Rams’ playoff chances on life support, drop to 19% after Week 12 loss

The Rams’ playoff hopes took a major hit on Monday night.

Last season, the Los Angeles Rams clinched the NFC West on Dec. 2 with a win over the Lions. This year, it’ll take a miracle for them to sneak into the playoffs as a wild-card team. That’s especially evident after their most recent loss, an uninspiring 45-6 defeat at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night.

The Rams entered the game with a 29% chance to make the playoffs, according to the New York Times’ playoff predictor. A win would’ve pushed their chances to nearly 40%, but this loss sets them back significantly on their quest to the postseason.

After falling to the Ravens, the Rams now have just a 19% chance to make the playoffs. If they win their next three games, their odds jump to 56%, but that’s also not including the results of other games across the NFL. A loss to the Cardinals next week drops the Rams’ chances to a measly 7%, all but ending their playoff hopes.

Los Angeles hasn’t looked like a playoff team lately, scoring just two offensive touchdowns in its last three games. The defense had been playing well, but it was gashed for 285 yards by the Ravens on Monday night at home.

Not only did this loss really hurt the Rams’ playoff chances statistically, but mentally and emotionally, it was a deflating defeat.

49ers assert dominance in NFC, stay atop playoff picture

The 49ers are the best team in the NFC, and Sunday proved it.

The 49ers’ spot as the NFC’s top team is no longer in question after they toppled the Packers 37-8 in Week 12. The win allowed them to create separation from Green Bay, and stay a game ahead of the Seahawks and Saints after their wins Sunday.

Here’s what the NFC playoff picture looks like after Sunday’s action:

1. 49ers (10-1)
2. Saints (9-2)
3. Packers (8-3)
4. Cowboys (6-5)
5. Seahawks (9-2)
6. Vikings (8-3)

The Rams are the No. 7 seed at 6-4, but given the level of play in the top six seeds, it’s hard to see them climbing back in. They face the Ravens on Monday Night Football, and a loss could effectively end their season.

San Francisco’s win Sunday over Green Bay was enormous because a loss would’ve knocked the 49ers to the No. 5 seed. Instead, they pounded the Packers and showed why they own the best record in the NFC. While the 49ers’ schedule has been relatively light, they’re dominating teams that’re going to finish below them in the standings. Not to mention their lone loss came in the final seconds of overtime to the Seahawks.

The 49ers are as dominant as their record and plus-169 point differential indicate, and that was on full display Sunday night at Levi’s Stadium.

The race in the conference for a first-round bye and home-field advantage is going to be fascinating. The Packers and Vikings play again in Week 16. The 49ers and Saints play in Week 14, and then San Francisco faces Seattle in the final week of the season.

We may already have the six playoff teams in the NFC, but we’re far from having the order settled with five weeks to go.

Chargers out to be playoff spoilers

Chargers could shake up the playoff race in their last five games.

The Chargers might not be mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, but sitting at 4-7, their chances are slim.

Following the Week 11 matchup, coach Anthony Lynn said that his team had no desire to throw the season away even though they’re on the outside looking in.

However, even though Los Angeles may not be among the 12 teams to be playing in January, they could shake things up by affecting the teams that are in the running.

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar compiled a list of teams that could be spoilers the rest of the way out and among them is the Chargers.

The Chargers haven’t lost a game by more than a touchdown all season, and they’ve had the usual number of heartbreaking, late-game meltdowns that brought them to their current 4-7 record. In their past two games, losses to the Raiders and Chiefs by a combined nine points, the obvious issue was Philip Rivers’ hurling the ball all over the place, especially in ultimate crunch time. Per Sports Info Solutions, Rivers has four interceptions in the last two minutes of games this season — no other quarterback has more than one except for Dak Prescott, who has two.

The Chargers have an above-average defense, a good group of receivers, and a strong running game with Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler. Their situational awareness has been nightmarish all season, but they have enough in the tank to make things interesting for the Packers, Raiders and Chiefs in the last three weeks of the regular season … if Rivers can get his bearings.

