GREEN BAY – The Packers are in the playoffs. To be determined is where they'll be seeded.
This week, the most significant item is a Green Bay win at Minnesota would clinch the NFC North, which would make the Packers no worse than the No. 3 seed and guarantee at least one home playoff game.
A victory over the Vikings would also keep the Packers on track for a first-round bye, as wins in their final two games would give Green Bay no worse than the No. 2 seed and a home game in the divisional round.
The No. 1 seed also remains in play, so read on to see where the Packers could get some help.
L.A. Rams (8-6) at San Francisco (11-3)
49ers' remaining opponent: at Seahawks
Arizona at Seattle (11-3)
Seahawks' remaining opponent: vs. 49ers
We'll lump these two together, even though they're being played on separate days (Rams-49ers is on Saturday night), because they're connected via the NFC West co-leaders. For the Packers to get the top seed in the NFC, they need to win their final two games and have both the 49ers and Seahawks pick up another loss. If they both were to lose this week, wonderful. They also play one another in Week 17. So if one of them loses this week, and that team then wins next week, mission accomplished as far as Green Bay is concerned.
Root for: Rams and Cardinals
New Orleans (11-3) at Tennessee (8-6)
Saints' remaining opponent: at Panthers
The Saints remain in the running for a first-round bye as well, but they need the Packers to lose, because if both teams win out, Green Bay has the tiebreaker based on a better conference record. This Saints game is against an AFC opponent, though, so a New Orleans loss really doesn't allow the Packers to lose a game, because Green Bay is playing NFC opponents the rest of the way and the tiebreaker would shift to another scenario if the Packers were to falter. Without getting into complications beyond that, the bottom line is this game might not impact the Packers at all, but there's no reason to cheer for another NFC contender to win.
Root for: Titans
