Seventeen weeks of NFL football has brought us some surprises, as well as some long-standing pillars of excellence. Here's the final regular season Sweet 16 of the 2012 NFL season.
1. Denver (--) - #1 seed in the AFC, and deservedly so.
2. Atlanta (--) - #1 seed in the NFC, and deservedly so.
3. San Francisco (+1) - #2 seed in the NFC, and beat the #4 team in the poll.
4. New England (+1) - #2 seed in the AFC and looking strong. The bye is huge for them so they can continue to heal.
5. Seattle (+1) - Everyone in the NFC needs to be happy that they have to go on the road in these playoffs, because I don't know that anyone could beat them in Seattle right now.
6. Green Bay (-3) - Still not sure I'd want to face them in the playoffs. I wonder if Peterson can rack up 200 yards on them again in the WC round.
7. Washington (--) - Great story, great win against Dallas. They draw Seattle. RGIII vs. Wilson. Fun stuff.
8. Indianapolis (--) - What a win over Houston. As a reward, they get to travel to Baltimore.
9. Cincinnati (--) - Strong finish to the season for the Bengals. I think they could give Houston some real problems in the WC round.
10. Minnesota (+1) - AP for MVP. I hope, at least!
11. Houston (-4) - Really struggling at this point in the season. Not the same team they were early on.
12. NY Giants (+1) - I bet most everyone else is breathing a sigh of relief that they missed the playoffs.
13. Chicago (+1) - If it wasn't for AP, they'd be in the playoffs.
14. Baltimore (--) - I can't decide if this is a good team or not. NFC North winner, but full of holes.
15. Dallas (-4) - I can't decide if this is a good team or not. They play well one week and not the next. I guess that's why they're 8-8.
16. Pittsburgh (N/A) - See Dallas and Baltimore. But they're the last of the non-.500 teams so here they are.
Moving up: SF, NE, Sea, Min, NYG, Chi
Moving down: GB, Hou, Dal
Moving in: Pit
Moving out: StL
Playoff Seedings and Matchups:
AFC
1. Den
2. NE
3. Hou
4. Bal
5. Ind
6. Cin
- - - - -
Cin at Hou - Right now I will take Hou in a nail-biter
Ind at Bal - I think Ind finds a way to win
NFC
1. Atl
2. SF
3. GB
4. Was
5. Sea
6. Min
- - - - -
Min at GB - GB wins the rematch
Sea at Was - Sea wins on the road, surprisingly
That would set up these matchups in the Divisional Round:
Ind at Den - dream scenario for the NFL
Hou at NE - as good a situation as NE could hope for, I think
GB at SF - this is old-school NFL playoff football
Sea at Atl - another quality matchup
1. Denver (--) - #1 seed in the AFC, and deservedly so.
2. Atlanta (--) - #1 seed in the NFC, and deservedly so.
3. San Francisco (+1) - #2 seed in the NFC, and beat the #4 team in the poll.
4. New England (+1) - #2 seed in the AFC and looking strong. The bye is huge for them so they can continue to heal.
5. Seattle (+1) - Everyone in the NFC needs to be happy that they have to go on the road in these playoffs, because I don't know that anyone could beat them in Seattle right now.
6. Green Bay (-3) - Still not sure I'd want to face them in the playoffs. I wonder if Peterson can rack up 200 yards on them again in the WC round.
7. Washington (--) - Great story, great win against Dallas. They draw Seattle. RGIII vs. Wilson. Fun stuff.
8. Indianapolis (--) - What a win over Houston. As a reward, they get to travel to Baltimore.
9. Cincinnati (--) - Strong finish to the season for the Bengals. I think they could give Houston some real problems in the WC round.
10. Minnesota (+1) - AP for MVP. I hope, at least!
11. Houston (-4) - Really struggling at this point in the season. Not the same team they were early on.
12. NY Giants (+1) - I bet most everyone else is breathing a sigh of relief that they missed the playoffs.
13. Chicago (+1) - If it wasn't for AP, they'd be in the playoffs.
14. Baltimore (--) - I can't decide if this is a good team or not. NFC North winner, but full of holes.
15. Dallas (-4) - I can't decide if this is a good team or not. They play well one week and not the next. I guess that's why they're 8-8.
16. Pittsburgh (N/A) - See Dallas and Baltimore. But they're the last of the non-.500 teams so here they are.
Moving up: SF, NE, Sea, Min, NYG, Chi
Moving down: GB, Hou, Dal
Moving in: Pit
Moving out: StL
Playoff Seedings and Matchups:
AFC
1. Den
2. NE
3. Hou
4. Bal
5. Ind
6. Cin
- - - - -
Cin at Hou - Right now I will take Hou in a nail-biter
Ind at Bal - I think Ind finds a way to win
NFC
1. Atl
2. SF
3. GB
4. Was
5. Sea
6. Min
- - - - -
Min at GB - GB wins the rematch
Sea at Was - Sea wins on the road, surprisingly
That would set up these matchups in the Divisional Round:
Ind at Den - dream scenario for the NFL
Hou at NE - as good a situation as NE could hope for, I think
GB at SF - this is old-school NFL playoff football
Sea at Atl - another quality matchup
