The race is on! In a season that seems to be divided by teams with winning records and losing records, there appears to be very little mediocrity this season. It's pretty simple; You're either in the race for the playoffs, or in Warhawk AKA dreadman's Bottom Feeders report. Make no mistake, there will a few disappointed teams this season with winning records that will be at home in January eating potato chips and watching others compete for the Lombardi trophy while thinking about what could have been. AFC Division leaders New England Patriots: (9-1) The mighty has finally fallen, but hardly enough to even think about taking them out of the top spot. PepperNY has his team firing on all cylinders this year and has swept the division rival Jets. The Pats have a relatively light schedule here on out, with their only matchups against winning teams being the Dolphins (7-3) and the Ravens (7-3). Prediction: 14-2 (2nd in AFC) Indianapolis Colts: (9-1) If anyone is really surprised that thafuture3886 is sitting at 9-1, you should check the record books. A legit Madden baller with all the awards and SB wins to back it up, Curtis sits atop a talented division that could not seem to keep pace. The Colts have two challenging matchups remaining with the Tennessee Titans (7-3) and the Kansas City Chiefs (6-4). They also face the Cardinals (1-9) and Bengals (2-8). Expect to see Andrew Luck sitting the bench in week 17 with a 1st round BYE likely secured. Don't be shocked if the Colts still win with their backup QB. Prediction: 15-1 (1st in AFC) Baltimore Ravens: (7-3) New owner Josh Barnes has turned the Baltimore Ravens season around after taking over for the departed Cowboy Mike. Leaving his fingerprint all over the league, he came out with a convincing 31-0 win over the Bills in Week 4, and currently sits atop the AFC North by 2 games over dablakpope and the Cleveland Browns. With games against the Jets (7-3), Patriots (9-1) and the Lions (6-4), things could get interesting if the Browns can string along some wins. Prediction: 11-5 (3rd in AFC) Kansas City Chiefs (6-4) Slow and steady wins the race, at least in the AFC West where the bottom 3 teams combine for a total of 9 wins. redlishus seems to have this division under control, all he has to do is not fall apart. With only one game remaining against a winning team (Colts), the Chiefs play each of his division rivals once more, along with the Redskins (4-6). It will take an epic collapse and a late surge by the Broncos to unseat the AFCW leading Chiefs. Prediction: 10-6 (4th in AFC) THE RACE FOR THE WILDCARD Miami Dolphins: (7-3) Sitting in 2nd place tied with the rival Jets, the dolphins and DJDunn6 will square off twice with their divisional foes to finish out the season. A week 17 game against the Jets may be the deciding factor in securing a wildcard spot. The Phins also have to host the (9-1) Patriots in week 15. Prediction: 11-5 (6th in AFC) New York Jets: (7-3) Of all the wildcard teams, the Jets have the toughest remaining schedule with games against the Ravens (7-3), Panthers (8-2), and 2x the Dolphins (7-3). With Geno Smith returning for the week 17 showdown with the Dolphins, it may be all for naught at that point. Prediction: 10-6 (7th in AFC) Tennessee Titans: (7-3) The Titans have one remaining game against a winning team (Colts) but have a pretty soft schedule moving forward. CHUNKNESS & saintsdave75 will be looking to play spoiler in the last two weeks of the season, but if ThaBayouChef can fend them off, he will secure the top AFC WC spot and square off with the winner of the AFC West. Prediction: 12-4 (5th in AFC) Cleveland Browns: (5-5) The Browns got off to a quick start to the season but has since cooled off. dablakpope has three remaining games against winning teams; Jets (7-3), Bears (7-3) and the Patriots (9-1). It's not an easy road, so the Browns appear to be the underdog here. If they can win the games they should, and pull of an upset or two, they maybe have a fighters chance to sneak into the playoffs. Prediction: 9-7 (8th in AFC) Denver Broncos: (4-6) The only sub - .500 team in the race for the playoffs will need to win out to have a chance at the division. Phenom has already beaten the division leading Chiefs once, and plays them once more. If the broncos can get a little help and win out, they could very well sneak into the playoffs as the dark horse. Don't count out James just yet. Prediction: 8-8 (9th in AFC)
Good stuff TJ! Why you're predicting the lowly Colts to finish 15-1 is beyond me In all seriousness, there's plenty of games left and anything can happen so all we're trying to do is get into the playoffs regardless of record
Nice write-up TJ! Don't sleep on the Jags. These mofos are going on a tear and will win their last six games!
Top notch stuff TJ! 8-8 sounds about right for my team (hopefully). I don't know about sneaking in though. Especially when the top ranked Patriots are next on the schedule .
Titans will not be making the playoffs! And if we do we won't deserve the spot! Too many issues still going on. Our prediction, 9-6. Not good enough in the talented AFC!