Among the five teams that the Bolts have remaining on their schedule, three of them are in playoff contention — Vikings, Chiefs, Raiders.

Even though the Chargers have been belittled by injuries throughout the course of the season, they showed that they can play with the best of the best, as they have not lost a game by more than a touchdown all season.

But heading into the final stretch, Los Angeles will likely get back two of their best defensive players in safeties Derwin James and Adrian Phillips and their starting left tackle, Russell Okung.

With just those additions alone and coming off a bye to physically and mentally refresh after a handful of late-game blunders, you could be looking at a potential run by the Bolts.

Who knows, that run may be enough to knock off some team’s playoff hopes, but revive theirs. In the NFL, there are plenty of crazier things that have happened.

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Rams Week 12 rooting guide: Who should L.A. pull for on Sunday?

There are four big games in the NFC playoff race on Sunday.

The Rams will take the field on Monday night having seen the result of every Week 12 game. As a result, the playoff picture will be that much clearer to them before taking on the Ravens.

They shouldn’t be paying much attention to it, needing to take care of their own business, but there are plenty of games on Sunday afternoon that will have playoff implications in the NFC.

Here’s what the postseason picture looks like right now”

West: 49ers (9-1)
North: Packers (8-2)
South: Saints (8-2)
East: Cowboys (6-4)
Wild card: Seahawks (8-2)
Wild card: Vikings (8-3)

In the hunt

Rams (6-4)
Eagles (5-5)
Panthers (5-5)

Here are the four games that are relevant to the Rams’ playoff hopes as all of them will have an impact on the postseason picture in the NFC.

Seahawks (8-2) vs. Eagles (5-5)

This one is obvious. The Eagles are still in the playoff hunt at 5-5, but the Seahawks are more direct competition for the Rams. Any and every loss suffered by other NFC West opponents will help Los Angeles, even if the Rams are still a long shot to win the division.

The Rams should hope the Eagles win this one to drop the Seahawks back a game. If Los Angeles can beat the Ravens, it’ll be just one game back of Seattle with one more matchup with the Seahawks still to come.

Root for: Eagles

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What’s at stake for 49ers on Sunday night vs. Packers?

The 49ers’ Week 12 bout vs. the Packers is their biggest game of the year by far.

The 49ers’ showdown Sunday night against the Packers at Levi’s Stadium is the most important regular season game they’ve played in nearly a decade.

Week 10’s Monday night tilt with the Seahawks carried plenty of weight with the once dormant rivalry coming back to life and NFC West implications, but the results of the rest of the Week 10 slate diminished some of the do-or-die nature of the contest. San Francisco lost, but stayed on top of the NFC and the NFC West.

They don’t have that same luxury Sunday night. Here’s what’s a stake with a win and with a loss.

With a win …

San Francisco stays on top of the NFC and the NFC West if they knock off the Packers on Sunday. It also pushes Green Bay to two games behind the 49ers with five to play. A win ensures they go into Week 13 in first place in the conference and division, regardless of what happens with the teams around them.

It would also get them to 10 wins, which doesn’t necessarily guarantee a playoff spot, but it puts them in a great position to secure a playoff berth early in the season.

With a loss …

There’s a scenario where the 49ers lose and stay atop the NFC West. Seattle would have to lose to the Eagles in Philadelphia, which isn’t out of the realm of possibilities. However, that would still push San Francisco to the No. 2 seed and give Green Bay the head-to-head tiebreaker with the 49ers.

A bigger, more nightmarish scenario, is the one where the 49ers lose and Seattle wins. That makes whatever the Saints do irrelevant because the Seahawks would jump over the 49ers in the division thanks to the head-to-head tiebreaker. That would move San Francisco to the No. 5 seed, which means they’d open the playoffs on Wild Card Weekend on the road. That’s a far cry from home field advantage throughout the playoffs and a first-round bye.

