AFC:#1 Seed San Diego Chargers: Last seasons AFC Champions had no hangover from last years super bowl loss. They lost 3 one possession games this season. They lead the league in sacks and interceptions. They still thrive on the 2 RB system, but this season features rookie Felix Butcher averaging 4.6 YPC. The D-line has 3 players with 15+ sacks and the secondary have 3 players with 5 interceptions. The Chargers look like the favorite to win the AFC again.
#2 Seed Cincinnati Bengals: John Huff has taken over a big role in this offense with 967 rushing yards and 760 receiving. It’s going to be hard to win against them if you can’t guard Huff who has helped the Bengals have the most rushing yards in the league. You also have to look out for the TE with over 1’000 yards. The passing game has been average overall but that’s all they’ve had to do. The defense is 5th in yards against
#3 Seed Miami Dolphins: Miami is a solid team all around but there most impressive player has to be Frederick Raggs who lead the league in sacks with 28 which is one shy of the league record 29 sacks in a season. Miami has one flaw that could be fatal in the playoffs they are 24th in turnover margin this season.
#4 Seed Tennessee Titans: The Titans won their first division title since the league started. It was mostly due to the best pass defense in the league, but teams have run on them, they are just 23rd in the league in that category. The offense is just above league average.
#5 Seed Oakland Raiders: The Raiders once again claim a playoff spot over KC as both of them go 11-5 again. Oakland leads the league in yards per game in larger part due to TE Thomas Smith who leads the league in receiving yards by 360 yards. Another big story on the team is veteran RB Clarence Davis who some people say has lost a step. He has been demoted to backup RB but is still averaging 5.5 YPC. Starting RB Bill Kibbe averaged 4.3. Oaklands defense is right around league average.
#6 Seed Cleveland Browns: This team was supposed to be rebuilding but somehow the rest of the league still let them get in the playoffs. They had a lot of veterans on the trade block who nobody wanted and here they are takins somebody’s spot in the playoffs. Cleveland has the best defense in the league statistically. Nobody even wants to try to pass on them. They like to throw the ball a lot but veteran QB Douglas Festa has had a tough year throwing 23 TDs and 27 INTs. Even though they throw almost double as much as they run, they still average over 100 rushing yards per game.
NFC:#1 Seed Detroit Lions: I can’t say I saw this one coming after 5 years of sitting right around .500 and missing the playoffs. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what happened for this team but rookie TE Jeffrey Brinkley was definitely a part of it with over 1’000 yards averaging over 19 yards a catch. They have a very good defense all around. My big question for this team is LT the starter is injured, and the only backup is a 5th round rookie who has only appeared in 70 plays all season. Something tells me the rookie won’t be starting in the playoffs, but teams will need to take advantage of that matchup.
#2 Seed Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bucs claim the 2nd seed and a first round bye by going 11-5. In the AFC West 11-5 doesn’t even get you in the playoffs half the time. Tampa Bay leads the league in one major stat turnover margin they are +18. They also did not give up a rushing TD all season. This team seems to do everything well except play RT. Robert Sigler gave up 18 sacks this season. That is a matchup DEs will need to take advantage of to beat this team.
#3 Seed Seattle Seahawks: How did this happen? I traded away half the team and tried to trade the other half. I lost 4 games in a row and I’m playing with an old backup QB. I have the 29th ranked defense in the league. Thank you, Arizona, for resting your starters and letting me win the division and have a home playoff game.
#4 Seed Dallas Cowboys: Wait a second that’s not right. Washington didn’t win the NFC East. Dallas finally gets a division championship away from Washington. They got there by having great defense. There is nothing to be had on the ground against this team, they gave up just 47 rushing yards a game. The Cowboys love to run the ball but they only average 3.2 YPC. Howard Lisk had over 900 yards, but it wasn’t pretty.
#5 Seed Green Bay Packers: Green Bay may have lost the division this year, but they will still be formidable in the playoffs. GrandadB just continues to win with unlikely players. 34-year-old 60 rated DE Timmy Camp put up 25 sacks the defense is average overall. They have a very good passing attack and you can’t sleep on their run game.
#6 Seed Arizona Cardinals: This team has no faith in their passing game as they are last in the league in passing yards and attempts. They love to run the ball through veteran Micheal Franks. They have an average defense. It’s hard to see this team making it very far if they don’t step it up in the passing game. Their rushing attack can only put up so many points and the defense won’t shut down offenses.