NFL Going into December

[sailorsam]

first the AFC
..AFC LEAST
1) NEPs. Injuries taking their toll so hopefully they'll get stomped in January.
2) J-E-T-S. Playing with passion and discipline. good chance at a WC. I think they've exceeded expectations.
3) Bills. Don't think the Buffalo faithful were looking forward to 5-6. They had a chance to separate themselves a bit yesterday but lost @ KC. I see them finish 8-8 no playoffs.
4) Miami. The coaching change gave them a shot of adrenaline but they seem headed back to 4-5 wins.

..AFC NORTH
1) Cinci. 9-2. ho-hum. Call us when you win a playoff game.
2) Pigs 6-5. favorable sked. should finish wi 9 wins and a WC if they can keep Roths on his feet.
3) Ravens. 3-7. check out the board and you'll see a lot of draft and 2016 discussions. management rolled the dice that Perryman would come in and be a deep threat. snake eyes.
4) Brownies 2-8. the rest of the season will be a tryout for Johnny Party. if he flops will they draft another qb next year?

..AFC South
1) Ex-Baltimore Colts 6-5. would Nick Saban consider coming here? well, consider, he'd be coming into a decent team with a good qb in a weak division in an era where the NFL is wide open (or will be when Brady retires). Saban seems to get that itch to move on, and I'm sure he'd like to try the NFL again. If he fails he could go back to school easy easy. With all the issues I see the colts out of the playoffs.
2) Texans 6-5. who wants to see JJ Watt sack Tom Brady in the playoffs? mmmmm.
I see them taking the division.
3) Jax 4-7. too much competition for this year but they could make a run next year. a work in progress.
4) Tenn 2-9). trainwreck.

..AFC WEST
1) Bronx 9-2. Kubiak for Coach of the Year? if I ran them I'd keep Osweiler @ starter. Thanks for playing Peyton.
2) KC 6-5. sucky start, hitting their stride. should slide into a WC. Andy Reid seems to be a modern (offensive-minded) Marty Schottenheimer who will always be competitive (in the regular season). Not sold on Alex Smith in the playoffs.
3) Raiders 6-5. Del Rio is a solid NFL coach and Carr is a legit qb. might not make playoffs this year but they have a good future.
4) Chargers 3-8. This coaching change backfired. Maybe Norv Turner was the secret of their (offensive) success [check out the Vikes in first place!].

[sailorsam]

NFC
..NFC LEAST
1) Skins 5-6. they host Dallas, @ Bears, host Bills, @ Iggles, @ Dallas. I see 8-8 and win division. RGWho?
2) Giants 5-6. they have only themselves to blame. I can't help but thing Coughlin has lost a lot of his edge.
3) Iggles 4-7. the big question is, @ which college will Kelly land?
4) Cowboys 3-8. This team can't win without Romo so they're done.

..NFC NORTH
1) Vikings 8-3. Steady coaching, Adrian P, decent D. as long as Teddy B makes some plays they're legit.
2) Packers 7-4. Injuries make them above-average instead of top-tier. Should make the postseason and they could bite somebody.
3) Bears 5-6. like the Chiefs, they're playing good ball now. no reason they can't grab a @WC and be the-team-nobody-wants-to-play.
4) Lions 4-7. changing O-Coord helped, but too late to save the season. see you next year.

NFC SOUTH
1) Panthers 11-0. Are they the next monster team? or lucky overachievers that whose balloon will *pop* in the playoffs? I say the former. Panthers in the Super Bowl.
2) Falcons 6-5. Unlike the Chiefs and Bears they started hot and are now fading. I see no reason the slide will stop. no playoffs.
3) Bucs 5-6. Jameis Winston looks legit. I don't see them in the playoffs this year but next year could be great.
4) Saints 4-7. Firing Rob Ryan didn't seem to change much. last place.

