The Detroit Lions are on a four-game winning streak. They’re 6-2 for the third time in last four seasons. They’re 2-0 in divisional play, and are tied in the conference for the best record against NFC opponents (4-1).
Yet, they are still stuck at third in the division and sitting with the six seed in the NFL playoff picture through Week 9 (with “Monday Night Football” still pending).
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It’s a frustrating spot to be in, but the good news is that if the Lions can just continue to take care of business, everything is still in front of them. Let’s take a closer look at the NFC playoff picture and what it means for the Lions.
Minnesota Vikings: 6-1 (2-1 in division)
Green Bay Packers: 6-3 (1-2)
The Bears and Packers didn’t just win on Sunday, they looked darn good. The Packers blew out a Patriots team that was starting to look like an AFC Super Bowl contender. They had their first explosive offensive game of the season (45 points, 478 yards), and their defense was opportunistic with three interceptions and four sacks.
Meanwhile, the Bears jumped all over the Buccaneers early on Sunday night. And while a four-interception game from Caleb Williams kept the Bucs in it late, his two-minute drill was all Chicago needed to put the game away.
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The good news is that the Minnesota Vikings will have their hands full on Monday night against the Buffalo Bills. If they lose that game, the Vikes will drop to third place in the division, technically tied with Detroit, but the Lions have the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Division leaders:
Wild Card leaders (top three advance)
5. Bears: 7-2
6. Lions: 6-2
7. Packers: 6-3
8. Seahawks: 5-4
9. Rams: 5-4
10. Cowboys: 4-5
11. Saints: 3-5
12. Buccaneers: 3-6
13. Falcons: 3-6
14. Cardinals: 3-6
15. Commanders: 2-5-1
16. Eagles: 2-7
Miraculously, every NFC team seeded from 1-11 won this week, with the exception of the Carolina Panthers (lost to Broncos) and the Minnesota Vikings (haven’t played yet). So not only did the Lions fail to climb any spots in the playoff race, but they didn’t create any space between them and most of the teams behind them. They still remain 1.5 games ahead of the Seahawks and Rams—and neither of those teams were very convincing in their wins—but it’s still annoying to have such a good record and not feel completely safe in their playoff standing. That said, it’s not all that uncommon. The Cincinnati Bengals are in a pretty similar situation in the AFC, holding an identical 6-2 record and the six seed.
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Now, if the Vikings lose on Monday night, the Lions will slide up to the five seed, while the Bears would overtake to two seed and Minnesota would drop to the six seed. Let’s hope the football gods can offer at least one sacrifice this week.
