NFC playoff picture, Week 16: Rams-Seahawks is huge

The NFC is starting to sort itself out after 15 weeks, but this weekend, there is a huge game in the NFC West.

The next game featuring an NFC team? Christmas night. Yes, we’re almost to the end of the regular season, and while there are still dozens are scenarios, we can start narrowing down the realistic ones.

Going into Week 16, this is the NFC playoff picture:

1. Green Bay Packers (11-3)
2. New Orleans Saints (10-4)
3. Seattle Seahawks (10-4)
4. Washington Football Team (6-8)
5. Los Angeles Rams (9-5)
6. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-5)
7. Arizona Cardinals (8-6)
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8. Chicago Bears (7-7)

Alright, so let’s break this down. The Packers have won the NFC North. If they beat the Tennessee Titans on Sunday night at Lambeau Field, they clinch the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the postseason.

Seattle and New Orleans have not won their respective divisions, but have clinched playoff spots. The Seahawks are playing the most important game of their season tonight, with the Rams making their visit to Lumen Field. If Seattle wins, the NFC West is over. If Los Angeles wins, the Rams would control their destiny with the Cardinals on deck for Week 17.

Speaking of the Cardinals, they clinch a playoff spot with a win over the San Francisco 49ers and a loss by the Bears against the Jacksonville Jaguars. If the Bears and Cardinals finished tied at the end of the season at 9-7, Chicago would win the tiebreaker. The Cardinals need to finish ahead of the Bears.

In New Orleans, the Saints can clinch the NFC South with a victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Christmas. New Orleans has lost its past two games after winning nine straight, falling to the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs.

As for the Buccaneers, they take on the Detroit Lions on Saturday afternoon. A win for Tampa Bay its it into the playoffs for the first time since 2007, so that’s a fun day in Florida. However, the Bucs are almost certain to be a wild card, unless you think the Saints crater and don’t win another game this season.

Finally, the NFC East. Look, the Eagles need to win out and have Washington lose out. The Football Team can clinch the division, mercifully, by beating the Carolina Panthers at home this weekend and having the New York Giants lose to the Baltimore Ravens. Frankly, that’s the most-likely outcome this week and arguably, for all our sanity, the best.