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Bengals-Steelers will cap Week 17 as playoff spots are sorted out

Frank Schwab
·NFL writer

The NFL has picked the Cincinnati Bengals-Pittsburgh Steelers AFC North title clash as the last game of its regular season, on “Sunday Night Football" to cap what will be an interesting Week 17.

The league waits until the Sunday night game in Week 16 to announce the last “Sunday Night Football” matchup of the year to ensure a good prime-time game. The Bengals-Steelers was selected over the Detroit Lions at Green Bay Packers, which will determine the NFC North champ, and the Carolina Panthers at Atlanta Falcons game that will decide the NFC South winner.

The Steelers have battled inconsistency and rebounded from some bad losses to win three in a row and put themselves in position to win the AFC North with one more home victory. The Bengals, who won the division last season, play Denver on Monday night. Cincinnati can clinch a playoff berth with a win in that game, but no matter what, Sunday night's showdown will determine the division champ.

The Lions-Packers game will be at 4:25 p.m. ET, the Lions announced. Not only will the Lions-Packers determine the North champion, the winner also gets a first-round bye, the NFL said. The loser will have to go on the road as a wild card in the first round, so there’s a lot riding on that game.

The Packers are 7-0 at home, and Detroit doesn’t have history on its side either. The Lions’ last win at Lambeau Field was 1991. They haven't won a division title since 1993. However, the Lions already beat the Packers 19-7 earlier this season.

The NFC South will have a play-in game. The winner of Panthers-Falcons will be the second losing team in NFL history to make the playoffs. The Panthers are 6-8-1 and the Falcons are 6-9, so the Panthers would win the division if there is a tie. The Cardinals, Seahawks, Packers, Lions and Cowboys have all clinched playoff spots in the NFC.

Nine NFL teams have clinched a playoff spot, and the Bengals can make it 10 with a win or tie on Monday night. But there are a lot of seeding implications on the line in Week 17 as well. The Patriots can clinch the No. 1 seed through the AFC playoffs with a win against Buffalo (or if the Broncos lose on Monday night at Cincinnati). The Broncos can clinch a bye with a win on Monday night at Cincinnati, but if Denver loses it can still clinch a bye by beating the Raiders at home next Sunday.

The top three seeds in the NFC were all unsettled heading into Sunday night’s Seattle Seahawks-Arizona Cardinals game, although Dallas can’t be the No. 1 seed unless the Packers and Lions tie, the NFL said. The Cowboys were still alive to get a top-two seed and a bye as the Seahawks and Cardinals kicked off on Sunday night, however.

The San Diego Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs, Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans are still alive for a wild-card spot, with the Chargers clinching a spot if they win at Kansas City next Sunday. The Steelers clinched a playoff spot on Sunday by beating the Chiefs, joining the Patriots, Broncos and Indianapolis Colts in clinching a playoff spot in the AFC.

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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!