Wild card games are a part of the National Football League (NFL) playoffs. They are the first round of the playoffs and are played by eight teams, four from the American Football Conference (AFC) and four from the National Football Conference (NFC). The games are played on the first weekend of January, and they determine which teams will advance to the divisional round.
How Are Teams Selected for Wild Card Games?
The eight teams that participate in the wild card games are the ones that did not win their respective divisions but have the best records in their conference. The top two teams in each conference get a bye in the first round and advance directly to the divisional round. The remaining four teams in each conference compete in the wild card games.
How Are Wild Card Games Scheduled?
The NFL schedules the wild card games so that two games are played on Saturday and two on Sunday. The games are played back-to-back, with the first game starting in the early afternoon and the last game ending in the late evening. The games are played in two different cities, with the higher-seeded team hosting the game.
How Are Wild Card Games Played?
The wild card games are single-elimination games, meaning that the winner advances to the next round, and the loser is eliminated from the playoffs. The games are played under the same rules as regular-season games, with four 15-minute quarters, a halftime break, and one 12-minute overtime period (if necessary).
What Happens If There Is a Tie?
If the game is tied at the end of regulation, the teams play one 12-minute overtime period. If the score remains tied after the overtime period, the game ends in a tie, and the winner is determined by a series of tiebreaking procedures.
What Are the Tiebreaking Procedures?
The NFL has a set of tiebreaking procedures to determine the winner of a tied game. The tiebreaking procedures are used to determine which team advances to the next round of the playoffs. The tiebreaking procedures are:
- Team with the most first downs
- Team with the highest net yards rushing
- Team with the highest net yards passing
- Team with the fewest turnovers
- Team with the fewest penalties
- Coin toss
What Happens After the Wild Card Games?
The winners of the wild card games advance to the divisional round, where they play the two teams that earned a bye in the first round. The divisional round is also a single-elimination game, with the winners advancing to the conference championship games. The winners of the conference championship games advance to the Super Bowl.
Conclusion
Wild card games are an exciting part of the NFL playoffs. They give teams that did not win their divisions a chance to compete for the Super Bowl. The games are played under the same rules as regular-season games, and they are single-elimination games. The winners of the wild card games advance to the divisional round, where they play the top-seeded teams in their conference.
