Early week 18 slate adds pressure on the Packers

There was a scenario where it was possible for the Green Bay Packers to lose to the Chicago Bears in week 18 and still reach the playoffs. But that is not going to happen.

In the first slate of games, Green Bay needed a loss from the Minnesota Vikings to the Detroit Lions, and they got it — the Lions won 30-20. But the Packers also needed a loss from the New Orleans Saints or Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but both NFC South favorites won their games over the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers, respectively.

It was not a beautiful performance by the Buccaneers offense, but the team did enough to beat the Panthers 9-0 and clinch the NFC South title. Carolina finished the season with the worst record in the NFL, but the first overall pick goes to the Chicago Bears.

Meanwhile, the Falcons-Saints game started interesting — Atlanta had an early lead, and the game went tied into halftime. However, the Saints took it over in the second half, beating their rivals by 48-17.

With that combination of results, the Seattle Seahawks game against the Arizona Cardinals in the second slate becomes meaningless for Green Bay.

The Packers need to beat the Chicago Bears to get in. And if they lose, they are officially eliminated from contention.

What's at stake

Now, the Packers' biggest rooting interest outside of their own game is the San Francisco 49ers, who face the Los Angeles Rams — both teams will have a lot of backups on the field, including quarterbacks Sam Darnold and Carson Wentz. If the Packers and the 49ers win their games, Green Bay goes to the sixth seed.

NFC South

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers secured the division title with the win over the Panthers. And with a win, the Saints put themselves in position to have a shot. But they need losses from the Seahawks and the Packers to get in.

All over again

Now that the Packers need to win to get a playoff berth, it’s a similar scenario to what it was in week 18 last season, when Green Bay faced the Detroit Lions at Lambeau Field.

The Packers needed a win, and the Lions were also eliminated, as the Chicago Bears are now — the difference is that the Lions got eliminated during the day, with a Seattle Seahawks win. The Bears entered week 18 without chances.