The Baltimore Ravens were able to open the Week 18 action early when they defeated the Cleveland Browns in one of the two Saturday games this past weekend.
And, after the Pittsburgh Steelers narrowly lost to another AFC North rival, the Cincinnati Bengals, fans were pretty certain as to how the playoff schedule would pan out for Baltimore. Still, there was one more game that would impact seeding and scheduling.
Sunday afternoon, the Los Angeles Chargers took on the Las Vegas Raiders. And, if the Chargers won, then that would lock the Steelers into the no. 6 seed. Of course, the Ravens were cemented as the AFC's no. 3 seed with their victory and clinching the AFC North, which means they would end up taking on whichever team came in at number six.
Alas, after the Chargers beat the Raiders on Sunday afternoon, we officially know the Ravens and Steelers will be meeting for a third time this season, only on NFL Wild Card Weekend this time.
When do the Ravens play on NFL Wild Card Weekend?
It'll be the no. 3 seeded Ravens against the no. 6 seeded Steelers.
Date: Saturday Jan. 11
Time: 8:00pm ET
TV: Prime Video
This will be the only playoff game of the weekend which fans will need to have a subscription to watch, as it will be streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
The Ravens and Steelers split the regular season series, with Baltimore winning the most recent matchup fairly handedly by a score of 34-17. Earlier in the year, Pittsburgh took a narrow win, 18-16.
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Surely, seeding doesn't quite matter in this matchup. These two teams know one another very well. Seeding and home field advantage don't always play a part between Baltimore and Pittsburgh. You're looking at two of the most tenured and respected head coaches in all of football, who know one another better than just about anybody else.
This is going to be quite the matchup, and in all honesty, would we have it any other way? These are the matchups fans live for. It's not just a great postseason matchup. It's a postseason matchup with a bitter rival in January.
In other AFC matchups, the no. 2 seeded Buffalo Bills will host the no. 7 seeded Denver Broncos. Will Bo Nix's feel-good story come to a screeching halt like logic would say it does?
Meanwhile, the no. 4 seeded Houston Texans will play host to the no. 5 seed Los Angeles Chargers in a game that feels pretty even and unpredictable.