NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Saints can still claim the No. 1 seed in the NFC, but they need a lot of help.
With the Green Bay Packers defeating the Tennessee Titans on Sunday Night Football, the Packers remain in the driver’s seat in the NFC playoff hunt. Here’s a look at the NFC Playoff Picture as of week 16:
Green Bay Packers (12-3)
New Orleans Saints (11-4)
Seattle Seahawks (11-4)
Washington Football Team (6-9)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-5)
Los Angeles Rams (9-6)
Chicago Bears (8-7)
Three teams remain on the bubble: Arizona Cardinals (8-7), Dallas Cowboys (6-9), and New York Giants (5-10).
How New Orleans Saints can take No. 1 Seed in NFC
There is only one week left in the regular season, so it is impossible for the Saints to pull ahead of the Packers outright. And, if only the Saints and Packers end the season with a tied record of 12-4, Green Bay will own the tiebreaker due to the win against the Saints in week three.
Thus, the only way the Saints can claim the No. 1 seed with the first-round bye week and guaranteed home-field advantage through the playoffs is if the Packers, Seahawks, and Saints all end the season with tied 12-4 records. If that happens, the tiebreaker will be determined by each team’s record against NFC teams.
For the Saints to get the No. 1 seed in Week 17:
New Orleans Saints win over Carolina Panthers. And...
Seattle Seahawks win over San Francisco 49ers. And...
Green Bay loss to Chicago Bears
The Saints clinched their fourth straight NFC South title on Christmas after Alvin Kamara tied an NFL record by running for six touchdowns in a game and finished with a career-high 155 yards against the Minnesota Vikings.
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.