DENVER—
There are currently seven teams within one game game of each other for the sixth and final spot in the AFC Playoff race.Two of those teams (Denver and Baltimore) are 8-6. Not far behind are a quintet of teams with a 7-7 record ( Jaguars, Texans, Dolphins, Steelers, and the Jets).
So with all of those teams huddled (football term) so closely, all battling for just two spots, the possibilites seem plentiful?
How plentiful? Glad you asked.
There are over 8,000 possible playoff combinations that could ensue with such a logjam of teams.
Interestingly enough, the Broncos won't have to wade through those seemingly daunting numbers. After all, all they have to do is one thing to assure themselves a spot in the NFL 's postseason party: win.
If Denver and Baltimore are victorious in their remaining games, they will both be 10-6. The best any 7-7 team can do is finish 9-7, so to keep themselves from sweating over any mathematical permutations, the Broncos need a victory on Sunday in Philadelphia. A loss would not be detrimental----though it would wrest away the full control they currently have on their chances.
Many have picked Denver to lose on Sunday, thereby assuring the best they can finish is 9-7. In that case, Denver would lose a tiebreaker with Jacksonville, Miami, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore, should any of those teams also finish with the same record.
Head coach Josh McDaniels hasn't concerned himself with any mathematical formulas and says "all I know is if we win twice, we'll play a third time."
That would be the easy way to the postseason though defeating the Eagles at the nest, will be anything but easy. They have the second highest scoring offense in the NFL and in their current five game winning streak have averaged 24.1 points per game. Denver is averaging 19.7----for the season.
The Eagles may not be as desperate for a win as the Broncos, though there is plenty at stake for them as well. They still are in the running for the NFC East Division title and have an outside shot of catching the Minnesota Vikings for the overall number two seed in the NFC and the first round bye that would go with it.
Philly, unlike Denver, has already clinched a playoff spot----their eighth one of the decade. The Broncos, after a 6-0 start, looked well on their way to joining the Eagles in the postseason thanks to their impressive showing against the NFC East this season. To wit: Denver has already beaten the Cowboys and the Giants, the two teams locked in a playoff battle with the Eagles. Their only loss to an NFC East was their stunning 27-17 defeat to the Redskins.
If the Broncos finish 9-7 and out of the Playoffs, that game and their inexplicable loss to Oakland on Sunday will be the main culprits.
Until then, all they can do is win.
Or lose. Then, wait for the numerical permutations to play out.
Not sure why McDaniels wouldn't like that. After all, he graduated from John Carroll University with a degree in, you guessed it, mathematics.
