And don't be surprised if the Lions-Vikings winner-take-all finale smashes the Sunday Night Football high mark for this year, either.

The Detroit Lions could have rested their starters on Monday night against the San Francisco 49ers with the knowledge that it's a Week 18 tilt with the Minnesota Vikings that will determine the NFC North and the conference's top seed. The San Francisco 49ers, already eliminated from playoff contention, could have also played out the string.

The middle game is the hotly anticipated Week 1 rematch between the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles. The first round ends on Monday night when the Minnesota Vikings go on the road to take on the Los Angeles Rams on ESPN and ABC.