Saturday marks the start of Week 18, and the final two days of the 2025-26 regular season. The NFL used its flex scheduling option to give fans two meaningful games on Saturday, as the Carolina Panthers (8-8) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-9) battle it out for the top spot in the NFC South followed by the Seattle Seahawks (13-3) and San Francisco 49ers (12-4) competing for the NFC West division title and the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
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Here’s how to watch Saturday’s games:
Panthers at Bucs
When: Saturday, January 3, 2026 — 4:30 p.m. ET
Where: Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida
TV: ESPN/ABC
Announcers: Chris Fowler, Dan Orlovsky, and Louis Riddick, with field reporters Katie George and Peter Schrager
Online streaming: ESPN+, Hulu + Live TV, NFL+
From a rooting perspective, Jeremy Reisman has published a Week 18 Saturday Lions fans’ rooting guide for those looking toward the NFL Draft and 2026 season. Lions’ fans will want to pull for the Buccaneers in this game, as Reisman explained:
“The winner of this game moves into the top spot in the NFC South (at least temporarily). If that’s the Bucs, the Lions will jump them in draft order, and the Panthers, at 8-9, will only jump Detroit if the Lions finish 9-8, because Carolina has a much tougher strength of schedule (.522 to Detroit’s .491)
“If the Panthers win, the Lions will stay behind a 7-10 Buccaneers team no matter the outcome of their own game.“
Where this game gets interesting for all NFL fans is that a potential tiebreaker looms on Sunday. If the Bucs beat the Panthers on Saturday, both teams will be 8-9 with the Bucs holding the tiebreaker that puts them in first place in the division.
However, if the Atlanta Falcons beat the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, they would also end up 8-9 on the season, thus creating a three-way tie for first place in the NFC South. In this scenario, the Panthers would jump back into first place because the tiebreaker is based on head-to-head results among the three teams: the Panthers would be 3-1 (beat Falcons twice and split with Bucs), the Bucs would be 2-2 (split with Panthers and Falcons), and the Falcons would be 1-3.
Seahawks at 49ers
When: Saturday, January 3, 2026 — 8:00 p.m. ET
Where: Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California
TV: ESPN/ABC
Announcers: Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, with field reporters Lisa Salters and Laura Rutledge
Online streaming: ESPN+, Hulu + Live TV, NFL+
The winner of this game will become the NFC West champion and secure the No. 1 seed in the NFL playoffs, earning a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. From a Lions fan’s perspective, this game will have no impact on the Lions’ draft pick, but there is some potential to impact Detroit’s 2026 schedule.
Based on the NFL’s scheduling formula, each team from the NFC North will face the comparable seeded team from the NFC West in 2026. Meaning, if the Lions beat the Bears in Week 18 and the Vikings lose to the Packers, the Lions would finish third in the NFC North, secure a third-place schedule for 2026, and face the third-place team in the NFC West.
If the 49ers win, they secure first place, the Seahawks land in second, and the Los Angeles Rams will be third in the NFC West—and the Lions’ potential opponent.
However, if the Seahawks win, they’ll secure first place, and the 49ers will have to wait on the outcome of the Rams vs. Arizona Cardinals game to know their position. If the Rams beat the Cardinals, L.A. lands in second, and the 49ers would drop to third.
For a look at how the POD staff has picked these games, make sure you check out all of our Week 18 predictions: Moneyline, spread, and over/under.
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