As the NFL schedule turns the page to the Conference Championship round, fresh off a great weekend of action, many fans eagerly await the next round. As we have all become used to Thursday Night Football, some may wonder if there is a game tonight.
Let’s dive deeper into Thursday Night Football, the Conference Championship round schedule, and prepare for another exciting slate of NFL action as we march closer to Super Bowl Sunday.
Is Thursday Night Football on Tonight?
The short answer to this question is no, there are no NFL games tonight.
The NFL’s Thursday games ended in Week 17 and are not something that carries over into the playoffs. Thursday Night Football will not return to the airwaves until Week 2 of next season.
The reason for the absence during the playoffs is due to the competitive disadvantages teams would face. Teams would have to play a matchup on short rest, not allowing for either squad to have the proper time to prepare for a playoff matchup with their season on the line.
Conversely, the team that advances in that scenario would have multiple days of rest that their future opponent wouldn’t. However, the league justified the addition of a Monday Night Football game to the Wild Card round as it is a mere one-day difference.
NFL Conference Championship Schedule
After a thrilling weekend saw the cream rise to the top, setting up two excellent matchups between the NFL’s four best teams, we’re locked and loaded for another fun weekend of action. Two games are to be played on Sunday with Conference Championships and a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.
Sunday, Jan. 28
- Kansas City Chiefs at Baltimore Ravens
3 p.m. ET, CBS/Paramount+
- Detroit Lions at San Francisco 49ers
6:30 p.m. ET, FOX
The high-intensity slate of NFL playoff action will begin in Baltimore as Lamar Jackson and the Ravens play host to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. While the Ravens look to be the best the NFL has to offer, the Chiefs come into the AFC Championship Game with a lot of experience. This will be their sixth straight appearance in the AFC Championship.
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It’s been a struggle at times for Kansas City’s offense, as they haven’t received their usual production from their offensive weapons. It has oftentimes felt like continuous cases of Mahomes and the defense willing them to victory despite that.
With a trip to Baltimore this weekend, the Chiefs will need to be firing on all cylinders as the Ravens are a team with very few weaknesses.
Jackson looks to be well on his way to his second MVP award, and the Baltimore defense continues to be one of the premier units in the NFL. Sunday’s AFC Championship Game looks to be as good as one could hope for, with two teams boasting talent all over the field, and storylines galore setting the stage for an instant classic.
As for the NFC side, there has been no better story than the Detroit Lions. The NFC North champions will head out west to take on the San Francisco 49ers. The 49ers come into the matchup with some injury concerns as the status of Deebo Samuel is very much in doubt, and it will be something both teams monitor closely.
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“It wasn’t broken, so that was a really good sign,” Shanahan told 49ers.com. “It’s still hurting too much for us to have any idea on how it’s going to heal up this week. We just have to be patient, see how he feels on Wednesday and based on his improvement it will give us a better idea whether he has a chance for the game or not.”
The Lions have never won a Super Bowl and haven’t made it this far into the playoffs since 1992. With a trip to the Super Bowl on the line, will it be Detroit forging its way into the big game after being a perennial loser, or will San Francisco find a way to get back and over the hump after several close encounters?
Super Bowl Schedule
Sunday, Feb. 11
- AFC Winner vs. NFC Winner
6:30 p.m. ET, CBS/Paramount+
The NFC winner and AFC winner will battle it out to see who reigns supreme and will lift the Lombardi Trophy as the NFL champion of the 2023-24 season.
Want to predict the results of the 2023 NFL postseason with our FREE NFL Playoff Predictor? How about looking into in-depth breakdowns of team depth charts or the NFL playoff schedule? Pro Football Network has you covered with all that and more!