NFC WEST
1) Cardinals 9-2. good team, good coaching, good qb, good D. first round bye.
2) Seattle 6-5. Injuries and post-SB hangover but they might be shaking things off. I see 8-8 no playoffs, but they could turn it on if everything goes right.
3) Rams 4-7. How bad are they? They lost to the Ravens. Third place and coach change.
4) 49ers 3-8. wow, how this team has collapsed, esp Kaepernick. last place.

[sailorsam]

separation time is starting.
Texans had a chance to establish themselves Sunday but lost to the Bills.
ditto Vikings, getting spanked by Seahawks, who seem to be making their move.
ditto Giants, getting beat by Jets, who are in good shape for a WC.
ditto Raiders losing to Chiefs, who are also looking good.
ditto Bears, losing @ home to niners. maybe Kaepernick was a bigger problem that we thought.
NFC Least? Giants lose at home, Skins can't beat Romo-less Cowboys, Iggles a train wreck (let's face it, beating the NEPs was a fluke.)
easy to envision the Seahawks getting a five seed and spanking whomever wins that division.

[JohnBKistler]

separation time is starting.
Texans had a chance to establish themselves Sunday but lost to the Bills.
ditto Vikings, getting spanked by Seahawks, who seem to be making their move.
ditto Giants, getting beat by Jets, who are in good shape for a WC.
ditto Raiders losing to Chiefs, who are also looking good.
ditto Bears, losing @ home to niners. maybe Kaepernick was a bigger problem that we thought.
NFC Least? Giants lose at home, Skins can't beat Romo-less Cowboys, Iggles a train wreck (let's face it, beating the NEPs was a fluke.)
easy to envision the Seahawks getting a five seed and spanking whomever wins that division.

It pains me to say this, and I predicted this a few weeks ago, but I can see the Steelers making a deep run in the AFC playoffs.

[sailorsam]

(reply to Kistler)
as it looks now they'd be a five seed, so they'd play @ #4 seed, aka AFC South winner, probly an 8-8 Colts or Texans. Definite chance to win. Then @ #neps or Bronx. they already played neps close so, yes, looking good for Pigsburgh. boo.
worst case scenario, Pigs @ Neps for AFCC. I won't watch.

[sailorsam]

thoughts as Week 14 winds down;
Seahawks seem to have fixed whatever issues they had so look out.
Panthers cruising. Falcons dying.
Bills had a chance to compete for a WC but couldn't beat the iffy Iggles. Jets took care of business.
Chiefs ground out another win (holding Chargers to 3 points? brutal.)
Chiefs end @ Baltimore, host Browns, host Oakland, all winnable.
Jets end @ Dallas, host NEPs, @ Buffalo. advantage KC.

Skins close hosting Bills, @ Iggles, @Dallas. looks good for DC. as a #4 seed they'd probly host Seattle. advantage C-hawks.

[sailorsam]

2015 will be remembered in the NFL as the Year of the Backup Backup Quarterback with a bunch of Clausens and Weedons playing for teams they weren't with back in September. Not that keeping your starter guarantees success; Drew Brees and Philip Rivers aren't going playoffing (nor were the Ravens even before Flacco got hurt). otoh Cowboys show how valuable some qbs are; I really think they'd be 10-11 wins this year wi Romo (and that weak division)
yesterday a bunch of pretenders (Saints, Bills, Bears) got eliminated so the postseason is starting to clarify.
Chiefs should win out, as will Pigsburgh, so Jets look out of luck despite a good year.
if things play out as they look,Squealers will open playoffs @ Tennessee, Chiefs @ Cinci. Looks like both WC will win, esp if Dalton is still hurt.
NFC Least looks like DC's. Giants are ultimate tease. Remember when they had that monster pass rush front four? in today's league you must pass and stop the pass.
NFC will go thru Carolina, and Panthers hosting Seattle could be a classic. And those Cardinals look good too. Good year @ top of NFC. (I just hope somebody beats the NEPs, and no not Pigsburgh. sucks to see those two win every year.)