Detroit Lions NFL playoff scenarios: Here's what they need in final week

The Detroit Lions did their part on Sunday by beating the Bears, 41-10, to improve to 8-8; they also got some help from their Great Lakes brethren from Cleveland as the Browns beat the Commanders, 24-10.

That dropped Washington to 7-8-1, half a game behind the 8-8 Lions, with one game left for each team. Unfortunately for the Lions, the two other teams who entered the week at 7-8 — the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks — both prevailed at home.

Although the Lions have clinched just their fifth eight-win season since the start of the century (with the NFL going to a 17-game schedule last season), they'll still need some help to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

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Here’s what the Lions need to wrap up a playoff berth in Week 18 (though we won’t know when the game is until the schedule is finalized on Monday night):

1. A win over the Packers in Green Bay.

2. A loss by the Seahawks when they host the L.A. Rams.

If both the Seahawks and Lions win, Seattle gets the spot thanks to its Week 4 win in Detroit. If Green Bay wins, it gets the spot, regardless of Seattle’s game thanks to a better record vs. NFC teams. (One last scenario: Ties in both Seattle and Green Bay, plus a win by Washington over Dallas, would give the Lions the edge in a pool of four 8-8-1 teams. The two ties and a Washington loss hands the spot to the Seahawks)

And, of course, the game between the Seahawks and Rams carries additional significance for the Lions' future: Detroit is set to receive the Rams' first-round pick in the 2023 draft as part of 2021's Matthew Stafford trade. A loss by the Rams, who enter Week 18 at 5-11 and holding the No. 6 pick, could move the Lions' spot as high as fourth. (The Lions also have their own first-round pick, which is virtually locked into the middle of the round, barring a deep postseason run.)

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions NFL playoff scenarios: Here's what they need in Week 18