{"id":381,"date":"2009-09-12T10:07:33","date_gmt":"2009-09-12T14:07:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.broadstreetbelievers.com\/?p=381"},"modified":"2009-09-11T11:49:47","modified_gmt":"2009-09-11T15:49:47","slug":"brys-week-by-week-nfl-preview-week-seventeen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/?p=381","title":{"rendered":"Bry&#8217;s Week-by-Week NFL Preview:  Week Seventeen"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Okay, well <a href=\"http:\/\/www.broadstreetbelievers.com\/?p=380\">Week Sixteen<\/a> brought us a lot more answers to the playoff questions.\u00a0 In fact, there doesn&#8217;t seem to be as much drama in this final week as there normally is this time of year.\u00a0 There are a couple big-time situations, though.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Here are the teams with positions at stake in the NFC:\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Eagles &#8211;\u00a0#1 seed with a win OR a loss by both Carolina and Green Bay<\/li>\n<li>Cowboys &#8211; Wild Card with win; almost definitely out with loss<\/li>\n<li>Giants vs. Vikings &#8211; winner is probably in; loser is almost definitely out<\/li>\n<li>Saints vs. Panthers\u00a0&#8211; winner wins NFC South; if Saints lose, they are almost definitely out; if Panthers lose, they will still get Wild Card if Dallas loses.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The AFC is much clearer, as all four divisions are locked up, and all four division winners are seeded.\u00a0 The only questions surround the four teams vying for the two Wild Cards:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ravens &#8211; Wild Card with win OR loss by either Tennessee or Houston<\/li>\n<li>Texans &#8211; Wild Card with win OR loss by Buffalo and either Tennessee or Houston<\/li>\n<li>Titans &#8211; Wild Card with win AND loss by either Baltimore or Houston<\/li>\n<li>Bills &#8211; Wild Card with win AND loss by Houston and either Tennessee or Baltimore<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Sunday, January 3:<br \/>\n<\/strong>1:00 &#8211; SAN FRANCISCO (8-7) at St. Louis (4-11)<br \/>\nYes, the Niners actually have nothing to play for.\u00a0 And, yes, they have clinched the NFC West and, therefore, a playoff game next week.\u00a0 But, I don&#8217;t see Singletary resting people.\u00a0 I think he would like to continue the winning spirit in San Fran.\u00a0 I think that he will be on his guys even more so this week <em>because <\/em>the playoffs are only a week away.\u00a0 Give me the Niners in this one, as they prepare for the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; NEW YORK GIANTS (9-6) at Minnesota (9-6) *<br \/>\nBasically, a playoff game.\u00a0 The winner has a great shot at a wild card, while the loser is going to miss the playoffs.\u00a0 In a rematch of a Week Seventeen game last year (that was not exciting because the Giants pulled their starters halfway through), I think that the Giants are just much better prepared for this moment.\u00a0 With the season on the line, this team will respond.\u00a0 And, since it&#8217;s a dome, they don&#8217;t have to worry about Eli in the cold (<em>not <\/em>a good thing).\u00a0 The Vikings and their aging, fatigued quarterback will not.\u00a0 An utterly disappointing season for Minnesota ends at home in Week Seventeen.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; Jacksonville (5-10) at CLEVELAND (6-9)<br \/>\nThe Jack Del Rio Era in Jacksonville ends with a whimper in Cleveland.\u00a0 The Browns are still playing hard and actually finish with 5 wins in their last 7 games.\u00a0 Not a bad first season for Mangini.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; Pittsburgh (14-1) at MIAMI (6-9)<br \/>\nThe Steelers have everything locked up, so most of the starters probably will not play.\u00a0 The Dolphins are still well-coached, despite a bit of a disappointing year, and they should respond and finish with a win at home.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; New England (12-3) at HOUSTON (9-6)<br \/>\nThe Patriots are locked into the 2-seed, so you won&#8217;t see many starters on the field in Houston.\u00a0 Which is great news for the Texans, who are in a win-and-in scenario.\u00a0 With the win today, they clinch a Wild Card in the AFC.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; ATLANTA (4-11) at Tampa Bay (2-13)<br \/>\nThe Falcons have one last gasp in them, as they close out probably the most disappointing year of any team in the NFL this year.\u00a0 Tampa wasn&#8217;t exactly gangbusters, either, finishing at an abysmal 2-14.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; NEW ORLEANS (9-6) at Carolina (10-5) *<br \/>\nWinner-take-all game.\u00a0 The winner wins the NFC South.