The NFC’s No. 1 seed will come down to the final week when the Detroit Lions host the Minnesota Vikings.
The winner takes the NFC North and gets a first-round playoff bye and home-field advantage until the Super Bowl. The loser becomes the No. 5 seed and must play on the road in the wild-card round.
The Vikings (14-2) held on for a 27-25 victory over the Green Bay Packers to set up the high-stakes showdown in Week 18. The Lions (13-2) visit the San Francisco 49ers (6-9) on Monday night in a rematch of the NFC title game. Win, lose or tie, they have to beat the Vikings again. Detroit beat Minnesota 31-29 in Week 7.
The Philadelphia Eagles clinched the NFC East and locked up the No. 2 seed with a 41-7 rout of the Dallas Cowboys. However, coach Nick Sirianni has a tough decision to make this week. Saquon Barkley is 101 yards away from breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season record for yards rushing in a season.
Sirianni has to decide whether to rest Barkley and most of his starters to prepare for the playoffs or let his star try for the 40-year-old record.
The Los Angeles Rams (10-6) were on the verge of clinching the NFC West. They would lock it up Sunday night if the Commanders beat the Falcons.
The outcome of the Atlanta-Washington game has a major impact on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7). If the Falcons win, they’d remain first in the NFC South and would win the division with a victory against Carolina next week. If the Falcons lose, the Buccaneers would take over first place and would secure the division with a victory over New Orleans next week.
The Commanders would secure a wild-card spot with a win against Atlanta. If they lose, Seattle stays mathematically alive for a wild card and the Buccaneers could also find a path to the playoffs as a wild-card team.
Three teams in the AFC have already secured their seeds. The two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs (15-1) won the AFC West weeks ago and clinched the No. 1 seed.
The AFC East champion Buffalo Bills (13-3) are the No. 2 seed. The AFC South champion Houston Texans (9-7) are the No. 4 seed.
The Baltimore Ravens (11-5) would win the AFC North and get the No. 3 seed with a win or tie against Cleveland next weekend or a loss or tie by Pittsburgh, which hosts Cincinnati.
If they don’t win the division, the Steelers have already clinched a wild-card berth. The Los Angeles Chargers (10-6) also secured a wild-card spot. They’ll be no lower than the sixth seed.
The final AFC playoff spot comes down to the Broncos (9-7), Dolphins (8-8) or Bengals (8-8).
Denver clinches with a win or tie against the Chiefs. The Dolphins need the Broncos to lose and they must beat the Jets on the road to get in. The Bengals must win and the Broncos and Dolphins have to lose for them to get in.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
