If the Vikings can hold onto the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoff race they’ll open Super Wild Card Weekend against the No. 7 seed. Entering Week 16, the seventh seed is in the hands of the Washington Commanders.
Minnesota beat Washington in D.C. 20-17 on Nov. 6. Since then, the Vikings are hold the No. 7 seed. The Vikings are 4-2 since then and the Commanders are 4-1-1.
Seattle (7-7) and Detroit (7-7) are just behind the Commanders (7-6-1), with Seattle owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Lions. Green Bay (6-8) is on the far outside looking in but not out of contention just yet.
The Giants (8-5-1) currently control the No. 6 seed ahead of their visit to Minneapolis on Saturday.
Scoreboard watching in Week 16
- NY Giants at Minnesota
- Seattle at Kansas City
- Detroit at Carolina
- Washington at San Francisco
- Green Bay at Miami
The Chiefs are favored to beat the Seahawks by at least 10 points, while the 49ers are 7-point favorites against the Commanders and the Lions are 2.5-point favorites at Carolina. Miami is favored to beat Green Bay and Minnesota is a home favorite over the Giants.
If all of the favorites win, the Giants would still control the No. 6 seed and the Lions would slip into No. 7 spot.
- Giants (8-6-1)
- Lions (8-7)
- Commanders (7-7-1)
- Seattle (7-8)
- Green Bay (6-9)
“Each of these teams they have their problems, but I think the matchup the Vikings don’t want is the Detroit Lions. They’ve been the hottest team in the NFL since they started 1-6,” said Matthew Coller.
“That is a motivated, underdog-type team. And the biggest thing is, the Vikings, despite a decent defensive performance against the Indianapolis Colts, they still have a lot of flaws on the defensive side. That is where it would be most scary, if you’re facing one of the teams with one of the best offenses in the NFL in the Detroit Lions.”
The best potential first-round opponent? The Giants, according to Coller.
