How can Lions clinch the NFC North title in Week 18?

The Detroit Lions have already handled business against the Minnesota Vikings once this year — on the road, too — but they have to overcome their division rivals again to lock up the NFC’s best record in Week 18. Detroit will play host to Minnesota in a game that will determine the winner of the NFC North, playoff seeding, and more.

Detroit is 14-2, including the 31-29 victory over the Vikings back in Week 7, but it’s all come down to the final game of the regular season, when they play host to Minnesota once again on the final Sunday Night Football before the playoffs. That game is set for 8:20 p.m. ET on Sunday. The Lions are 2.5-point favorites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Detroit Lions NFC North clinching scenarios

The Lions have been in control of the NFC for most of the season, and have held a tiebreak over the Vikings since that Week 7 game. But they have the same record going into Week 18, meaning the winner will be a game clear of the other. That means the winner takes the NFC North, the top seed in the conference, a first-round bye in the playoffs, and home-field advantage through the conference championship game (if they advance).

In other words, Sunday’s game is the biggest of the year for both teams on top of being the regular season closer to boot. The loser of this game not only has to play an extra game, they will drop to the fifth seed and will travel to face the fourth seed in the wild card round. The fourth seed could be the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons, or Los Angeles Rams, though that will be decided earlier on Saturday.

The Lions clinch the NFC North, a first-round bye, and home-field advantage with:

Lions eliminated from NFC North contention, clinching fifth seed with:

NFC standings entering Week 18

1. x-Detroit Lions (14-2, win over MIN)
2. y-Philadelphia Eagles (13-3)
3. y-Los Angeles Rams (10-6)
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7)

5. x-Minnesota Vikings (14-2, loss to DET)
6. x-Washington Commanders (11-5, 8-3 NFC)
7. x-Green Bay Packers (11-5, 6-5 NFC)

8. Seattle Seahawks (9-7) — eliminated
9. Atlanta Falcons (8-8)
10. Dallas Cowboys (7-9, 5-6 NFC) — eliminated
11. Arizona Cardinals (7-9, 3-8 NFC) — eliminated
12. San Francisco 49ers (6-9, win over DAL) — eliminated
13. New Orleans Saints (5-11) — eliminated
14. Chicago Bears (4-11, win over CAR) — eliminated
15. Carolina Panthers (4-12, loss to CHI) — eliminated
16. New York Giants (3-13) — eliminated

Teams with an asterisk (*) have been eliminated from divisional contention
Teams with an (x) have clinched a playoff spot
Teams with a (y) have clinched their division
Teams with a (z) have clinched the one seed, home-field advantage, and a first-round bye