There's a month left in the NFL season, and we still have no idea who's going to make the playoffs. Sure, we know Denver, New England, Indianapolis and Green Bay are probably going to win their divisions, but the wild cards are anybody's guess. We'd better start figuring out those tiebreakers. Because they're most definitely going to come into play. Especially since there are currently six teams tied for the second AFC wild card at 7-5. (The craziest part about all this is that Dallas, Detroit and Seattle entered this week in a three-way tie for the two NFC wild cards, and Dallas would've been out based on conference record, even though the Cowboys beat the Seahawks.)
Thursday Night: Dallas (Win)
Steelers (7-5) at Bengals (8-3-1): Cincinnati-This is going to sound redundant over the next couple weeks, but this is a huge game. Especially for the Steelers. Everybody else in the AFC North losing last week put the Bengals a game and a half up on the other three, which gives Cincinnati a little breathing room. Which is a good thing, seeing as they've got Pittsburgh twice and Denver among their last four games. The Steelers have nobody but themselves to blame for their current predicament. They crushed the Colts, but they also lost to the Jets. A loss to the first-place Bengals is something they can ill-afford, but no one ever picks Cincinnati, even though they always seem to win (unless it's a night game).
Colts (8-4) at Browns (7-5): Indianapolis-Sticking with Brian Hoyer was the right decision. Why switch to Johnny Overrated simply because Hoyer had a bad game against the Bills? The Browns wouldn't be in a position to make the playoffs without Hoyer. I have a feeling this is a must-win for Cleveland, which is a difficult proposition against a Colts team fighting for positioning. It'll be a close one that can go either way, but I'm going with Indy on the road.
Buccaneers (2-10) at Lions (8-4): Detroit-For all the talk that has centered around the Green Bay Packers over the past few weeks, the 8-4 Lions have almost gotten lost in the shuffle. But here they sit in playoff position, with the tiebreaker over the Packers and the game in Green Bay still to come. Don't sleep on this team. With plenty of rest against a not good Tampa Bay team, the Lions should become the NFC's fifth nine-win team and officially eliminate the Bears.
Giants (3-9) at Titans (2-10): Tennessee-One of the NFL's two longest current losing streaks is going to come to an end! The Giants have officially hit rock bottom, and I think we're probably entering the final month of Tom Coughlin's tenure. While the Titans are one of the few teams the Giants might actually be better than, I said that about Jacksonville last week, too. The fans in Nashville begin their joy of seeing the Giants and Jets in back-to-back weeks by handing New York's NFC team another loss.
Ravens (7-5) at Dolphins (7-5): Baltimore-For all the games that affect playoff positioning this week, there probably isn't one more important than Ravens-Dolphins. This is a virtual wild card elimination game. The loser will be a game behind at least one team, while the winner goes a game up and gets the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Ravens wouldn't be in this position if they hadn't blown it last week against the Chargers, but I have a feeling they're going to make up for it by sending the Dolphins to 7-6.
Jets (2-10) at Vikings (5-7): Minnesota-There are all the games involving playoff contenders. And then there's this one. Our second "who cares?" meaningless game involving a New York team. Things are so bad that the Giants and Jets were scheduled for the same time this week and the NFL did nothing to avoid it. Rex begins his final month as Jets coach with another loss.
Panthers (3-8-1) at Saints (5-7): New Orleans-Somebody in the NFC South definitely isn't going to lose! To think, when these two met the first time on a Thursday night in Week 9, it was a battle for first place, with 3-4-1 Carolina holding a half-game lead. Well, that ended up being the third of six straight losses for the Panthers, who haven't won since Week 5 (don't forget their wonderful tie). Anyway, the Saints are the only chance we've got left to have an NFC South "champion" with a record that's actually somewhat respectable, so I'm going with New Orleans.
Rams (5-7) at Redskins (3-9): St. Louis-Fresh off their 52-0 drubbing of the Raiders, the NFL's giant killers get another patsy to beat up on this week. The Redskins might actually be worse than the Giants. They're definitely worse than the Rams. St. Louis heads into its Thursday night matchup with Arizona at 6-7.
Texans (6-6) at Jaguars (2-10): Houston-The news that Jadeveon Clowney is out for the year was certainly unfortunate, but that Texans defense still has J.J. Watt, so Houston should be just fine. Especially since they've got a division game against somebody other than Indianapolis this week. The NFL is still listing the Texans on the AFC playoff picture, although their only chance is probably catching the Colts in the South. Well, if they both win, Houston will only be a game back going into the showdown next week.
Bills (7-5) at Broncos (9-3): Denver-Raise your hand if you thought the Bills would still be in playoff contention with four weeks left. Of course, things are going to be tough. They've still got the Packers and a trip to New England in addition to this week's visit to Denver. Speaking of Green Bay, thanks to them, Denver is suddenly thinking about home field again. The Broncos have huge road games in San Diego and Cincinnati coming up. They know they can't afford a loss to the Bills.
Chiefs (7-5) at Cardinals (9-3): Arizona-This might be the most interesting matchup of the week. Arizona suddenly needs a win, having lost two straight without Carson Palmer. And last week's loss in Atlanta was certainly startling. The Chiefs have also dropped two straight since their win over Seattle, including that inexplicable defeat in Oakland. Kansas City needs a win to keep pace with the Broncos and Chargers. Arizona needs a win to hold off the surging Seahawks and 49ers. Something's gotta give. With the game taking place in Phoenix, though, I'll give the edge to the Cardinals.
49ers (7-5) at Raiders (1-11): San Francisco-The Battle of the Bay! That, of course, is fake excitement. Because the Oakland Raiders are barely a professional football team. More than just bragging rights over a terrible team are at stake for the 49ers. They're on the outside looking in at the NFC playoff picture. Playing the Raiders is an early Christmas present that they can't just throw away.
Seahawks (8-4) at Eagles (9-3): Philadelphia-We've got a lot of good ones, but this might be the game of the week. They both picked up a huge division win on Thanksgiving, and they might be the two hottest teams in the league not named the Packers. It's the Seahawks that "need" to win a little more, but the Eagles already know the Cowboys won, which means a loss drops them into a first-place tie going into next week's Sunday night game. The entire NFC playoff race could be affected by the outcome of this game. The equal rest balances things out a little, but I don't like the Seahawks having to travel cross country, so I'm taking the Eagles in what should be a good one.
Patriots (9-3) at Chargers (8-4): San Diego-This is normally the time of the year when San Diego starts making its run. They're at three in a row since that 37-0 loss in Miami, and last week they had that amazing comeback to win in Baltimore. New England finally lost last week in Green Bay, and things don't get any easier with a cross country trip to face a Chargers team that's already beaten Seattle. I know the whole "the Patriots don't lose back-to-back games" thing, but I think they're going to. San Diego on the road isn't a good matchup for them.
Falcons (5-7) at Packers (9-3): Green Bay-Atlanta beat Arizona last week, maintaining its standing "atop" the NFC South. I'm still not exactly sure how that happened. But Atlanta's next three weeks are brutal, starting with a Monday night game against the team that so many people have already anointed NFC champions. We're still a long way from that, but the Packers shouldn't have a problem handling the Falcons at home.
This Week: 1-0
Last Week: 9-7
Season: 121-71-1
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