The 2018 Playoff Hunt is on!

[SotanKing]

I think a 9-6-1 record might be enough to get into wild card. I don't think any NFC East team will get into wild card. So,it basically looks the 2 Wild Card spots might be between Vikings, Seahawks, Pantheres, Packers(still can't rule out Rodgers).

So, our game against Seahawks is gonna be huge in playoff implications. Also, Panthers- Seahawks play next week,  even that's gonna be huge.

[vike daddy]

LEADERS
1. L.A. Rams (10-1): Still the class of the conference, for now.

2. New Orleans (9-1): Their win over the Rams in the regular season may have major ramifications for the postseason.

3. Chicago (7-3): Took control of the NFC North on Sunday night.

4. Washington (6-4): Still the leaders in the NFC East, but after Alex Smith‘s injury they’re no longer the favorites.

5. Carolina (6-4): A loss in Detroit may have killed the Panthers’ hopes of winning the division, but they’re still atop the wild card race.

6. Minnesota (5-4-1): For now they’re the last team in.

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN
7. Seattle (5-5): Owns the head-to-head tiebreaker with Dallas.

8. Dallas (5-5): Can take over first place in the NFC East with a Thanksgiving win over Washington.

9. Green Bay (4-5-1): Mike McCarthy is coaching for his job down the stretch.

 

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2018/11/20/nfc-playoff-picture-rams-win-keeps-them-ahead-of-the-saints-for-now/

[swede700]

I'd still favor the Vikings in a rematch at Soldier Field.  

[Klomp]

Look at the four Championship Game teams from last year and where they're all at. We're actually not doing so bad in comparison to the other three teams. We along with the Patriots have been fine. The Eagles and Jags, not so much.

[SteelKing728]

So I think right now we are the #5 seed with Carolina losing.

We need to win though tonight.

[vike daddy]

3 hours ago, SteelKing728 said:

So I think right now we are the #5 seed with Carolina losing.

We need to win though tonight.

that is correct. there are presently four teams at 6-5, Carolina being one. with a win tonight we'd be 6-4-1.

same number of wins, one less loss.

[vikesfan89]

3 hours ago, SteelKing728 said:

So I think right now we are the #5 seed with Carolina losing.

We need to win though tonight.

And the number 6 seed is Washington who lost their qb

[Krauser]

Saints and Rams are locks for their divisions, and probably the byes. The Bears have an outside chance of catching the Rams for the 2 seed at 13-3: they’d need to win out (including beating the Rams head-to-head at Soldier Field) and also have LA drop another game to make 3 losses. LA will be heavy favorites in their other 4 games aside from @ CHI, best chance they might lose one is home to the Eagles.

The Bears have basically locked up the NFCN after beating the Vikings and surviving the short week Thanksgiving game in Detroit. 11-5 seems like a very likely final record for CHI even if they lose in week 17, which would mean the Vikings would have run the table from now until that game to be able to catch them by winning the rematch. Chicago has a decent chance to win 12, which the Vikings can’t match. 

The Cowboys are going to win the NFCE, which I’ve been saying even before the Alex Smith injury. In theory the Eagles might still put it together but their OL is too banged up and they are starting some warm bodies in the secondary. No way will Colt McCoy win 3 or more games to give Washington a chance at the division. 

The Vikings are in excellent shape in terms of the wild card.  They’re the only team outside the division leaders with 4 losses or less. The 5 loss teams are Seattle, Carolina and Washington. 

Washington is going to fall to 8-8 or worse, and miss the playoffs.

Carolina still has 2 games remaining with the Saints, and unless they’re resting starters with the 1 seed locked up in week 17, NO should win both of those games, which would put the Panthers’ ceiling at 9-7. Even that’s not easy, as any of their other 3 games (Bucs, Browns, Falcons) could drop them to 8 losses. 

Seattle has 3 easy games (Niners twice and Cards) and two difficult ones (home to the Vikings and Chiefs). They should go at least 9-7, and with the H2H tiebreaker against Carolina they’d be no worse than the 6 seed. 10-6 could happen if they beat either MIN or KC. Winning out to get to 11 wins is unlikely but not impossible.

Overall picture makes it very likely Seattle and Minnesota are the wild card teams this year, which makes the MNF game in Seattle in 2 weeks the likely deciding game (not really tiebreaker, since they won’t end up tied in the standings) for wild card seeding.

Wild card seeding 5 vs 6 ordinarily doesn’t matter much, but in this case it might be the difference between playing the first playoff game at DAL (9-7) instead of at CHI (12-4), which is worth competing for. It also sets up a chance to play in round 2 at LA if both wild card teams win instead of at NO, and I’d rather see the Rams again than the Saints.

[vike daddy]

Here’s how the playoff picture looks after Week 12:

LEADERS
1. Saints (10-1): They have a tough schedule the rest of the way, so 15-1 won’t be easy.

2. Rams (10-1): They have an easy schedule the rest of the way, so they still have a good chance of finishing ahead of the Saints in the standings.

3. Bears (8-3): The inside track to the No. 3 seed, but catching the Rams or Saints for a bye will not be easy.

4. Cowboys (6-5): Now owns first place in the NFC East thanks to the head-to-head tiebreaker over Washington.

5. Vikings (6-4-1): If they keep winning, they maintain a half-game lead in the wild card race.

6. Washington (6-5): Owns the wild card tiebreaker over Seattle based on NFC record, and over Carolina based on head-to-head.

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN
7. Seahawks (6-5): Has the tiebreaker over Carolina thanks to Sunday’s head-to-head win.

8. Panthers (6-5): Two straight losses in games they easily could have won have severely hurt their playoff chances.

9. Eagles (5-6): Pulling out the comeback win against the Giants means they’re not dead yet in the NFC East.

10. Packers (4-6-1): When they signed Aaron Rodgers to his huge new contract they thought they’d be playoff contenders for years to come. In Year One of the contract, they’re not.

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2018/11/26/nfc-playoff-picture-nfc-east-race-looks-wide-open/

[vike daddy]

[SteelKing728]

While we are no lock to make it, was it better that Dallas beat New Orleans? Should we have rooted for NO instead?

[Cearbhall]

2 hours ago, SteelKing728 said:

While we are no lock to make it, was it better that Dallas beat New Orleans? Should we have rooted for NO instead?

I was rooting for NO. In theory, a NO loss makes a first round bye more likely but odds of that are so remote that I wouldn't consider it. Cowboys are more direct competition for seeding if both teams end up winning their division or if both teams end up as wild card teams. Both of those are possible, it is also possible that one of them advances to the playoffs as a wild card while the other team stays home as the seven seed.

All these factors aside, I always root for whoever is playing against the Cowboys... unless that other team is the Packers.

[swede700]

Agree with @Cearbhall here.  I can never root for the Cowboys under any circumstances...unless it's the Packers.  And in the end, it's irrelevant what they do, because only the division winner is coming out of the East.  They aren't getting a WC.  

[wcblack34]

The Playoff (Kareem) Hunt is not on...

[dc_vikingfan]

Seattle schedule is really easy and basically a lock to make it barring Wilson getting injured. Vikings can afford to really only lose one more game and make the playoffs on there own. 

Still crazy the Vikings have had two back2back road games where they travel cross country.