Marauders11 Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 I didn't want this discussion to get completely lost in the Aaron Rodgers thread- but how can anyone say that Green Bay & New England have "nothing" to play for? They can both improve their playoff seeding with a win today, and shouldn't they be trying to finish as high as possible? The Packers will lock up the No. 5 seed if they defeat Arizona on Sunday, or the Cowboys lose next week. The Packers would win any tiebreaker with Dallas based on their victory over the Cowboys this season. If the Cowboys, Packers and Eagles finish 11-5, the Cowboys win their division based on a season sweep over the Eagles. The Packers would earn the higher wild-card seed over the Eagles based on a better record against common opponents. The Packers will fall to the No. 6 seed if they lose to the Cardinals and the Cowboys beat the Eagles. While a playoff berth may be settled, the seedings are not. If the Patriots win, they will hold the No. 3 seed in the AFC. But if the Patriots lose and the Bengals beat the Jets, the Bengals will leap to the third spot and the Patriots would drop to fourth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bring Back Pat!!! Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 I didn't want this discussion to get completely lost in the Aaron Rodgers thread- but how can anyone say that Green Bay & New England have "nothing" to play for? They can both improve their playoff seeding with a win today, and shouldn't they be trying to finish as high as possible? The Packers will lock up the No. 5 seed if they defeat Arizona on Sunday, or the Cowboys lose next week. The Packers would win any tiebreaker with Dallas based on their victory over the Cowboys this season. If the Cowboys, Packers and Eagles finish 11-5, the Cowboys win their division based on a season sweep over the Eagles. The Packers would earn the higher wild-card seed over the Eagles based on a better record against common opponents. The Packers will fall to the No. 6 seed if they lose to the Cardinals and the Cowboys beat the Eagles. While a playoff berth may be settled, the seedings are not. If the Patriots win, they will hold the No. 3 seed in the AFC. But if the Patriots lose and the Bengals beat the Jets, the Bengals will leap to the third spot and the Patriots would drop to fourth. This is not 100% true. If they win, and the Bengals win, then it goes all the way to a strength of victory tie-breaker, which changes every week based on how every team does that week. The point is valid, however. With a win, they greatly improve their chances of getting the #3 spot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marauders11 Posted January 3, 2010 Author Share Posted January 3, 2010 This is not 100% true. If they win, and the Bengals win, then it goes all the way to a strength of victory tie-breaker, which changes every week based on how every team does that week. The point is valid, however. With a win, they greatly improve their chances of getting the #3 spot. from Boston.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giantsfan Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 (edited) Easy answer. What does it really matter if you are a 3 or 4? Or a 5 or 6? 3 or 4 you have no bye and play next week. Why not use this week as a bye? Would you rather play at NO or at Philly? At Indy or at SD? Who knows. 5 or 6 you have no home game and play next week. Why not use this week as a bye? Would you rather play at Zona or at Minny? At NE or at Cincy? Who knows. Point is what does a 3 vs a 4 or 5 vs a 6 really mean? MAYBE you can say in the 3 or 4 case if BOTH the 1 and 2 lose you can host the conf title game, but that is a LONG shot and doesn't happen often. So why not use this week as your bye week when the difference between a 3 or 4 and 5 or 6 is pretty minimal. Edited January 3, 2010 by giantsfan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Czarina Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 I think it's a matter of who they anticipate being matched up with depending on the seed. Would the Pats rather play through San Diego or Indianapolis? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giantsfan Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 I think it's a matter of who they anticipate being matched up with depending on the seed. Would the Pats rather play through San Diego or Indianapolis? Exactly. And the point is what is the answer to this question? Both SD and Indy are really good teams. What is the better matchup? Again who knows? That is why I just don't think teams will play all out for a 3 or 4 seed. Or a 5 or 6 seed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackass Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 As others have said, it's just not worth it. There is a small benefit but not at the cost of risk of injury or putting in even 1 minute of effort trying to come up with a game plan. I guarantee you, Belichek and staff has been spending the whole week preparing to play SD or Indy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikesVikes Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 Maybe the Packers would rather play the Saints. Plus they have zero chance at a home game no matter what. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainHook Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 Easy answer. What does it really matter if you are a 3 or 4? Or a 5 or 6? 3 or 4 you have no bye and play next week. Why not use this week as a bye? Would you rather play at NO or at Philly? At Indy or at SD? Who knows. 5 or 6 you have no home game and play next week. Why not use this week as a bye? Would you rather play at Zona or at Minny? At NE or at Cincy? Who knows. Point is what does a 3 vs a 4 or 5 vs a 6 really mean? MAYBE you can say in the 3 or 4 case if BOTH the 1 and 2 lose you can host the conf title game, but that is a LONG shot and doesn't happen often. So why not use this week as your bye week when the difference between a 3 or 4 and 5 or 6 is pretty minimal. I happened in 2006. Colts #3 hosted the AFC Championship vs. New England, who was #4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marauders11 Posted January 3, 2010 Author Share Posted January 3, 2010 I happened in 2006. Colts #3 hosted the AFC Championship vs. New England, who was #4. I just think you owe it to the players and the fans to finish as high as you can. I don't buy "easy answer"- just imagine if in the NFC it came down to the 5/6 seeds for the Championship and Green Bay had to go on the road because they tanked in week 17- hard to explain I'd think. I know it's very unlikely, but shiat happens in the NFL.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackass Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 I just think you owe it to the players and the fans to finish as high as you can. I don't buy "easy answer"- just imagine if in the NFC it came down to the 5/6 seeds for the Championship and Green Bay had to go on the road because they tanked in week 17- hard to explain I'd think. I know it's very unlikely, but shiat happens in the NFL.... If i were a fan of a team in that situation, i'd want them to do whatever they think is best to get my team to the super bowl. If that meant, playing the water boy at qb, then so be it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giantsfan Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 I happened in 2006. Colts #3 hosted the AFC Championship vs. New England, who was #4. Yup. Like I said, it doesn't happen that often. Never said it NEVER happens. To me it isn't worth it going for a 3 over a 4 or a 5 over a 6. But that's just me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chavez Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 Easy answer. What does it really matter if you are a 3 or 4? Or a 5 or 6? 3 or 4 you have no bye and play next week. Why not use this week as a bye? Would you rather play at NO or at Philly? At Indy or at SD? Who knows. 5 or 6 you have no home game and play next week. Why not use this week as a bye? Would you rather play at Zona or at Minny? At NE or at Cincy? Who knows. Point is what does a 3 vs a 4 or 5 vs a 6 really mean? MAYBE you can say in the 3 or 4 case if BOTH the 1 and 2 lose you can host the conf title game, but that is a LONG shot and doesn't happen often. So why not use this week as your bye week when the difference between a 3 or 4 and 5 or 6 is pretty minimal. I think the chance of hosting the Conference title game as a #3 is more worth the risk than the unlikely chance both wild cards win through for a 5 vs 6 matchup in the conference title game. So if I were coaching, I'd play more of a "real" game for the #3 than I would for the #5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giantsfan Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 I think the chance of hosting the Conference title game as a #3 is more worth the risk than the unlikely chance both wild cards win through for a 5 vs 6 matchup in the conference title game. So if I were coaching, I'd play more of a "real" game for the #3 than I would for the #5. Clearly a fair point, and one that makes obvious sense. If I was a HC I would treat week 17 as a bye if I knew for sure I was playing the following week and couldn't get a bye wth a win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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