The Green Bay Packers kicked off the Week 13 slate on Thursday afternoon with an impressive 31-24 victory over the Detroit Lions, thus picking up their 17th win on Thanksgiving Day, the fourth-most in NFL history, and completing the season sweep of their longtime rivals for the first time in five years.
Jordan Love came through with one of his strongest performances of the season, throwing for 234 yards and a career-high-matching four touchdowns with zero interceptions, thus earning a 124.2 passer rating, his third-highest mark of this 2025 campaign.
And on the other side of the ball, Micah Parsons recorded 2.5 sacks on Lions quarterback Jared Goff, thus upping his season total to 12.5 to become just the second player in league history with at least 12 sacks in each of his first five seasons, joining Green Bay legend Reggie White.
With the win, the Packers improved to 8-3-1 on the season and could have moved into first place in the NFC North had the Chicago Bears lost to the Philadelphia Eagles on Friday. But, of course, that didn't happen, as the Bears, whom the Packers will face a week from Sunday and then again in Week 16, picked up their most impressive win of the season thus far, taking a 24-15 victory over the defending Super Bowl champs to improve to 9-3.
As such, the Packers maintained their position in the No. 6 slot in the NFC playoff picture, which currently plays out as follows with the rest of the Week 13 action still to come. You'll notice that we've only included the top 10 teams here, as those sitting 11th through 16th have no real shot at the postseason.
- Los Angeles Rams (9-2, 1st NFC West)
- Chicago Bears (9-3, 1st NFC North)
- Philadelphia Eagles (8-3, 1st NFC East)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-5, 1st NFC South)
- Seattle Seahawks (8-3, 2nd NFC West)
- Green Bay Packers (8-3-1, 2nd NFC North)
- San Francisco 49ers (8-4, 3rd NFC West)
- Detroit Lions (7-5, 3rd NFC North)
- Dallas Cowboys (6-5-1, 2nd NFC East)
- Carolina Panthers (6-6, 2nd NFC South)
Given the state of the standings, let's have a quick look at the games the Packers will be watching closely on Sunday.
San Francisco 49ers at Cleveland Browns
Just as the Packers still have a solid shot to win the NFC North, the San Francisco 49ers still have a chance to win the NFC West. But regardless of whether both end up in the top four as division winners or down in the bottom three as part of the wild-card race, Green Bay obviously wants to stay ahead of San Francisco in the standings.
The Packers will remain ahead of the Niners no matter how this game plays out, but it's safe to say they'll be rooting for the Browns to pull off the upset here.
Arizona Cardinals at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This game might not seem all that important, but the Packers could conceivably end up fighting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for seeding down the line. And again, it could be either in the top four or in the wild-card race, as the Bucs are in a battle for the NFC South with the Carolina Panthers. So, that's why they need to pay at least a little attention to what happens here.
Los Angeles Rams at Carolina Panthers
And speaking of the Panthers, they've got a much tougher test than Tampa Bay does on Sunday, as they'll play host to the red-hot Los Angeles Rams, who've won six straight, their most recent victory being a 34-7 romp over the Bucs last Sunday night in primetime, and sit atop the NFC West at 9-2.
If the Packers end up battling for the No. 1 seed in the NFC, they'll obviously need the Rams to take some losses down the stretch, so a Panthers win here would be helpful in that regard.
Minnesota Vikings at Seattle Seahawks
After the Green Bay Packers knocked the Minnesota Vikings down to 4-7 with that 23-6 victory at Lambeau last Sunday, they don't have to worry about them in the playoff race any longer. They do, however, have to worry about the Seattle Seahawks, who currently sit directly in front of them in the No. 5 slot in the standings at 8-3.
We know it'll feel a little strange, Cheeseheads, but this is one of those instances in which it's okay for you to root for the Vikings. Because the Packers themselves certainly will be.