Playoff breakdown

In the NFC West Update, someone asked that instead of listing the "threat to win the division" I shold write "threat to make playoffs."

Then someone else brought up that the number of teams in the West that will be playing past week 17 is kind of low.

And then some one noticed a number error bigger than Enron and it all went to pot.

So...I figured, let's make everyone happy (and maybe get redeemed) by breaking down the NFC Playoff picture.

IF THE PLAYOFFS STARTED TODAY:

Team (how qualified)
Seattle Seahawks (West Champion)
Carolina Panthers (South Champion
New York Giants (East Champion)
Chicago Bears (North Champion)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Wildcard)
Atlanta Falcons (Wildcard)

Lets go division by division to break this down some more...

West: Seattle has it wrapped up for the most part. The Rams have a chance at the wildcard.

South: Carolina has yet to play anybody, but is good regardless. Tampa Bay and Atlanta will challenge for division title though.

East: Giants and Cowboys are tied for first right now. If Eli Manning continues to struggle, the Cowboys will over take the division lead.

North: The Bears have a great defense, but not much else. The Vikings are playing stronger as of late.

So...who gets in? Here's a hint: not whose up there now.

The west, as I said is wrapped up. The Seahawks should wrap the division up in the next few weeks and concentrate on getting a high seed.

Carolina will stay in...but not as the NFC South Champion. They're opening day loss to New Orleans tells me more than their seven wins can. the Panthers still have to play Atlanta twice and Tampa once.

Simply put, the Giants score. I think that alone can take them to the playoffs, especially in the NFC. They play Philly twice and Dalls once more, so they are in no way free from divisional play. If the Giants lose to the Cowboys in week 13, they will have to concentrate on the wild card.

The Bears have done nothing to impress me this season, Their defense is great, but the offense is woeful. With the Bears, if you get one or two big plays in a game, you can beat them. You really only need 17-20 points. The Bears still have to play Green Bay twince and visit Minnesota. To say the Bears have wrapped up the division is a stretch, and I don't think they make the playoffs. (More on this later)

Atlanta and Tampa Bay play twice, in games that could decide the NFC South race. I like tampa's defense to prevail and win the division, with Carolina getting in on the wild card.

I've filled up three spots so far (Seahawks, Tampa Bay, Carolina) Here's who I think will make it in.

NFC east champion: Dallas Cowboys. A solid football team, good defensively. Maybe they needed luck against the Eagles, but still good. Parcelss and Bledsoe have made for a good combination so far. A somewhat difficult schedule (Giants, Broncos, and Panthers) but a doable one.

NFC North champion: Minnasota Vikings. People made the mistake of writting off the love-boat Vikings early in the season. This team has come together and played much better. They've won three of their past four games, including an OT win over New York. You want to talk about championship caliber wins? That has to be up there. The Vikings have been given every reason to fold and they haven't. That makes them scary as we roll into December.

The other wildcard: New York Giants. They can put up points and have a defense to match. They lost to the Vikings, but not because of their defense. If NY gives Tiki Barber the ball more, this team can make the post season.

So we've got

Seattle (west champion)
Tampa Bay (South Champion)
Dallas (East champion)
Minnesota (North champion)
Carolina (wild card)
New York (wild card)

Let the debating begin,

Alan