There will be a lot on the line this Sunday when the Detroit Lions (14-2) against Minnesota Vikings (14-2) in the last game of the 2024 regular season.
Not only will the winner take home the NFC North title, but the winning team will also earn first place overall in the NFC and the first-round bye that comes with it. On the other hand, the losing team will get the fifth seed in the NFC, meaning they will be forced to hit the road for the wild-card round.
The losing team will finish the season with the SECOND-BEST record in the NFC at 14-3, but that means nothing in the NFLbecause they will always take the road. Lions star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown doesn’t think it’s a very fair format, and he’d like to see the league make a change so a 14-win team doesn’t have to play on the road in the wild-card round.
“It’s crazy. I think the rule should be changed,” St. Brown said told the media on Thursday. “Obviously if you win the division you should obviously make the playoffs, but having a 14-win team having to go on the road is a little crazy, but I guess I don’t make the rules.”
The loser of the Vikings-Lions will become the first 14-win wild-card team in NFL history. In the last 25 years, there has only been one 13-win wild-card team, dating back to 1999 when the 13-3 Titans finished in second place behind the 14-2 Jaguar in the AFC Central. However, this happened when there were only six playoff teams per conference and at that time the top wild-card team could host a wild-card game, so the Titans were able to play at home in of the joker round. (That was the year they used the “Music City Miracle” to beat the Invoices in the joker round before running to the Super Bowl.)
To solve the St. Brown problem, the NFL could copy the NBA playoff format. The NBA simply ranks teams based on their win-loss record, regardless of division. If the NFL went this route, the loser of the Lions-Vikings game would get the second seed (if the Lions lost) or the third seed (if the Vikings lost and the Eagles won on Sunday) in the NFC.
In this case, the loser of the game would still get a home playoff game instead of hitting the road. St. Brown doesn’t really want to play on the road, so obviously he would rather see his team win on Sunday night.
“Hopefully we can get a win and have home-field advantage, but whatever happens, we both have a playoff spot, so we might meet again after this game,” St said. Brown.
Whether the Lions win or lose on Sunday night, St. Brown is confident about its chances of making the Super Bowl.
“We obviously have a lot of injuries, but it would be nice to be able to get some rest,” St. Brown said. via Pro Football Talk. “But either way, I think we’ll be fine. Whether it’s going on the road or taking a week off and playing at home, we’re built for one or the other.”
Sunday night’s game will mark the first time in NFL history that two teams with at least 13 wins will face each other in a regular season game. It’s also the third time in 31 years that the No. 1 seed will be on the line in the final week of the season in a match where both teams still have a chance to win.