NFL Playoff Predictions: NFC Picture Will Clear Up Quickly in Week 16

If your head is still spinning from all the possibly playoff scenarios floating around the NFL after Week 15, don't worry.

The picture will be considerably clearer come Week 16, at least in the NFC.

The Green Bay Packers, New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers have all locked up spots in the postseason. The Dallas Cowboys sport a tenuous, one-game cushion over the New York Giants, and the Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons need only win one of their remaining two games or have the fringe teams nipping at their heels lose to ensure that they play on into January.

The Falcons seem most likely of the latter three to take care of business. They'll be hard-pressed to top the Saints in New Orleans on Monday night, but should have little trouble sealing the deal against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers—losers of their last eight games—on the final weekend of the season, should it come down to that.

The fates of the Cowboys and the Lions are a bit more in question, to say the least. Dallas can finally eliminate Philadelphia from the NFC East race on Saturday, though judging by the Cowboys' Week 8 debacle against Michael Vick and the Eagles, that's anything but a foregone conclusion. Still, Tony Romo and company have played well overall since that game, and might well have been 7-0 over that span had Dan Bailey not been iced in key situations two weeks in a row.

The Giants, losers of five of their last six games, will go toe-to-toe with the similarly beleaguered Jets the very same day. Gang Green had been playing well before running into a buzzsaw in Philly on Sunday. Meanwhile, Eli Manning and Big Blue blew a big opportunity to build on the momentum gathered from their big win in Dallas with a stinker against the Redskins. Frankly, this game's about as close to a toss-up as can be.

Okay, so the NFC East is still incredibly confusing, but the last wild card spot shouldn't be. True, the Lions have a bit of an uphill climb on their hands to lock down the berth for themselves, with home games against the surging Chargers and the defending Super Bowl champion Packers left on the schedule.

But their chief competitors—the Bears, Seahawks and Cardinals—will all face even stiffer circumstances to sneak into the playoff picture. Chicago has dropped its last four games amidst season-ending injuries to Jay Cutler, Matt Forte and Johnny Knox, and will have to win in Green Bay on Christmas Day just to stay alive.

In other words, good luck.

Seattle will be home for the holiday, though a visit from the NFC West-best 49ers figures to make Christmas in the Pacific Northwest decidedly less than jolly. Arizona, meanwhile, has to travel to Cincinnati to play a solid Bengals squad.

And, if all else fails, one of the two, between the 'Hawks and the Cards, will be eliminated when they meet in Phoenix on New Year's Day.

For those of you keeping track, that basically leaves only the berth belonging to the NFC East champion up for grabs.

And even that could clear up quicker than a mild case of acne if the Cowboys win and the G-Men lose.

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