Here's How the Lions Can Clinch a Playoff Spot Before Week 18

Updated: Sep 10, 5:00pm UTC

The Detroit Lions captured a thrilling win over the New York Jets on Sunday. This was Detroit's sixth win in its last seven games, raising the Lions' record to .500 for the first time since Week 2.

More importantly, the win gave Detroit a serious opportunity to make the playoffs. For a franchise that hasn't made the playoffs since 2016 and owns just three playoff appearances since 2000, that's massive.

It won't be easy, but a reddit user laid out exactly what the Lions need to happen to clinch a playoff spot before Week 18.

Detroit Lions Playoff Scenario

As pointed out by Lions insider Tyler Sawa, the team can actually jump into a Wild Card spot in the playoff picture as early as next week. That won't clinch a spot, but then Detroit will control its own destiny. If the Lions beat the Carolina Panthers on Christmas Eve while both the Washington Commanders and Seattle Seahawks lose, they'll jump into a playoff spot.

The job of clinching is a little tougher, however. Detroit needs a win over Carolina in Week 16 and a win over the Chicago Bears in Week 17. The Lions will need help from three other teams, though. In this scenario, the Commanders must lose both of their next two games (San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns), the Seahawks must lose twice (Kansas City Chiefs, New York Jets) and the Green Bay Packers must lose one of their next three (Los Angeles Rams, Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings).

That combination of events results in Detroit clinching a playoff spot by the end of Week 17. And believe us, the city will go crazy for Dan Campbell and his roster.

Adam Taylor McKillop is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Adam Taylor also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username atmckillop. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

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