The National Football League playoffs for the 2015 season began on January 9, 2016. The postseason tournament concluded with Super Bowl 50, on February 7, when the Denver Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
For this year only, the Super Bowl decided not to use a Roman numeral ("L") and instead used the standard numerals "50." According to Jaime Weston, the league's vice president of brand and creative, the primary reason was that the league's graphic designers had difficulty designing a suitable, aesthetically pleasing logo with only the Roman numeral "L".
Participants
Bracket
Schedule In a change from previous seasons, both AFC wild card games were played on the Saturday, and then both NFC Wild Card games were played on the Sunday (instead of having a game from each conference on the same day).
Round Away team Score Home team Date Kickoff(ET / UTC-5) TV Viewers (millions) TV Rating Wild-card round Kansas City Chiefs 30–0 Houston Texans January 9, 2016 4:35 p.m. ABC/ESPN 25.1 16.2 Pittsburgh Steelers 18–16 Cincinnati Bengals 8:15 p.m. CBS 31.2 19.2 Seattle Seahawks 10–9 Minnesota Vikings January 10, 2016 1:05 p.m. NBC 35.3 22.5 Green Bay Packers 35–18 Washington Redskins 4:40 p.m. Fox 38.8 23.6 Divisional round Kansas City Chiefs 20–27 New England Patriots January 16, 2016 4:35 p.m. CBS 31.5 19.7 Green Bay Packers 20–26 Arizona Cardinals January 16, 2016 8:15 p.m. NBC 33.7 20.3 Seattle Seahawks 24–31 Carolina Panthers January 17, 2016 1:05 p.m. Fox 36.7 23.1 Pittsburgh Steelers 16–23 Denver Broncos 4:40 p.m. CBS 43.0 26.2 Conference championships New England Patriots 18–20 Denver Broncos January 24, 2016 3:05 p.m. CBS 53.3 31.7 Arizona Cardinals 15–49 Carolina Panthers 6:40 p.m. Fox 45.7 26.8 Super Bowl 50 Carolina Panthers 10–24 Denver Broncos February 7, 2016 6:30 p.m. CBS 111.9 46.6
Wild-card round For the first time since the wild card round expanded to four games in 1990–91, all four playoff games on wild card weekend were won by the visiting teams. It also marked the first time in that all of the wild card teams advanced past the first round of the playoffs (this was only possible from 1970–71 until 1977–78 and since 2002–03, because playoff formats between 1978–79 and 2001–02 included first-round games between two wild card teams due to there being 3 divisions in each conference at the time).
Saturday, January 9, 2016
AFC: Kansas City Chiefs 30, Houston Texans 0
Kansas City, who started the season 1–5 before winning their next 10 games, forced five turnovers and held the Texans to 226 total yards as they earned their first postseason win since the 1993 season (a game also played at Houston, against the Oilers), and the first shutout victory in an NFL playoff game in 10 years. It is the first (and to date only) time the Texans have been shut out at home.
Chiefs running back Knile Davis gave his team a 7–0 lead just 11 seconds into the game by returning the opening kickoff 106 yards for a touchdown, making him the first player to score a touchdown on the first kickoff of an NFL postseason. The two teams went on to exchange punts, and then interceptions, as Texans quarterback Brian Hoyer was picked off by Eric Berry and Alex Smith returned the favor with a pass that bounced out of the hands of Jeremy Maclin and was intercepted by linebacker Brian Cushing.
Houston then drove to the Chiefs' 30-yard line, but on 3rd-and-7, Hoyer lost a fumble while being sacked by Allen Bailey, and defensive tackle Dontari Poe recovered it on the Chiefs' 42-yard line. Kansas City subsequently drove 27 yards, including an 18-yard catch by tight end Travis Kelce, to go up 10–0 on a 49-yard Cairo Santos field goal. On the Chiefs' next possession, Kelce caught a 25-yard pass on a 40-yard drive that ended on another 49-yard field goal by Santos, making the score 13–0. Houston took the ball back and drove to the Kansas City 3-yard line, but linebacker Josh Mauga's interception kept them off the scoreboard going into halftime.
Houston started the second half with a drive to the Chiefs' 40-yard line, but ended up punting. Shane Lechler managed to pin Kansas City back on their own 6-yard line with a 34-yard punt. But despite two holding penalties against the Chiefs, one of which nullified a 64-yard scramble by Smith, they still drove 94 yards in 11 plays for their first touchdown. Maclin was a key part of the drive, catching two passes for 23 yards, though on the second one he suffered a game-ending injury; Smith also completed a 16-yard pass to Kelce and finished the drive with a 9-yard touchdown pass to rookie receiver Chris Conley, give the Chiefs a 20–0 lead.
On their next drive, the Texans had to punt after three plays, and then saw Kansas City drive 71 yards in eight plays, featuring a 48-yard reception by Kelce, to score on 5-yard touchdown run by Spencer Ware. Houston managed to respond with a drive to the Chiefs' 24-yard line, only to lose the ball when Bailey again forced a fumble while sacking Hoyer on fourth down. The Texans' defense forced a punt, but Dustin Colquitt's 56-yard kick pinned them back on their 8-yard line. On the next play, Hoyer was intercepted by Sean Smith on the 20-yard line, leading to Santos' third field goal to make the final score 30–0.
Smith completed 17 of 22 passes for 190 yards with a touchdown and an interception. His top target was Kelce, who caught eight passes for 128 yards, while Ware was the top rusher for the Chiefs with 67 yards and a touchdown. Bailey had four tackles, two sacks, and two forced fumbles. Hoyer was held to just 15 of 34 passes for 134 yards and was intercepted four times. Alfred Blue was the game's leading rusher with 99 yards on 17 carries. Cushing had 13 tackles and an interception, while linebacker Whitney Mercilus had five tackles and three sacks.
