NFL Week 17

[CanadianChris 0]

This week's games:

 

SAT, DEC 30

NY Giants at Washington

SUN, DEC 31

1:00

Seattle at Tampa Bay

St. Louis at Minnesota

Carolina at New Orleans

Oakland at NY Jets

Detroit at Dallas

Pittsburgh at Cincinnati

Cleveland at Houston

New England at Tennessee

Jacksonville at Kansas City

4:15

Miami at Indianapolis

San Francisco at Denver

Buffalo at Baltimore

Atlanta at Philadelphia

Arizona at San Diego

Green Bay at Chicago

 

And, in lieu of picks, here are the playoff scenarios for week 17:

 

AFC East

 

• New England has clinched division title.

 

• N.Y. Jets can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win or tie

Or

2. A Cincinnati loss or tie and a Jacksonville loss or tie

Or

3. A Cincinnati loss or tie and a Tennessee win

Or

4. A Denver loss and a Jacksonville loss

 

AFC North

 

• Baltimore has clinched the division title.

• Baltimore can clinch home-field advantage with:

1. A win and a San Diego loss

 

• Baltimore can clinch first-round bye with:

1. A win or tie

Or

2. Indianapolis loss or tie

 

• Cincinnati can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win and a N.Y. Jets loss

Or

2. A win and a Denver loss and a Kansas City win

 

AFC South

 

• Indianapolis has clinched the division title:

• Indianapolis can clinch first-round bye with:

1. A win and a Baltimore loss

 

• Tennessee can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win and a Cincinnati loss or tie and a Denver loss and a Kansas City win

 

• Jacksonville can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win and a N.Y. Jets loss and a Cincinnati loss or tie and a Tennessee loss or tie

 

AFC West

 

• San Diego has clinched division a first-round bye.

• San Diego can clinch home-field advantage with:

1. A win or tie

Or

2. Baltimore loss or tie

 

• Denver can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win or tie

Or

2. A Kansas City loss or tie

 

• Kansas City can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win and a Cincinnati loss or tie and a Denver loss and a Tennessee loss or tie

 

NFC East

 

• Dallas and Philadelphia have clinched playoff berths.

 

• Dallas can clinch division with:

1. A win with a Philadelphia loss or tie

Or

2. A tie with a Philadelphia loss

 

• Philadelphia can clinch division with:

1. A win

Or

2. Dallas loss

Or

3. A tie with a Dallas tie

 

• N.Y. Giants can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win and clinch strength of victory tiebreaker over Green Bay

Or

2. A win with a Green Bay loss or tie

Or

3. A tie plus a Green Bay loss or tie plus a St. Louis loss or tie plus an Atlanta loss or tie and a Carolina loss or tie

Or

4. A Green Bay loss plus a St. Louis loss plus an Atlanta loss and a Carolina loss

 

NFC North

 

• Chicago has clinched the division and home-field advantage in the NFC.

 

• Green Bay can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win plus a NY Giants win + GB clinches strength of victory tiebreaker over NYG

Or

2. A win plus a NY Giants loss or tie plus a St. Louis loss or tie

Or

3. A win plus a NY Giants loss or tie plus a Carolina win

Or

4. A win plus a NY Giants loss or tie plus an Atlanta win

Or

5. A tie plus a NY Giants loss plus a St. Louis loss plus an Atlanta loss or tie plus a Carolina loss or tie

 

NFC South

 

• New Orleans has clinched division and a first-round bye. loss.

 

• Carolina can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win plus a NY Giants loss or tie plus a Green Bay loss or tie

Or

2. A tie plus a NY Giants loss plus a Green Bay loss plus a St. Louis loss or tie plus an Atlanta loss or tie

 

• Atlanta can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win plus a Carolina loss or tie plus a Green Bay loss or tie plus a NY Giants loss or tie

Or

2. A tie plus a Carolina loss plus a Green Bay loss plus a NY Giants loss plus a St. Louis loss

 

NFC West

 

• Seattle has clinched the division.

 

• St. Louis can clinch a playoff berth with:

1. A win plus a NY Giants loss or tie plus a Carolina loss or tie plus an Atlanta loss or tie

OR

2. A tie plus a NY Giants loss plus a Carolina loss plus an Atlanta loss plus a Green Bay loss

 

• Arizona, Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, Houston, Oakland, Miami, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay and Washington have been eliminated from playoff contention.

[cabbageboy 0]

Ah, crap. Beat me to it this week. Anyway here are my picks and I'll try to figure out the playoff mess as well.

