The playoff standings are getting as crazy as a wild turkey prior to Thanksgiving, which is fitting since the league is hitting that point in the calendar. The NFC West is as unpredictable as ever, with the Seattle Seahawks taking over the division lead thanks to their win over the Arizona Cardinals.

The Seattle Seahawks have defeated the San Francisco 49ers for the first time in the post-Russell Wilson era, upsetting their most-bitter rivals on the road on Sunday by a score of 20-17. A loss would have dropped Seattle's playoff odds down to just 2%.

What does it mean? What are the pertinent factors (and, perhaps, tiebreakers) prominently in play as each conference's seven-team bracket begins to crystallize? All will be explained and analyzed up to the point when the postseason field is finalized on Sunday night,