A look at how the Los Angeles Rams' victory on Thursday Night Football impacts the NFC playoff picture and the Detroit Lions.
On Thursday evening, the Los Angeles Rams continued their winning streak and clearly beat the New Orleans Saints 30:22 in a crucial NFC match. The Saints and Rams were both on the verge of the NFC playoffs, so this result had huge implications for both teams. The Rams are now in an extremely favorable position — 72% chance of reaching the postseason, according to the New York Times — while the Saints are in desperation mode (15% chance).
As for the Detroit Lions, Thursday's result once again delayed their bid to secure a playoff spot. However, there is little cause for concern in this regard, as the New York Times still puts Detroit's postseason odds at “>99%.”
Let's take a look at the things that still need to happen for the Lions to miss the playoffs.
Lions would have to:
- Lose @Vikings
- Lose @ Cowboys
- Lose to the Vikings
Vikings would have to do it
Rams would have to:
Seahawks would have to:
- Win @Titans
- Win against Steelers
- Win @ Cardinals
While all of these individual outcomes are certainly possible and don't require too many surprises, we're essentially talking about a nine-game game here. NFL results simply aren't that easy to predict, and it would be highly unlikely for Detroit to go exactly the wrong way in all of these nine games, even with the luck we're used to here.
Let us continue.
The Lions can still secure a spot in the playoffs this week with two different results:
- Lions beat Vikings (also take NFC North title)
OR
- Titans beat Seahawks (only clinch playoff spot)
Now let's take a look at how the Rams' win impacts the overall playoff picture:
NFC playoff picture through Week 15 + TNF
Head of department
Wildcard races (top three advance)
5. Eagles: 10-4
6. Rams: 8-7
7. Vikings: 7-7
8. Seahawks: 7-7
9. Saints: 7-8
10. Falcons: 6-8
11. Packers: 6-8
12. Giants: 5-9
13. Bears: 5-9
The Rams jump into the six-seed, which would temporarily pit them against the three-seed Lions in what would be a matchup with endless storylines – most notably Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford facing their former teams three years after that blockbuster move.
It could be a pretty tough matchup for the Lions as the Rams are one of the hottest NFC teams right now. They have won five of their last six games and their only loss came in overtime on the road against the Baltimore Ravens. Stafford in particular has played some of his best football. Here are his stats from the last six games:
136 of 209 for 1,578 yards, 7.55 Y/A, 15 touchdowns, 2 INTs, 107.7 passer rating
That would make the other first-round matchups Cowboys vs. Vikings and Buccaneers vs. Eagles.
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