NFL week 15

Settling in for a full day of football that will NOT include the Steelers/Ravens. Thanks to living in Patriots country, instead of the titanic AFC North battle, we get New England vs ......the Raiders. Wow. Sportsnet could come to the rescue but for some reason they've decided to show Denver at Carolina. So it looks like the Bills/Jets (Go Bills) and prob. TBay vs Atlanta at 2:00. Raiders/Pats at 5:00 (Go Raiders!), then Boys/G-Men in the sunday nighter. At least there is a Raptors game at 1:30 vs Chris Paul and the Hornets.
Great article discussing how crazy the NFL wildcard situation is. Basically saying that not only could a 10 win team miss the playoffs, but an 11 win team could miss as well. Winning 11 games and not making the playoffs? That's what makes the NFL so great, every game is so critical.

"As the Cleveland Browns found out a year ago, winning 10 games doesn't guarantee you a playoff berth. But more often than not, 10 usually gets you in.
Besides the Browns, the 2005 Kansas City Chiefs and '03 Dolphins are the only other teams to win 10 and miss the playoffs since 1992. Since the league expanded to a 16-game schedule in 1978, a total of 276 teams won at least 10 games and all but 16 of those teams qualified for the postseason.
Over the last 30 years, there have never been more than two teams to win 10 and miss the playoffs in the same season. This year there could be three.
The Jets, Dolphins or Patriots could do it. It's all but certain that only one of those AFC East teams will qualify. All are 8-5 and could finish with 10 wins.
Depending on how other playoff contenders fare the final three weeks, it's possibile that the Patriots win all three and miss the playoffs despite finishing with 11 wins. That would happen if the Jets or Dolphins also won out, because both teams hold the tiebreaker advantage over New England. The 1985 Broncos are the only team to win 11 and miss the playoffs.
The Ravens and Colts, both at 9-4 and in second place in their respective divisions, are currently holding the two wild card spots. Both also hold the tiebreaker over the three AFC East teams. The first tiebreaker is head-to-head; the Colts beat the Patriots and the Ravens defeated the Dolphins. The second tiebreaker for the wild card is won-lost-tied percentage against conference teams. The Colts (8-2 in AFC) and Ravens (7-3) also have the advantage over the Jets (6-4), Dolphins (6-4) and Patriots (5-5).
Over in the NFC, there are 11 teams with winning records. Not including NFC West champion Arizona and whatever other three division winners emerge, there are six teams that can win 10 games. At the moment, the 9-4 Buccaneers and 8-5 Cowboys are the two wild card entries. The Bucs can solidify their chance with a victory over the 8-5 Falcons. Meanwhile, the Cowboys' grip on the wild card is tenuous at best after last Sunday's fourth quarter collapse against the Steelers. Dallas plays the Giants, Ravens and Eagles, who climbed back into the playoff picture last week with that huge victory over the Giants.
The 8-6 Bears, who kept their playoff hopes alive by beating the Saints on Thursday night, play the Packers at home and the Texans on the road the last two weeks. Chicago will be favored in both."

That piece was from the CNNSI website.

Basically if you lay an egg in the next three weeks you're in alot of trouble. So a loss for the Dolphins vs the Niners, or the Pats vs the Raiders, and you'll need to win and get alot of help from other teams. The Jets probably have the toughest game today, home to the Bills.
The Dolphins have to be thankful for the great work of Mike Singletary's Niners, officially eliminating the Bills two weeks ago then beating the Jets last week. But they'll need to take care of San Fran at home or they will be on the outside looking in.
With all the success of Matt Ryan this year, there has been talk that the Fins made a mistake in passing on Ryan and taking Offensive lineman Jake Long.
I disagree.
Yes, Matt Ryan is special. I remember watching him last year with Boston College vs Virginia Tech. He made a touchdown pass to win the game that was a sign of things to come. Rolling to his left at about the 30 yard line, he threw the ball all the way to the other side of the field, to a wide open receiver deep in the end zone. Why was the reciever so open? Because that type of throw was impossible for almost every qb in college...but not Matt Ryan. He'll be a great one.
But the NFL is all about that 15 by 5 foot trench divided by the length of a football. Any Super Bowl team is built by starting with the offensive line, then the defensive line, and then you start to add your skill players. Bill Parcells (gay) knows this. That's why he drafted the best offensive lineman in the draft, Jake Long of Michigan. I`m sure there will always be a sense of regret for Dolphins fans, still craving a dynamic qb that has not been had since Dan Marino. But when the fish are playing meaningful football in January for the next 10 years, I`m sure they won`t be dissapointed.

The Reporters on Sunday Mornings
If you love sports you have to watch TSN on sunday mornings from 11-12. First, ESPN The Reporters with John Saunders and three journalists that usually include Mike Lupica, Bob Ryan, and Mitch Albom.
Then TSN The Reporters with Dave Hodge that usually includes Steve Simmons, Michael Farber, and Damian Cox.
Lots of intelligent and meaningful discussion about a broad variety of topics from guys who really know their stuff. There is no shouting and trying to yell nonsense over each other`s voices, no gadgets or gimmics, just insightful and passionate commentary from the best in the business.

Steelers Super Bowl Bound?

The Steelers are now 11-3 after another hardfought victory against a worthy adversary. The Steelers came back in the 4th quarter for the second straight week to beat the Baltimore Ravens (controvesrial ending to that game).
The Steelers are in the midst of playing the most difficult schedule of any team since 1976 (Giants) and are pulling out wins with grit and determination. It's classic Steelers football; dominate on defence and do just enough on offence. Ben Rothlisberger has developed into a great leader and guttsy QB.
I think Pittsburgh is going to the Super Bowl. They have played so many tough games against great teams, and have won almost all of them. The games they lost were against the Colts (20-24), Giants (21-14) , and at the Eagles (6-15).