 

SAT, DEC 30

NY Giants (7-8) at Washington (5-10): Do the Giants even want to win this game? I'm not sure. But since I've been picking them and picking them (to little avail) I might as well go down with the Coughlin ship. NYG by 7, to make the playoffs.

 

SUN, DEC 31

 

Seattle (8-7) at Tampa Bay (4-11): Seattle is already in and can't really improve their position, so they might rest some guys. Doesn't really matter anyway, since I think TB with Rattay would win. Tampa by 10.

 

St. Louis (7-8) at Minnesota (6-9): The Rams would have to be the jobbers of all time to lose this one with the playoffs at stake, especially since they aren't self destructing. STL by 7.

 

Carolina (7-8) at New Orleans (10-5): The Saints are locked in as the 2 seed, but will they rest people? If so, Carolina wins by 10. If not, then I'll take the Saints by 7. I say they try to put the dagger in a rival, Saints by 7.

 

Oakland (2-13) at NY Jets (9-6): The Jets would be the biggest bums on earth to lose this and miss the playoffs. NYJ win it by 14.

 

Detroit (2-13) at Dallas (9-6): Cowboys still have a shot at the division title, so they will show up here and stomp the hapless Lions. Dallas by 17.

 

Pittsburgh (7-8) at Cincinnati (8-7): Bengals can't be mentally right after the debacle vs. Denver. Steelers will want to torment them, so I'll take Pittsburgh here by 3.

 

Cleveland (4-11) at Houston (5-10): Horrible game, but the Texans are showing some signs of life. I'll take Houston here by 7.

 

New England (11-4) at Tennessee (8-7): Tough one to call really. Will Belichick rest his starters? Dunno. I'll say that the Titans win it here by 4 to finish at an astounding 9-7.

 

Jacksonville (8-7) at Kansas City (8-7): Jacksonville is basically screwed here, and they suck on the road to boot. I'll take KC to win it here by 6.

 

Miami (6-9) at Indianapolis (11-4): Colts are perfect at home, .500 on the road. They should win this one by about 14.

 

San Francisco (6-9) at Denver (9-6): Broncos have to win this one to get into the playoffs. Might be tougher than expected but I doubt it. Broncos by 13.

 

Buffalo (7-8) at Baltimore (12-3): I'll go ahead and call an upset here. Buffalo will try to get to .500 for the season, and the Ravens won't quite be on their game. Bills by 6.

 

Atlanta (7-8) at Philadelphia (9-6): The nightmare known as the Eagles with Jeff Garcia continues and it likely will keep going here. Philly wins by 10 and takes the NFC East.

 

Arizona (5-10) at San Diego (13-2): Chargers have been playing eh football lately, but should win this one by 7 either way to get the top seed in the AFC.

 

Green Bay (7-8...is anyone NOT 7-8??) at Chicago (13-2): Bears likely will rest some guys, so I think the Packers will win one for Favre and finish at .500.

 

Let's see how I have the playoffs shaping up from this:

 

AFC: 1) San Diego 2) Indianapolis 3) Baltimore 4)New England 5) Denver 6) NY Jets.

NFC: 1) Chicago 2) New Orleans 3) Philadelphia 4) Seattle 5) Dallas 6) NY Giants.

[JHawk 0]

How sad is it that there's very likely going to be at least one playoff team that barely finished .500?

[2GOLD 0]

How sad is it that there's very likely going to be at least one playoff team that barely finished .500?

 

Almost as scary as the reality it is entirely possible, though not very likely, that there could be a 7-9 team in the playoffs.

[MFer 0]

NY Giants (7-8) at Washington (5-10): Betts racks up another 100+ yd game as Washington puts the Giants out of their misery

Seattle (8-7) at Tampa Bay (4-11): The Bucs are scoring more with Rattay, but I still don't think they'll beat Seattle

St. Louis (7-8) at Minnesota (6-9): Rams will put up points indoors

Carolina (7-8) at New Orleans (10-5): Saints in a blowout

Oakland (2-13) at NY Jets (9-6): It would be awesome to see the upset but it probably won't happen

Detroit (2-13) at Dallas (9-6): Closer than expected, but Lions will find another creative way to lose

Pittsburgh (7-8) at Cincinnati (8-7): Bengals did have a heartbreaker last week but the Steelers got their shit kicked in last week at home

Cleveland (4-11) at Houston (5-10): Ken Dorsey is starting for the Browns this week

New England (11-4) at Tennessee (8-7): VY's magic continues though they probably still won't make it

Jacksonville (8-7) at Kansas City (8-7): Jags just befuddle the human mind

Miami (6-9) at Indianapolis (11-4): Ronnie Brown will still get his despite the loss

San Francisco (6-9) at Denver (9-6): If San Fran was still alive, I might have picked them

Buffalo (7-8) at Baltimore (12-3): Ravens are focused and on a mission

Atlanta (7-8) at Philadelphia (9-6): I keep waiting for Atlanta to turn the corner but it hasn't happened. What happened to Warrick Dunn?

