The slim chance the Detroit Lions had of winning the NFC North is gone, and their wildcard hopes are trending in the same direction.

The Minnesota Vikings clinched the NFC North with a 34-7 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, leaving the Lions with only one path to the playoffs.

But the odds of the Lions earning a wildcard berth for the second straight season also took a hit Sunday as the Carolina Panthers beat the Green Bay Packers in Aaron Rodgers' return from a broken collarbone.

The Panthers improved to 10-4 with the victory, and have a winnable game next week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that could make it even tougher for the Lions (8-6) to qualify for the playoffs.

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The Lions' best hope of reaching the postseason is to finish in a multi-team tie at 10-6, where they would have the edge over teams like the Panthers and Seattle Seahawks based on conference record.

The Seahawks (8-6) did their part by losing to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday afternoon to fall behind the Lions by tiebreaker.

The Lions (8-6) must win their final two games, next Sunday against the Bengals and New Year's Eve against the Packers, to have any hope of reaching the postseason.

For now, the Vikings, Eagles, Rams and New Orleans Saints are on track for home playoff games as division champs, with the Eagles already assured of a first-round bye.

The Panthers control the first wildcard spot, while the Atlanta Falcons (8-5) lead for the sixth seed.

The Falcons, who will own all tie-breakers with the Lions based on a head-to-head victory and better conference record, visit the Bucs on Monday Night Football.

Carolina visits Atlanta in Week 17, while the Falcons visit the 10-4 Saints next week.

The Lions have won two straight games to remain in the playoff hunt, but have now gone 24 years without a division title.

Lions coach Jim Caldwell insisted after Saturday's 20-10 win over the Chicago Bears that he wasn't worried about the playoff standings.

"We deal with what’s in front of us and what we can control and that’s all that matters," Caldwell said. "All the other talk and all these projections and what you can and can’t do, that stuff really doesn’t matter to us."

Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett. Download our Lions Xtra app for free on Apple and Android!