It’s at the point of the season where the talk about playoff leverage matters a lot. After all, the majority of the teams that advance to the Super Bowl are the top seeds in their conference. This number has held consistent over fifty years of play, even with the changes to the NFL’s playoff format.
So what’s at stake for the Green Bay Packers going into Monday Night Football against the Philadelphia Eagles? Currently, Green Bay is the third seed in the NFC, owning the top spot in the NFC North. Because
of the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears winning this past weekend, though, the Packers would drop all the way to the seventh seed in the NFC with a loss to the Eagles, one spot removed from playoff elimination if the season ended after Week 10.
That’s right, they would get jumped not only by the Lions, but also by the Bears (along with the Buccaneers and Rams). If they do manage to beat the Eagles, though, the Packers will leap over Philadelphia and claim the second seed in the NFC, only behind the Seattle Seahawks. For what it’s worth, both the Seahawks and Rams will be at 7-2, but only one of them will be ranked among the top four seeds in the conference — which are allocated to division leaders only.
So what’s the difference between a win or a loss for the Packers this week? It could be playing every single game on the road against the hardest opponent weekly in the postseason, or it could be hosting the weakest or second-weakest opponent in each round of the playoffs at Lambeau Field. It’s a little early to look at postseason scenarios, but it’s hard to ignore that the playoff picture is starting to take shape in the NFC.
NFC Standings
- Seattle Seahawks: 7-2
- Philadelphia Eagles: 6-2
- Green Bay Packers: 5-2-1
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 6-3
- Los Angeles Rams: 7-2
- Detroit Lions: 6-3
- Chicago Bears: 6-3
- San Francisco 49ers: 6-4
- Carolina Panthers: 5-5
- Minnesota Vikings: 4-5
- Dallas Cowboys: 3-5-1
- Arizona Cardinals: 3-6
- Atlanta Falcons: 3-6
- Washington Commanders: 3-7
- New Orleans Saints: 2-8
- New York Giants: 2-8
Playoff Odds (NFC), per NFL Pro
- 98%: Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams
- 93%: Seattle Seahawks
- 89%: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- 86%: Detroit Lions
- 78%: Green Bay Packers
- 74%: San Francisco 49ers
- 38%: Chicago Bears
- 16%: Minnesota Vikings
- 14%: Carolina Panthers
- 7%: Atlanta Falcons
- 4%: Dallas Cowboys
- 1%: Arizona Cardinals, Washington Commanders
- <1%: New Orleans Saints, New York Giants
#1 Seed Odds (NFC), per NFL Pro
- 39%: Los Angeles Rams
- 21%: Philadelphia Eagles
- 18%: Seattle Seahawks
- 10%: Detroit Lions
- 7%: Green Bay Packers
- 4%: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- 2%: San Francisco 49ers
- 1%: Chicago Bears
- 0%: Carolina Panthers, Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Washington Commanders, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants
