NFL

2012 NFL Playoffs Predictor: Week 14

Keith Goldner  —  @keithgoldner Dec 4th, 2012
What do you do when three NFC North teams are projected to finish within one game of each other? We have the answer.

Heading into Week 14, several playoff spots are still very much up in the air. Andrew Luck worked some rookie magic against the Detroit Lions as the Indianapolis Colts moved to 8-4. The St. Louis Rams and San Francisco 49ers came within 30 seconds of tying for the second time this year, but Greg Zuerlein sealed the upset win with his enormous leg. This year is about rewarding the backup and Jim Harbaugh claims he is staying with Colin Kaepernick, even though he made a brutal pitch that led to St. Louis' tying touchdown in regulation. In line with that theme, Mark Sanchez was finally benched, but because Tim Tebow was inactive, Greg McElroy stepped in and got the win for the New York Jets to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.

As Nate Silver did for the 2012 election, we do for the 2012 NFL season. Using the mythical powers of math, we let you know first who will be in and who will be out of this year's postseason.

Here is a projection of who will be in this year's playoffs. Be sure to come back each week as we update the projection with the latest results. And once the playoffs begin, we'll reset the bracket and tell you who has the best chance to bring home the Lombardi trophy.

Want to see numberFire's projections for your team? Head over to ESPN Insider to see what we project to happen from now through the end of the season.