sorting out the wild card races

With all the division winners pretty much locked in the race for the wild card spots is heating up in both conferences. Five teams are competing for two spots in the AFC and four teams are competing for two spots in the NFC. It is time to sort out the playoff teams from the contenders

AFC

Cincinnati – of the five teams locked at 7-5 in the AFC right now they are probably playing the best football right now. We all know the offense can score points but the key is the defense. The defense has allowed just seven points in two weeks and the main reason for this is they have been stopping the run as of late. Their remaining schedule features games in Denver and Indianapolis. I feel they can steal one of those two games and will win the home games against Oakland and Pittsburgh to finish 10-6 and make the playoffs.

Jacksonville – This is one of the more inconsistent teams in the league. The talent is there but for some reason the Jags can’t play well on the road. The key to the Jags making the playoffs is David Garrard. He plays well and they win but if not they lose. The schedule does not favor their road woes with games in Tennessee and Kansas City. They will finish 9-7 at best and in the tough AFC will miss the playoffs.

Kansas City – Have one of the more balanced and best offenses in the league. But the defense is shaky and the main reason is bad tackling. When a defense can’t tackle they can’t stop offenses and this is the key to them making the playoffs. With games against Baltimore and in San Diego I think they finish 3-1 and make the playoffs at 10-6.

Denver – With one of the best defenses in the league they can beat anyone on any day. But the offense is struggling and is the reason they have lost back to back games. They finally made the switch to Jay Cutler but I think it too late. He is going to struggle at first as he did on Sunday night and will be unpredictable the rest of the season. They do have one of the more favorable schedules remaining with games against San Francisco and in Arizona but I think they finish .500 to go 9-7 and miss the playoffs.

New York Jets – They have been playing well as of late and have a soft schedule. Still the defense has to learn to stop the run which is key to winning late in the season. I don’t think they can with games against Willis McGahee and Chester Taylor. I think they lose in Miami, Minnesota and maybe even against Buffalo. With a 9-7 record they would miss the playoffs.

NFC

New York Giants – With one of the more talented teams in the league I can’t believe they have to make the wild card to make the playoffs. But this team has been torn apart by injuries and with the worst team chemistry in the NFL lately they have lost four straight. The key is the running game which they have gotten away from in a few of their losses. They will be able to run when they try to and will steal a game against New Orleans in two weeks to finish at least 8-8 maybe even 9-7 and in the NFC that will be good enough to make the wild card.

Atlanta – With Vick at QB they can win any game but he is too inconsistent and you never know which Vick will show up. The WRs have been dropping too many balls and the defense is not too good. The key to a playoff run will be that defense which hurts most in the secondary. With three games remaining against playoff contenders and another against a division rival I think they would be lucky to win another game. They will finish 7-9 and miss the playoffs.

Philadelphia – Garcia is now the QB of the Eagles and he is a previous pro bowler but don’t think for a minute that he can lead them to the playoffs single handedly. That is what he would have to do because teams will focus on stopping Brain Westbrook and force him to win. Garcia is the key to a playoff run for the Eagles. I simply can’t see an Eagle team without McNabb making the playoffs. They have three road games remaining to finish 8-8 at best but will miss the playoffs because of the tie breaker held by the Giants over them.

Carolina – The Panthers have the best team in the NFC wild card hunt. They have one of the better defenses in the league and a very talented offense. They don’t know how to win close games though with all 6 loses being in close games. The key is Jake Delhomme, he hasn’t played well lately but does have the weapons to go out and put up points. The schedule is favorable and I think they will finish hot at 3-1 to finish 9-7 and make the wild card.

5 Things to be thankful for

1. The move Bill Parcels made to go to Tony Romo. He has turned the Cowboys completely around, he has been producing every game and has limited mistakes. Parcels didn't get alot of credit at the time but Bledsoe was a statue in the pocket. Romo has brought his mobility and strong arm to the already talented Cowboys. They are coming off of a great win over the previously undefeated Colts. Which raises the question, why was Romo on the bench for so long? Nevertheless, this move has Cowboy fans thankful for the move.