If Pittsburgh can get a bye and rest up for a home playoff game, they will be very tough to beat.

Cowboys/Giants
Not too pull a Billy Packer and attempt to validate one of my previous points by talking about it to death, but after watching the Boys and G-Men, I'm pretty happy about my earlier point that success in the NFL begins with the linemen.
En route to a 20-8 win over the Giants, the Cowboys had 7 sacks! Three by Demarcus Ware alone. Tony Romo got banged around too and the Cowboys gave up a safety, but the Dallas defensive line dominated the Giants. Alot of that was not the O-lines fault however, the secondary had the Giant's receivers locked down and Eli had nowhere to throw the ball on alot of dropbacks. Not having Charles Jacobs to help set up the play action pass didn't help either.
Do you think Eli Manning misses Plaxico Burress? The Giants receivers looked pretty good when Plax was getting double teamed and drawing the opponents best cover guy, but tonight against the Dallas secondary they looked very pedestrian.
The Cowboys looked really good tonight. The camera shot of Owens, Whitten, and Romo all laughing on the sidelines was hilarious considering what went on this week off the field.
They still have it tough with a home game next week vs Baltimore and then finishing at Philly. The Ravens will be playing desperate football as they'll need a win to stay in the AFC wildcard chase, while the game against the Eagles could be a win or go home scenario for both teams.

Cowboys/Steelers Superbowl
After making my case for Pittsburgh, and watching the Cowboys dominate the champs, I'm prepared to pick Dallas from the NFC for the Super Bowl.
First, they have alot of talent. Probably more talent then any other team in the NFL.
Second, they remind me alot of the Giants last year. Before the Giant's incredible run to the Superbowl, they had a very hard season filled with controversy and injuries. Tom Coughlin was on the hot seat, Eli Manning was soft, Jeremy Shockey was angry at the world, the team was underachieving. Then came the last game of the regular season vs the New England Patriots. Even though the Giants has already secured a wildcard, they went out and tried to beat the Pats, giving it thier all en route to a 35-31 loss.
But the game changed their mindset. It made them realize how good of a football team they could be.
The Cowboys are in the exact same situation this year. Controversial players, coach on the hot seat, Romo's leadership questioned, Terrell Owens saying stupid things and feeling under-appreciated. Last week Dallas gave a game away to Pittsburgh. The season had been a nightmare.
Until tonight.
The Cowboys beat up on the team that alot of experts regard as the best team in football. I think the Cowboys will get a wildcard spot and go on to play in the Super Bowl. I hope I'm wrong because I really don't like Dallas. Also, I'm assuming Tony Romo will stay healthy. Without Romo, they don't have a chance in hell.

AFC West
The AFC West, the worst division in the conference, is starting to get a little interesting. The Chargers have managed to beat Oakland and KC and are now 6-8, 2 games behind Denver at 8-6. If San Diego wins next week, and Denver loses, it would set up a winner take all game between the 2 teams in San Diego to finish the season.
San Diego is in tough at the Tampa Bay Bucs, who are playing for a wildcard berth in the NFC. Denver has home vs the Bills. Buffalo has lot of pride and will prob. come to play. Probably the only chance Buffalo would have if Trent Edwards can play, because JP Losman is horrible!!

Losman Blows it for Bills (and Dolphins and Patriots)
JP Losman's total ineptitude at QB played a major role in the AFC race today. The Bills showed up vs the Jets and were on the verge of putting them away, leading 27-24 with a first down and about 2 minutes left. Then JP took over. On second down he foolishly rolled out to his right, didn't feel the Jets defender coming from behind, and was stripped of the football. The Jets scooped up the ball and took it to the house for the games decisive score. Thanks JP!

Dolphins/Patriots TCOB
The Fish squeezed one out vs a hard working Niners team, while the Pats destroyed the horrible Raiders. San Fran had possesion of the ball for 38 minutes which included several drives that lasted over 8 minutes. But they could not punch it in the endzone, settling for field goals. On one drive they ran about 16 plays and had to settle for a punt from the Dolphins 40 yard line!

With that said I love the way Mike Singletary has settled the Niners down and has them playing smart, extremely safe, football. They do not turn the ball over and they do not get pentalized under Singletary, which keeps them in games right to the end. Makes them extremely boring to watch but it has made the Niners alot more respectable then they were the first half of the season.
Speaking of smart football, the Dolphins are on pace to set the record for fewest turnovers in a season. After 14 games, they only have 10! That stat goes a long way in explaining their turnaround this season.

So with 2 games left, the Jets, Phins, and Pats are all 9-5. Of the three teams, Miami is the only team that controls thier own destiny. If they beat KC and the Jets, they get the division. They hold the tiebreaker with the Patriots. With the Colts closing in on the first wildcard spot, there may only be one spot left for the two teams that do not win the division. That's assuming the Ravens stop winning.

Next week the Dolphins are in KC, the Patriots are home to Arizona, and the Jets are in Seattle. Even though Arizona has the best record of these teams, I think the Patriots have it the easiest. They will be home. The Cardinals are extremely overrated, and they have already secured the NFC West division.
Miami and NY will be on the road against teams with very loyal fans who still make alot of noise, despite the fact their teams aren't good. The Chiefs and Seahawks will be juiced to play spoiler and players will be battling for jobs for next season. It'll be tough.