NFL Power Rankings: Why the NFC Wild Card Race Has Already Been Decided

Jay Cutler's broken hand has sealed the fate of the NFC.

The Atlanta Falcons and the Detroit Lions will be the Wild Card winners in the conference. Let's just anoint them now and cancel the rest of the season.

OK, maybe we shouldn't do that, but it's clear those are the top two at this point.

With the 49ers, Saints and Packers all comfortably in the drivers seat to win their respective divisions, and the Cowboys and Giants destined to battle it out for the East, only the Falcons, Lions and Bears are sporting six or more wins.

With the loss of Cutler, Caleb Hanie isn't going to get three more wins out of the 7-3 Bears. Not with four road games left on the slate.

The 7-3 Lions will be favored against the Vikings, Raiders and Chargers, with two games against the Packers and a game at New Orleans still on the slate as well. This team screams 10-6.

The 6-4 Falcons (who beat Detroit) may have their share of struggles against the Saints, but have a very favorable schedule down the stretch. The Vikings are on deck, with the Matt Leinart-led Texans, Panthers, Jags, Saints and Buccaneers to round out the season. 11-5 sounds about right.

The big reason these two teams are virtual locks is the lack of competition around them.

The 6-4 Giants schedule is incredibly difficult, and it looks like the injuries are really starting to take its toll. The 6-4 Cowboys will win this weak division.

After that, it's a bunch of 4-6 squads (Tampa Bay, Philadelphia, Seattle) going nowhere. Not a single NFC team is currently 5-5.

In a year where the best NFC teams are miles ahead of the rest—the Lions and Falcons will be the two teams punching their ticket for the Wild Card.

The AFC on the other hand...

Eric Ball's Week 12 NFL Power Rankings

1. Green Bay Packers (10-0)

2. San Francisco 49ers (9-1)

3. New Orleans Saints (7-3)

4. Baltimore Ravens (7-3)

5. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-3)

6. Detroit Lions (7-3)

7. New England Patriots (6-3)

8. Houston Texans (7-3)

9. Atlanta Falcons (6-4)

10. Oakland Raiders (6-4)

11. Cincinnati Bengals (6-4)

12. Denver Broncos (5-5)

13. New York Jets (5-5)

14. Chicago Bears (7-3)

15. Dallas Cowboys (6-4)

16. New York Giants (6-4)

17. Tennessee Titans (5-5)

18. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-6)

19. Philadelphia Eagles (4-6)

20. Seattle Seahawks (4-6)

21. Miami Dolphins (3-7)

22. Buffalo Bills (5-5)

23. Kansas City Chiefs (4-5)

24. Cleveland Browns (4-6)

25. San Diego Chargers (4-6)

26. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-7)

27. Washington Redskins (3-7)

28. Carolina Panthers (2-8)

29. Arizona Cardinals (3-7)

30. Minnesota Vikings (2-8)

31. St. Louis Rams (2-8)

32. Indianapolis Colts (0-10)