|
Seed
|
Team
|
Record
|
Div.
|
Conf.
|
|
1
|
Dallas Cowboys
|
9-1
|
4-0
|
7-0
|
|
2
|
Green Bay Packers
|
9-1
|
2-1
|
6-1
|
|
3
|
Seattle Seahawks
|
6-4
|
3-1
|
5-2
|
|
4
|
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
|
6-4
|
3-0
|
5-2
|
|
5
|
New York Giants
|
7-3
|
2-2
|
5-3
|
|
6
|
Detroit Lions
|
6-4
|
3-0
|
4-4
|
|
--
|
Washington Redskins
|
5-5
|
1-3
|
3-4
|
|
--
|
Arizona Cardinals
|
5-5
|
2-1
|
3-4
|
|
--
|
Philadelphia Eagles
|
5-5
|
1-3
|
3-5
|
TIEBREAKERS:
- Seattle wins the tiebreaker over Tampa Bay based on head-to-head matchup.
At first glance, it would appear the NFC is a two-team race. The Cowboys and Packers are clearly the class of this conference, something I don't think we've said since Troy Aikman was handing the ball off to Emmitt Smith and Brett Favre was throwing to guys who didn't last nearly as long as he did.
Neither is getting a huge challenge from within their division, either. The Cowboys have swept the Giants already, so there's one tiebreaker. Barring disaster, the Redskins and Eagles may be too far behind to catch up. The Packers, meanwhile, have a three-game lead on the resurgent Lions -- and there's a phrase I didn't expect to use this year -- with two head-to-head showdowns left. The Packers may only need to win one of them to clinch the division.
Both the Cowboys and Packers also have a three-game lead on the other division leaders, all but assuring them both of first-round byes. The Seahawks have been inconsistent all year, thanks to Shaun Alexander running out of gas, but they ought to have enough to fend off the Arizona Cardinals. The Buccaneers, meanwhile, have a two-game lead on everyone and may only need three more wins to clinch the atrocious NFC South.
The 'Hawks and Bucs would be wise to keep winning though. Neither of them wants to face the Giants in the first round of the playoffs. Whoever wins that other Wild Card spot -- and don't believe for a minute that Detroit is a lock -- would be a much more agreeable opponent.
THIS WEEK'S IMPACT GAMES:
- Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions (THU, 12:30 PM, FOX): Here's the first game that will determine if the Lions are contenders or pretenders. A Packers win could make that last Wild Card spot wide open.
- New York Jets at Dallas Cowboys (THU, 4:15 PM, CBS): The Jets played the spoiler last week against Pittsburgh. Can they knock the Cowboys out of that top seed?
- Washington Redskins at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (SUN, 1:00 PM, FOX): Tough draw for the Bucs. Washington have struggled to get out of their own way, but they still have a real shot at the playoffs, thanks to their huge win over Detroit. This could put them into position.
- Seattle Seahawks at St. Louis Rams (SUN, 1:00 PM, FOX): The Rams are on a two-game winning streak and looking to ruin someone's holidays. Seattle needs to maintain its hold on the #3 seed on two fronts.
- San Francisco 49ers at Arizona Cardinals (SUN, 4:05 PM, FOX): This is exactly the kind of game the Cards need to win to stay in it, but it's exactly the kind of game they tend to lose. Which Cards show up?
- Minnesota Vikings at New York Giants (SUN, 1:00 PM, FOX): The Giants should be a little better at stopping the run than the Raiders. That should be enough to keep them in the top Wild Card spot.
- Philadelphia Eagles at New England Patriots (SUN, 8:15 PM, NBC): Yeah, this won't help the Eagles' chances at all, will it?
Bookmark this page and visit it every Tuesday at noon EST for the latest NFC playoff picture. Click here for the latest AFC playoff picture.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-20-2007 @ 2:34PM
soulcitysigma1914 said...
You know what I find interesting David is Strahan's comment following the Det/NYG game where Michael said: “Did he really say that? I honestly in the first half thought that was one of the worst teams we played that was 6-3, to be honest with you."
Just how often has Strahan played a team with an exact 6-3 mark in his career? The only time you can play a 6-3 team in a modern season is in week 10 (back when there were 31 NFL teams, you could have possibly done this in week 9 or 10). So I'd be interested in knowing though if Strahan had ever even played a 6-3 team before.
Either way, I really wish I could see a rematch of these two in the playoffs but the way the playoff pic is shaping up that isn't likely.
Reply
11-20-2007 @ 4:25PM
Tom Mantzouranis said...
Don't sleep on the Saints.
Only two games out of the division lead with three straight division games left (including vs. TB).
Oh, who am I kidding. Season's over.
Reply
11-20-2007 @ 4:26PM
Dave said...
Tom: If the Saints get back to .500, they might get back on that list. We'll see.
Reply
11-20-2007 @ 5:19PM
tobrien28 said...
I think the Giants should win their first round game. After that they don't have much of a shot at much. The Lions and Giants are both better than anyone from the NFC west or South.
Reply
11-21-2007 @ 2:57PM
Fred Siegel said...
Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys Will Beat The Pat's In the Superbowl - Reason...Terry Glenn Will Be Back and Dallas Will Have The Deep Pass Option That Wasn't Available In The First meeting This Year
Reply
11-22-2007 @ 12:14PM
Brent said...
Are you serious? The Lions and Giants are both pretenders in every sense of the word. Wake me up when either one of those teams beats someone worth a damn.
The sleeper in the NFC is Seattle - they are finding their own on offense as Matt Hasselbeck is quietly putting together a career season. The Seahawks defense also is second in points allowed and sacks.. no one will talk about this team though because of Tony Romo and Brett Favre.
And that's exactly the way the Seahawks would prefer it.
Reply