Minnesota Vikings' Playoff Chances Could Be Decided By Games With Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears

The Minnesota Vikings enter Week 14 as the No.6 seed in the NFC. That could very well change after a difficult matchup on “Monday Night Football,” decreasing their chances of making the playoffs.

Minnesota is a three-point underdog on the road against the Seattle Seahawks, according to OddsShark. A loss would drop the Vikings to 6-6-1 with three games left on the schedule. Minnesota has a half-game lead over the Carolina Panthers, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins. That means a Vikings’ defeat coupled with a win for any one of those teams would knock Minnesota out of the current playoff picture.

The Panthers, Eagles and Redskins could all very well lose Sunday. Philadelphia is an underdog on the road against the Dallas Cowboys, and Washington is an underdog at home against the New York Giants with Mark Sanchez set to start at quarterback. Carolina is a slight favorite, but they will visit the Cleveland Browns on a four-game losing streak.

The schedule over the final three weeks of the season works out well for the Vikings. They’ll host the Detroit Lions and visit the Miami Dolphins before welcoming in the Chicago Bears to U.S. Bank Stadium in what could be a pivotal Week 17 contest. There’s a good chance Minnesota will be favored in all those games.

The Vikings aren’t out of the NFC North race just yet. They trail the first-place Bears by 1.5 games. If Minnesota can gain one game on Chicago over the next three weeks, their season finale will determine the division winner. The Bears will face the Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers in their next three games.

Chicago is a heavy betting favorite to win the NFC North for the first time in eight years.

Carolina still has to face the New Orleans Saints twice. Philadelphia is scheduled to play three straight first-place teams. Washington only faces one more winning team, though it’s hard to believe they’ll make the playoffs with their current quarterback situation.

The Seahawks have a half-game lead over the Vikings as the No.5 seed. Seattle could all but lock up a wild-card berth with a win over Minnesota. The Rams have already won the NFC West.

Before the season started, Minnesota was considered to be one of the Super Bowl favorites. They came just shy of reaching last year’s Super Bowl when they lost the NFC Championship Game in Philadelphia.

The Vikings won the NFC North in 2017 with a 13-3 record. They haven’t made the playoffs in two straight years since 2009.