'Win or go home' - who are your picks in wide-open Super Bowl race?

The "most unusual" NFL season in years is set for a fitting finale.

After a record-breaking number of comebacks on Wildcard Weekend, six teams progressed to the Divisional Round.

They have been joined by the top seeds from each conference, with the Denver Broncos (AFC) and Seattle Seahawks (NFC) having received byes for the first round.

Yet the race for the Super Bowl remains wide open and this weekend's four games are even tougher to call than last week.

"It's win or go home and at this point of the season, every team has the ability to hurt you," said Seattle's British defensive coordinator Aden Durde.

"Every team has earned the right [to be here]. There's no-one you can take lightly or put above someone else."

Durde's Seahawks are the marginal favourites to win Super Bowl 60 ahead of the Los Angeles Rams.

But which two teams do you think will win next week's Conference Championships to reach the NFL's title decider? You can pick your NFC and AFC winners below - and have your say in the comments.

Kansas City knocked the Buffalo Bills out of the play-offs in four of the past five years and with the Chiefs missing out - along with fellow AFC rivals Baltimore and Cincinnati - is this Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen's best chance yet to reach the Super Bowl?

The NFL's reigning Most Valuable Player led the Bills to a comeback win at Jacksonville last week - but they must now visit the AFC's top seed Denver.

"Defence still wins championships," said USA Today reporter Tyler Dragon. "Denver are a well-balanced team and kind of like the Seahawks, it starts with that defence."

The Broncos have won 13 of their past 14 games and led the league with 68 sacks - 11 more than any other team.

"That allows head coach Sean Payton to... be aggressive because you know your defence is going to get you the ball back," said former NFL coach Phil McGeoghan.

"In the play-offs, when you can have issues with weather or injuries, it's going to take a turnover on defence to make the difference."

Houston and New England's defensive units dominated in their wins last week, and now Patriots quarterback Drake Maye faces a stern test of his MVP credentials against the Texans, who led the league for fewest yards allowed (183.5 per game).

"I love that Houston defence and that front, in particular Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson," said McGeoghan.

"Those guys come off the edge with bad intentions, they can ruin your weekend. But I think the Patriots will find a way to protect Maye and he'll make enough plays."

NFL play-offs: 2025 season

10 January - 8 February 2026

Live text commentary on all play-off games on the BBC Sport website and app, plus live radio commentary on Texans @ Patriots on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds. The Whole 10 Yards, BBC Sport's weekly NFL programme, will also follow the road to Super Bowl 60

The Rams and San Francisco 49ers both won last week to join NFC West rivals Seattle in the Divisional Round, making it three teams from that division in the last eight.

The Chicago Bears made a record six fourth-quarter comebacks during the regular season and pulled off another last week to progress, but if the Rams win in Chicago it will ensure a divisional match-up for the Conference Championships.

"The Bears' slow starts are going to come back to bite them, especially against the upper echelon teams - and the Rams are certainly one of those, " said Dragon.

"Matt Stafford is the MVP favourite, they have arguably the best receiving corps in the NFL with Puka Nacua and Davante Adams on the outside, and their defence is pretty good as well."

Injury-hit San Francisco lost another key player last week - tight end George Kittle - and this week they visit Seattle, whose quarterback Sam Darnold has only played one play-off game.

Should they win, the Seahawks would also host the Conference Championship at Lumen Field, where their raucous fans are known as 'the 12s' because they are like having a 12th man.

"It's probably the loudest venue I've been to," said Dragon. "Those fans can get after it and it really helps when the opposing offence has the ball.

"Seattle are a well-rounded team. They aren't dependent on Darnold and last time they played the 49ers their defence held them to only three points."

McGeoghan added: "There's tons of familiarity because they're divisional opponents, so I think you can throw the seeds out the window - it's all going to be about physicality."

Conference seed in brackets, all kick-off times GMT

Saturday, 17 January

Sunday, 18 January