The New York Giants and Jets have been in the playoffs in the same season only five times.

The Los Angeles Rams and Chargers could surpass that. They have achieved the feat for the second time in seven years.

The Chargers will open wild-card weekend, and the Rams will close it, the NFL announced Sunday night.

By virtue of clinching the fifth seed in the AFC, the Chargers will play at Houston in the early game Saturday at 1:30 p.m. PST, a familiar time slot for the Texans.

The Rams, winners of the NFC West, will play host to the Minnesota Vikings two days later on “Monday Night Football.” It’s a rematch of a game the Rams won earlier this season, and is an L.A. homecoming for Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold, a onetime USC standout.

The Vikings lost to the Detroit Lions on Sunday night in a high-stakes NFC North showdown, with the winner claiming the NFC’s No. 1 seed and loser hitting the road despite a gaudy 14-3 record.

The rest of the playoff schedule, times Pacific, is as follows:

Pittsburgh at Baltimore at 5 p.m. Saturday.

Denver at Buffalo at 10 a.m. Sunday, followed by Green Bay at Philadelphia at 1:30 p.m. and Washington at Tampa Bay at 5 p.m.

This postseason features two rising-star rookie quarterbacks, at least two Week 1 rematches and one big phew.

That sigh of relief comes from the Chargers, who won at Las Vegas to claim the No. 5 seed in the AFC and earn a trip to Houston in the first round of the playoffs instead of going to Baltimore.

The Ravens are as hot as their weather is cold. The Texans, meanwhile, are up and down, having lost two of three and lacking star receivers and solid offensive line play.

The Chargers stand a far better chance of winning at Houston — which would be the first playoff victory for quarterback Justin Herbert — than rolling into Baltimore and winning another coaching matchup of Harbaugh brothers.

The Packers and Eagles opened the season in Brazil — the first time the NFL has played in South America — with a Friday game won by Philadelphia, 34-29. In his debut with the Eagles, Saquon Barkley scored three touchdowns.

As with that opener, this wild-card game pits quarterbacks Jordan Love of the Packers and Jalen Hurts of the Eagles. Both are banged up. Love took a blow to his right elbow Sunday that caused his throwing hand to go numb. Hurts still needs to clear concussion protocol.

Washington-Tampa Bay — a matchup the Buccaneers won 37-20 in a season opener — features star rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels of the Commanders and up-from-the-ashes Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield, two years removed from being released by the lowly Carolina Panthers. Mayfield, whose path back included a stint with the Rams, has had an outstanding season.

The other sizzling rookie in the postseason is Denver’s Bo Nix, who led the Broncos to a 38-0 stomping of Kansas City’s backups Sunday.

Rookie quarterback Bo Nix celebrates a blowout win over the Chiefs that advanced the Broncos to the playoffs.

(David Zalubowski / Associated Press)

That result extinguished the playoff hopes of the dark horse Cincinnati Bengals, who needed to couple their Saturday night win with losses by the Broncos and Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

Denver left no room for doubt, thrilling the home crowd with a decisive victory that sends the franchise back to the postseason for the first time since the Peyton Manning days nine years ago.

Denver has no simple task. The Broncos play at second-seed Buffalo, with top seed Kansas City earning the first-round bye.

In the other AFC matchup, it’s Pittsburgh facing the division-rival Ravens in Baltimore. The teams split during the regular season, but Baltimore has all the momentum. The Steelers have lost four in a row, including a home defeat to the Bengals on Saturday night that would have earned Pittsburgh a more preferable postseason start in Houston.

Draymond Green had just spoken for a few minutes Saturday morning about the state of the game, about how he believes it’s officiated differently than it once was, how stars don’t get the benefit of being stars like they did in the past.

And then the four-time champion with the Golden State Warriors was asked a simple question: Does he think the NBA game is boring?

“Absolutely,” he said.

Such is the challenge that the NBA is trying to fend off right now, the notion that this era of higher-scoring games, more three-pointers than ever before and a lack of rock-’em, sock-’em physicality like there was a couple generations ago is hurting the product.

On the one hand, the NBA is about to enter a new series of broadcast and streaming deals that will generate at least $76 billion, about three times more than the last deal — so interest obviously exists. Player salaries are bigger than ever, the league keeps setting attendance records and merchandise keeps flying off shelves.

Yet the NBA keeps hearing the question about the on-court product. Green is among those that think issues exist. He cited an interview he recently saw where the late Kobe Bryant, who died in 2020, called the game “accidental basketball.”

“It’s all penetrate and pitch,” Bryant said in that interview. “You may make the shot, you may not.”

Said Green: “He couldn’t have been more right.”

Green talked about a recent Golden State game against LeBron James and the Lakers, and how it was “refreshing” to go against a thinker like James — who is notorious for finding weaknesses and exploiting them.

“Every possession is some type of chess move,” Green said. “You don’t get that today in the NBA, often. … You don’t just get that on a regular basis. It’s just who can run faster, who can hit more 3s, it’s no substance. I think it’s very boring.”

Associated Press contributed to this report

Last night (Sat., Feb. 15, 2025), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returned home to UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada for UFC Vegas 102. After a pair of international events, this was a standard Apex affair. A “Fight Night” event headlined by Middleweights and filled with Contenders Series products has become the promotion’s bread and butter, and this event was no different. Still, there was some fun scraps and cool finishes, which is really all we can ask for on a night such as this.

