Every year, the NFL waits as long as possible before releasing the Week 18 schedule and that announcement finally came on Sunday night.

Week 18 action kicks off with a Saturday doubleheader, however, which features the Carolina Panthers at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 4:30 p.m. ET on ESPN/ABC, and the Seattle Seahawks at the San Francisco 49ers at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN/ABC.

Every week for the duration of the 2025 regular season , USA TODAY Sports will provide timely updates to the NFL 's ever-evolving playoff picture – typically starting Sunday afternoon and then moving forward for the remainder of the week (through Monday's and Thursday's games or Saturday's,