8. Carolina Panthers
They control their own destiny with two matchups against the Buccaneers in the next three weeks.
At their best this season, we've seen the Carolina Panthers play dynamic offense with a great running game and Bryce Young absolutely locked in. At their worst, we've seen this team get shut out. The defense for Carolina has been much better this season than in the past couple of years, but how much will their inconsistencies come back to haunt them in the final few weeks of the season?
7. Detroit Lions
I still believe, obviously because of their offense, that the Lions are one of the most dangerous overall teams in the NFC. They are going to be playing as a Wild Card team and will have a huge chip on their shoulder. It's going to be fascinating to see how they do as "road warriors" in the postseason. They face a tough test at home on Sunday against Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, but they can make a statement over these next couple of weeks that they are a team to be feared.
6. Green Bay Packers
When you get to this point in the season, it's often not the "best" teams that make deep playoff runs, but the healthiest. And the Packers are not the healthiest, not by a long shot. Just six days after losing Micah Parsons to a season-ending knee injury, the Packers lost Jordan Love to a concussion in a gotta-have-it game against the Bears.
Malik Willis did a pretty great job, all things considered, but might have needed to make one or two more plays. The Packers have been dealt some tough hands here in December.
5. Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are finally starting to play the brand of football that will make us believers again. Obviously, getting some cupcakes on the schedule helps a little bit. The Eagles have played backups in their last two wins, and a couple of old friends in Kenny Pickett and Marcus Mariota. But they even knocked Mariota out of the game against the Commanders on Saturday and faced Josh Johnson.
The main thing is that the Eagles have gotten back to executing properly on offense and running the ball. That's going to be their formula for winning in the playoffs.