How Thursday Night Football changed the Texans’ and Colts’ playoff chances

The Texans took control of the AFC South with a pivotal win on Thursday night, but the Colts still have hope.

The Colts and Texans entered Thursday Night Football with matching 6-4 records, but Houston’s 3-point victory at NRG Stadium had a massive impact on each team’s projected playoff chances with five games left to play in the season.

The Texans beat the Colts 20-17 to take first place in the AFC South, and Houston is currently in line for the third seed in the AFC. The Colts fell to seventh in the conference with the loss, behind the 7-3 Bills and the 6-4 Raiders, the two teams that currently occupy the Wild Card positions.

We’ve been tracking each team’s playoff chances week-by-week, using the projections from three major playoff models (ESPN, Five Thirty Eight and Football Outsiders) to find an average playoff percentage. Here’s how the Week 12 result affected the Texans’ and Colts’ playoff hopes.

Colts’ playoff chance before Week 12: 58.4%

Colts’ playoff chance after Week 12: 37.7

Change: DOWN 20.7%

Texans’ playoff chance before Week 12: 69.2%

Texans’ playoff chance after Week 12: 87.2%

Change: UP 18%

You can see every NFL team’s current playoff chances by clicking below.

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Kyle Shanahan not worried about playoff seeding yet

The 49ers are more focused on making the playoffs than where they’ll play their playoff games.

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The 49ers enter Week 12 at the top of the NFC and in a position to secure home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Every team would love to be in that position with six games to go, but 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said he’s not focusing on seeding until his team has secured a postseason berth.

“You’d rather play every game at home, of course,” Shanahan told reporters Wednesday in a pre-practice press conference. “On the road is always a disadvantage when you can’t hear. But I mean, I don’t even think about playoff seeding right now. Our goal is to get in the playoffs. We’re all right there, there’s still a lot of football left. Each game we win, we’ve got a better chance at getting in there. You don’t think about seeds, at least I don’t, until you can narrow it down to one or two games. I think we’re far from that right now.”

While San Francisco is tied for the best record in the NFL, they still have their work cut out for them to clinch a playoff spot.

The 49ers are 9-1, but the Packers, Saints and Seahawks are all just one game behind them. San Francisco is entering a stretch where they play the Packers, Ravens and Saints in consecutive weeks. Green Bay visits Levi’s Stadium, but the 49ers travel to Baltimore and New Orleans for those two contests.

Those teams are all 8-2 and can’t be overlooked. Especially since knocking off Green Bay and New Orleans would likely clinch a playoff spot for the 49ers.

Shanahan is optimistic about his team’s chances going into that stretch of games, but he’s still not focusing on their big-picture impact.

“The other time we went on back-to-back road games we won them so I don’t really think about that,” he said. “I just think about how many wins you need to get in the tournament and no one knows that answer yet and we’re not there. So you just keep going and doing that and once you get in the tournament, then you think about stuff like that. That’s why I think it’s way too early to be thinking that.”

That’s the right mindset to have, especially for a team with such a tough schedule to finish the year. After the next three games, the 49ers face the Falcons and Rams at home, and visit the Seahawks to close the season. Any looking ahead could lead to a fatal stumble that dooms the team’s chances to make the playoffs for the first time since 2013.

Getting a first-round bye and playing at home is a pretty big advantage for playoff teams. The last time a team made the Super Bowl without a first-round bye was the Ravens, who finished as the No. 4 seed in the 2012 season before taking down the 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII.

The good news for San Francisco is their schedule sets up in a way that allows them to simultaneously take steps toward a playoff spot and securing a first-round bye. That starts Sunday night against the No. 2-seed Packers at Levi’s Stadium.

NFC playoff picture: Panthers all but out of the race after Week 11 loss

Here’s an updated look at the NFC playoff picture after Week 11.

Technically the Panthers aren’t out of the playoff race, but realistically their loss to the Falcons on Sunday made reaching the postseason impossible in 2019.

