Having clinched the NFC’s No. 1 seed in the final week of the season, the Detroit Lions watched Wild Card Weekend from the comfort of their sofas. Now, let’s examine their opponent in the Divisional Round.
Who Will the Detroit Lions Play in the Divisional Round?
The Lions will host the Washington Commanders next Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.
Jayden Daniels and Co. pulled off an impressive road win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and will now face the No. 1 seed at Ford Field.
Here’s a look at the updated playoff bracket entering the Divisional Round:
What Were the Detroit Lions’ Playoff Scenarios?
The Lions had three potential opponents out of the six playing on Wild Card Weekend: the Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, and Washington Commanders. They could not face either the Philadelphia Eagles or Tampa Bay Buccaneers until the AFC Championship Game at the earliest.
The NFL playoff bracket reseeds on each side after each round. Essentially, that means the highest remaining seed will always face the lowest remaining seed. As the No. 1 seed, the Lions are guaranteed to be the highest-remaining seed in the NFC and, therefore, will always play the lowest remaining seed in the Divisional Round.
With that logic, it was impossible for the No. 1 seed Lions to face the No. 2 seed Eagles (or the No. 3 Buccaneers had they won) in the Divisional Round.
That leaves us with the three teams that the Lions could have faced:
- Commanders (No. 6) at Lions (No. 1)
- Vikings (No. 5) at Lions (No. 1)
- Rams (No. 4) at Lions (No. 1)
Of the eight potential outcomes entering Wild Card Weekend, two saw Washington playing the Lions. Since the Green Bay Packers lost, Daniels and the Commanders will face the Lions since they defeated the Buccaneers on Sunday night.
Had the Vikings defeated the Rams on Monday night and the Bucs defeated the Commanders, the Lions’ opponent would have been Minnesota in a rematch of their Week 18 battle.
The Rams’ scenario for heading to Detroit was essentially the same as the Vikings’. If they beat Minnesota and Washington lost, the Rams would have played at Ford Field in the Divisional Round.
Looking into the future, if the Lions win in the Divisional Round, they are guaranteed to host the NFC Championship Game.
As the No. 1 seed, the Lions cannot go on the road in the playoffs until the neutral-site game at the Super Bowl in New Orleans.
