The Carolina Panthers and the Baltimore Ravens advanced in the NFL playoffs after picking up victories on the first day of wildcard weekend. Each team will move on to the divisional round of the playoffs next weekend.

The first game of the day saw the Carolina Panthers hosting the Arizona Cardinals, while the second game featured bitter rivals, as the Pittsburgh Steelers hosted the Baltimore Ravens. At the end of the day, the Panthers and the Ravens punched their tickets to the next round thanks to solid, decisive victories.

In the first game of the day, the Carolina Panthers put on a historical defensive performance, on their way to a 27-16 win over the Cardinals. The Panthers allowed the lowest amount of total yards in a playoff game in NFL history, as they gave up just 78 yards to a Cardinals offense that has been hampered with injuries all season long and was down to their fourth quarterback. The Panthers will play either the Seattle Seahawks or the Green Bay Packers next weekend, depending on the result of tomorrow’s other NFC wildcard game.

With their victory, the Panthers became just the second team in NFL history to win a postseason game despite having a losing record during the regular season. The first team to do it was the Seattle Seahawks, who defeated the New Orleans Saints back in 2010. That Seahawks team had a 7-9 record. This Panthers team went 7-8-1 during the regular season, but won the lowly NFC South Division on the last day of the regular season last Sunday.

The prime time game featured bitter AFC North rivals, as the Pittsburgh Steelers hosted the Baltimore Ravens. Thanks to a strong second half, the Ravens pulled off the road victory over their arch rivals, winning 30-17. For the Ravens, it was their first postseason win in Pittsburgh, as they had lost the previous three meetings on the road, in the playoffs against their bitter adversaries.

The Ravens, who narrowly got into the playoffs last weekend thanks to a lot of outside help, will travel to New England next weekend to play the Patriots. Two years ago when the Ravens won the Super Bowl, they went to New England and defeated the Patriots on their way to their second world championship in franchise history.

The final two games of the wildcard round will be played tomorrow when the Indianapolis Colts host the Cincinnati Bengals, and the Dallas Cowboys host the Detroit Lions.