With a 30-13 victory over the Seattle Seahawks last Sunday night, the Green Bay Packers improved to 10-4 and inched closer to locking up a spot in the postseason for the second straight season.
And that berth could be clinched before they even get to their Week 16 matchup on Monday Night Football with the New Orleans Saints if they get the right kind of help. Matt LaFleur & Co. have held the No. 6 seed in the NFC for several weeks now, and all signs point to them sitting in that same position at season's end.
However, while the Packers are a lock for one of the three wild-card slots, one remaining scenario exists where they can still win the NFC North. But they'll need a little magic for it to come to fruition, and we're not talking Don Majkowski here.
The only way the Packers can win the NFC North involves a Lions-Vikings tie in Week 18
Heading into Week 16, the Packers trail both the Detroit Lions (12-2) and Minnesota Vikings (12-2) by two games with three weeks remaining in the regular season. And here's how the final three weeks look for all three teams.
Week | Lions | Vikings | Packers |
|---|---|---|---|
16 | at Bears | at Seahawks | vs. Saints |
17 | at 49ers | vs. Packers | at Vikings |
18 | vs. Vikings | at Lions | vs. Bears |
The only way this works for Green Bay is by winning out. That's an absolute must, as one loss takes them out of the running. That would obviously have to include a Week 17 victory over the Vikings, which would even their season series at 1-1 after Minnesota took the first meeting in Week 4.
If the Packers can take care of the Saints, Vikings, and Bears, they'll finish the season at 13-4.
In addition to beating the Vikings themselves, the Packers also need Minnesota to lose this Sunday to the Seahawks. They also need the Lions to lose to the Bears in Week 16 and then to the 49ers in Week 17.
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If all of these things happen, the Lions and Vikings would each enter their Week 18 matchup at 12-4. And here's where things get fun.
If Detroit wins and matches Green Bay at 13-4, the Packers can't win the division because they lost both of their games to the Lions. So, that's no good.
Now, let's say Minnesota wins to get to 13-4. As mentioned, the season series with Green Bay would be tied 1-1 at this point, so the head-to-head tiebreaker goes out the window. The next tiebreaker is record within the division, which the Packers would lose, as they'd be 3-3 while the Vikings would be 4-2, thus making Minnesota NFC North champs for the second time in three years.
Yep, you see where this is going.
For Green Bay to win the division, the Lions and Vikings would have to tie in Week 18, as a draw would put both at 12-4-1, giving the 13-4 Packers the NFC North crown.
Put simply, the Packers can't lose the rest of the way, the Lions and Vikings can't win the next two weeks, and then Detroit and Minnesota tie in Week 18.
Easy enough, right?