Not only did the Seahawks clinch a playoff berth over the weekend, they greatly increased their odds of a NFC West title and the NFC’s top seed with Sunday’s 35-6 win in Arizona.
Still, even though the NFC playoff field is decided other than the NFC South champion in terms of who’s in (Seattle, Arizona, Dallas, Green Bay and Detroit, along with the Atlanta/Carolina winner) there is still a lot to be determined in Week 17 when it comes to seeding.
As it stands now, the Seahawks could finish with the No. 1, 2, 3, 5 or 6 seed in the NFC depending on what happens next weekend, though without ties they can only be 1, 3 or 5. The fortunate news for them is that a home win over St. Louis almost assures them of that top seed and home-field advantage.
How the Seahawks can be the No. 1 seed:
Seattle win and Green Bay-Detroit game doesn’t end in a tie), or…
Seattle win and Dallas loss, regardless of Green Bay-Detroit result, or…
Seattle tie and Arizona loss or tie and Dallas loss or tie and Green Bay-Detroit tie.
And yes, that last scenario is ridiculously unlikely, but as you can see, a Seahawks victory puts them in a very good place. Ties are rare in the NFL, and with Green Bay and Detroit playing for the NFC North title, it’s hard to see two teams with pretty explosive offenses going through an overtime period without settling a tie with so much at stake. And as long as one of them wins, the Seahawks win a three-way tiebreaker with Dallas and Green Bay/Detroit. The reason a tie is bad for the Seahawks is that they lose a head-to-head tiebreaker with the Cowboys because Dallas beat them.
How the Seahawks can be the No. 2 seed:
Seattle win and Dallas win and Green Bay-Detroit tie.
As mentioned above, this is the one way a 12-4 Seahawks team loses out on the top seed, but they’d still get a first-round bye and be home for the division round in this scenario
Or, far less likely, Seattle tie and Arizona tie plus a Dallas loss would do the trick.
How the Seahawks can be the No. 3 seed:
Seattle loss and Arizona loss.
Seattle tie and Arizona tie and Dallas win or tie and a non-tie in Green Bay-Detroit.
In these scenarios, the Seahawks would win the division at 11-5 or, much less likely, 11-4-1, but lose out on a bye to Dallas and the NFC North winner.
How the Seahawks can be the No. 5 seed:
Seattle loss and Arizona win.
This is the one way the Seahawks don’t win the division, and as a Wild Card they would drop to the No. 5 seed (they have the tiebreaker over Green Bay and Detroit so would finish ahead of both of them as a Wild Card presuming there’s a winner in that game). This would mean a road game in Atlanta or Carolina against an NFC South winner with a losing record. Karmic payback for the 2010 Seahawks, who won the division with a 7-9 record hosting the 11-5 Saints, perhaps?
How the Seahawks can be the No. 6 seed:
Seattle loss and Arizona win and Green Bay-Detroit tie.
In this case, the Packers would be 11-4-1 and lose a tiebreaker with the Lions for the division, but finish ahead of an 11-5 Seattle for the better Wild Card spot.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
