Seahawks Clinch Playoff Berth, Regain NFC West Lead

Thanks to timely losses by divisional foes, the Seahawks quickly moved back atop the NFC West and punched a ticket to the playoffs for the seventh time in eight seasons.

The Seahawks have officially punched their ticket to the postseason.

After defeating Carolina 30-24 on the road, Seattle received help from two of their divisional rivals to clinch a playoff berth for the seventh time in eight seasons and jump back into first place in the NFC West.

The Seahawks officially locked up their playoff spot when the Rams didn’t show up in Dallas, getting smoked 44-21 by the Cowboys and putting their playoff hopes on life support. Coach Sean McVay’s team will need to win the final two games of the season and hope the Vikings lose their final two games to earn a wild card.

Meanwhile, the 49ers surrendered a touchdown pass from Matt Ryan to Julio Jones in the closing seconds, allowing the Falcons to pull off a 29-22 upset. The loss dropped San Francisco to 11-3 on the season and since they lost to Seattle back in Week 10, they move to second place in the division.

Seattle still has much work left to do, as a win over Arizona next week wouldn’t guarantee a division title or a first-round bye. In Week 17, a potential NFC West title game looms with San Francisco scheduled to travel to CenturyLink Field.

With the Saints, Packers, 49ers, and Seahawks all currently with three losses, a bunch of tiebreakers could be at play to determine final seeding for January’s tournament. Winning the final two games will be crucial for earning home field advantage.