Detroit Lions: Odds on Who They Could Meet in Playoffs and How They Match Up

Don't get all Jim Mora on me, but coming off a big loss to the Green Bay Packers, I'm going to start talking about playoffs.

Because as much as it may appear that the Lions have imploded, they're still in an effective three-way tie for the last two playoff spots.

They lose the head-to-head tiebreaker to the Atlanta Falcons, and they're currently down one game in the "common games" tiebreaker to the Chicago Bears (though that will likely change as the season wraps up).

In other words, the Lions are out of playoff position right now, but they're very much alive with five games to go and endless possibilities.

So assuming the Lions make the playoffs (and nobody knows better than me how big an assumption that is), let's run down the foes they could face when/if that happens.

New Orleans Saints

Head-to-Head Record: TBD

Incidentally, the Lions' Sunday Night matchup this weekend against the New Orleans Saints is not only one of the most important left on the schedule, it's also the most likely first-round playoff matchup.

It looks increasingly like the Lions' best shot of making the playoffs is to squeak in as the sixth seed. They have some help with tiebreakers, but not much. Right now, both the Bears and Falcons would beat out the Lions with an equal record.

And I fully expect (at least) one of those teams to make the playoffs, which means the Lions would be bumped to sixth, assuming they have the same overall record.

Meanwhile, the Saints are cruising with the third spot in the playoffs and the lead in the NFC South, and unless you expect the frustratingly inconsistent Cowboys to outplay them down the stretch, it ought to stay that way.

This game should be a matchup of explosive offense and opportunistic, turnover-happy defense. But hey, why preview it now? I'll have a whole article to do that in a couple days...

Dallas Cowboys

Head-to-Head Record: 1-0 Lions

The odds of the Lions playing another game against the Cowboys like they did in early October is almost zero.

But then again, we are talking about Tony Romo in the playoffs.

But that's assuming they make it that far. The Cowboys need to fend off the Giants to win the NFC East, and there are still two games left between the two. But the Cowboys' schedule is tissue-soft compared to the Giants. 

Take next week as an example: The Cowboys get to trounce around on the Arizona Cardinals, while the Giants draw the Green Bay Packers.

The Cowboys are playing good football right now, and the emergence of DeMarco Murray has limited the opportunities for "Bad Romo" to appear. And as we all remember, it was "Bad Romo" that allowed the Lions to come back and beat the Cowboys.

But then, if the Lions are actually in the playoffs, that means they've played good football against good teams to get there. So if this game comes to pass, we can expect both teams to play far better than they did earlier in the season.

Atlanta Falcons

Head-to-Head Record: 1-0 Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons are a thorn in the Lions' playoff hopes. After beating the Lions at home, they own an all-important tiebreaker as the teams continue to jockey for playoff position.

However, the Falcons are within striking distance of the New Orleans Saints in the NFC South, so if the Lions can knock off the Saints next weekend, the whole playoff picture gets a very different complexion.

When these teams played, they seemed evenly matched and able to neutralize the other team's strength. The Lions were mostly able to bottle up Michael Turner, and the Falcons did well to quiet the Lions' passing attack.

The difference in this game, as it has been in so many others, was discipline. The Lions took silly penalties and made stupid mistakes, and the steady Falcons capitalized.

I must reiterate here that the Lions won't make the playoffs if they can't start exhibiting greater discipline, and so if we're looking at these teams in the postseason, we must also assume that the Lions have figured themselves out.

But the Falcons would likely have rookie phenom Julio Jones back too, so this matchup may be one of the most intriguing for both sides.

New York Giants

Head-to-Head Record: None

The New York Giants are really the only possible NFC team the Lions could face in the playoffs that they didn't see in the regular season. That alone makes this intriguing.

But of all possible playoff teams, the Giants may have the toughest road to get there. Two games against Dallas and one against Green Bay?

Even the easy games (Washington, N.Y. Jets) aren't that easy. And considering that the Giants likely need to pull at least three (probably four) wins out of that schedule, prospects aren't looking great.

But still, it would be interesting to see how the Lions fare against the Giants. Both teams appear well-built, but both are susceptible to the dumb mistake and the major collapse.

The difference is, the Lions are young and still figuring out the "winning consistently" thing. The Giants are four years removed from a Super Bowl.

Chicago Bears

Head-to-Head Record: 1-1

The odds of the Lions drawing the Bears in the playoffs are exceedingly low, for a number of reasons.

First, the Lions and Bears are currently trying to edge one another out of the playoffs. If both teams make it, it will mean the Falcons and Giants have collapsed (or possibly the Cowboys and Saints).

But there's an even bigger reason why this matchup is unlikely. If the Lions and Bears make the playoffs, they will be wild-card teams. And that means they won't meet unless it's in the NFC Championship game.

That means one of these two teams will have beaten the Packers, 49ers, Saints/Falcons and Cowboys/Giants already in the playoffs.

If that happens, it means the Lions have cleaned up their sloppy play, and the Bears have gotten Jay Cutler back.

If that's the case, this game may come down to home-field advantage. Each of these teams looked dominant playing the other at home during the regular season.

If Ford Field was amped up enough to force the Bears into nine false starts on a Monday Night game in Week 5, imagine what they'll be like for the NFC Championship.

San Francisco 49ers

Head-to-Head Record: 1-0 49ers

Can you imagine? This would be Handshake-Gate Redux.

And if emotions were running that high during a big matchup in Week 6, it might be all-out fistfight-worthy in the second round of the playoffs.

Of course, that won't happen. These guys may not like each other very much, but they're both smart enough to know they'll have the microscope on them when the game comes to its conclusion. Anything other than a firm shake and a few pleasantries could have career implications.

But with that in mind, what about the game itself?

The Lions and 49ers played a good game in which both teams had a reasonable chance to win. The 49ers grasped theirs, the Lions didn't.

Whether the Lions can hang around with San Francisco in the playoffs will depend on whether they can neutralize (or at least slow) the pass rush that made Matthew Stafford wild and inaccurate all day.

Green Bay Packers

Head-to-Head Record: 1-0 Packers, one game left to play

If this matchup comes to pass in the postseason, it will almost definitely be in the second round.

And that will make it the second time in three weeks the Lions travel to Lambeau Field, where they haven't won since 1991.

But then, the Lions may very well need a victory at Lambeau Field to clinch a playoff berth, so perhaps it will have already happened?

That's doubtful, of course. The Lions couldn't keep pace (or composure) with the Packers with a rowdy home crowd in the building on Thanksgiving, so why would they be able to knock them out at Lambeau with the playoffs looming?

Still, don't count them out. The Lions finished last season with a positive point differential over the Packers, and were really only a third down or two from stealing the matchup at Lambeau in 2010.

And that's to say nothing of the fact that the Lions actually played the Packers to a virtual draw on Thanksgiving. The Packers just capitalized on their opportunities, where the Lions failed to do the same.

I would argue that the Lions generated more opportunities for themselves. They just squandered most of them.

This Week 17 matchup at Lambeau will be full of intrigue for countless reasons. But if it happens again in the postseason? All bets are off.