Let’s take a look back over at UFC Vegas 102’s best performances and techniques:

Cannonier Outlasts Robo Cop

It has to be said again: Jared Cannonier is fighting outrageously well for 40 years of age.

He spent most of the first five minutes weathering the storm. Gregory Rodrigues came out with the intention of destroying “Killa Gorilla” immediately, swinging hard punches in combination, finishing combos with knees and kicks. He floored Cannonier twice and stunned him several more times, but all the while, Cannonier kept his wits about him. He wrestled his way to safety a couple times, buying time and wasting Rodrigues gas tank.

By the second, “Robo Cop” was tired and needed a round to recover. Cannonier wisely established his jab and landed plenty of low kicks, bloodying up Rodrigues and slowing him down further. The Brazilian was ready to scrap again by round three, but the damage was done. His punches were no longer flooring Cannonier, who could now exchange with Rodrigues and land his own heavy shots.

It was a great, competitive round until Cannonier landed a fight-changing elbow in the closing seconds. Rodrigues crumbled, and the round ending only served to delay the inevitable by about 75 seconds. As soon as he was allowed, Cannonier swarmed Rodrigues and forced the finish.

Gritty and powerful, Cannonier still has plenty left to give at 185 pounds.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

Zalal Dances By Kattar

For 10 minutes, Youssef Zalal was untouchable.

“The Moroccan Devil” really utilized his footwork and feints beautifully to neutralize Kattar’s offense. He established the jab first and prevented his opponent from doing the same, meaning Kattar spent most of the fighting swinging at air or holding back because he knew he was going to miss. Zalal landed a lot of shots in the time, cutting up Kattar’s face and building a major lead.

Credit to Kattar, he tried to storm back in the third. As Zalal slowed just a touch, Kattar extended his combinations and finally began to land punches. It wasn’t too dramatic and it didn’t earn him back the win, but at least Kattar managed to find some success before the final bell.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

Golden Boy Rebounds

Edmen Shahbazyan smoked Dylan Budka in about 90 seconds.

Let’s be clear: that’s exactly what should have happened. Shahbazyan is way too talented to be in the cage with a nearly .500 fighter, and he proved as much. Shahbazyan has seen more than his fair share of career ups and downs, but this was a massive step back in competition.

“Golden Boy” did his job with a heavy counter right hand.

It’s also worth-noting that Shahbazyan looked in better physical shape than usual here, both leaner and more muscular. This win doesn’t prove much, but perhaps things are finally clicking into place for the former bluechip prospect? He’s still young enough to go on a run, so hope is alive even after quite a few bad losses.

Maybe — just maybe — this is the turn of a page, the start of a new and positive streak.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

A Vicious Debut

Jose Miguel Delgado’s UFC debut didn’t last long, but he made a strong first impression against Connor Matthews. The Contenders Series product entered the fight with a 100% finish rate, and his aggressive and precise striking made it clear how he’s built up that record.

Matthews scored a brief moment of control with his wrestling, but Delgado didn’t have any trouble escaping back to his feet. As soon as he opened up, his offensive abilities quickly became apparent. From either stance, he was immediately lining up big connections, culminating in a heavy 1-2 down the middle that floored Matthews. His killer instinct was on display too, as Delgado jumped his wounded opponent with accurate, powerful ground strikes to secure the finish.

The 26 year old from Arizona is definitely one to watch moving forward.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

Additional Thoughts

• Nazim Sadykhov defeats Ismael Bonfim via first-round doctor stoppage: This was a great fight that ended too early. Bonfim started fast, dinging Sadykhov with quick punches and controlling the pace. Sadykhov struck back late in the first with a slick question mark high kick that really hurt Bonfim, possibly breaking his orbital. The Brazilian never fell and made it back to his corner, however, and there was some confusion between rounds about whether or not he could see. Bonfim certainly appeared to want to keep going, but the bout was called off anyway.
• Gabriel Bonfim defeats Khaos Williams via second-round d’arce choke (highlights): Bonfim really outclassed his opponent here. Williams is known for his aggression and punching power, but neither were particularly useful when he hit a whole lot of air. Bonfim put together every element of his game to control distance and keep Williams back. He stranded him at distance with sharp jabs, heavy calf kicks, and even belly-poking front kicks, ensuring Williams’ big swings never reached him. When Williams got over-aggressive, Bonfim would change levels with a shot and drag him to the floor, where the Brazilian was a vastly superior grappler. The end sequence was a thing of beauty, as Bonfim continually tightened and cranked on the choke to score a buzzer-beater strangle and leave Williams out cold! Winner of four of his last five, the 27 year old could still develop into a serious contender in the years to come.
• Valter Walker defeats Don’Tale Mayes via first-round heel hook (highlights): I cannot decide whether to laugh or cry. Mayes — SOMEHOW — entered this bout as a ranked Heavyweight, meaning Walter had an opportunity to break into the Top 15 in just his third UFC fight despite splitting his first two bouts. Laughably, Walker was easily able to ground Mayes, drop down on a heel hook, and secure an instant tapout in roughly a minute. I don’t know if Mayes has terrible knees, no idea how to grapple, or both … but he is likely the only fighter in UFC history to get tapped out by the heel hook twice by fighters who are not at all leg lock specialists! Yikes.

For complete UFC Vegas 102 results and play-by-play, click here.