NFL playoff thread

Oh, there was some Luck all right ...

 

It can be one player if the player in discussion is a quarterback, especially if the player is an obvious upgrade.

Would Seattle have made the playoffs with Tarvaris Jackson at QB?
Would Washington have made it with Rex Grossman at QB?

 

Who knows what's going to happen in the NFL from year to year and how many of these teams will get good all of the sudden, but does this look like something that's going to be a debilitating schedule and set the Colts back to 6-10?

Home Houston, Jacksonville, Tennessee, Denver, Oakland, St. Louis, Seattle, Miami
Away Houston, Jacksonville, Tennessee, Kansas City, San Diego, Arizona, San Francisco, Cincinnati

 

Four hour later I still can't believe Shanahan didn't have the balls to tell RG3 his day was over...

 

But there are 10 "loseable" games on there (as there are on most teams' schedules), and if all the Colts simply become an "average" end-of-game team (instead of one that wins almost every game in doubt in the final minutes), then they can drop back 3-4 games, while still being a better team statistically.

The 2001 Peyton Manning Colts had a 6-10 season, too.

 

I suspect Shanahan will be in the league office soon, and I hope he didn't significantly alter RG3's career trajectory.

 

Dr. James Andrews sure knows how to pick his spots too, doesn't he?

Was great to hear Buck reading those comments over the air.

 

Shanny's done a lot of bad shit, but I'll give him a pass on the migraine thing. That's (generally) an acute affliction and was remedied with some Imitrex and pain meds on the sidelines. It was the Super Bowl, and the migraine probably wasn't going to affect Davis' long-term health. I understand that decision.

But, yes, Shanny has a history with making some pretty questionable determinations when it comes to player safety. I think this one trumps them all.

 

Yep. The Colts, Vikings, Redskins all take steps backward next season in terms of record. Might actually be better teams, but not as likely to get so many breaks as they did this year.

 

Re: Pythag predictions ...

Colts will win 5 next season, according to the geometry.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Aq-kJYbMQG-ydDlHX1ptbkRDR2dKYXE4MzBSRGFJZFE#gid=0

The doc came from this: http://forum.askthebookie.com/sportsbooks-industry/2012-13-nfl-team-win-predictions-using-pythagorean-theorem-31914.html

 

There's a good chance neither the Colts nor the Redskins make the playoffs next season.

As for this weekend, I think the Texans and Ravens will fare better than they did in their previous meetings with the Patriots and Broncos, respectively, but I still see the home teams winning,

In the NFC, I really like the Seahawks. They can pressure Ryan and shut down what passes for the Falcons' running game. If Wilson doesn't turn the ball over more than once, I think Seattle wins by double digits. I have no idea what will happen or who will win in the Packers-Niners matchup. Total tossup.