So, we have reached the final lap in IFL’s inaugural regular season. Here is where we stand in the NFC:
Carolina Panthers 9-3
Dallas Cowboys 9-3
Green Bay Packers 7-5
Los Angeles Rams 7-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-3
Seattle Seahawks 7-5
Chicago Bears 6-6
New Orleans Saints 6-6
San Francisco 49ers 6-6
New York Giants 6-6
Philadelphia Eagles 5-7
Detroit Lions 5-7
Remarkably, ALL 8 games involving the 16 NFC teams have some kind of playoff implication. I will go through the 5 most relevant matchups in detail, while briefly assessing the other 3 games.
Carolina vs Tampa Bay
What is at stake: NFC South title and a 1st round bye. It won’t be decided this week, but if Carolina wins they will be up 1 game and they will have the tie-breaker.
Who wins: Carolina
Who I am rooting for: Carolina, because although aparently I bring nothing to the rest of the league, I will bring something to Luke: bad vibes.
Green Bay vs Detroit
What is at stake: At worst, Green Bay keeps a 1-game lead over Chicago, who faces Minnesota as the heavy favorites. Detroit has to win to keep their already remote chances at a playoff spot alive.
Who wins: Green Bay
Who I am rooting for: Detroit, because New Orleans has the tie-breaker againt Green Bay in case they finish the season with with the same record, while Chicago has the tie-breaker against NO.
Philadelphia vs New York Giants
What is at stake: Survival. The Giants are 1 game ahead of the Eagles in the standings, and they own the tie-breaker after beating the Eagles in their Week 3 matchup. The loser here is pratically out of the chase for a playoff spot.
Who wins: Philadelphia
Who I am rooting for: Philadelphia, in a low-scoring game, because it puts both teams under .500, and also reduces Philadelphia’s chance of getting the #1 pick in case both of us miss the playoffs.
Washington vs Dallas
What is at stake: If Dallas wins and the Giants lose, Dallas will mathematically win the NFC East title and a playoff berth.
Who wins: Dallas
Who I am rooting for: Probably Washington, since they are heavy underdogs, but in the end I really don’t care about what happens here.
Seattle vs San Francisco
What is at stake: for Seattle, staying close to the division leaders; for San Francisco, survival. The Seahawks are still the favorites for the NFC West title in my opinion, and a loss here would not change it much as they could still catch LA with a win in week 12. San Francisco drops below .500 with a loss, and would be in a very precarious situatiom. The interesting thing is: they will still be very alive with a win, not only chasing a WC berth, but with chances of winning the division.
Who wins: Seattle
Who I am rooting for: Seattle, because I think they will win the division anyway despite LA’s great fight over the last few weeks, and it would drop another WC contender to 6-7.
Elsewhere, Chicago will face Minnesota, trying to keep up with Green Bay for the NFC North lead. The Bears are the favorites. New Orleans will face Atlanta, also trying to survive in our playoff run. This is a dangerous game, specially if Doug Martin returns, but the Saints are the favorites. Then, the NFC West leaders LA Rams faces Arizona as favorites, but this might be a very close game.
I will be back next week looking at the top Week 11 matchups. Good luck to all the owners still chasing a playoff berth (not really, but I could not think about a different way to finish the article).