Ranking the Elite - Playoff Edition

[St. Francisco]

Final set of rankings, see ya next year.

12. Baltimore Ravens (10-6) - Losers in four of their last five games, the Ravens limp into the playoffs with little hope for a deep run. Not to mention the fact that they begin with a game against the Colts, who have won five of their last six behind Andrew Luck and the 7th ranked passing attack in the nation. If they somehow manage to win their opener, they're definitely out by week two.

11. Cincinnati Bengals (10-6) - To go from 3-5 to 10-6 is a tremendous achievement, but the quality of teams you beat to get there is less impressive. As much as I criticize the Texans, I think they're better than this upstart Bengals team.

10. Minnesota Vikings (10-6) - The Vikings charge into the playoffs on a four-game winning streak, including an emotional 37-34 win over the Packers...but can lightning strike twice in a row, this time in Lambeau field. Probably not...but still, good job making it to the dance.

9. Indianapolis Colts (11-5) - There's no doubt that Andrew Luck exceeded expectations, and that's saying something considering how high they were to begin with. I think Luck finishes his rookie season with a playoff win, and the future is bright.

8. Washington Redskins (10-6) - I called Washington winning the division weeks ago, and now they head into the playoffs on a seven game winning streak. Unfortunately, you'll be tasked with Seattle in the opening round. Beating them won't be easy.

7. Houston Texans (12-4) - Houston ended the season with three losses in the last four games, all of them to playoff teams. I view this team the same way I view Baltimore, only I think they have a much more talented roster. Houston should win their opener, and may even surprise by appearing in the AFC championship game, but you won't see a Super Bowl this year.

6. Seattle Seahawks (11-5) - With seven wins in their last eight games, and a three-game stetch of outscoring their opponents by a combined score of 150-30, if I had to pick a wild card sleeper to take it all they would definitely be it. But while Seattle was undefeated at home, they were an average 3-5 on the road, which is where they'll have to excel to win it all. Seattle could surprise by beating Washington and Atlanta to appear in the championship game, but the buck would stop there. It also wouldn't surprise me to see them go one and done.

5. Atlanta Falcons (13-3) - Losses to Carolina and Tampa Bay to end the season put a sour taste in my mouth...my already low opinion of this team has gotten worse. They may just be one of the most unimpressive #1 seeds ever, but the fact remains that they are indeed a #1 seed. Still, it wouldn't surprise me if they lost their opener to Washington, Seattle, or Minnesota.

T-3. Green Bay Packers (11-5) - Despite the season-ending loss, still one of the best teams in the NFC, and they'll have a chance at revenge next week on their home turf. Losing the bye may actually work in their favor, as I believe the team is better built to beat the 49ers in Candlestick than they would in Lambeau.

T-3. San Francisco 49ers (11-4-1) - Oh what a difference a tie makes. By the grace of half a game, the 49ers not only win their division, but also secure a first-round bye, and if my suspicions about Atlanta are right, they could be hosting the championship game as well, just like last season. But beating the Packers for a second time will be no easy task.

2. Denver Broncos (13-3) - 11 straight wins...wow. HOWEVER, you lose the top spot because of strength of schedule. That winning streak features victories against only two playoff teams, Baltimore and Cincinnati, and you already know I consider those the two weakest teams in the playoffs. Not to mention the fact that you won the weakest division in football. You haven't lost a game since dropping one in Foxborough in October...the Patriots may be the team to end your streak as well.

1. New England Patriots (12-4) - With nine wins in their last ten games, the Patriots snatch a first-round bye away from the Texans, and also ascend to the top of the rankings once again. I'm calling them the best team in the NFL until proven otherwise.



PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS

Houston over Cincinnati

Indianapolis over Baltimore

Green Bay over Minnesota

Washington over Seattle


New England over Houston

Denver over Indianapolis

I won't predict the SF/GB game but to say that the winner will represent the NFC in the Super Bowl

Washington over Atlanta


New England over Denver

SF/GB over Washington


SF/GB over New England

 

[St. Francisco]

I'm sure the first thing people will point out is that I have #8 Washington beating #6 Seattle, and #1 New England losing in the Super Bowl. My rankings are separate from my playoff predictions. Playoffs aren't really about the best team in the league (see the Giants one year ago), they're about which great team can get hot at the right time, who benefits from homefield advantages, and who doesn't choke. Plus, I do consider Seattle a better team than Washington, but on the road I think they lose.

 

[Hasselbeck]

Another St. Francisco pumps up the 49ers thread. A timeless tradition like none other. :smug:

 

[SethMode]

I like how there was no Ranking the Elite last week. Must have been due to the holiday weekend.

