NFC SEEDING
1. Philadelphia Eagles (13-3)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 87.8/100
Team Analysis: Philly MUST WIN Sunday to clinch the No. 1 seed. All DFS/prop plays should be considered “all-go’s” against the division rival Giants, who have clinched a playoff spot and cannot move up or down in the seeding. Eagles clinch the No. 1 seed and the bye week is theirs. Motivation is extremely high – all props/DFS plays fully viable.
2. San Francisco 49ers (12-4)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 87.8/100
Team Analysis: San Francisco will be playing at the same time as the Eagles at 4:25 pm ET on Sunday afternoon. They currently could wind up as high as the No. 1 seed with a win and an Eagles loss. They also could drop as low as the No. 3 seed if they lose to the Cardinals (SF -14 favorites), the Eagles beat the Giants (PHI -14 favorites), and the Vikings beat the Bears (MIN -7.5 favorites). Motivation is extremely high – all props/DFS plays fully viable.
3. Minnesota Vikings (12-4)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 90/100
Team Analysis: Minnesota will be fighting for either the No. 2 seed or the No. 3 seed. While not being able to reach the bye week, they still have motivation to earn Sunday’s win against the Bears at the 1 pm window, then hope and wait for the Cardinals to upset the San Francisco 49ers at the 4 pm window. I do not expect starters to sit and all props should remain viable unless/until game gets out of hand (still should play 3.5 quarters at least).
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-8)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 83.1/100
Team Analysis: This one is very simple, yet complicated. The Bucs are locked into the No. 4 seed and Week 18 will not impact any playoff seeding for them. HC Todd Bowles has mentioned that despite this motivation in the W/L column, he “plans on playing them (players), we’ll see how the week goes”. Historically, Tom Brady has played Week 18 in these scenarios – please refer to the Week 18 Incentives article for more info on prop/DFS plays.
5. Dallas Cowboys (12-4)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 85.9/100
Team Analysis: There IS a way that Dallas can get not only the No. 2 seed, but they can also attain No. 1 seed status. A No. 2 seed would involve Dallas beating the Commanders in Week 18 as well as a win by the 49ers AND a loss by the Eagles. A No. 1 seed + Bye scenario would involve Dallas beating the Commanders, a loss by the 49ers, and a loss by the Eagles. Motivation is extremely high considering all three teams play at the 4 pm window.
6. New York Giants (9-6-1)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 82.8/100
Team Analysis: The New York Football Giants have nothing to play for on Sunday and cannot lose their No. 6 seed in the NFC. They are currently double-digit underdogs to the Eagles, who need to win in Week 18. Do NOT trust any of these players for props/DFS.
7. Seattle Seahawks (8-8)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 86.7/100
Team Analysis: Seattle is in an interesting predicament, as they do not control their own destiny. With that being said, they still need to win, but will also need the Detroit Lions to upset the Green Bay Packers in Lambeau in order to claim the final NFC playoff spot. Props/DFS plays for Seattle are a full-go.
– Detroit Lions (8-8)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 86.3/100
Team Analysis: This one is interesting for many reasons. First and foremost, the NFL kind of screwed Detroit by moving the NFC North rivalry matchup against the Packers to primetime. Seattle currently owns the tiebreaker over Detroit and plays at the 4 pm window. If the Seahawks beat the Rams, Detroit is eliminated before the SNF game starts. I still think that there is some upset motivation here for Detroit, but if Seattle wins, it makes it tough to trust much. If the Seahawks LOSE, all systems go for the Lions.
– Green Bay Packers (8-8)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 86.1/100
Team Analysis: Packers must beat the Lions in Green Bay to make the playoffs. All systems go.
AFC SEEDING
1. Kanas City Chiefs (13-3)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 93/100
KC is eligible to finish with seeds 1-3 once this weekend is all said and done. A lot of this hedges on the Bills/Bengals Week 17 game implication, but if that game is NOT played, the Chiefs will clinch the No. 1 seed AFTER a win against the Raiders on Saturday. If there are additional plans regarding said game, the situation gets more complicated, but will still require the Chiefs to win this week. Motivation is extremely high – all props/DFS plays fully viable.
2. Buffalo Bills (12-3)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 85.6/100
Buffalo can also finish with seeds 1-3, but we are still waiting for the NFL to announce news regarding Week 17’s game. If the Bills beat the Patriots in Week 18, they would need the Chiefs to also lose in order to claim the No. 1 overall seed and seal their bye week. Please note that even if the Chiefs win on Saturday, the Bills MUST win on Sunday to earn the No. 2 seed. Motivation is extremely high – all props/DFS plays fully viable.
3. Cincinnati Bengals (11-4)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 89.7/100
We do not have much information for Cincinnati at this time and need more clarity from the NFL schedule to fully analyze. The one thing we do know is that the Bengals are ineligible to receive the No. 1 seed in any scenario. There IS a situation where if the Bengals win and the Bills lose, Cincy could take the No. 2 seed. Motivation is extremely high for props/DFS as both the Bills and Bengals play at the 1 pm window.
4. Jacksonville Jaguars (8-8)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 89.2/100
Win and they are in. Winner of Jaguars/Titans clinches No. 4 overall seed. All systems go for Jacksonville in all markets.
5. Los Angeles Chargers (10-6)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 81/100
While this doesn’t happen normally, the No. 5 seed is EXTREMELY important on the AFC side of the picture. The No. 5 seed would get to face the weak No. 4 seed of either the Titans or Jaguars. The Chargers CAN earn the No. 5 seed with a win on Sunday vs. the Broncos IN DENVER (DEN -2.5 currently). Please note the capitalization of CAN. Considering that Ravens/Bengals plays at the 1 pm window, the Chargers CAN earn the No. 5 seed IF the Ravens lose. In that situation, the Chargers could rest their players. IF the Ravens beat the Bengals, then the Chargers could potentially be full-go to earn the better seed at the 4 pm window. This situation is currently up in the air and fluid.
6. Baltimore Ravens (10-6)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 79.4/100
Baltimore has clinched a playoff berth and could range from as high as 3 to as low as 6. This situation is up in the air due to Bills/Bengals (Ravens are fighting with Bengals for AFC title).
There are three different scenarios for Baltimore:
- BAL gets No. 3 via CIN losing twice (if Week 17 plays + loss in 18)
- BAL gets No. 5 via win + LAC loss – BAL gets No. 5 or 6 if BUF/CIN doesn’t play
- Can earn No. 5 seed with win + LAC loss
*Risky situation for props/DFS on all fronts
7. New England Patriots (8-8)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 89.5/100
Patriots NEED to beat the Bills for No. 7 seed. All systems go for props/DFS.
– Miami Dolphins (8-8)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 77.8/100
Miami NEEDS to beat the Jets Sunday AND need a New England loss. Both games are at 1 pm. All systems go for props/DFS.
– Pittsburgh Steelers (8-8)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 90.1/100
Pittsburgh NEEDS to win Sunday. They also NEED to have both Patriots (NE +7) and Dolphins (+1) LOSE at same 1 pm window. All systems go for props/DFS.
– Tennessee Titans (7-9)
Sports Injury Central Health Score: 65.4/100
Win and they are in. Winner of Jaguars/Titans clinches No. 4 overall seed. All systems go for Tennessee in all markets.
