There are scenarios in which the Green Bay Packers can officially clinch a playoff spot this week, but there are also scenarios in which the Packers can win the NFC North and clinch the No. 1 seed in the postseason.
But neither of them is likely.
Still, Sunday night in Seattle to play the NFC West top-seeded Seahawks is a great opportunity for the Packers.
For starters, wins over the Seahawks and Packers will be key to winning the postseason. Unofficially, but close enough. A win on Sunday night and just one more result in the last three weeks could secure a playoff spot. Getting 10 wins is always an accomplishment, and the Packers can enhance their playoff chances to over 99 percent by going 10-4.
More importantly, the Packers have the opportunity to go on the road and play as the division leader. While the Packers haven’t officially been eliminated from winning the NFC North, it would take a miracle to beat the Detroit Lions at this point. So Matt LaFleur’s team will be the wild card, and that requires – you guessed it! — goes on tour to play with the league winners in the postseason. The Packers have only one win this season over a team with a (current) road win record. They took advantage of a missed opportunity last Thursday night in Detroit, but the Packers put up a battle and were one or two games away from beating the NFC’s best team in their stead. Now LaFleur’s team can go to Seattle and show the Seahawks that having the Packers visit again in January would be no fun.
Any wild-card team would almost certainly have to defeat at least two division winners on the road to advance to the Super Bowl. For the Packers in 2024, that will likely require defeating the NFC West or NFC South champion in the wild-card round, then the Detroit Lions or Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional round – both on the road.
The Packers are a postseason loser. The Packers can almost punch their ticket on Sunday night in Seattle while proving they can do real damage as road warriors in the NFC playoffs.