 

[Goober]

So New England is ranked higher then Denver because of strength of schedule, even though Denver has a better record against playoff teams then New England does. Okay...

 

[Point Blank]

Don't know why I even come in this thread anymore, lol. :wave:

 

[killgod]

So New England is ranked higher then Denver because of strength of schedule, even though Denver has a better record against playoff teams then New England does. Okay...

Or it's because...

The obvious: New England beat Denver (and we also beat Houston, badly i might add, who you lost to as well. But hey, you beat some wildcard teams n shit so congrats.)

The division: The only division weaker than the AFC East, is the AFC West.

The facts: New England outscored (by 80pts) and out gained (30 yards a game) Denver's D allowed less points, by a lesser margin however. Turnovers, which surely means alot is +25 vs -1? Denver has a sub 4 YPC vs NE's top 10 rusher Ridley. We gain 1st downs at a 4% rate higher than anyone else.

The GOAT's: Brady's been to 5 and Manning's been to 2. One guy knows a bit more about this time of the year than the other :kobe:

Historically: BB is Manning's kryptonite. Peyton Manning rarely looks bad, but when he does, BB is usually glowering under his hood from the other sideline.


I'm not so sure NE's going to win in Denver come AFC title time, it's not a place we do very well in. However on paper and looking at this season, it's fairly clear to me there's one team better than the other and NE just got Gronk added back into the lineup. So, good luck with that.

 

[St. Francisco]

Don't know why I even come in this thread anymore, lol. :wave:

If you think your team is better than Green Bay or San Francisco, I don't know why you do either.

 

[NAHSTE]

:lol:

 

[Glenbino]

Or it's because...

The obvious: New England beat Denver (and we also beat Houston, badly i might add, who you lost to as well. But hey, you beat some wildcard teams n shit so congrats.)

The division: The only division weaker than the AFC East, is the AFC West.

The facts: New England outscored (by 80pts) and out gained (30 yards a game) Denver's D allowed less points, by a lesser margin however. Turnovers, which surely means alot is +25 vs -1? Denver has a sub 4 YPC vs NE's top 10 rusher Ridley. We gain 1st downs at a 4% rate higher than anyone else.

The GOAT's: Brady's been to 5 and Manning's been to 2. One guy knows a bit more about this time of the year than the other :kobe:

Historically: BB is Manning's kryptonite. Peyton Manning rarely looks bad, but when he does, BB is usually glowering under his hood from the other sideline.


I'm not so sure NE's going to win in Denver come AFC title time, it's not a place we do very well in. However on paper and looking at this season, it's fairly clear to me there's one team better than the other and NE just got Gronk added back into the lineup. So, good luck with that.

We also don't run up the score the way the Pats do.

Manning has taken the air out of the ball in the second half against the Ravens, Bucs, Browns, Chargers, Raiders (twice) and he sat out the entire fourth quarter yesterday. So your total points and points differential argument holds very little water with me.

As far as the H2H game a lot of things have changed on the Denver defense since then especially in the middle of coverage since Joe Mays went down and Wesley Woodyard and Danny Trevethan have had to play bigger roles in pass coverage and excelled, especially in the middle of the field.

You bringing up the Broncos losing to the Pats as early in the season as it happened is pretty laughable because you guys were losing to Arizona around that same time. Not to mention you got into a shootout with the Bills in just week 10.

You guys beat the Texans even though we lost to them you say? You also lost to the Ravens who we went up to Baltimore and pounded to a point where there fans were leaving midway through the fourth.

I think our defense on the whole is MUCH better than the Pats and that has borne itself out as the season has gone on.

Denver and New England are a 1a/1b situation in my opinion right now.

Just because one team has more 49-14 wins over cream puffs doesn't make them better.

Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk 2

 

[killgod]

We also don't run up the score the way the Pats do.

Manning has taken the air out of the ball in the second half against the Ravens, Bucs, Browns, Chargers, Raiders (twice) and he sat out the entire fourth quarter yesterday. So your total points and points differential argument holds very little water with me.

Ok, so you want to claim you guize decided not to keep trying as why we scored more points. Doesn't explain why your turnover differential is weaker and your running game is inferior, or why we gain 1sts at a better clip....

As far as the H2H game a lot of things have changed on the Denver defense since then especially in the middle of coverage since Joe Mays went down and Wesley Woodyard and Danny Trevethan have had to play bigger roles in pass coverage and excelled, especially in the middle of the field.

Cause NE didn't put Dennard into the starting lineup, or add Talib? Please tell me more about how your team has changed as a supporting point.

You bringing up the Broncos losing to the Pats as early in the season as it happened is pretty laughable because you guys were losing to Arizona around that same time. Not to mention you got into a shootout with the Bills in just week 10.

