The Seattle Seahawks got the win they needed against the Arizona Cardinals, but they didn’t exactly get favorable results elsewhere in the NFC standings.
As expected, the San Francisco 49ers dispatched the Las Vegas Raiders to temporarily assume control of the No. 1 seed again. While the NFC South tripped over itself like usual (except the New Orleans Saints), the NFC North was a perfect 3-0 on Sunday, with the Chicago Bears overcoming five turnovers to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a last-second
field goal. Probably one of the biggest results of the day was the Green Bay Packers hammering the New England Patriots in a 45-27 romp, which is the result that currently keeps the Seahawks out of a playoff spot.
NFC playoff standings entering Monday night
1. San Francisco 49ers (7-1)
2. Minnesota Vikings (6-1) – Monday Night Football vs. Buffalo Bills pending
3. New York Giants (5-2-1)
4. Carolina Panthers (3-5, 1-1 NFCS)
5. Chicago Bears (7-2)
6. Detroit Lions (6-2)
7. Green Bay Packers (6-3)
8. Seattle Seahawks (5-4, 2-1 NFCW)
9. Los Angeles Rams (5-4, 0-2 NFCW)
10. Dallas Cowboys (4-5)
11. New Orleans Saints (3-5)
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-6, win over ATL, 3-3 NFC)
13. Atlanta Falcons (3-6, loss to TB, 3-3 NFC)
14. Arizona Cardinals (3-6, 2-5 NFC)
15. Washington Commanders (2-5-1)
16. Philadelphia Eagles (2-7)
If we’re being honest with ourselves, the NFC West title is on the cusp of being out of reach, and would be nailed on out of reach with a loss to the 49ers in Week 12. Even outside of the division race, the Seahawks’ Wild Card hopes rest on overtaking one of these red-hot NFC North teams and fending off the resurgent Rams, who’ve won three straight. It might be a bad thing if the Bears get dragged into the WC race given the head-to-head tiebreaker on Chicago, so a Bears NFC North title might be preferred in the long run.
There’s a good chance that 10 wins might not be enough to get a Wild Card spot. Six wins might be enough to win the NFC South, but the Seahawks don’t play in that division, unfortunately.
