The Seattle Seahawks keet their slim playoff hopes alive with their impressive 31-14 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles Thursday night, leaving them 2.5 games behind in the wildcard race. Let's take a close look at some of the factor's influencing Seattle's playoff chances.
The Bears, Lions, Falcons and Cowboys all sit at 7-4, tied for the lead in the NFC wildcard race. The New York Giants are at 6-5, while the Seahawks sit a 5-7 are will need some help from almost all these teams to move up in the standings.
Here are some key games this week that will directly affect their playoff chances:
Detroit Lions @ New Orleans Saints: Drew Brees' record setting season has the Saints undefeated at home this year, proving to be a tough test for the Lions sans Ndamukong Suh. A Lions loss would be awesome for the Seahawks.
Kansas City Chiefs @ Chicago Bears: Without Jay Cutler, the Bears offense has been much more stagnent, though the Chiefs are without their signal caller as well in Matt Cassell. Once again, fingers crossed for a Bears loss.
Atlanta Flacons @ Houston Texans: It's Jake Delhomme's first start since pulling a Jake Delhomme and getting released by the Browns in July, though the Falcons may be without Michael Turner. Houston wins, Seattle wins as well. Simple as that.
St. Louis Rams @ San Francisco 49ers: The longest of shots is that the 49ers collapse and the Seahawks get back into the NFC West race. Though highly unlikely, I'd never sleep on something crazy happening in this division so watch out. Nevertheless, if the 49ers take care of business at home, they effectively clinch the division.
For more on the Seahawks, head over to Field Gulls.