Lions Fans Week 15 Rooting Guide: Browns, Titans Hold Key to Playoffs

The Detroit Lions enter Week 15 on the outside of the playoff picture, but they could be right back in the mix as soon as Sunday evening.

Detroit holds a pair of advantageous tiebreakers at this stage over the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Buccaneers lost on Thursday to the Atlanta Falcons and have dropped to 7-7, which has them currently out of the playoffs and a game behind the Lions.

Meanwhile, the Bears are ahead of the Lions at 9-4, but with a Lions win and a Bears loss Sunday the Lions will jump back into the seventh seed of the postseason as a Wild Card team.

Here's a breakdown of who the Lions will be rooting for in Week 15 amidst a series of games that impact their playoff hopes.

Raiders at Eagles — Raiders

In this case, it's best to root for the AFC over a NFC playoff contender. The Eagles have the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Lions, so any loss they take on will be helpful to Detroit. Dallas' tie complicates things in the NFC East race, but if the Eagles fall to 8-6 things could tighten up in that division.

Browns at Bears — Browns

The quickest path for Detroit to get back into the playoff picture is a win over the Rams and a loss by the Bears against the Browns. This would even the Lions and Bears at 8-5 records, with Detroit slipping into the seventh seed thanks to the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Panthers at Saints — Saints

As it stands, the Panthers are in first place in the NFC South division thanks to the Buccaneers' loss to Atlanta on Thursday. It's been a surprise to see the Panthers flourish, but a loss for them helps Detroit's playoff hopes. With the Lions not playing the Panthers head-to-head, any NFC loss helps them with regards to a potential tiebreaker.

Colts at Seahawks — Colts

Lions fans will have the luxury of rooting for success in one of the most interesting stories of Week 15, as 44-year-old Phillip Rivers appears slated to start for the Colts after being out of the league for five years. If Rivers can secure an upset against the 10-3 Seahawks, it would bring the Lions a step closer to passing them and put just one game of separation between the two teams.

Packers at Broncos — Broncos

The Packers hold the tiebreaker over the Lions in the divisional race on account of their sweep this year, so Detroit needs help from other teams to salvage their hopes of a three-peat in the NFC North. Green Bay sits in the second seed in the NFC, and the Lions need them to drop to 9-4-1 with a loss.

Titans at 49ers — Titans

The 49ers are currently in the sixth seed with a 9-4 record, and currently hold the tiebreaker over the Lions due to conference record. As a result, the Lions need them to lose to draw closer and give them more margin for error and opportunities to move up as the regular season winds down.

Vikings at Cowboys — Vikings

The Lions helped themselves a lot with a win over the Cowboys last week, and now a division rival can do even more damage to them this week. If J.J. McCarthy and company can steal a road win, the Cowboys will drop to 6-7-1 and take a massive hit to their playoff hopes.