NFC Playoff Picture, Week 14: Panthers clinch first-round bye

The NFC Playoffs are right around the corner, but who is in and who is out as of right now?

It was a good week for two teams that weren’t pegged as top contenders when the season started. The Panthers and Cardinals were on very different ends of the critical spectrum, but both end Week 14 as the top teams in the NFC. Carolina’s destruction of the Falcons, who very much did not rise up in a shutout loss, clinched them a first-round bye and moved them closer to securing the No. 1 seed.

Earning home field advantage is still a possibility for the Cardinals, who need the Panthers to lose — something that hasn’t happened all season long. Speaking of possibilities, the Packers are still in the hunt for a first-round bye, needing to win out and have the Cardinals lose in order to leapfrog Arizona in the standings.

Here’s what the current Wild Card picture looks like on the NFC side of things:

1. Panthers (13-0)
2. Cardinals (11-2)
3. Packers (9-4)
4. Redskins (6-7)
WC1. Seahawks (8-5)
WC2. Vikings (8-5)

Teams just on the outside of the bubble are:

Buccaneers (6-7)
Falcons (6-7)
Eagles (6-7)
Giants (5-7)*

* – Play on MNF

If the playoffs were to start today, here would be our matchups on Wild Card weekend:

Packers vs. Vikings
Redskins vs. Seahawks

It wouldn’t be the first time the Vikings and Packers met in the Wild Card, and given how their matchups this season have gone it’s a fool’s guess as to how things will turnout. The easier matchup is the Redskins-Seahawks showdown which is sure to end in a bloodbath that Washington isn’t pleased about.

That being said, there are still three weeks left in the season so anything can happen that could potentially shift the postseason field.