat the Lions in the Wildcard Round.

There is still one more requirement for the Rams to play the Niners: The Cowboys must defeat the Packers in the opening round of the playoffs.

#4 - No. 7 seed Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers are the fourth and final team that the San Francisco 49ers will likely play in the divisional round of the playoffs.

The San Francisco 49ers will be the Packers' next opponent on the road if they can upset the Dallas Cowboys in the Wildcard Round of the playoffs.

Since Green Bay is the team with the lowest playoff seed, the outcome of the other NFC Wildcard games is irrelevant if the Packers win next week.

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NFL Playoffs Schedule

The Wildcard Round of the NFL playoffs will start on Saturday.

Here's a full schedule of the Wildcard games:

Saturday, Jan. 13

Houston Texans vs. Cleveland Browns - 4:30 p.m. ET (NBC)

Kansas City Chiefs vs. Miami Dolphins - 8 p.m. ET (Peacock)

Sunday, Jan. 14

Buffalo Bills vs. Pittsburgh Steelers - 1 p.m. ET (CBS)

Dallas Cowboys vs. Green Bay Packers - 4:30 p.m. ET (Fox)

Detroit Lions vs. LA Rams - 8 p.m. ET (NBC/Peacock and Universo)

Monday, Jan. 15

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Philadelphia Eagles - 8:15 p.m. ET (ABC/ESPN)

The divisional round matchups are slated to begin on Saturday, Jan. 20, and end on Monday, Jan. 22. The games that follow, the championship games, will take place on Sunday, Jan. 28. The winners of those two contests will advance to the Super Bowl, which will take place at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Sunday, Feb. 11.

Explore Playoff Chances for detailed insights on your favorite team's or rival's playoff prospects!