\u00a0 Period.\u00a0 I believe that the Saints will go into Carolina and win this all-important game, capping a great divisional comeback, winning their final 4 games to win the division.\u00a0 And, once again, in the NFC South, the last-place team from a year ago wins the division this year.\u00a0 I just like the Saints offense in a must-win game.\u00a0 This could be one of those &#8220;team with the ball last wins&#8221; kind of games.\u00a0 Either way, this is a <em>great <\/em>Week Seventeen matchup.\u00a0 The Panthers now need help around the league or they may be watching the playoffs from the golf course.\u00a0 Also, the Saints win eliminates the Vikings.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; Cincinnati (2-14) at NEW YORK JETS (4-11)<br \/>\nThe Jets salvage a 5-win season, as they hammer the Bengals here this week.\u00a0 The Bengals go 2-14, and Marvin Lewis is out of a job.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; Philadelphia (11-4) at DALLAS (9-6) *<br \/>\nThe Eagles are one win away from securing homefield advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, but Dallas is one loss away from be eliminated completely.\u00a0 This, another Week 17 rematch from last year, may go the other way, as the Cowboys get a must-win and clinch a playoff berth.\u00a0 The Eagles would love to knock their arch-rivals out of the playoffs in Week Seventeen for the second straight year, but I think the Cowboys will actually get it done this December.\u00a0 But, though they don&#8217;t know it at the time, the Panthers loss to New Orleans gives the Eagles at least a first-round bye regardless of this result and still have a shot at the top-seed, depending on what happens in the desert later today.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; Indianapolis (11-4) at BUFFALO (8-7)<br \/>\nWe all know what happens when the Colts have something clinched.\u00a0 They play <em>nobody<\/em>.\u00a0 This will be an easy win for the Bills who, techically, are still alive when this game kicks off, though it would take a near miracle for them to make the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p>1:00 &#8211; Chicago (8-7) at DETROIT (2-13)<br \/>\nWhen this game kicks off, the Bears, like the Bills, are techincally still alive (though it would take a ridiculous combination of events), but unlike the Bills, the Bears are not facing a team whose only concern is resting its stars.\u00a0 The Lions, though not very good, are still playing hard.\u00a0 They are at home, and they probably view this game as a way to knock the Bears out of the playoffs.\u00a0 On the other hand, the Bears probably don&#8217;t really believe much in their chances, anyway.\u00a0 I like the Lions in a relatively easy win to end their season.\u00a0 The Bears, even with their superstar quarterback, finish 8-8.<\/p>\n<p>4:15 &#8211; WASHINGTON (9-6) at San Diego (9-6)<br \/>\nThe Chargers have nothing to play for.\u00a0 They have the NFC West wrapped up, but cannot catch any of the other division leaders.\u00a0 They are locked into the 4-seed and a home game next week.\u00a0 So, they will not be playing any of their starters.\u00a0 The Redskins, however, will be playing their starters, but&#8230;because of the results of the early games, they will know (at least by the middle of the first quarter) that their season is over.\u00a0 They went 1-4 against the other three teams that are tied with them for the Wild Card, so they cannot win a tiebreaker with the other 10-6 teams.\u00a0 A good season ends without a playoff spot for the Redskins.<\/p>\n<p>4:15 &#8211; BALTIMORE (9-6) at Oakland (7-8)<br \/>\nThe Ravens are in a must-win situation, and they get the Raiders, who are out.\u00a0 The Ravens, who really know how to get fired up for big games, know that they only need to win this game and they are going to the playoffs.\u00a0 They should come out with a fire in Oakland and win this game handily.<\/p>\n<p>4:15 &#8211; KANSAS CITY (5-10) at Denver (6-9)<br \/>\nWhich team is more likely to still be playing hard?\u00a0 This one was easy.<\/p>\n<p>4:15 &#8211; Green Bay (10-5) at ARIZONA (7-8) *<br \/>\nThe Eagles, with their loss in Dallas, have become the biggest fans of the team that beat them in the NFC Championship Game last year.\u00a0 The Eagles need a Cardinals win here or they will fall to the 2-seed and may be facing Green Bay in Wisconsin for the NFC Championship instead of at The Linc.\u00a0 And, though the Cardinals have nothing left to play for, after being eliminated last week, I think that they show up here at home and shock the Pack.\u00a0 There is still some pride on this Cardinals team, and they matchup well against the Packers in Arizona.