What Bears' NFC North Showdown With Packers Means For Lions

What impact does Bears-Packers matchup on Lions' playoff hopes?

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson. | David Banks-Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions aren't completely out of the playoff race, but the situation has grown dire in recent weeks.

Going 4-5 over the last nine weeks has complicated the Lions' situation, as they currently sit as the first team outside of the postseason in the NFC. Detroit has alternated losses and wins over their last nine contests, unable to string together any sort of consistent momentum.

Meanwhile, the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers have taken control of the division. The Bears currently sit in first-place at 10-4, while the Packers are in second with a 9-4-1 mark. Those two teams will square off Saturday, with the result likely to have a ripple effect on the division.

Detroit is in third-place at 8-6. They still have a path to the playoffs, and only the most unlikely of scenarios would knock them out of the postseason ahead of Week 17. Their chances of winning the division for a third straight year are slim but not impossible, and they could still find their way into a Wild Card spot if the ball bounces their way.

Here's a breakdown of how the result impacts the Lions ahead of their Week 16 showdown with the Pittsburgh Steelers at Ford Field.

Packers win

A Packers win is by most accounts the more favorable scenario for the Lions to emerge out of Saturday's game. It would jolt Green Bay back into first-place, but more importantly would allow the Lions to once again control their destiny to make the playoffs.

If the Bears were to drop to 10-5 and the Lions were to win tomorrow, it would set up a situation where the Lions could jump past the Bears if they won out. This would happen because a Lions win over the Bears in Week 18 would give them the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Should Green Bay emerge victorious, there could also be some wiggle room for Detroit to potentially lose one of their next three games. However, if the Lions were to lose, they would need the Bears to lose both to the Packers Saturday and to the San Francisco 49ers next week.

While neither scenario immediately inserts the Lions back into the playoffs, a Packers win puts the Lions on a simpler path to be in the mix. They currently have a 27 percent chance to make the playoffs per the New York Times Playoff Predictor, and a Packers win would boost those chances to 31 percent.

Bears win

Chicago has jumped back into first after a loss in their first meeting with Green Bay bumped them down. It has been an almost improbable run of success for the Bears, who have gone 10-2 since being shellacked 52-14 by the Lions in Week 2 at Ford Field.

That win has become quite helpful for Detroit, who will travel to Soldier Field for the return game of the divisional home-and-home in the regular season finale.

If Detroit wins that game, they would jump past the Bears even if they won Saturday provided Chicago lost next week to San Francisco and they won out. The head-to-head tiebreaker would be with the Lions if they finished with the same record in this case.

Ben Johnson, who had previously been the Lions' offensive coordinator, has led the Bears on a serious turnaround as they look to punch their playoff ticket. Should they take down the Packers at home Saturday, there would be a small dip in Detroit's playoff percentage.

According to the New York Times' playoff Predictor, the Lions' chances to make the postseason would drop from 27 percent to 22 percent. If the Bears win Saturday, the Lions would be big fans of the 49ers next week, as the Lions winning their next two and both the Bears and Packers losing would set up a potential showdown with the division crown on the line.

Tie

A tie between these two teams could lead to an unfortunate situation, as it would make Sunday's game against the Steelers a true must-win game for the Lions. If these two teams tied, and the Lions lost to Pittsburgh, the Lions would be eliminated from playoff contention.