Vikings-Lions loser likely to open playoffs on Monday night of wild card weekend

The loser of this game figures to be playing on a short week if they make it to the divisional round.

Oct 20, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (14) catches a 35 yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jared Goff (not pictured) as Minnesota Vikings cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. (7) defends during the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

It's really difficult to overstate the stakes of Sunday night's game between the Vikings and Lions.

By now, you know what's on the line. The winner takes the NFC North crown and gets the conference's No. 1 seed, which comes with a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The loser becomes the first 14-win wild card team in NFL history and has to open the playoffs on the road (and quite possibly win three road games to reach the Super Bowl).

Let's throw in one more element to consider: Because this game is happening on Sunday night, it seems likely that the loser will get one of the spots in the Monday night game to close out wild card weekend. That means if they win, they'll be playing on a short week in the divisional round. Meanwhile, the winner of this showdown will have 12 or 13 days to prepare for a guaranteed home game in the divisional round.

Sunday update: It's now officially a Monday night game between the 4 seed Rams and the 5 seed Vikings/Lions.

Since the NFL expanded the playoffs to seven teams per conference in 2022, adding two extra wild card games, the "Super Wild Card Weekend" has featured two games on Saturday, three on Sunday, and one on Monday night. It's not a lock, but because Vikings-Lions is the final game of the regular season, it would make sense if the 4-5 matchup in the NFC — which will be hosted by the Rams, Buccaneers, or Falcons — gets that Monday night slot, as NFL Media's Peter Schrager discussed on Good Morning Football.

"Most likely the loser of this game, just looking at the grid of it all, is probably going to have to play on Monday night next week," Schrager said. "And they're going to play a division winner from the NFC West, the Rams, or the NFC South, the Buccaneers or the Falcons. I can't stress enough how big this game is. To be able to kick back and enjoy, and relax, and watch the rest of the league beat each other up next week or pack your bags, go on the road and start this long month-long journey.

"The playoffs start this weekend for these two teams. This is the first round because I really think this is the greatest disadvantage of any team in the playoffs, having to go from being the one seed to all of a sudden being this road team that has to go on this wild journey over the next month."

This one really does have the feel of a playoff game. Although the loser won't be eliminated, the winner's path to the Super Bowl will be so much more favorable that it'll almost feel like it.

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