This was the first postseason meeting between the Chiefs and Texans. It was also the first NFL game to air on ABC since Super Bowl XL in 2006.
AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Cincinnati Bengals 16
This game ended up being a rain-soaked vicious battle between two AFC North rivals, filled with injuries and personal fouls on both sides. After falling behind 15–0, the Bengals scored three times in the fourth quarter to take a 16–15 lead. But with less than a minute left in the game, two consecutive personal fouls against Cincinnati's defense got the Steelers close enough for Chris Boswell to make a 35-yard field goal with 18 seconds left on the clock.
The game started off as a defensive battle with both teams punting at the end of its first eight drives. With less than six minutes left in the second quarter, Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict forced a fumble from Markus Wheaton that safety George Iloka recovered on the Cincinnati 47-yard line. But a few plays later, Bengals quarterback A. J. McCarron threw an interception to Antwon Blake, who returned it 35 yards to the Bengals' 41-yard line. A 23-yard completion from Ben Roethlisberger to Antonio Brown on the ensuing drive set up Boswell's 39-yard field goal. Following a punt, Roethlisberger completed a 16-yard pass to running back Fitzgerald Toussaint and a 24-yard pass to Wheaton – with a personal foul penalty on safety Shawn Williams adding another 15 yards – to set up Boswell's 30-yard field goal just before halftime. Despite the Steelers' slim 6–0 lead, they had dominated the stat sheet, holding Cincinnati to just 56 yards and two first downs.
On the opening drive of the second half, the Bengals seemed primed to score when Jeremy Hill broke free for a 38-yard run to the Steelers' 29-yard line. But on the next play, McCarron lost a fumble due to a hit by linebacker Jarvis Jones. Defensive end Cam Thomas recovered the ball and ended up losing it while being tackled, then William Gay picked it up and returned it for a touchdown. However, replays showed that Thomas was down by contact before he lost the fumble, and a 15-yard penalty against Gay for excessive celebration moved the ball all the way back to Pittsburgh's 36-yard line. Receiver Martavis Bryant's 44-yard run on an end-around play then set up Boswell's 34-yard field goal that gave the Steelers a 9–0 lead. Following a punt, Roethlisberger completed a 60-yard pass to Brown on the Bengals' 10-yard line. Then he threw a pass in the back of the end zone to Bryant, who made a diving somersault catch and maintained possession for a touchdown by pinning the ball against one leg while falling to the ground. However, Pittsburgh's two-point conversion attempt failed, so the score remained 15–0. Cincinnati responded with a drive to the Steelers' 23-yard line, but committed another turnover when running back Giovani Bernard lost a fumble that was forced and recovered by linebacker Ryan Shazier, who leveled Bernard with a devastating helmet leading hit that knocked the running back out of the game and out of consciousness. Shazier was not penalized for the hit, much to the dismay of the home crowd.
On the last play of the third quarter, Burfict sacked Roethlisberger for a 12-yard loss, forcing a punt from the Steelers' 5-yard line and temporarily knocking Roethlisberger out of the game with a shoulder injury. After Jordan Berry's 41-yard punt gave the Bengals a first down on the Pittsburgh 46-yard line, Will Allen committed a 42-yard pass interference penalty while trying to cover A. J. Green. Hill then got the ball into the end zone with consecutive carries, the second a 1-yard touchdown run that made the score 15–7. The Steelers, now led by Landry Jones, started off their next drive well, as Jordan Todman rushed for a 25-yard gain on the second play. But an 11-yard sack by Carlos Dunlap and Pat Sims ultimately forced the Steelers to punt. McCarron started the Bengals' drive off with two completions to Hill for 24 total yards. Later on, he converted a 3rd-and-9 with an 18-yard completion to tight end Tyler Eifert, and eventually the Bengals got close enough for Mike Nugent to kick a 36-yard field goal, making the score 15–10 with 5:17 left. The Steelers had to punt after three plays on their ensuing possession, and Adam Jones' 24-yard return gave the Bengals the ball on the Pittsburgh 45-yard line. McCarron soon faced a 4th-and-2 situation, but converted with a 9-yard completion to Marvin Jones. Then when faced with 3rd-and-7, he launched a 25-yard touchdown pass to Green. After their two-point conversion failed, the Bengals held a 16–15 lead with 1:45 left. On the first play after the kickoff, Landry Jones threw an interception to Burfict on the Steelers' 26-yard line. He celebrated by running all the way through the tunnel. But with the game now seemingly in the Bengals' control, they gave the ball right back on the next play when Shazier forced a fumble from Hill that was recovered by Ross Cockrell.
Now with the ball on his own 11-yard line with 1:23 left, Roethlisberger returned to lead his team 74 yards in nine plays for the game-winning score. After several short completions moved the ball to the 37-yard line, Pittsburgh faced a 4th-and-3, but overcame it on Brown's 12-yard reception. On the next play, with just 22 seconds left, Roethlisberger threw a pass intended for Brown. The pass was incomplete, but Burfict was flagged for a personal foul for contact with Brown's helmet. Brown was injured on the play, and as he was being attended and officials were dealing with both teams, Adam Jones was flagged for a personal foul after an altercation with Steelers linebackers coach Joey Porter, giving the Steelers another 15 yards and moving the ball to the Bengals' 17-yard line. On the next play, Boswell kicked a 35-yard field goal with 18 seconds left to win the game.