Date and Time Set for KC Chiefs’ Wild Card Weekend Playoff Game vs. Dolphins
The Kansas City Chiefs were locked into the AFC's three-seed for a week, leaving Andy Reid's squad waiting to find out which opponent they'd be facing in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. Following a win over the Los Angeles Chargers, Kansas City had to exercise some additional patience during Sunday Night Football's matchup between the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins.
With Week 18 now in the books, the who and the when are finalized. The Chiefs will officially square off against the Dolphins in a matchup that will be taking place on Saturday, January 13 at 7:00 local time in Kansas City.
Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs entered Week 18 with five different possible playoff opponents for round one. Saturday's Houston Texans versus Indianapolis Colts matchup helped narrow that down a bit, then the list was cut to three by the time Sunday rolled around. Coming into the aforementioned Sunday night game, the Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers were the most likely opponents for Reid and company. Buffalo wasn't mathematically ruled out, as a tie scenario kept them in the race to come to Kansas City.
How to watch the Chiefs' Wild Card playoff matchup vs. Miami
For the first time in NFL history, a playoff game is going to be broadcast live and exclusively on the Peacock platform. Peacock is allegedly paying "in the range of $110M" for the rights to exclusively carry a postseason matchup. Mahomes and the Chiefs, naturally, make sense as a solid draw for national audiences looking for a nice primetime matchup. While the Chiefs' Wild Card game will be broadcast solely on Peacock for out-of-market viewers, those within the local market have a backup option.
For folks in the Kansas City area market, KSHB 41 (NBC affiliate) is carrying coverage of the Wild Card matchup on Saturday night. The local NBC affiliate of their opponent will also carry the game. This allows those who aren't braving the temperatures (and potential snow) at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium to still be able to watch the Chiefs' first playoff outing of 2024. Should Kansas City win next weekend, they'll play either the following Saturday or Sunday in the Divisional Round of the AFC playoffs.