3 believable Minnesota Vikings playoff scenarios after Week 12

Vikings get No. 6 seed

What has to happen:

• Vikings finish 9-7
  • Beat Tampa Bay in Week 14
• Bucs finish 9-7
• Cardinals finish 9-7
• Bears finish 8-8

In this scenario, Minnesota wouldn’t have to worry about defeating the Lions in Week 17 as long as they are able to get a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 14.

A win over the Bucs would give the Vikings the advantage in a head-to-head tiebreaker if the two teams wind up finishing with the same record this season.

The difficult thing for Minnesota will be to actually go into Tampa Bay and come out with a victory. Not only will the Bucs have extra time to prepare since they have their bye in Week 13, but the Vikings have also never defeated a team with Tom Brady as their starting quarterback.

7 biggest takeaways from the Vikings stunning win over the Panthers

What did we learn about the Minnesota Vikings following their stunning Week 12 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday?

However, Minnesota has been able to put together some pretty impressive wins since returning from their Week 7 bye and the Bucs have lost three of their last four games. So the Vikings will certainly have a chance to leave Tampa Bay with a victory in a couple of weeks.