Arizona (5-10) at San Diego (13-2): We might see a huge game from Michael "The Burner" Turner here

Green Bay (7-8) at Chicago (13-2): I wouldn't be shocked to see GB win. I also wouldn't be surprised to see a defensive TD by the Bears here

[TheDevilAndGodAreRagingInsideMe 0]

It blows my mind that the Giants can STILL make the playoffs. I don't want them to at this point.

[AboveAverage484 0]

It blows my mind that the Giants can STILL make the playoffs. I don't want them to at this point.

 

The thing about it is, the Giants haven't really lost to bad teams, all of their losses are against good ones. Just the ultimate case of JTTS, I guess.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Ravens will beat the Bills by 2 TDs easily. This game would have worried me if they had won last week and were playing for some realistic shot at a playoff spot, but "LETS GET .500" wont be enough to beat the Ravens in Baltimore when they have SECURE BYE WEEK grilled into their heads.

[Guest Princess Leena]

It should be a low scoring, ugly game. The Bills' weakness is run defense. So, Jamal is getting like 35 carries for ~100 yards probably. I'm expecting a 16-10 barnburner.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

Ravens will beat the Bills by 2 TDs easily. This game would have worried me if they had won last week and were playing for some realistic shot at a playoff spot, but "LETS GET .500" wont be enough to beat the Ravens in Baltimore when they have SECURE BYE WEEK grilled into their heads.

 

You think Indy didn't have that "grilled" into their heads last Sunday? They still lost to Houston. Baltimore is definitely beatable, so stop acting like they aren't.

[cabbageboy 0]

Baltimore also didn't give up 153 yards to a limping Ron Dayne. Baltimore has the best defense in the league, the Colts have the worst of any team making the playoffs.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

And Baltimore has the 17th ranked offense while Indy has the 3rd... your point? Before you say it, I only believe in the "defenses win championships" mantra in certain cases. Baltimore isn't one of those cases.

[MFer 0]

So...who should Romo roll with, Jessica or Carrie?

[2GOLD 0]

So...who should Romo roll with, Jessica or Carrie?

 

Keeps playing like this and he might end up rolling with Nicole Ritchie.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

And Baltimore has the 17th ranked offense while Indy has the 3rd... your point? Before you say it, I only believe in the "defenses win championships" mantra in certain cases. Baltimore isn't one of those cases.

 

The Ravens offense is clearly superior to the 2000 Offense and no one can debate that. They're actually scoring offensive TDs this year whereas in 2000 they had stretches where all they did was get FGs and defensive TDs. The defense is slightly worse than 2000, but its still right there. How exactly are the Ravens not a case of "Defense wins Championships" this year? They already won the AFC North and right now you have to say they have the best defense of any playoff team AFC or NFC.

[Guest]

The Chargers and the Bears would like to say hello to you.

 

Stats be fucking damned. I think the Ravens defense is very good, but I don't think that any defense can be called the best at this point. There's a reason so many teams have (or will wind up with) 12 and 13 wins.

[naiwf 0]

I can't wait until the Ravens lose in the postseason. My mild dislike for them became complete and utter hatred for them in less than 16 weeks. Thanks Marvin.

[AboveAverage484 0]

No way am I going to bet on any games this weekend. Coaches are always so hush on who they are going to play and who they aren't, so I just think I'm going to sit this week out.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

The Chargers and the Bears would like to say hello to you.

 

Stats be fucking damned. I think the Ravens defense is very good, but I don't think that any defense can be called the best at this point. There's a reason so many teams have (or will wind up with) 12 and 13 wins.

I like stats though! The Ravens defense is #1 in yardage allowed per game and points allowed per game, and #2 in rushing yards per game and #6 in passing yards allowed per game. Ravens are #2 in total turnovers. Off of NFL.com I've also found out the Ravens are the least penalized defense (total yards in penalties) and 2nd in total Penalties . The Ravens also allow the least avg. time of possession of any team in the NFL and have the best 3rd down conversion allowed%.