2. The 1972 Dolphins are thankful for yet another season of no undefeated teams. First, the Miami Dolphins took down the heavily favored and than undefeated Chicago Bears. Than this past weekend the Colts lost in Dallas preserving yet another season of no unbeatens. It's time to bring out the Champane, the 72 Dolphins are celebrating.

3. The San Diego Chargers should be very thankful for LaDainian Tomlinson. The man is a freak of nature. He has break away speed, power to run between the tackles, and is an excellent receiver out of the back field. Oh and he can throw a tight spiral, he has 5 passing TDs in his career. The man is a TD machine and is the reason that the Chargers are 8-2 and have sole possession of the AFC West. Any NFL fan out there should sit back and enjoy watching LT, your witnessing history.

4. All NFL fans can appreciate the new Flex schedule by NBC. No more Sunday nights with blowout games. The flex schedule has enabled NBC to handpick the best game of the week and put it on prime time. We saw this last week when San Diego @ Denver made for a very entertaining game. So fans everywhere be thankful for the flex schedule is here to stay.

5. I am thankful the NFL doesn't allow head coaches to wear suits and ties during games. It looks professional yes but it doesn't look right when a man is wearing a suit with a head set on and as he is barking out orders or yelling at refs. How do you run down the sidelines in a suit? I know Tim Landry wore a suit but this is a different time.

five burning questions

1. Will the Colts go undefeated?

this will be one of the hottest topics until the Colts lose a game because it is every year. who will match the undefeated 72 Dolphins? I say not this year, the Colts simply don't have the defense to do it. I expect them to lose at Jacksonville later on if not before that game. if they manage to go undefeated regular season than they will suffer a let down in the playoffs because remember defense wins championships

2. Who is the best AFC team?

forget about the standings, I don't think it's the Colts. the Ravens are the best team in the AFC. they have the defense to play with anyone and their offense is finally playing good to make for a well rounded team. plus they have Ed Reed so whenever they force a turnover, you can expect him to take it all the way back even if it's from end zone to end zone

3. Who is the best NFC team?

again forget about the standings, the Bears are overrated and benefit from a weak schedule. it's the NY Giants. they have a strong running attack with thunder and lightning (Barber and Jacobs). they have one of the top rising QBs in the league with all the weapons he needs on offense. plus they have a good defense to complement the offense.

4. Will the T.O. led Cowboys make the playoffs?

yes they will make the playoffs. this team is too talented not to, but they will be a wild card team. They are too far behind the Giants and have a bad divisonal record. but with Tony Romo at the helm, this team has great potential on offense. plus Romo keeps T.O. happy and thats key

5. What happened to the Bengals?

this team was supposed to win the AFC North, they were supposed to have one of the best offenses in the NFL. but because they can't stop the run on defense and can't protect Palmer on offense they have fallen to being an average team. I think the Bengals still have the potential to get hot and could still win the divison but their WRs aren't getting open and Palmer doesn't have enough time to wait for them to

Dolphins beat Bears

The Bears made a critical mistake of repeating the past. They should have known not to underestimate the Dolphins. Afterall this is the same team which handled the 1985 undefeated Bears their first and only lost of the season. So when they took the field against the Dolphins on Sunday they should have been prepared for the worst. But the Bears must have bought into their own hype and overlooked the one win Dolphins. The Dolphins made the Bears look bad, they forced six turnovers in which they scored 28 of their points off of. Ronnie Brown made the Chicago rush defense look like the cheese and he sliced through the cheese on this day. This win has to bring up the question, is Chicago really a good team? or just a product of a weak divison? Which ever it is Chicago didn't learn from their own past which is the worst mistake anyone can make. Every NFL team should be fully prepared every week because as the saying goes. On any given Sunday any team can win.