The New York Giants were stunned in Philadelphia on Thursday Night Football, losing 24-19 to the Eagles. The Giants could have clinched a playoff berth with the win, but for now they have to wait and see what Saturday brings.
In the meantime, the Giants loss means the Dallas Cowboys have clinched home field through the NFC side of the playoff bracket. The Cowboys entered Week 16 with a record of 12-2, while the Giants were 10-4. The Giants held the tiebreaker on Dallas thanks to their season sweep, but it will not matter now.
The Giants can still clinch a playoff berth this weekend. They clinch if the Detroit Lions OR Green Bay Packers OR Tampa Bay Buccaneers OR Atlanta Falcons lose. The Giants have a two-game lead in the wild card race, but they could still find a way to blow this:
The NFC South runner-up, Giants, and Lions could all finish the season at 10-6 apiece. That means the Giants lose their next two, the NFC South runner-up finishes 10-6, and the Lions beat the Cowboys on Monday night in Week 16.
Then, assume the Packers win out and fight their way to an NFC North title, beating the Lions in Week 17. Next, assume both the Falcons and Bucs finish with at least 10 wins.
If that were to happen, then the Lions and NFC South runner-up would get the NFC wild card spots. The Giants would be left out because the Lions and NFC South runner-up win the tiebreaker of 10-6 teams based on their conference record.
The Seattle Seahawks will now look to clinch the No. 2 seed on Saturday when they face the Arizona Cardinals. Seattle at 9-4-1 is a shade ahead of 9-5 Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions. If Seattle wins and the Lions and Falcons both lose, Seattle claims the No. 2 seed. If one or more of these three do not happen, the Seahawks will need to wait until Week 17 to potentially clinch. That would mean they would be clearly playing for something against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 17.