Here’s an updated look at the NFC playoff picture after Week 11.

Playoff teams

1. San Francisco 49ers (9-1)
2. Green Bay Packers (8-2)
3. New Orleans Saints (8-2)
4. Dallas Cowboys (6-4)
5. Seattle Seahawks (8-2)
6. Minnesota Vikings (8-3)

Still in the race

7. Los Angeles Rams (6-4)
8. Philadelphia Eagles (5-5)
9. Carolina Panthers (5-5)

According to FiveThirtyEight’s playoff predictions, Carolina now has just a 4% chance of making it this year.

Ron Rivera will continue trying to win games as best he can, both to save his job and because that’s what NFL coaches do. It would be prudent of him to give the younger players on his roster more snaps, though.

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NFC playoff picture: Rams gain ground on Seahawks, remain behind Vikings

The Rams are still 1.5 games back in the wild-card race, trailing the Vikings and Seahawks.

The Rams got back on track Sunday night, beating the Chicago Bears 17-7at home. The win moved their record to 6-4 and kept their playoff hopes alive, though they still remain out of the postseason picture at the moment.

It was a much-needed win considering the Vikings beat the Broncos and improved to 8-3, while the Seahawks were off in Week 11. A loss would’ve put the Rams 2.5 games behind Minnesota for a wild-card spot, which would’ve been disastrous.

Here’s how the NFC playoff picture looks right now after 11 weeks.

West: 49ers (9-1)
North: Packers (8-2)
South: Saints (8-2)
East: Cowboys (6-4)
Wild card: Seahawks (8-2)
Wild card: Vikings (8-3)

In the hunt

Rams (6-4)
Eagles (5-5)
Panthers (5-5)

The Rams nearly got a lot of help on Sunday, in addition to picking up a half-game on the idle Seahawks.

The Broncos blew a 20-point lead against the Vikings, and the Cardinals were outscored 19-7 in the fourth quarter to lose 36-26 to the 49ers. Had the Broncos and Cardinals pulled off those upsets, it would’ve helped the Rams immensely in the NFC playoff race.

But, they took care of their own business, which is most important. It’s possible the Rams will need to win out to make the playoffs, though it’s unlikely that’ll be the requirement. The 49ers have a daunting schedule coming up against the Packers, Ravens and Saints in the next three weeks, while Minnesota has to face the Seahawks, Chargers and Packers before the season ends.

The Rams will need to finish at least 10-6 to have a chance, which means they have to finish 4-2 in the last six weeks.

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Rams’ playoff odds take big hit, drop to 16.5% after Seahawks beat 49ers

Week 10 was a disaster for the Rams.

Week 10 was not kind to the Los Angeles Rams. Not only did they drop a crucial game to the Steelers, but their competition in the NFC moved further ahead in the standings. The Vikings beat the Cowboys, while the Packers knocked off the Panthers. The Bears got a much-needed win, too, for good measure.

The biggest game of the week came on Monday night when the Seahawks and 49ers squared off in arguably the most important game of the season in the NFC. The Seahawks won 27-24 in overtime, moving just a half-game behind the 49ers for the division lead.

More importantly, they pulled 2.5 games ahead of the Rams for one of the wild-card spots. The ideal outcome on Monday night would’ve been a 49ers win, dropping the Seahawks to 7-3, but the Rams weren’t that fortunate.

According to ESPN’s FPI, the Rams’ playoff chances took a significant hit after Monday’s game. Their odds of making the postseason dropped from 23.5 to 16.5 percent just based on the 49ers-Seahawks finish. Even with the 49ers losing, the Rams’ chances of winning the NFC West sit at 1.6%.

It hasn’t gotten to “Dumb and Dumber” levels of “So you’re telling me a chance” desperation, but the Rams’ playoff hopes are on life support right now. If they don’t beat the Bears on Sunday night and the Cowboys, Eagles, 49ers and Vikings all win, the Rams can all but kiss their postseason plans goodbye.