 

And for fun I wanted to compare this year to 2000 just to see how they really compare: (NFL RANK)

Total Points Allowed

00: 165 (1) All Time Record

06: 194 (1)

Total Yards Allowed

00: 4145 (1)

06: 3972 (1)

Rushing Yards Allowed

00: 970 (1) All Time Record

06: 1175 (1)

Rush TDs Allowed

00: 5 (1)

06: 5 (1)

Passing Yards Allowed

00: 3175 (6)

06: 2797 (6)

Passing TDs Allowed

00: 11 (2)

06: 15 (5)

INTS

00: 23 (5)

06: 26 (1)

 

Id say statistically they are about dead even..

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

I just wanted to say that Tony Romo going to the Pro Bowl NOT as a reserve is an absolutely disgrace to the league. For Donovan McNabb not to get a bid, and then placed on IR, is insulting, given Donovan's stats, leading the league for most of his time on the field. To not come off as a homer, I provide you with the FOLLOWING statistics:

 

DONOVAN MCNABB in 9 games started (he was injured early on in the 10th game)

 

180 out of 316 passes completed.

57 %

2647 Yards

8.38 Yards per pass

18 TDs

6 INTs

44 passes of over 20 yards

14 passes of over 40 yards

QB Rating - 95.5

 

TONY ROMO in 9 games started.

 

197 out of 305 passes completed.

64.6 %

2582 Yards

8.47 Yards per Play

17 TDs

12 INTs

37 passes over 20 yards

7 passes over 40 yards

93.4 QB Rating

 

 

Seriously. What should have happened: Donovan gets a bid and is replaced by Romo.

 

Gotta love the NFL! "oooh, new clean-cut white guy on America's Team! Maybe we can get a crossover with American Idol! Announcers: Blow him!" I almost feel bad for Romo. He seems to have a nice future, but I think he's getting the God push way too fast and the expectations are going to hinder his progress. He'll make mistakes like any QB, but they'll be under a huge magnifying glass.

[Guest "Go, Mordecai!"]

Conversely, I want to know why my team's clean-cut white guy gets such a hard time from the media, even when he was performing very well. At the risk of sounding like Dama,

 

ESPN: "Could there be a quarterback controversy in Chicago?"

Lovie: "No"

ESPN: "Are you sure?"

Lovie: "Yes"

ESPN: "Let's ask Sean Salisbury."

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

It's because his name is "GROSSMan", they can't market it.

 

I don't see how anyone could entertain the possibility of removing Grossman or having a "controversy" start, stupid ESPN. Even dumbass Salisbury should know that Grossman, desite looking great on the field, still keeps the team winning.

[Hektik 0]

Gotta love the NFL! "oooh, new clean-cut white guy on America's Team! Maybe we can get a crossover with American Idol! Announcers: Blow him!" I almost feel bad for Romo. He seems to have a nice future, but I think he's getting the God push way too fast and the expectations are going to hinder his progress. He'll make mistakes like any QB, but they'll be under a huge magnifying glass.

I think Tony Romo is actually hispanic.

[Guest "Go, Mordecai!"]

He's half-Mexican, but he's from Wisconsin, so he's a white guy. Burlington, specifically, which is kind of a dump.

[Black Lushus 0]

Jeff Garcia was on ESPN last week prior to the Eagles/Cowboys game talking about how it's the first time two Hispanic heritage QBs are facing off.

 

please...

 

when it's Jorge Gonzalez going against Julio Sanchez, THEN we can have that discussion.

[Guest Princess Leena]

That's like if Carlton Banks and Black Lushus faced off.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

Is Garcia still nailing former 2004 Diva Search Runner Up/Playmate of the Year Carmella DeCaesar?

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

The Chargers and the Bears would like to say hello to you.

 

Stats be fucking damned. I think the Ravens defense is very good, but I don't think that any defense can be called the best at this point. There's a reason so many teams have (or will wind up with) 12 and 13 wins.

 

Let's not go crazy here. I think the Ravens' defense is better than both the Chargers and the Bears. However, the Chargers' offense smokes the Ravens', and it could be debated that the Bears' offense is a bit better than the Ravens'.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

I will also like to point out to Marvin that the Bears went into the playoffs as the #2 seed last year with the best defense and got their asses handed to them in their first playoff game. I foresee a similar fate for the Ravens depending on the matchup.

[CanadianChris 0]