Week 4 of the 2012 NFL season is in the books, and while it's a bit premature to start thinking about the playoffs, it doesn't hurt to know where the teams stand 1/4 of the way through the season (well, 1/4 for all the teams but Pittsburgh and Indianapolis: the only teams that have had a bye).
The seedings below are based on calculating any unplayed game as a 0-0 tie. This helps keep the future games in play for the strength of schedule tiebreaker.
Starting off with the AFC, the #1 seed is pretty easy to determine as the Houston Texans are the AFC's only 4-0 team. The Texans already have a 2.5 game lead on their closest divisional competition and are possible the team most likely to still be leading their division at the end of the season. Looking at the rest of the AFC playoff teams:
We can see that there are two 2-2 teams (both from the AFC East) currently in the playoff picture (whereas all NFC playoff teams have a better record than 2-2). The Jets are the only team to lose in week four and remain in the playoff picture.
With their loss to the Patriots, Buffalo fell out of the picture (from #5), Cincinnati moved up to #5 from #6, and New England took over the #6 spot.
On the NFC side, there are two 4-0 teams: the Arizona Cardinals and the Atlanta Falcons. Both survived scares this week, but in the end, a win is a win. The Cardinals currently have a hold on the #1 seed since they've played more games against NFC teams (thus leading the conference record tie-breaker). Looking at the rest of the playoff picture:
The NFC playoff picture had the only divisional leader change as the Cowboys dropped from first in the East to be replaced by the Eagles. The Monday night game also propelled the Bears into the playoff picture.
Additionally, with their loss to the Rams, Seattle fell out of the #6 seed replaced by the aforementioned Bears. The Cowboys were in the 4 spot last week, so the Eagles took over that spot from them.
Key Week 5 Matchups
- Denver at New England
- Arizona at St. Louis
- Houston at New York Jets
- Buffalo at San Francisco
- Atlanta at Washington
A win by Denver puts them into a wild card spot. New England holds onto a wild card spot with a win and moves into division leader with a win and a Jets loss.
If the Rams win and the 49ers and Bears both lose, the Rams will take over a wild card spot. The Rams could get a wild card spot other ways, but there are too many factors to list out here. If the Rams and the 49ers win, the 49ers will take over the division lead from Arizona due to record in common games (Arizona's win against Philadelphia doesn't count towards this factor). If Arizona wins, they keep the #1 seed regardless of what Atlanta does.
At worst, Houston could drop to #2 with a loss. With a win, they definitely keep the top spot. The Jets keep the division lead with a win or if New England and Buffalo also lose. They could keep a wild card spot with a loss if New England wins and Buffalo loses.
If Buffalo wins and the Patriots and Jets both lose, the Bills take over the division lead. Otherwise, the Bills have an outside shot at a wild card spot. If the 49ers and the Cardinals win, the 49ers will hold onto the #5 spot.
Atlanta stays on top of the South regardless of outcome. With a Redskin win and help, Washington can move into a playoff spot.
No comments:
Post a Comment