NFC wild-card picture still blurry

Winning North is easiest road

Green Bay — The Green Bay Packers would earn their eighth straight playoff bid — and the NFC North title — if they win their final two games. That’s their simplest postseason outlook.

The wild-card outlook is much more complicated.

While a division title is by far the Packers’ best chance of making the playoffs, it isn’t necessarily their only path. Several scenarios that could allow the Packers to earn a wild card should the Detroit Lions (9-5) hang onto their NFC North lead.

The Packers stood eighth in the NFC with

Washington set to play the Carolina Panthers on Monday night. With an 8-6 record, they were positioned to move into a sixth-place tie with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers should Washington (75-1) lose.

Of the three teams that could threaten the Packers’ wild-card chances (Atlanta, Washington and Tampa Bay),

the Bucs are the most favorable competition.

The Packers lost to Atlanta and Washington, so the Packers would lose the tiebreaker if they finish with identical records.

If the Packers and Bucs finish with the same record, they will have identical records against NFC opponents. They also have identical 3-2 records against common opponents. The next tiebreaker is strength of victory, which won’t be determined until the season is

over.

A Carolina victory over Washington would mean the Packers and Bucs have identical strength of victory (.441 win percentage). The Packers should hold an edge here moving forward. Their final two opponents have a 16-12 record, while the Bucs' final two opponents were 1316 entering Monday night’s game.

An identical strength of victory means strength of schedule, the fifth tiebreaker, would be applicable. The Packers would have the slightest of edges with a Carolina win Monday, a

.505 strength of schedule to .500 for Tampa Bay.

At the highest level, NFL teams are crunching these numbers to figure out playoff scenarios. Between coach Mike McCarthy and his players, the message stays simple.

“Ten wins,” McCarthy said. “That’s really all we’ve focused on.

“We know we’re at eight. We have to get to nine. Then obviously next week we’ll probably be answering that question the same way.

“It’s not to be cliché, but just staying true to what’s right in front of us.”