The Tampa Bay Buccaneers clinched the NFC South and the Washington Commanders locked up the NFC’s No. 6 seed.
A 27-19 comeback victory over New Orleans for Baker Mayfield, Mike Evans and the Buccaneers secured the NFC’s final playoff spot. The Denver Broncos were playing to lock up the AFC’s last opening in Sunday’s late afternoon schedule.
Tampa Bay’s win eliminated Atlanta, which lost to Carolina in overtime. The Buccaneers will be the NFC’s No. 3 seed if the Los Angeles Rams lose to Seattle. If the Rams win, they’ll be the fourth seed.
The Commanders beat Dallas 23-19 behind backup quarterback Marcus Mariota’s two touchdown passes. Washington will play either the Buccaneers or the Rams on the road in the wild-card round.
Green Bay, which lost 24-22 to Chicago, will be the seventh seed and visits No. 2 seed Philadelphia. The Eagles beat the Packers 34-29 in the season opener in Brazil.
The NFC North and the conference’s No. 1 seed will be decided when the Lions (14-2) host the Vikings (14-2) on Sunday night. The winner clinches the division, the top spot and a bye next week. The loser gets the No. 5 seed and travels to either Tampa Bay or Los Angeles for a wild-card game. Detroit clinches if the final game of the regular season ends in a tie.
The AFC’s playoff picture became more clear on Saturday when the Baltimore Ravens beat Cleveland to clinch the North and the No. 3 seed. The Kansas City Chiefs already locked up a first-round bye, the Buffalo Bills are the No. 2 seed and the Houston Texans are No. 4.
The Pittsburgh Steelers will be either the fifth or sixth seed. If the Los Angeles Chargers beat Las Vegas, they’ll be No. 5. The Chargers would drop to No. 6 with a loss.
The Broncos needed a victory over Kansas City to secure the seventh seed. If Denver loses, the Dolphins get the final spot with a win over the Jets. The Bengals need Denver and Miami to lose to earn the last playoff spot.
Originally Published:
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