\u00a0 This Packers loss is devastating because not only do they lose a shot at homefield advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, but they also lose the bye and now have to play on Wild Card weekend against another 10-6 team.<\/p>\n<p>4:15 &#8211; TENNESSEE (9-6) at Seattle (7-8)<br \/>\nThe Titans caught a big break last week, when the 49ers clinched the NFC West, thus eliminating the Seahawks.\u00a0 This gives Tennessee a much better shot of going into Seattle and getting a must-win game in the final week of the season.\u00a0 At the beginning of the day, the Titans needed a win and either a Baltimore or Houston loss to get a Wild Card.\u00a0 They know, by now, that the Texans have won, but the Ravens also have a late game, so they are not out of it.\u00a0 They will be playing hard and should get out of here with a victory.<\/p>\n<p><strong>FINAL REGULAR SEASON STANDINGS:<br \/>\n<\/strong><strong>NFC EAST:<br \/>\n<\/strong>11-5\u00a0\u00a0 Philadelphia (1)<br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Dallas (5)<br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 New York Giants (6)<br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Washington<\/p>\n<p><strong>NFC NORTH:<\/strong><br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Green Bay (3)<br \/>\n9-7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Minnesota<br \/>\n8-8\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Chicago<br \/>\n3-13\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Detroit<\/p>\n<p><strong>NFC\u00a0SOUTH<\/strong>:<br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0 New Orleans (2)<br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Carolina<br \/>\n5-11\u00a0\u00a0 Atlanta<br \/>\n2-14\u00a0\u00a0 Tampa Bay<\/p>\n<p><strong>NFC WEST:<br \/>\n<\/strong>9-7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 San Francisco (4)<br \/>\n8-8\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Arizona<br \/>\n7-9\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Seattle<br \/>\n4-12\u00a0\u00a0 St. Louis<\/p>\n<p><strong>AFC EAST:<\/strong><br \/>\n12-4\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0New England (2)<br \/>\n9-7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Buffalo<br \/>\n7-9\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Miami<br \/>\n5-11\u00a0\u00a0 N.Y. Jets<\/p>\n<p><strong>AFC NORTH:<\/strong><br \/>\n14-2\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Pittsburgh\u00a0(1)<br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Baltimore (6)<br \/>\n7-9\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cleveland<br \/>\n2-14\u00a0\u00a0 Cincinnati<\/p>\n<p><strong>AFC SOUTH:<\/strong><br \/>\n11-5\u00a0\u00a0 Indianapolis (3)<br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0 Houston (5)<br \/>\n10-6\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Tennessee<br \/>\n5-11\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jacksonville<\/p>\n<p><strong>AFC WEST:<\/strong><br \/>\n9-7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 San Diego (4)<br \/>\n7-9\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Oakland<br \/>\n6-10\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Denver<br \/>\n6-10\u00a0\u00a0 Kansas City<\/p>\n<p><strong>PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE:<br \/>\n<\/strong>Tomorrow, the full playoff results will be predicted, but here are the official brackets:<\/p>\n<p><strong>NFC:<br \/>\n<\/strong><u>Wild Card Round<\/u><br \/>\n#6 New York Giants (10-6) at #3 Green Bay (10-6)<br \/>\n#5 Dallas (10-6) at #4 San Francisco (9-7)<\/p>\n<p><u>Divisional Round<\/u><br \/>\nTBD at #1 Philadelphia (11-5)<br \/>\nTBD at #2 New Orleans (10-6)<\/p>\n<p><strong>AFC:<\/strong><br \/>\n<u>Wild Card Round<\/u><br \/>\n#6 Baltimore (10-6) at #3 Indianapolis (11-5)<br \/>\n#5 Houston (10-6) at #4 San Diego (9-7)<\/p>\n<p><u>Divisional Round<\/u><br \/>\nTBD at #1 Pittsburgh (14-2)<br \/>\nTBD at #2 New England (12-4)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Okay, well Week Sixteen brought us a lot more answers to the playoff questions.\u00a0 In fact, there doesn&#8217;t seem to be as much drama in this final week as there normally is this time of year.\u00a0 There are a couple &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/?p=381\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[748],"class_list":["post-381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nfl","tag-nfl-week-by-week-preview"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=381"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=381"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=381"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/broadstreetbelievers.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=381"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}