Who can stop the 49ers? The essential guide to the NFL play-offs

Much of the NFL's pre-season hype surrounded the New York Jets after their blockbuster trade for Aaron Rodgers.

Bringing in the four-time Most Valuable Player was supposed to finally get the Jets back into Super Bowl contention.

The narrative changed minutes into their season opener as, on just his fourth snap as the Jets quarterback, Rodgers tore his Achilles tendon.

A glimmer of hope remained but that had drifted away by December and the NFL's longest active play-off drought has stretched to 13 years.

With record seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady having retired last February, this is the first post-season since 2008 that will feature neither Brady nor Rodgers.

But there will be plenty of stars on show, with former MVPs Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson among those battling it out for a chance to shine on the Las Vegas Strip, where Super Bowl 58 will be played on 11 February.

A total of 14 teams progress to the NFL play-offs, seven from each Conference, in which 12 knockout games are played over three weekends to decide who will reach the Super Bowl.

Teams from each Conference are kept apart until the Super Bowl and, in each round, the highest seed remaining plays at home to the lowest seed.

The top seed in each Conference earns a bye for the first round, known as wildcard weekend, when six games are played featuring seeds two to seven.

The winners then join the top seeds in the divisional round, and the four winners there meet in the Conference Championships -effectively the Super Bowl semi-finals - as the two winners earn the right to represent their Conference in the big game.

This year it promises to be some show as it will be the first Super Bowl to be played in Las Vegas at Allegiant Stadium, completed in 2020 for the Raiders' relocation to 'Sin City'.

Fixtures for wildcard weekend (away teams first, kick-offs in GMT)

The Baltimore Ravens had the NFL's best record in the regular season (13-4) and quarterback Lamar Jackson, 27, looks set to win the season MVP award for a second time.

But despite Baltimore's commanding wins over the San Francisco 49ers and Miami Dolphins in December, the 49ers have been favourites to win Super Bowl 58 since late November because of their star-studded roster, with versatile running back Christian McCaffrey their biggest threat.

One of the Super Bowl favourites throughout the last few years, the Buffalo Bills seemed to be out of contention in late November but won their last five games to snatch the AFC East division title from Miami.

The Dallas Cowboys were one of three teams with a 12-5 record, have won their past 16 games at home and, if they win on Sunday, will have home advantage for at least the first two rounds.

The Kansas City Chiefs, who beat Philadelphia in a Super Bowl epic last season, were 11-6 and have the opportunity to cement their dynasty with a third NFL title in five years.

And despite limping into the post-season with five defeats from their last six games, the Philadelphia Eagles are still among the favourites to reach Vegas.

Like the Bills, the Los Angeles Rams finished strongly to reach the play-offs, winning seven of the last eight to set up a clash with the rejuvenated Detroit Lions.

The two sides traded quarterbacks in 2021 and it paid off immediately for the Rams as Matt Stafford led them to Super Bowl victory in his very first season.

Meanwhile, after falling out of favour in LA, Jared Goff has spearheaded the Lions' turnaround under coach Dan Campbell and this weekend's match-up will be the first play-off game in Detroit for 30 years.

In 12 years with the Lions, Stafford set franchise records for passing yards, passing touchdowns and QB wins but played in just three play-off games - all defeats on the road.

"I understand what the people of Detroit and the city of Detroit meant to me and my family," said Stafford this week. "I hope they feel that back, but at the same time I'm not a stranger to the situation and understand that I'm the bad guy coming to town."

Aaron Rodgers' solitary Super Bowl win with the Green Bay Packers came in 2011 under Mike McCarthy, who became Dallas Cowboys coach in 2020 and will now face his former team in the play-offs.

'America's Team' has not reached the Super Bowl since 1996 and, after a third straight 12-5 season, the pressure is on McCarthy and Dallas to deliver in the post-season while little is expected of Green Bay, currently the NFL's youngest team.

They had to win their last three games to clinch a wildcard spot and Rodgers' replacement Jordan Love has done something neither Rodgers nor Brett Favre managed - led the Packers into the play-offs in his first season as starting quarterback.

There will be another reunion in Kansas City as Tyreek Hill, who along with McCaffrey is one of the favourites for the Offensive Player of the Year award, returns to Arrowhead Stadium with the Miami Dolphins.

The jet-heeled wide receiver, who won Super Bowl 54 with the Chiefs, was traded to Miami in 2022 and this season led the league for receiving yards (1,799).

The Dolphins were 11-6 but it could have been so much better. They lost three of their last five games and last week's home defeat by Buffalo meant they had to settle for being the AFC's sixth seed rather than the second.

Crucially, it also meant that instead of hosting the unfancied Pittsburgh Steelers in 23C heat in Florida this weekend, they must visit the defending champions in what could be one of the NFL's coldest ever games - kick-off temperature is forecast to be -18C in Missouri, with a wind chill of -32C.

It is set to be a balmy -5C up in Buffalo, with snow expected as the Bills host the Steelers, who will be without linebacker TJ Watt, the potential Defensive Player of the Year, because of a knee injury.

For the second straight year, the Philadelphia Eagles were the last team to lose their unbeaten record but, like the Dolphins, they also surrendered home advantage for the play-offs with a late-season slump, so must hit the road to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

After playing for two teams last season, quarterback Baker Mayfield has found a new home with the Bucs and the Super Bowl 55 winners won five of their last six to top the NFC South.

The Houston Texans are this season's surprise package. After being 3-13 last season, they selected quarterback CJ Stroud with the second pick of the 2023 draft and traded up to take pass rusher Will Anderson with the third.

They have helped to transform the Texans' fortunes, with Stroud breaking a host of rookie records on the way to a 10-7 finish and the AFC South title.

They host the Cleveland Browns, who became the first team to play five starting quarterbacks in the same season and still reach the play-offs.

With Deshaun Watson having suffered a season-ending injury, the Browns have settled upon the 38-year-old Joe Flacco, who was without a team until November and has won four of his five games as starter.

Stroud was just six years old when Flacco, who helped the Ravens beat the 49ers in Super Bowl 47, made his NFL debut in 2008.