This is a special edition of Four Downs in which I will go over all the teams that have either made the playoffs or can make the playoffs based on scenarios heading into the final week. The things we know so far:
1) The Atlanta Falcons have clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
2) All 6 teams and 4 Divisions have been accounted for in the AFC with the order just up for grabs.
3) The Indianapolis Colts are the 5th seed and the Cincannati Bengals are the 6th seed.
4) The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins battle for the division on Sunday Night.
5) If the Minnesota Vikings beat the Green Bay Packers at home they are in.
Last week we saw the formidable Pittsburgh Steelers get knocked out of the playoffs in front of a home crowd. The Cincinnati Benglas or (Bane as they should be known) destroyed Heinz Field and terrorized the Steelers and Ben Roethlisberger. Roethlisberger threw another costly interception with 30 ticks left remaining in the game and the score tied at 10. In fact the only scoring touchdown the Bengals scored was a pick-six by Leon Hall while A.J. Green caught 10 passes for 116 yards. No question the Bengals are a better team then last year and two consecutive playoff appearances is huge from an organization that has struggled to make the playoffs. The team however, will go only as far as Andy Dalton and their stingy defense go. They have had a rollercoaster of a year with win streaks and losing streaks and week 17 against the Ravens, is the perfect opportunity for the Bengals to show they are for real.
While that was going on the Indianapolis Colts not only clinched a playoff spot but a year after winning just two games, there is some real consideration for Bruce Arians and Andrew Luck as Coach and Rookie of the Year respectively. What Arians has done coming out of retirement from Pittsburgh and stepping in for an ill Chuck Pagano has truly been one of the best stories from the NFL this year. Andrew Luck came in with high expectations but no one could have imagined a 10 or even an 11 win season. As great as the Colts have been, most of their wins have been at home with there only road wins against Tennessee, Detroit, KC and Jax all teams with 5 wins or less. They will have to find some more magic and go on the road in a tough game against either New England or Baltimore.
In the NFC despite a Dallas Cowboys loss to the New Orleans Saints in overtime Tony Romo and Dez Bryant will play for the NFC East Division this week against the Washington Redskins. The reason being is that the NY Giants got hammered by the Baltimore Ravens and can only make the playoffs if Dallas, Chicago and Minnesota all lose. The Cowboys would win the tiebreaker over the Redskins based on common games record which is the 3rd thing taken in account behind 1. Head-To-Head and 2. Best W/L record within division. They would be tied in the first two and based on the common games against the AFC (4) and NFC South (4) Dallas has the edge 5-4.
The Minnesota Vikings not only kept their playoff hopes alive but put themselves in the driving seat after beating the Houston Texans on the road. I had the Texans dusting up the Vikings and in fact it was the other way around and Adrian Peterson didn’t even have over 100yds rushing. Jared Allen wasn't 100 percent but the rest of the defense including underrated safety and possibly Defensive ROY Harrison Smith stepped up. If the Vikings beat the Packers this week, not only would the clinch a wild-card berth but they would most likely be facing Green Bay at Lambeau the following week.While the Chicago Bears easily took care of the Arizona Cardinals and with a win against Detroit and a Vikings loss the Bears would be the 6th seed, but this is after a 7-1 start
This is what makes football exciting people, there are multiple scenarios for teams vying for a playoff, a home berth, seeding it all matters. Everything will be clear after the final game of the season is played around 11:45 and we can start gearing up for the playoffs. I just can't believe that it's already week 17.
Bold Prediction: Christian Ponder plays a good game. He's done it before against the Packers.
No comments:
Post a Comment