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By the end of Sunday's wild card action in the National Football League, we will know where the Minnesota Vikings will be selecting in the 2013 NFL Draft.
The losers of the four wild card round games get selections 21 through 24 in the first round of the draft. Win-loss record is the first determining factor in the slotting process, and ties between teams with the same record are broken based on opponents' win-loss percentage, with the team with the lower figure getting the higher pick (presumably to infer that you got the same record against weaker competition, and therefore need the higher pick).
With their loss yesterday, the Cincinnati Bengals are locked into the #21 overall pick. Here are the teams that affect the Vikings and where they're currently slotted.
| Current Position | Team | Record | Opponents W-L % |
| 22nd | Washington Redskins* | 10-6 | .494 |
| 23rd | Baltimore Ravens | 10-6 | .496 |
| 24th | Minnesota Vikings | 10-6 | .516 |
| 25th | Indianapolis Colts | 11-5 | .441 |
| 26th | Seattle Seahawks | 11-5 | .504 |
(* - Washington's pick goes to the St. Louis Rams as a part of the Robert Griffin III trade from last year's draft.)
Based on that, here are the possibilities that I can see based on the potential results of this afternoon's action:
For Minnesota to get the 22nd pick, both Washington and Baltimore would have to win on Sunday. That would push Minnesota to #22 ahead of both of the 11-5 teams, with Indianapolis getting #23 and Seattle getting #24.
For Minnesota to get the 23rd pick, either Washington or Baltimore would have to win on Sunday. That would put Minnesota at 23. The 10-6 team that lost (either Washington or Baltimore) would be slotted at #22, and the 11-5 team that lost (either Indianapolis or Seattle) would be slotted at #24.
For Minnesota to get the 24th pick, Indianapolis and Seattle would have to win on Sunday. That would keep the Vikings behind both Washington and Baltimore where they currently sit at the moment in the table above.
The reason that Cincinnati is locked into the #21 pick is because their opponents win-loss percentage is only .438, putting them well below the other three 10-6 playoff qualifiers.
So, if you think one or two slots in the draft will make a ton of difference, you now know who to lean towards in Sunday's action.