When the Los Angeles Rams travel to face the New York Giants this week, they’ll have a chance to clinch a playoff berth. That didn’t seem like a possibility two months ago when the Rams were 3-6 before their bye, but a 5-1 stretch has Los Angeles in position to clinch a playoff berth as early as this week.
There are two ways the Rams can punch their ticket to the postseason this weekend, and the first is very possible. All they have to do is beat the Giants and the Seahawks have to lose to the Steelers.
The second scenario is the Rams beating the Giants and the Vikings-Packers game on Sunday night ending in a tie. That’s it. Pretty simple, right?
- Rams win + Seahawks loss OR
- Rams win + Packers-Vikings tie
Week 17 playoff scenarios: pic.twitter.com/8UFbFI9Y1P
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) December 26, 2023
The Rams can also clinch a playoff berth simply by winning their next two games against the Giants and 49ers, which would put them in control of the sixth seed in the NFC.
There are other scenarios where the Rams could clinch in Week 18 even with a loss to the 49ers, so long as the Seahawks lose one more game, too. That’s the benefit of having the head-to-head tiebreaker over Seattle.