The Arizona Cardinals’ season has been full of twists and turns, but after a few bad weeks, they entered Week 16 on the back foot in terms of clinching a playoff spot.
Yet, Arizona remained just one game back for the NFC West title and was still in the NFC Wild Card picture before they kicked off against the Carolina Panthers.
They lost, however, in an overtime thriller. Do they still have a chance to make the playoffs? Let’s look at the Cardinals’ current playoff picture.
What Is the Arizona Cardinals’ Current Playoff Picture?
Unfortunately, the Cardinals have been eliminated from the playoff race. That’s because the Rams (9-6) are one game ahead of the Seattle Seahawks (8-7) following all the action in Week 16.
Those two teams are at the top of the division, with the Rams holding the tiebreaker thanks to a Week 9 victory between the two teams. However, with them set to play again in Week 18, both teams still control their own destinies if Seattle is victorious over the Vikings.
Behind them are the Cardinals (7-8). They were swept by the Seahawks, but they do have the chance to go 4-2 in the division if they beat the Rams and San Francisco 49ers in their final two games.
However, even if they do, that won’t matter because the Rams won and the Cardinals lost in Week 16.
What Were the Cardinals’ Playoff Scenarios and Chances Entering Week 16?
Arizona would have been able to win the division by either finishing 3-0 or 2-1. If the Cardinals won out, they would have needed both the Rams and Seahawks to finish 2-1, so they all would have finished with 10 wins.
The results to reach that point would have given the Cardinals a tiebreaker based on a combination of division record and a head-to-head sweep over the Rams.
Arizona could have won the division by finishing 3-0, the Rams going 2-1, and the Seahawks going 1-2. The Cardinals would have finished tied at 10-7 with the Rams and then have the head-to-head sweep over them.
However, if the Seahawks and Cardinals finished tied at 10-7 with the Rams at 9-8 or worse, then Seattle would win the NFC West based on the head-to-head sweep.
If Arizona had won, there was also a path for them to win the division if they finished 9-8, but they would have needed a lot of help. The Rams and Seahawks would have only been able to finish 1-2 or worse, and even then, things get messy again with tiebreakers.
The logic was similar to that above, and if Arizona’s two wins were over LA and San Francisco, that would have given the Cardinals a decent shot of winning any tiebreaker situation.
Arizona was eliminated this weekend because they lost, while the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Jets. The Cardinals will face the Rams in Week 17, where they have a chance to play spoiler. In Week 18, they’ll play the 49ers in a game that won’t matter for either team when it comes to the playoffs as San Francisco was eliminated from contention in Week 16.
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