So you lost to a team that lost to Arizona, goob jerb bums. and OMG a shootout with the Bills? What about requiring a Philip Rivers meltdown to beat the Chargers? Lets pretend that didn't happen.

You guys beat the Texans even though we lost to them you say? You also lost to the Ravens who we went up to Baltimore and pounded to a point where there fans were leaving midway through the fourth.

The Broncos beat 2 playoff teams all season, congrats. The Ravens and Bengals are terrifying. Must have been nice to play Baltimore when they lost all their players to injury.

I think our defense on the whole is MUCH better than the Pats and that has borne itself out as the season has gone on.

I agree the Denver defence is better at yardage, but when it comes to points its very minimal (less than 2ppg avg). Neither D can rush the passer (Denver is nearly league worst in sacks), neither D generates alot of turnovers. Not sure how that makes them "MUCH better", but better yes.

Denver and New England are a 1a/1b situation in my opinion right now.

Fence sitting is no fun.

Just because one team has more 49-14 wins over cream puffs doesn't make them better.

No, but the little details like ball security, 1st downs and possession certainly all favour one team. In TB12's 5 Super Bowls, the winner won in those 3 areas of the game. So I'd like to think it's very important.




(lets not get carried away here, we got 20 more days to spit venom)

 

[NAHSTE]

ITT: People arguing about shit that could be better decided with the passage of time

 

[Len B]

So New England is ranked higher then Denver because of strength of schedule, even though Denver has a better record against playoff teams then New England does. Okay...

:lol:

Because you can compare the Patriots losses to SF and SEA to the Broncos games vs. the NFC South, amirite?

Record vs AFC Opponents who made playoffs:

Patriots: 3-1 (wins over Hou, Ind, Den)
Broncos: 1-2 (win over Cincinatti)

Love the reach that is needed to find a stat that the Broncos are better than the Patriots at. None of this matters anyway, playoffs are a whole new ball game.

 

[Glenbino]

:lol:

Because you can compare the Patriots losses to SF and SEA to the Broncos games vs. the NFC South, amirite?

Record vs AFC Opponents who made playoffs:

Patriots: 3-1 (wins over Hou, Ind, Den)
Broncos: 1-2 (win over Cincinatti)

Love the reach that is needed to find a stat that the Broncos are better than the Patriots at. None of this matters anyway, playoffs are a whole new ball game.

Yardage allowed per game.. passing yards allowed. Points allowed per game... Overall record.

That wasn't that hard.

Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Len B]

Broncos D is definitely better than New England.

 

[Glenbino]

FWIW I'm not excited at all by the prospect of seeing the Pats in the playoffs and hope that Matt Schaub or Flacco find a way to be a hero in the divisional round.

Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk 2

 

[SethMode]

FWIW I'm not excited at all by the prospect of seeing the Pats in the playoffs and hope that Matt Schaub or Flacco find a way to be a hero in the divisional round.

Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk 2

Man, Glen, I wish you had something better to rest your hopes on.

 

[St. Francisco]

:lol:

Because you can compare the Patriots losses to SF and SEA to the Broncos games vs. the NFC South, amirite?

Record vs AFC Opponents who made playoffs:

Patriots: 3-1 (wins over Hou, Ind, Den)
Broncos: 1-2 (win over Cincinatti)

Love the reach that is needed to find a stat that the Broncos are better than the Patriots at. None of this matters anyway, playoffs are a whole new ball game.

For the record, Denver was 2-2 against AFC playoff opponents. Wins against Cincinnati and Baltimore, losses to Houston and New England.

 

[Goober]

I'm not going to argue with you Killgod. There's no point, clearly you're a fucking retard. To illustrate my point,

I agree the Denver defence is better at yardage, but when it comes to points its very minimal (less than 2ppg avg). Neither D can rush the passer (Denver is nearly league worst in sacks), neither D generates alot of turnovers. Not sure how that makes them "MUCH better", but better yes.

The Denver defense is #1 in the NFL in sacks. #1.
http://www.nfl.com/stats/categoryst...tegory=TEAM_PASSING&d-447263-s=PASSING_SACKED
That's pretty far off from your nearly league worst claim. There's no point in discussing this further, just know that you are fucking retarded.

 

[Bear Pand]

Historically: BB is Manning's kryptonite. Peyton Manning rarely looks bad, but when he does, BB is usually glowering under his hood from the other sideline.

This used to be true but not anymore.
Manning is 5-3 against the Patriots since they last won a SB.

Those games include one of the biggest playoff collapses in NFL history, and a game where Belichick was so shook of Manning he went for it on 4th and 2.

Despite losing the game, Manning shredded the Pats D already this year.

Pats fans still living off historically when they haven't done anything important in nearly 10 years.