Detroit Lions playoff odds grow with Sunday’s win, could really rise after Week 15

Dec 4, 2022; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) audibles at the line of scrimmage against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the first quarter at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 4, 2022; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) audibles at the line of scrimmage against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the first quarter at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Detroit Lions playoff odds improved pretty dramatically on Sunday, and if Week 15 goes a certain way those odds could really rocket up.

Week 14 went almost as well as it could have for the Detroit Lions as they look to make a run to a playoff spot. They of course beat the Minnesota Vikings to get to 6-7 with their fifth win in their last six games. The New York Giants and Seattle Seahawks also lost, which is where the rooting  interest sat.

According to Football Outsiders, the Lions’ playoff odds went from 10 percent to 20.7 percent after Sunday and before Monday Night Football to close Week 14. That’s the third-highest jump in the league for the week.

FiveThirtyEight.com has the Lions with a 23 percent chance to make the playoffs. No matter where you look, Detroit’s playoff odds are somewhere around 20 percent now.

With one of their two toughest remaining games in the books, though Week 16 against the Carolina Panthers looks more interesting than it did, the Lions are in a pretty good position. The Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders have some tough games on their remaining schedules. The Seahawks have the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Lions, and the Giants-Commanders Week 13 tie all but eliminates the Lions’ head-to-head tiebreaker advantage over those teams.

If the San Francisco 49ers beat the Seahawks on Thursday night to open Week 15 (possibly with Josh Johnson starting under center), and the Commanders beat the Giants on Sunday night, with a Lions win over the Jets of course…

In that scenario, the Lions and Seahawks would have matching 7-7 records while the Giants would be 7-6-1 and the Commanders would be 8-5-1. After their playoff odds a little more than doubled from the end of Week 13 to basically the end of Week 14, the Lions’ playoff odds would more than double again if Week 15’s results fall that way.

The Lions have to take care of their own business, first and primarily, and keep on stacking wins to keep their playoff chances afloat. But suddenly the help they need, at least for Week 15, doesn’t seem so far-fetched.

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