Lions playoff scenarios: What seed with Detroit be win or lose vs. Vikings

The Detroit Lions are set to host the Minnesota Vikings in Week 18 for one of the most significant regular season games in NFL history.

The NFC North clash will mark the first time two teams with 14-plus wins have ever faced one another in the regular season. Their 28 combined wins are the most between two teams in a regular season matchup, per NFL Research. The previous mark of 25 combined wins was reached by the Indianapolis Colts and Seattle Seahawks in 2005, as well as the New England Patriots and New York Giants in 2007.

Beyond the historical significance, the game will determine which teams wins the NFC North division title and the NFC's No. 1 seed, which would provide a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the postseason.

Lions' path to Super Bowl LIX could become difficult with Week 18 loss

The Lions currently hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over Minnesota, but they'll need a win or a tie to clinch the division. If Detroit manages to defeat the Vikings, they'll have the luxury of getting some much-needed rest during the Wild Card Round.

If the Lions lose, the path to Super Bowl LIX would get significantly more difficult. Detroit would fall down to the NFC's No. 5 seed, which would force them to hit the road for a Wild Card game against the NFC's No. 4 seed, which could be the Los Angeles Rams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers or Atlanta Falcons.

The Lions would be wise to avoid the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay and Detroit have played in some high-scoring, dramatic regular season games in recent years, and the Buccaneers handed the Lions one of their two losses in Week 2 this season.

Los Angeles suffered a 26-20 overtime loss to Detroit in the regular season opener, but the Rams have been surging in December. The Rams have won five consecutive games and nine of their 11 games since their Week 6. Atlanta could surpass the Buccaneers for the NFC South title, but they would need to defeat the Carolina Panthers and also need Tampa Bay to lose to the New Orleans Saints.

Detroit hasn't hosted an AFC Championship Game since the 1957 season, when Dwight Eisenhower was still in office. As meaningful as it would be for the long-suffering Lions' fanbase to host a conference championship at Ford Field, the team could use the rest. Detroit appeared to be the most dominant and well-rounded team of the 2024 season before injuries ravaged the roster.