Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The Saints beat the Eagles, but they need five other games to go their way to reach the playoffs. It starts with the Vikings beating the Packers on Sunday afternoon:
The New Orleans Saints beat the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, but they need five other games to go their way to reach the playoffs. They won’t win the NFC South after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers outlasted the Carolina Panthers in Week 17 to claim the division title.
New Orleans’ path to the playoffs starts with the Minnesota Vikings beating the Green Bay Packers on Sunday afternoon, followed by a lot of luck in the Week 18 schedule:
The Commanders lost to the Browns. The Packers now only need wins over the Vikings and Lions to clinch a playoff spot in the NFC.
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The Green Bay Packers’ rebound from 4-8 to a playoff spot in the NFC will now only require back-to-back wins over the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions.
The Washington Commanders lost to the Cleveland Browns on Sunday in the early timeslot of Week 17, checking the box for one of the three results the Packers needed to clinch a playoff spot in the simplest possible scenario.
The Packers host the Vikings on Sunday in the late afternoon timeslot from Lambeau Field.
Help is no longer required. The other two necessary results are entirely in the Packers’ hands: wins at home against two division rivals, starting Sunday against the Vikings.
If the Packers beat the Vikings and Lions to end the season, Matt LaFleur’s team will be the No. 7 seed in the NFC and go on the road to play the No. 2 seed in the NFC Wild Card Round on Jan. 14 or Jan. 15.
However, if the Packers lose to the Vikings on Sunday, Green Bay will be eliminated. Even though the Commanders lost, the Lions took down the Chicago Bears at home during the early timeslot. Detroit would own the division record tiebreaker over the Packers even if both teams finish 8-9.
The Packers would go into the season’s final week with the No. 1 seed in the NFC wrapped up if Matt LaFleur’s team beats the Vikings and the Cowboys lose to the Cardinals.
The Green Bay Packers have an opportunity to clinch the No. 1 seed in the NFC during Week 17.
Matt LaFleur’s team needs just two results: a win over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday night and a loss by the Dallas Cowboys to the Arizona Cardinals earlier Sunday.
The Packers (12-3) host the Vikings at Lambeau Field at 7:20 p.m. on Sunday. By kickoff, the team should know if clinching the No. 1 seed is a possibility.
The Cowboys, now 11-4, are hosting the 10-5 Cardinals at AT&T Stadium at 3:25 p.m. CT.
Even if the Cowboys win on Sunday, the Packers can clinch the No. 1 seed in the NFC with wins over the Vikings and Detroit Lions to finish the season. Finishing at 14-3 guarantees the Packers of the best record in the NFC and avoids any tiebreaker scenarios.
Overall, any combination of Packers wins and Cowboys losses adding up two clinches the top seed for the Packers.
In any tiebreaker scenario with the Cowboys, Dallas would win due to a better conference record. However, the Packers own a head-to-head tiebreaker over the 11-4 Los Angeles Rams and the conference record tiebreaker over the 11-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
One other note: the Packers can officially eliminate the Vikings from playoff contention with a win over Mike Zimmer’s team and a win by either the Philadelphia Eagles (at Washington) or the Atlanta Falcons (at Buffalo Bills).
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