Re: Lets win the next 5 get in the tournament..
Once the playoffs start, it's a whole new season. Just look at some of the recent Super Bowl champions. The '05 Steelers were 11-5 and got in as the sixth seed. They were destroyed by Indy late in the season, and had a 3 game losing streak going at one point. But they got hot late, got in the playoffs, knocked off the top 3 seeds, and won the Super Bowl. They played their best football at the best time. The '07 Giants are another example. They suffered numerous ugly losses, including a 41-17 loss to Minnesota and defeats to the NFC & AFC's top teams (Packers, Cowboys, Patriots) all season long. But they, like the Steelers, got hot late in the season and were able to run the table in the playoffs. Now, the Patriots' outlook for the playoffs is actually better than both of those teams, because they'll likely win their division and have at least one home game. It was about this time last year that the Pats turned it on and won out. Playing at their best late in the season is a trademark of the Belichick/Brady Pats teams. Going by history, you just can't count them out, no matter how bad they looked last night. Let's see how things play out. A lot of the recent Super Bowl participants aren't the teams people think will be there even as far as week 13 in the season.