New York football did not have the best Sunday.
Mike White and the Jets fought hard in a 27-22 loss to the Vikings. And the Giants tied the Commanders, 20-20, while being plagued by poor secondary and offensive line performances.
Still, both locals remain in playoff position as Week 13 comes to a close (Monday’s Buccaneers-Saints game will not impact the standings). But will they stay there down the stretch? Here is a closer look at the playoff picture for both teams:
Giants. Here are the NFC playoff standings through Sunday night:
1-Eagles (11-1)
2-Vikings (10-2)
3-49ers (8-4)
4-Buccaneers (5-6)
5-Cowboys (9-3)
6-Giants (7-4-1)
7-Seahawks (7-5)
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8-Commanders (7-5-1)
9-Lions (5-7)
The Giants have a brutal remaining schedule (the second-toughest in the NFL according to Tankathon). They play the first-place Eagles (twice) and have a rematch with Commanders on the road in two weeks, plus the Vikings on the road and a home game with the feisty Colts. Their remaining opponents have a combined .721 winning percentage.
The Commanders are third in remaining strength of schedule, but they get the Giants at home next. And their game with the Niners no longer appears as daunting with Jimmy Garoppolo out for the season. The Seahawks have a pretty pedestrian remaining schedule. But the Garoppolo injury could work in the Giants’ favor there; if San Francisco falls apart, the Seahawks could win the NFC West and the head-to-head loss would not longer weigh on the Giants in the wild card race.
The best news for the Giants exiting the weekend is that the tie all but assures the Lions cannot catch them (and put their head-to-head win to use). This is increasingly looking like it will be eight teams for seven spots. And it could be seven for seven if the Niners go into a tailspin. The odds remain tough for the Giants, but it is still doable. They just really need to beat the Commanders the second time around.
The Falcons’ loss to the Steelers removes them from long-shot wild card consideration (barring something crazy occurring across the conference). The same likely goes for the Packers, but it is harder to give up on the team with Aaron Rodgers until it is mathematically eliminated.
Jets. Here are the NFC playoff standings through Sunday night:
1-Bills (9-3)
2-Chiefs (9-3)
3-Ravens (8-4)
4-Titans (7-5)
5-Bengals (8-4)
6-Dolphins (8-4)
7-Jets (7-5)
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8-Patriots (6-6)
9-Chargers (6-6)
The Jets are holding on, but the Patriots are right behind them. And they own the tiebreaker. Plus the Chargers have one of the easiest remaining schedules in the league.
The Jets need to find a way to split their two remaining divisional games (at Bills, at Dolphins). And they need to take care of business in their remaining winnable games against the Lions and Jaguars, neither an easy out. They will have a hard time shaking off that loss to the Vikings, and understandably so. Because it might keep them out of the playoffs in the end.
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