For lack of a better term, the Detroit Lions are in a pickle.
At 7-5, not only are they currently No. 8 in the NFC playoff picture, which means they’re on the outside looking in, but their NFC North rivals, the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers, both currently lead by over a game in the standings at the time of this writing. Oh, and the Packers swept the Lions this year, which means they hold the direct head-to-head tiebreaker should that matter by the end of the season. Suffice it to say, with only five games left in their 2025 NFL regular season schedule, the Lions’ margin for error to play meaningful football this January is thin.
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No wonder Thursday night’s home tilt with the Dallas Cowboys is so pivotal.
How can the Lions make the 2026 NFL playoffs? Here’s their best path:
Win vs. Dallas Cowboys (8-5 record)
Win vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6 record)
Win at Chicago Bears (11-6 record)
I recognize this means Detroit has to go 4-1 in a very tough end-of-season schedule, but it’s the truth.
The Lions have not given the impression of an 11-win team (or even 12 wins, which is why I don’t give them the benefit of the doubt over the juggernaut Rams), but it is what will likely be required to make this postseason. Fortunately, ESPN still gives the Lions decent odds of cracking into the playoff picture at 44 percent … assuming they’re able to take care of business down the stretch. That likely factors in potential downswings from the Bears or Packers (both of whom might have to lose at least three times in respective semi-collapses) and/or a realistic path to nabbing the NFC No. 7 playoff seed (Detroit’s most likely playoff seed right now at 19 percent).
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When it comes to the playoffs, the Lions aren’t quite down and out just yet. But one more good punch, especially against the Cowboys (a team chasing them in the standings), and it’s hard to see them recovering enough to salvage their playoff dreams.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: How Lions can make this season’s NFL playoffs