Here are the scenarios in front of Green Bay as of this posting.
Division TitleChicago wins the NFC North with a victory over Minnesota.
If Chicago loses to Minnesota, Green Bay then controls their destiny. They would win the division if they beat both New York and Chicago. What the Bears do against the Jets is irrelevant if the Packers take care of their business.
Green Bay can also still win the NFC North with a 9-7 record. If the Bears fail to win a game the rest of the season, Green Bay would win the division even with a loss to the Giants next week. Both teams would have nine wins and the Packers would own the tiebreaker.
Obviously, Green Bay would lose the division if they lose to Chicago in the final game. From the Bears perspective, beating Green Bay in the final week would make everything they do from now irrelevant from a divisional race standpoint.
The No. 2 seed is also still possible.If Philadelphia fails to win a game the rest of the season, they would fall to 10 wins.
The Bears must lose to Minnesota and Green Bay must then win out.
The Packers would beat the Bears for the division title and then beat the Eagles for the No. 2 seed because of their week one victory over Philadelphia.
Note: The Giants losing to Green Bay would eliminate them from divisional contention.
Wildcard ScenariosPersonally, the No. 5 seed is coveted. That team will face the NFC West champion and will be the favorite to advance to the next round.
Yes, the Packers are still alive for the No. 5 seed regardless of what happens tomorrow night in the Bears vs. Vikings game.
Unbelievably, it is not a complicated scenario.
New Orleans would need to lose to Atlanta and Tampa Bay.
The Packers would need to beat N.Y. Giants and Chicago.
Thats all there is to it. The Packers would clinch the No. 5 seed and have a date with San Francisco, Seattle, or St. Louis. The reason is their strength of victory is better than New Orleans, N.Y. Giants, and Tampa Bay.
In case youre wondering, New Orleans clinches the No. 5 seed with one more victory.
As for the No. 6 seed....The Packers clinch the No. 6 seed in the NFC with victories over N.Y. Giants and Chicago. In other words, Green Bay controls their destiny right now.
Tampa Bay would not hold a tiebreaker over Green Bay if both teams were the only 10-win teams in the NFC. The reason is Green Bays strength of victory breaks the tie here.
In addition, Green Bay holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over the N.Y. Giants if both teams finish as the only 10-win teams in the NFC.
Can the Packers make the wildcard with only nine wins?
The answer is yes.
Once again, strength of victory comes into play.
For this to happen, Green Bay must beat the New York Giants. If the Giants beat the Packers, Green Bays eliminated from wildcard contention.
However, a Green Bay victory over the Giants and a loss to Chicago doesnt spell doom. If the Giants lose to Washington the following week and Tampa Bay loses to either Seattle or New Orleans, the Packers clinch a playoff spot.
Strength of victory is the reason why. Obviously, Green Bay holds a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Giants, so they would go in case there is a two-way tie.
However, they also hold the strength of victory over both Tampa Bay and N.Y. Giants in the case where all teams have nine wins on the season.
At the end of the day, Green Bay holds all the cards. They control their own destiny. If they win out, they will be in the postseason.