NFL Playoff Picture: Seahawks get huge win, Patriots eliminated from playoffs
By Quinn Everts
Everyone take a deep breath. Did the early slate of Week 13 feel extra stressful to anyone else?
A majority of the games came down to the wire, Aaron Jones redeemed himself after an early fumble with a game-winning touchdown, the Seattle Seahawks came from behind to beat the New York Jets who just want the season to be over, the Washington Commanders were lucky enough to play the Tennessee Titans, and the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cincinnati Bengals in an unusually high-scoring AFC North matchup.
That barely scratches the surface of everything that went down, but as the dust settles, the NFL Playoff Picture... well, it doesn't really get any clearer, as there's still so much time left, but it at least gave us some storylines for this week. Sometimes, that's all we can ask for.
Detroit Lions are on the precipice of a playoff spot
With how the results have shaked out in Week 13 so far, the Detroit Lions (11-1) are on the verge of a playoff berth. With the Seahawks winning, they're not mathematically in yet, and we're not math experts so we're not going to tell you how that's the case, but Detroit fans will have to wait one more week to officially clinch a spot.
With what Lions fans have gone through, we don't blame them for not believing anything good will happen until there is a 100%, iron-clad guarantee that it can't all go down the drain.
Commanders stay within shouting distance of Eagles in NFC East
The Philadelphia Eagles (9-2) might be a runaway train in the NFC East right now as they've won 7 straight, but a huge win against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday keeps the Washington Commanders (8-5) at least within reach of the Eagles — assuming the Eagles ever lose a game again.
Washington is 1.5 games back of the Packers in the NFC Wild Card, too, so the path to the playoffs for Jayden Daniels won't be easy either way. With just four games left, a playoff spot is anything but guaranteed for Washington.
Patriots eliminated from playoff contention
This will be the third straight season the Patriots miss the playoffs, and Jerod Mayo's first season as coach of the Patriots trudges on. There were some positive signs early of the direction of this team, but the season has gone downhill pretty quickly. That's not all Mayo's fault — at all — as this team is pretty bereft of talent.
Steelers offense goes off as team rebounds and re-takes control of AFC North
Last week, a gutting loss to the Cleveland Browns dropped the Pittsburgh Steelers behind the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC North standings. But after a (somewhat surprisingly) thrilling 44-38 win against AFC North rival Cincinnati, the Steelers are back on top of the division at 9-3. Pittsburgh's playoff odds aren't 100%, but they hover around 97% with 5 games remaining.
The losers of this game, the Cincinnati Bengals, are on the opposite end of the spectrum. Now 4-8, the chances of a playoff run feel like a longshot for Joe Burrow and the Bengals, who have dropped 3 straight after clawing back to near-.500. The Bengals are closer to Cleveland (3-8) than the top of the division.
Seattle gets massive win, takes lead in NFC West
Coming into Sunday, there was exactly one game separating the four teams in the NFC West. Seattle and Arizona were both 6-5, while San Francisco and Los Angeles were both 5-6.
LA plays later on Sunday Night Football, and the Rams are in action right now against the New Orleans Saints, but at the moment, the Seattle Seahawks (7-5) stand alone atop the NFC West after a comeback win against the New York Jets.
With a giant game next week against the Cardinals, the Seahawks aren't close to clinching anything yet, but coming back from an early 14-0 lead to reach 2 games over .500 are the types of wins a playoff-hopeful team needs.
Arizona (6-5) meanwhile, suffered an equally crushing defeat, at the hands of the Minnesota Vikings, 23-22. Arizona can still win the division, obviously, but a loss like this feels even worse in a division that's going to be separated by hairs at year's end.
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