Updated: 8:36 a.m. Monday
There is mixed news for the Green Bay Packers with the results of the Seattle Seahawks-Los Angeles Rams game Sunday night. It means the following playoff scenarios (based on the ESPN NFL Playoff Machine):
To clinch a playoff berth
The Rams winning means that if the Packers want to clinch a playoff berth next week, they’ll need a little help from the Dallas Cowboys.
The Packers’ magic number for clinching a playoff berth is now two: Two Packers wins, two Rams losses, or one of each.
They can clinch as soon as early Sunday evening by beating the Chicago Bears (12 p.m. kickoff, 9 a.m. broadcast time on WTMJ) and having the Cowboys beat the Rams.
NFC North title
Both they and the Minnesota Vikings won on Sunday, meaning that the scenario remains current for the NFC North title.
The Packers now own both a one-game lead on the Vikings and two levels of tiebreakers in the NFC North race.
It now means that the Packers only have to win two of their remaining three regular season games to win the division, and one of them does not need to include their Dec. 23 contest at Minnesota.
First round bye and home field chase
The Packers are now in control of their destiny in the chase for the NFC’s No. 2 seed and a first round bye. That’s because the San Francisco 49ers won one of the best games of 2019 with a 48-46 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
With the Saints’ loss, the Packers and New Orleans now share a 10-3 record, and the Packers own the tiebreaker on New Orleans.
This means that if the Packers win out, they get Wild Card weekend off and a home game in the divisional playoffs, most probably against New Orleans or an NFC Wild Card team that most likely would be Minnesota or either the 49ers or Seattle Seahawks (whichever team doesn’t win the NFC West).
Home field advantage in the NFC playoffs
In the chase for the NFC’s No. 1 seed, the Packers need a lot of help.
Three things are necessary for that to happen:
– The Packers must win their remaining four games
– The San Francisco 49ers must lose two games
– The Seattle Seahawks must lose one more game
Considering the fact that those teams have matchups against each other (49ers-Seahawks on Dec. 29), the odds of all those losses happening are, to be kind, not the best.