2013-2014 NFL Thread

[Joe Public]

The Chiefs B team looks pretty good against SD so far.

[cougjunkie]

The AFC playoff scenarios are crazy.

Baltimore wins a two-way tie over Miami and San Diego. If they win and San Diego loses and/or Miami lose they are in.

Miami wins a three way tie over Baltimore, San Diego and/or Pittsburgh. If Miami wins and Baltimore loses they are in. If Miami wins, and Baltimore wins, they also need San Diego to win and force the 3 way tie to get in.

San Diego is in if they win, Baltimore, Miami and Pittsburgh all lose.

Pittsburgh holds the 4 way tie breaker, they are in if Baltimore, Miami, and San Diego all lose.

[clackamascoug]

Tony Romo out for the season with a back injury.

Because he is Tony Romo nobody will remember that he lead his team to a come from behind 4th quarter win in what was a playoff elimination game for the Cowboys with a career season ending back injury.

Fixed it for you.

[FN Phat]

Tony Romo out for the season with a back injury.

Because he is Tony Romo nobody will remember that he lead his team to a come from behind 4th quarter win in what was a playoff elimination game for the Cowboys with a season ending back injury.

he is saving himself from not being the man that can't win in the playoffs.

[cougjunkie]

Tony Romo out for the season with a back injury.

Because he is Tony Romo nobody will remember that he lead his team to a come from behind 4th quarter win in what was a playoff elimination game for the Cowboys with a season ending back injury.

[Color Me Badd Fan]

Does CHI/PHI go any differently if the Bears go with McCown? I think the blowout makes it better for Cutler because they can say nobody was going to put up 60 points for the Bears.

Probably doesn't make much of a difference.

What's interesting to me about the NFL is how teams seem to bounce in reverse according to how they played the week before and what externalities present to them, unless they're really bad. For instance, Philly loses badly to a crappy Minny team and then they look like serious contenders tonight. I fully expect them to lose at Dallas next week. Chicago wins last week and everything goes their way with Detroit losing and they control their own destiny. They promptly get pummeled. They'll probably beat the Packers next week at home.

[Joe Public]

Does CHI/PHI go any differently if the Bears go with McCown? I think the blowout makes it better for Cutler because they can say nobody was going to put up 60 points for the Bears.

[Color Me Badd Fan]

So, unless the Saints lose at home next week, Arizona can't get in the playoffs no matter what else happens. If Arizona wins next week, they'll be 11-5 and they play in what's by far the most difficult division in football. Two of the division winners out of the NFC might be 8-7-1 and 9-7.

The Saints play Tampa at home, so it's highly unlikely that Arizona is going to see the post season.

This assumes the Niners win tomorrow night, but I can't imagine they're losing to the Falcons in a Monday Night game at home.

[Color Me Badd Fan]

I love how there's discussion about Chicago and Philly maybe not having anything to play for tonight. That's nonsense, because at least seeding will be up for grabs. There's a huge difference between 3 and 4, because if you're a 3 you're guaranteed not having to play at Seattle in the 2nd round.

[The_Douger]

They used to. I wish they would again.

[Color Me Badd Fan]

Doesn't the NFL do Saturday games the last two weeks of the season after college football's regular season is completely done? Damn, it's Saturday and I want some football that isn't some crappy bowl game.

[Surfah]

Yes. He has done a nice job of getting them to be a consistent .500-ish team, which is much better than where they were beforehand. However, the team is ready to do better now with the right head coach (and maybe fewer INTs from Stafford and a better featured RB ).

The Lions are an interesting team. I think they're similar to the Chiefs' situation. The right hire could do a world of good. They really have a lot of pieces. They could use a shut down corner and a good #2 option to line up opposite Calvin Johnson. But I think they just need someone who can reign in Stafford and cut down on turnovers. Listening to the radio today here they had someone from MMQB on and he said the difference between the Lions and Ravens last night was clearly evident. One has a culture of winning and the other a culture of losing. The Lions continue to find ways to lose. Similar situation in Dallas.

[Joe Public]

Jim Schwartz if they miss the playoffs needs to go as well.

Yes. He has done a nice job of getting them to be a consistent .500-ish team, which is much better than where they were beforehand. However, the team is ready to do better now with the right head coach (and maybe fewer INTs from Stafford and a better featured RB ).

[Color Me Badd Fan]

This has been talked about ever since the 7-9 Seahawks hosted a playoff game back in 2010, but they need to absolutely end this nonsense of giving every division winner a home game. Give every division winner a playoff spot, fine, but seed these guys according to record in the postseason.

The fact that a 9-7 Dallas team (or even an 8-8) can host a game is ridiculous. Look at the Niners and Chiefs this year, both will probably end up at 12-4 and be at least tied for second best records in their respective conferences (although the Niners would lose the tiebreaker to Carolina and would get the #3 seed under straight down the line seeding).

I think the addition of the extra division ten years ago is the cause of something like only one #1 or #2 seed winning the Super Bowl in the past eight seasons. That's why they need to seed according to record now that they have four divisions. A competitive wild card is much more likely to get through the wild card round now because of an inferior division champ. Look at 2005, Pittsburgh is 11-5 and loses the tiebreaker to the #3 Cincy. The AFC should have been seeded like this: 1) Indy; 2) Denver; 3) Jacksonville; 4) Cincy; 5)Pittsburgh; 6)New England. The wild card round still pitted the same teams against each other as would have played had they just based it off of records -- but New England got a home game. Assuming the same results as what happened in those games (Pittsburgh and New England both win easily), then New England should have played at Indy and Pittsburgh at Denver. Pittsburgh was the hot team heading into the postseason, so that was not a team you wanted to play after a bye. I feel Indy would have beaten them in the AFC Championship that year.

Same thing happened again in 2010. Seattle shouldn't have gotten a home game at 7-9. New Orleans, the defending champs, should have actually been the #2 seed in the NFC but ended up as the wild card. Green Bay, which should have been the #4 seed, gets to play Philly to warm up for a sham Atlanta team which was the #1 seed. Green Bay still would have played Philly (#5) in the first round, though at Lambeau. Chicago (#3) would have had Seattle at home. Chicago would have won that and then would have traveled to New Orleans the next week where they would have lost. Green Bay would have still beaten Atlanta but would have played at New Orleans in the NFC Championship game -- significantly more difficult than playing at Chicago.

2011 -- NY Giants are 9-7 and get a nice home playoff primer against the Falcons in round 1. They then upset the Packers and then get ridiculously lucky against the Niners in the NFC Championship game. If instead the Giants had to play @ New Orleans (the #3 seed in 2011) in the first round that year where they had lost by 25 points a month before, do the Giants even get out of the first round?

[Color Me Badd Fan]

thanks to the Raven's, their kicker and the Cowboy defense - Green Bay now has play off hope again. I didn't think that was in the cards after Rogers went down.

Not only that, but they can still get the #3 seed and possibly get the Saints at Lambeau in that first round game, and it's unlikely the Saints win that game. If San Francisco gets the #5 seed, then there's a very good chance, and probably likely, that they beat either Dallas or Philly on the road. Then the Packers would play a beatable Carolina as a #2 seed the next week.

So, assuming that Green Bay wins out (I'm not sure they will) and Aaron Rodgers is back for the playoffs, if Philly loses that Chicago game and then beats Dallas or if Dallas wins that division, then Green Bay gets the #3 seed and has a plausible path the NFC Championship. If Carolina beats the Saints at home this week and San Francisco wins out, then Carolina is the #2 and Saints the #6.