Nov 13, 2013
AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez
The 2013 NFL is just about passed the halfway point and the playoff place and division title battles are becoming just that little bit clearer. Week 11 (of 17) kicks off on Thursday but relevant NFC action won’t get underway until another busy Sunday. What’s certain is that every game means that just little bit more at this late point in the season.
Here’s a set of predictions for each of the division title races along with the wildcard scenarios.
NFC
East – Dallas Cowboys
For many people the fact that any of these four abysmal teams are allowed to advance into the playoffs is an abomination. The fact is that despite their erratic form and poor records, none of the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins or even New York Giants represent a dream first round playoff match-up.
This race comes down to two teams. The Cowboys and the Giants. Don’t expect the Redskins and RGIII to pull out of 3-6 two seasons in a row and don’t expect the Eagles defense to play better than .500 football the rest of the way. New York is still a team that can do some damage, but their schedule should be just a little too tough. This writer has no more faith in Dallas than the next guy, but Tony Romo’s offense combined with a favorable schedule should see this team back into the postseason.
North – Detroit Lions
Aaron Rodgers’ injury has opened the door for the Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions to battle it out for this division title. Neither team’s schedule represents a huge challenge the rest of the way. However, Detroit’s two victories – including last weekend’s 21-19 classic on the road – against Chicago suggest that they are the better team and they don’t have a road game against the St Louis Rams left on their list. More importantly, there is a strong chance that Rodgers will be back for the season closer at Chicago, while a Thanksgiving appearance against Detroit is still a long shot. For Green Bay, losing two or three more games with Rodgers out should be the end of their division title hopes and could well crush their wildcard chances as well.
South – New Orleans Saints
This is a pretty tough division race to call. The two teams still have to play each other twice and each have some tough games left on their respective schedules. Picking New Orleans for the title here is based mainly upon two factors. Firstly that they will win all three of their remaining home games despite tough match-ups against the San Francisco 49ers and Panthers, and secondly that I personally trust Drew Brees a lot more than I trust Cam Newton. Still, make no mistake about it, Carolina are a serious contender in this race.
West – Seattle Seahawks
This looked like one of the best division title battles heading into the season, but the Seahawks have made it less than competitive. Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers still have time to turn things around before the playoffs, but an extremely tough schedule means that this team isn’t even guaranteed a postseason berth at this point. Seattle will probably enter the NFC playoffs as the team to beat based on performances so far this season.
Wildcards – Carolina and San Francisco
Pretty close to picking Chicago or Green Bay ahead of San Francisco here based on strength of remaining schedule, but good teams find ways to make it into the NFL playoffs. Here we are backing the Panthers and 49ers to maintain their current positions.
