The Detroit Lions (8-6) welcome the Pittsburgh Steelers (8-6) into Ford Field for their regular-season home finale on Sunday in a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff that will air on CBS.
After falling last week at the NFC-leading Los Angeles Rams, 41-34, the Lions are now in must-win mode. One piece of the Detroit postseason puzzle is easy: the Lions need to win out to give themselves the most realistic opportunity to reach the postseason.
Per the New York Times’ NFL Playoff Simulator, the Lions entered Week 16 with a 27% chance to make the playoffs and a 5% chance to win the NFC North. Entering this week, the Lions’ odds to make the playoffs if they win out jump up to 95%.
But, what else should Lions fans be rooting for? Though it was one of the long shot pathways in, Thursday night’s result between the Seattle Seahawks and Rams wasn’t a great result for Detroit fans. Seattle rallied back from a 16-point fourth-quarter deficit, winning in overtime, 38-37.
Heading into this week’s action, there was a scenario for the Lions to reach the postseason by overtaking the Seahawks in the NFC Wild Card standings. If the Lions won out and the Seahawks lost out, Detroit would have leapt Seattle in the standings thanks to a better conference record under that tiebreak scenario.
But, there’s other avenues to the postseason.
Let’s take a look at the updated NFC playoffs picture and then dive into the Detroit Lions’ Week 16 rooting guide:
Current NFC playoffs picture
Division Leaders
- Seattle Seahawks (12-3)
- Chicago Bears (10-4)
- Philadelphia Eagles (9-5)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7)
Wild Card Leaders
- Los Angeles Rams (11-4)
- San Francisco 49ers (10-4)
- Green Bay Packers (9-4-1)
In The Hunt
- Detroit Lions (8-6)
- Carolina Panthers (7-7)
- Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1)
Lions beat the Steelers
The Lions are a healthy favorite at home and need to handle their business against the Steelers from Ford Field. Detroit dramatically improves its percentages to make the playoffs by simply beating Pittsburgh on Sunday. There’s actually a scenario that eliminates the Lions if they lose on Sunday, which we’ll get to in a moment. So, first things first, beat the Steelers.
No tie at Soldier Field
Depending on how you view the two teams and their respective remaining slates, there’s arguments to be made on both sides for why a Chicago win or a Green Bay win on Saturday from Solider Field may be more beneficial for Detroit.
Assuming Detroit wins out, the Lions could still win the division with either the Bears or Packers winning on Saturday and they could also overtake either for a Wild Card berth with either team winning on Saturday.
The one thing the Lions don’t want to happen: A tie. If the Bears and Packers tie and the Lions lose, Detroit is officially eliminated from the playoffs.
Here’s the remaining schedules for each:
Chicago Bears’ remaining schedule:
- vs. Green Bay Packers
- at San Francisco 49ers
- vs. Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers’ remaining schedule:
- at Chicago Bears
- vs. Baltimore Ravens
- at Minnesota Vikings
Colts over the 49ers
There’s one other path to the playoffs that doesn’t involve the Lions leaping the Bears or Packers in the standings. If the Lions win out and the 49ers lose out, Detroit is in the playoffs.
The 49ers travel to the Indianapolis Colts on Monday night to close Week 16 as Philip Rivers is set for his second straight start after a five-year retirement.
Here’s the rest of the 49ers’ schedule:
San Francisco 49ers’ remaining schedule
- at Indianapolis Colts
- vs. Chicago Bears
- vs. Seattle Seahawks
