Best bets for AFC, NFC Championship Games and more on Sunday, Jan. 25

The New England Patriots followed back-to-back 4-13 seasons with a 14-3 showing in Mike Vrabel’s first year as head coach. They’re now one win away from adding to their NFL record with a 12th Super Bowl appearance.

No. 2 seed New England can secure a Super Bowl berth for the first time since 2018 when they visit Empower Field to face the No. 1 seed Denver Broncos at 3 p.m. ET in the AFC Championship Game. The winner will compete in Super Bowl LX against the victor of the NFC Championship Game, which has the top-seeded Seattle Seahawks hosting the No. 5 seed Los Angeles Rams at Lumen Field at 6:30 p.m. ET.

The Patriots, who went 8-0 on the road during the regular season, played their first two postseason games at home, defeating the Los Angeles Chargers 16-3 and Houston Texans 28-16. Denver (14-3) posted its first playoff victory since 2015 last weekend as it avenged last year’s wild-card loss by edging the visiting Buffalo Bills 33-30 in overtime. However, the Broncos will have backup Jarrett Stidham under center in place of Bo Nix, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the win against the Bills.

Seattle (14-3), which ended the regular season with a seven-game winning streak, kept rolling as it demolished the San Francisco 49ers 41-6 at home in the Divisional Round. The Rams (12-5), who were the last team to defeat the Seahawks (21-19 in Week 11), have been road warriors as they got past the Carolina Panthers 34-31 and Chicago Bears 20-17 in OT.

Eight games are on Sunday’s NBA schedule, including a matchup between the Brooklyn Nets (12-31) and Los Angeles Clippers (20-24) at 9 p.m. ET at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Cal. The Clippers extended their winning streak in the series to four games with a 121-105 victory at Brooklyn earlier this month.

The NHL has six games on its slate, one of which has the Pittsburgh Penguins (25-14-11) visiting Rogers Arena to take on the Vancouver Canucks (17-29-5) at 6 p.m. ET. The Penguins, who posted a 5-1 home triumph in their first meeting with Vancouver this season, won the first three contests of their four-game road trip while the Canucks have recorded one victory in their last 13 outings (1-10-2).

One of just a handful of college basketball games taking place Sunday is a Big Ten Conference showdown between USC (14-5) and Wisconsin (14-5) at 4 p.m. ET at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisc. The Badgers are riding a five-game winning streak while the Trojans have lost four of six contests, including their last two.

The Patriots are 3.5-point favorites against the Broncos in the latest consensus NFL odds, while the Seahawks are 2.5-point favorites against the Rams. The Clippers are 8.5-point favorites against the Nets, the Penguins are -149 favorites on the money line against the Canucks and Wisconsin is a 7.5-point favorite against USC.

Below is a snapshot of what to watch and bet for Sunday, Jan. 25. All times Eastern

NFL best bets, where to watch

Patriots at Broncos

Time: 3 p.m. | Location: Denver | TV: CBS | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)

SportsLine picks — Model: Broncos +3.5 (-108) | Expert: Marvin Mims Jr. Over 1.5 rushing yards (-119, PropBetGuy)

The Broncos will be in unfamiliar territory as Stidham makes his first start since 2023 and just the fifth of his NFL career. It also will be his first playoff start. But Denver went 8-1 at home this campaign and New England quarterback Drake Maye has had issues holding on to the football this postseason, fumbling a total of six times in two games. The SportsLine Projection Model feels Stidham will keep the Broncos close as they cover the spread in 58% of its simulations. SportsLine props expert PropBet Guy (66-41, +1916 on his last 107 NFL player prop picks) thinks Denver head coach Sean Payton will have some tricks up his sleeve and get wideout Marvin Mims Jr. involved in the running game against a Patriots team that allowed opposing receivers to gain 8.9 yards per carry in the regular season.

Rams at Seahawks

Time: 6:30 p.m. | Location: Seattle | TV: FOX | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)

SportsLine picks — Model: Seahawks -2.5 (-106) | Expert: Rams Over 22.5 points (-114, Larry Hartstein)

The Rams were favored in their first two postseason games and failed to cover the spread. They’re now underdogs against a Seattle team that has posted three consecutive double-digit victories. The SportsLine Projection Model has a lot of confidence in the Seahawks in this matchup as its simulations have them covering 58% of the time. While Seattle has allowed 10 points or fewer in each of its last three games, SportsLine expert Larry Hartstein believes the Rams will be able to break through as they put up 37 at Lumen Field in Week 16 without the services of some key offensive weapons.

NBA best bets, where to watch

Nets at Clippers

Time: 9 p.m. | Location: Inglewood, Cal. | TV: NBA League Pass | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)

SportsLine picks — Model: Over 211.5 (-106) | Expert: Clippers -8.5 (-110, Bruce Marshall)

These teams are among the worst in the NBA offensively as the Nets are last in scoring (108.3 points per game) and the Clippers are 25th (112.3). But Los Angeles has been productive of late, recording at least 112 points in 11 of its last 16 contests, and the Nets have exceeded their average in four of their past six outings. The teams combined for 226 points when they met earlier this month, and the SportsLine Projection Model sees another high-scoring affair as the Over hits in 68% of its simulations. Kawhi Leonard (knee/illness) is questionable for this matchup, but SportsLine expert Bruce Marshall (+521 on his last 21 spread picks involving Brooklyn) is confident the Clippers will handle the Mets whether he’s in the lineup or not.

NHL best bets, where to watch

Penguins at Canucks

Time: 6 p.m. | Location: Vancouver | TV: ESPN+ | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)

SportsLine picks — Model: Canucks +1.5 (-196) | Expert: Penguins -143 (Thomas Casale)

The Penguins haven’t had much difficulty on their road trip thus far, as they defeated the Seattle Kraken, Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers by three or more goals. Vancouver is in a major tailspin but has been very competitive of late, sandwiching one-goal losses around the lone victory in its last 13 outings. The SportsLine Projection Model thinks the Canucks will at least keep this contest close as its simulations have them covering the spread 68% of the time. SportsLine expert Thomas Casale likes the Penguins to finish their four-game trek with a perfect record, especially since they’ve won six of their last seven away from home.

CBB best bets, where to watch

USC at Wisconsin

Time: 4 p.m. | Location: Madison, Wisc. | TV: Peacock | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)

SportsLine picks — Model: Under 158.5 (-108) | Expert: Wisconsin -7.5 (-110, Bruce Marshall)

The Badgers (second, 84.3 points per game) and Trojans (fifth, 82.6) are among the top five highest-scoring teams in the Big Ten. However, USC has had trouble on offense of late, registering fewer than 70 points in each of its last two outings. The SportsLine Projection Model has taken that into consideration and its simulations have the Under hitting more than 52% of the time. SportsLine expert Bruce Marshall (+257 on his last 51 college basketball ATS picks) feels Wisconsin will make things difficult for the Trojans and cruise to its sixth consecutive victory.