In the NFC, The division winners break down like this - Eagles, Lions, Seahawks and Saints - the wildcards go to Dallas and St. Louis.
In the East, we give Philly a run for it, but come up just shy at the end, while Washington finishes a game behind us, and just out of the palyoff picture, while New York is the worst team in the NFC.
In the North, the Bears can't manage to overcome Grossman's inconsistent ineptitude, while Martz' great show on turf takes over and Marinelli finally motivates that defense to play as a team. Minnesota finished behind Chicago, with a defunct Pack bringing up the rear.
In the West, Seattle surges to an NFC best 13-3 record behind a fantastic performance by Matt Hasselbeck, and the league's 2nd best defense. The Rams take the wild card, while the 49ers and Cardinals finish at 5-11 and 6-10.
In the South, the Saints walk away with it again with a 12-4 record. Carolina manages 9-7, but sits on the outside looking in with Washington and super-bust Dwayne Jarrett. They played football in Tampa Bay, but noone cared and Atlanta is picking in the top 5 of next April's draft.
In the AFC, the division winners will be New England, Baltimore, Jacksonville and Denver. The wildcards go to San Diego and Cincinnati.
In the East, it's no contest. The Pats finish 13-3, while the Bills miss the playoffs around 10-6 or 9-7, with the Jets and Phins somewhere around 6 wins apiece.
In the South, Manning can't carry it all and might end up missing time for the first time in a long time. Neither super bowl team makes the playoffs, while the Jags ride the league's #1 rushing attack into the playoffs. Neither Houston or Tennessee tops 5 wins.
In the North, Baltimore's strong defense continues and McNair recaptures some magic to lead them to a league-best 14-2 record. Cincinatti's defense team (almost entirely made up of attorneys, or professional liars) is dreadful again and gets them to 10-6. The Steelers finish at 9-7 in the league's toughest division, with Cleveland at a surprising 7-9.
In the West, Norv strikes the Chargers, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory at least 5 times. LT reverts back to being just "really" good. Denver, OTOH explodes to a 12-4 record with a much improved pass defense and pass rush. The Raiders actually improve to 7-9, with the Chiefs in the basement at 5-11.
