There are scenarios in which the Green Bay Packers could officially clinch a playoff spot this week, and there are scenarios in which the Packers could win the NFC North and be the No. 1 seed in the postseason.
But neither is a likely scenario.
Still, Sunday night’s trip to play the NFC West-leading Seahawks in Seattle is a great opportunity for the Packers.
For starters, a win over the Seahawks and the Packers will be a postseason lock. Not officially, but close enough. Win Sunday night and just one more result over the final three weeks could clinch a playoff spot. Getting to 10 wins is always an accomplishment and the Packers can push their playoff odds to over 99 percent by getting to 10-4.
More importantly, the Packers have an opportunity to go on the road and play a division leader. While the Packers aren’t officially eliminated from winning the NFC North, it’d take a miracle at this point to overcome the Detroit Lions. So Matt LaFleur’s team will be a wildcard, and that requires — you guessed it! — going on the road to play division winners in the postseason. The Packers have just one win over a team with a (current) winning record on the road this season. Last Thursday night in Detroit was a missed opportunity, but the Packers battled and were one or two plays away from beating the NFC’s top team in their place. Now, LaFleur’s team can go to Seattle and show the Seahawks that a return visit from the Packers in January wouldn’t be fun.
Any wildcard team would almost certainly need to beat at least two division winners on the road to advance to the Super Bowl. In the Packers’ case in 2024, that will likely require beating the NFC West champion or NFC South champion in the wildcard round and then the Detroit Lions or Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional round — both on the road.
The Packers are the precipice of the postseason. On Sunday night in Seattle, the Packers can all but punch their ticket while proving capable of doing real damage as a road warrior in the NFC playoff field.