WEEK 12 CONTINUED
AFC
1. INDIANAPOLIS COLTS 10-1
WON v. Philadelphia 45-21
The Colts ended their losing streak at one by pasting the Donovan McNabb and any semblance of a defense-less Eagles on SNF. There were some shaky moments in the second half, but Joseph Addai put on his LaDanian Tomlinson costume and ran for 171 yards and 4 TDs to ice the game. The Colts’ much lamented run defense was present in all its glory, making Brian Westbrook the latest to shred them for 100+ yards.
The Chilling Future
Is this the year that Tony Dungy’s philosophy of Vagina Ball finally successfully navigates thru the AFC playoffs? Of course not. They’ll do what they always do and lose to whoever the hottest team is headed into the playoffs, I don’t know off the top of my head let’s just say the Bengals beat them like 34-28 sometime in January.
2. BALTIMORE RAVENS 9-2 (6-1 AFC)
WON v. Pittsburgh 27-0
The hot trend in the NFL this year is for coaches to push the panic button when they fall behind by 2 touchdowns, even if it’s in the first half, and have their QB throw the ball 55 times and used as target practice for much of the game. Bill Cowher loves that strategy, and employed it with zero efficacy against the Ravens. I don’t mean to tell tales out of school, but chances are when you run the ball 10 times the whole game, you have no chance of winning.
The Chilling Future
The Ravens are going to have to push hard to secure a first round bye. Their next 2 games are on the road against a pair of red-hot teams, the Bengals and the Chiefs, and they’ve also got a trip to Heinz Field still on their itinerary. I’m thinking 12-4 and they’ll have to get a little help to get a free pass out of Wildcard Weekend.
3. SAN DIEGO CHARGERS 9-2 (7-2 AFC)
WON v. Oakland 21-14
Not so hot in holding off the Raiders this week, and certainly not as impressive as they were when they destroyed that same team 27-0 back in Week One. Regardless, the Chargers are 9-2, and those 2 losses are both by a field goal at Baltimore and at KC, and they are averaging 35 points a game over the last 5 weeks. A shaky performance, but we’ll let this one slide.
The Chilling Future
If the Chargers play their cards right, meaning, if they win out, the top seed in the AFC isn’t out of the question. None of their next 4 games (at Buffalo, home vs. Denver and KC, at Seattle) are slam dunks though.
4. NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 8-3
WON v. Chicago 17-13
Congratulations to the Patriots for becoming the 2006 NFC North Champions.In fact, it’s been over a month since the Patriots have beaten anybody that isn’t from the NFC. Playing against the NFC is nice because you can turn the ball over 5 times like the Patriots did in this game and still win. In this case, Rex Grossman was more than happy to negate those turnovers by throwing 3 interceptions to Asante Samuel.
The Chilling Future
The Pats have the easiest December schedule of all the AFC contenders. Next week they host the Lions in a game they should win 87-0. They also host the Texans in Week 15. Road trips to Miami, Jacksonville, and Tennessee should result in wins in at least 2 out 3.
5. KANSAS CITY CHIEFS 7-4 (3-4 AFC)
WON v. Denver 19-10
One of the nice things about Herm Edwards is he never tries to outsmart himself. He knows where his bread is buttered, and he knows if he arranges for the ball to be handed off to Larry Johnson 30+ times a game, that wonderful things will happen for him. The Chiefs have also very quietly been one of the best defensive teams in the league of late. They’ve gone 4 games in a row without giving up over 20 points.
The Chilling Future
The remaining schedule is not easy. The Chiefs have a road game against San Diego, and a pair of tough home tests against Baltimore and Jacksonville. The Jaguar game is the season finale, and it may be a de facto playoff game.
6. DENVER BRONCOS 7-4 (7-3 AFC)
LOST at KC 10-19
The Broncos ran 10 times for 28 yards in this game, so the obvious answer for them is to change quarterbacks. Jay Cutler will now be the man charged with moving the ball with Mike Bell, Javon Walker, and Rod Smith as his primary “weapons”. He will also get the added bonus of crushing expectations of being the next John Elway. This is going to work out awesome.
The Chilling Future
The Broncos have 3 games remaining against the NFC, which is great for them. What their season will most likely come down to is a Christmas Eve game at home against the Bengals. If they lose that one, they’re not getting in.
OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
Nobody’s hotter than the 6-5 Bengals. Nobody I tells ya. Now they just have to show us they can win at home. They’ve lost their last 2 at Paul Brown. They are coming off a pair of very convicing road wins over the Saints and Browns, and Chad Johnson is Ocho Sucko no longer. He’s been going nuts every week lately.
The Jets (6-5) continue to consistently beat every tomato can the schedule maker sets in front of them. Lavareareanaenus Coles and Jerricho Cotchery both had 100+ yard receiving days as the Green took care of Houston 26-11.
Nobody can figure out the Jaguars (6-5). One week they’re up. One week they are down, as they were in a 27-24 loss at Buffalo last week. Who can decipher the baffling pattern of play this team displays? Let me take a stab on it. Jax is 5-1 at home, 1-4 on the road. I think I’ve figured it out. Of course, they did just lose at home to the Texans not too long ago. And the value of their last win, against the Giants, has seen it’s value heavily dinged by inflation in the last few weeks as we learn how not so good the Giants are.
That will put a cap on Week 12. And not a moment too soon, as the magic of the NFL Network brings us a Thursday Night Bengals/Ravens tilt less than 24 hours from now. I’ll let you know what happened there, along with a look at Sunday’s games, sometime before Sunday kickoff.
