NFC playoff picture: Week 16
The National Football League season is down to the final two weeks, and there is still plenty to be settled in the NFC. Yet, by the end of Sunday night, the final two remaining playoff spots could be cinched away, with the seeding the only thing left to be figured out.
As it stands, this is what we have in the NFC playoff picture:
1. Carolina Panthers (14-0)
2. Arizona Cardinals (12-2)
3. Green Bay Packers (10-4)
4. Washington Redskins (7-7)
5. Seattle Seahawks (9-5)
6. Minnesota Vikings (9-5)
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7. Atlanta Falcons (7-7)
8. Philadelphia Eagles (6-8)
This is the breakdown going into the weekend. The Vikings can clinch a wild card spot when they play the New York Giants at TCF Bank Stadium on Sunday Night Football. New York is 6-8 but still has a pulse in the NFC East, so it will be playing hard. The Giants must win their last two games and have the Redskins and Eagles both lose out to get into the dance.
Meanwhile, Washington can clinch its first NFC East title since 2011 should it go into Lincoln Financial Field and get a victory on Saturday night. The Redskins beat the Eagles back in October on a last-second play in FedEx Field, and can perhaps finish Chip Kelly’s run in the city with another win.
Seattle, Arizona, Green Bay and Carolina are all in the playoffs even without another win the rest of the regular season, but there is seeding at hand. The Seahawks are only leading Minnesota for the first wild card spot because of a head-to-head tiebreaker, so the Seahawks must keep pace with the Vikings to remain in their current spot.
Meanwhile, Arizona has clinched the NFC West but needs a win to beat out the Packers for a first-round BYE. The Cardinals are hosting Green Bay at University of Phoenix Stadium this week, giving us a titanic matchup and one that very well could be a Divisional Round preview. Arizona is also still in play for the top seed in the NFC, but would need to win out and have undefeated Carolina lose out.
The Panthers only need one win to take home-field advantage throughout the postseason, and faces the Falcons at the Georgia Dome. If Carolina wins, the Vikings also clinch a playoff spot by virtue of Atlanta’s loss.
Finally, the Packers can take the NFC North crown before Week 17 by beating the Cardinals on the road, and getting a loss from Minnesota against New York. Otherwise, the division will come down to next Sunday, when the Packers host the Vikings at Lambeau Field. It would be the third straight season where Green Bay has to win the division on the final day of the season.
As for the seventh-seeded Falcons, the only hope is to win out and have Minnesota lose out. Otherwise, Atlanta will watch as its once-promising 5-0 campaign go down the drain.
