• Game set for 2:45 p.m. ET Across ESPN, ABC, ESPN Deportes and the ESPN App
• Buck, Aikman, Salters and Rutledge call the game on ESPN/ABC; NFL Divisional Round Playbook with Next Gen Stats available for avid fans on the ESPN App
• Postseason NFL Countdown onsite at Noon ET on ESPN, ABC with Sunday NFL Countdown commentators live from outside Gillette Stadium, Monday Night Countdown crew inside stadium
• NFL Primetime with Chris Berman and numerous editions of SportsCenter enhance coverage; ESPN digital platforms support linear offerings

ESPN brings its NFL postseason game presentations to a crescendo on Sunday afternoon, closing out its 2025-26 season with a Divisional Round showdown as the Houston Texans visit the New England Patriots (Jan. 18, 2:45 p.m. ET). Available across ESPN, ABC, ESPN Deportes, the ESPN App and on mobile with NFL+, the Texans ride a 10-game winning streak into Foxboro to face league MVP-candidate Drake Maye and the AFC East champion Patriots, with a trip to the AFC Championship Game hanging in the balance.

Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Lisa Salters and Laura Rutledge will have the call on ESPN and ABC, with NFL Divisional Round Playbook with Next Gen Stats on the ESPN app and a Spanish-language telecast available on ESPN Deportes.

Leading into kickoff, a supercharged edition of Postseason NFL Countdown with nine ESPN commentators – comprised of both the Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown crews onsite in New England – will bring fans nearly three hours of pregame coverage. Airing from Noon-2:45 p.m. on ESPN and ABC, Postseason NFL Countdown will have sets inside and outside Gillette Stadium.

Prior to onsite coverage at Gillette Stadium, ESPN will deliver extensive coverage of the first two Divisional Round games, including a special two-hour bonus edition of Postseason NFL Countdown on Saturday (10 a.m.-Noon ET, ESPN), ten hours of SportsCenter throughout the weekend – four of which on Saturday, an episode of NFL Primetime (11:15 p.m., ESPN App) and NFL Matchup (6 a.m., 7:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m., ESPN2), along with robust digital coverage.

Following the last game of the Divisional Round on Sunday, NFL Primetime and SportsCenter will conclude the weekend. More information on all studio programming can be found below.

MNF broadcast team concludes season with Texans-Patriots
Buck and Aikman will cap their 24th season as NFL broadcast partners – and their fourth on Monday Night Football – with the Texans-Patriots call. The legendary pairing, who, in 2023, established the mark as the longest-tenured broadcast booth partners in NFL history will bring ESPN’s 25-game season to a close alongside Emmy Award-winning sideline reporter Salters, reporting on the Patriots, and Rutledge, who will be stationed on the Texans sideline. Officiating analyst Russell Yurk will join Buck and Aikman in the broadcast booth.

NFL Divisional Round Playbook with Next Gen Stats – ESPN’s newest data- and analytics-driven alternate presentation – will feature Field Yates, Chase Daniel, Domonique Foxworth and Brian Burke and be available to stream on the ESPN app.

Supersized Postseason NFL Countdown to lead into kick off
Making their sixth road-trip in the 40-year history of the show, Sunday NFL Countdown’s Mike Greenberg, Patriots Hall of Famer Tedy Bruschi, Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss – who played for the Patriots from 2007-09, Alex Smith and Rex Ryan will be stationed outside Gillette Stadium. Adam Schefter will contribute to the show remotely. Fans in Foxboro are invited to come see the show live in the North Plaza at Gillette Stadium, right in the shadows of the Tom Brady statue.

Inside the stadium, Monday Night Countdown’s Scott Van Pelt, Ryan Clark, Jason Kelce, Marcus Spears and Michelle Beisner-Buck will bring fans all the pregame action unfolding on the field.

Prior to traveling to New England, on Saturday, Postseason NFL Countdown with Greenberg, Bruschi, Moss, Smith, Ryan and Schefter, with sports betting analyst Erin Dolan, will air from ESPN’s New York based studios. Throughout the weekend, ESPN will have reporters onsite at every game:

• Sal Paolantonio: Bills vs. Broncos
• Lindsey Thiry: 49ers vs. Seahawks
• Rutledge: Texans
• Salters: Patriots
• Jeff Darlington: Rams
• Kimberley Martin: Bears

Both editions of Postseason NFL Countdown will feature in-depth storytelling, showcasing the biggest names around the league:

• Building a Winner: Schefter goes behind the scenes with the Denver Broncos to find out how they built a winner, going from suffering a 50-point loss to being the AFC No. 1 seed in just two seasons.
• Drake Maye 1-on-1 with Tedy Bruschi: The Patriots QB sits with Bruschi to discuss New England’s remarkable turnaround and the playoff opportunity ahead.
• Danielle Hunter & Will Anderson Jr. Conversation Part II: Following a dominant Wild Card win over Pittsburgh, Houston’s star defensive ends sit with Beisner-Buck to break down the art of pressuring the quarterback and how the Texans’ defensive culture fueled the unit’s growth this season.

NFL Primetime punctuates both days
NFL Primetime with Chris Berman and Booger McFarland will close out both Saturday and Sunday nights, airing at approximately 11:15 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., respectively, on the ESPN App. The long-running highlight show will recap both games from each day.

On Saturday morning, a new episode of NFL Matchup, hosted by Paolantonio, will break down the Xs and Os of the Divisional Round.

SportsCenter adds to Divisional weekend coverage
Beginning early Saturday morning, SportsCenter will air for three consecutive hours (7-10 a.m., ESPN) leading into Postseason NFL Countdown, with Jeremy Fowler in-studio and Louis Riddick, Schefter, Smith, Paolantonio and Thiry all contributing. On Sunday morning, five hours of SportsCenter will blanket ESPN (7 a.m.-Noon) with Herm Edwards and Damien Woody, both in-studio, being joined remotely by Schefter, Darlington, Dan Graziano and Martin.

Following NFL Primetime, SC@Night will conclude each night.

ESPN digital platforms drive extensive Divisional Round storytelling
ESPN digital platforms will include coverage from various NFL reporters and analysts on ESPN.com. Highlights include:

• “Previewing all four divisional round games with picks, predictions, more” by NFL Nation, Matt Bowen, Pamela Maldonado, Ben Solak, Kevin Seifert and Seth Walder
• “How Vance Joseph’s return to the Broncos helped build an elite NFL defense” by Jeff Legwold
• “How the Seahawks picked Sam Darnold to lead them back to the playoffs” by Brady Henderson
• “Can anyone stop the Rams’ super-efficient run game?” by Solak
• COMING SOON: “Is this Kyle Shanahan’s finest coaching job? How he reignited his passion in 2025” by Nick Wagoner

-30-