Time for NFL to update seedings for playoffs

[Diehardblues]

Exactly. Without it you lose "rivalries". College sport is BUILT on rivalries...from the very first game. NFL teams try to replicate that with divisions and division crowns.

Right. And why it’s imperative to maintain automatic birth for division winners and the divisional rivalries which are the benchmark of the NFL’s success.

But with so many Wild Cards now seeding by record does appear to be a consideration for the future with currently 43% of playoff teams non division winners.

 

[Brax]

Now that we’ve added another Wild Card with 14 teams making the playoffs out of 32 which is almost half its time to update our playoff seedings .

It would be easy to implement what the NBA did several years ago. Division winners still make the playoffs but seedings are based on records.

Teams with better records like the Cowboys last year shouldn’t be on the road against division winners with 4 less wins .

Maybe if we finish 3rd again as Wild Card needing to win 3 games on the road in the playoffs , Jethro will lead the way implementing change .

Bad bad thinking, if you don’t want to be on the road win your division and have the best record, you probably want to add a few more teams so like hockey and the nba pretty much everyone gets in. Leave well enough alone the extra wildcard is a joke. Heck you just want two conferences and 16 teams each how many playoff teams in each so Dallas has a chance, why not 12 each. I guess fans like you just want playoff games, stop complaining and ask your buddy Jerry to stop hiring coaches like Garrett and maybe they will win a few more playoff games. Playing TB wasn’t a problem so your whining doesn’t hold water.

 

[Diehardblues]

Bad bad thinking, if you don’t want to be on the road win your division and have the best record, you probably want to add a few more teams so like hockey and the nba pretty much everyone gets in. Leave well enough alone the extra wildcard is a joke. Heck you just want two conferences and 16 teams each how many playoff teams in each so Dallas has a chance, why not 12 each. I guess fans like you just want playoff games, stop complaining and ask your buddy Jerry to stop hiring coaches like Garrett and maybe they will win a few more playoff games. Playing TB wasn’t a problem so your whining doesn’t hold water.

No, not at all. It’s really a simple implementation NBA adopted with added playoff teams.

Division still carry’s weight with automatic bid. And divisional rivalries are an integral necessity. But seedings are set by record .

This is an argument for all teams not just the Cowboys. And for the record I wasn’t for the additional WC team.

 

[dargonking999]

No matter your opinions this will never change because unlike the nba, nfl division winning teams only get that guaranteed 1 home game if you aren't the top 2 seeds. No nfl owner will give up that profit just because there record isn't good enough. It just won't happen. Nfl owners are greedy and if they win the division they want that home game.

 

[dargonking999]

No, not at all. It’s really a simple implementation NBA adopted with added playoff teams.

Division still carry’s weight with automatic bid. And divisional rivalries are an integral necessity. But seedings are set by record .

This is an argument for all teams not just the Cowboys. And for the record I wasn’t for the additional WC team.

Difference between nba and nfl is that in the nba the playoff series are 7 games. So even if they don't get home court they still get 3 games at home. The loss isn't as severe on the books

 

[stiletto]

No matter your opinions this will never change because unlike the nba, nfl division winning teams only get that guaranteed 1 home game if you aren't the top 2 seeds. No nfl owner will give up that profit just because there record isn't good enough. It just won't happen. Nfl owners are greedy and if they win the division they want that home game.

Yep. Follow the money....

 

[SteveTheCowboy]

The rule has always been to win the division first. The teams with the better record in other divisions should not be rewarded for not winning their own division. Don't care about the record. Works the same way in MLB.

I get it. It just does suck we had to go to awful Tampa.

I guess we should win our division?

 

[stiletto]

I get it. It just does suck we had to go to awful Tampa.

I guess we should win our division?

Yes sir, didn't matter I actually enjoyed blowing another team out in their own stadium. That was kind of fun to me. Sure it would've been nice to do that at home but I saw all those sad fans with #12 jersey's on. Was alright. I slept well.

 

[StarLord]

What I really want at this point is, winning your division gets you in, but the entire seeding should be record based. If the top 2 teams manage to come from the same division then they should be the 1 and 2 seeds.

 

[SteveTheCowboy]

Yes sir, didn't matter I actually enjoyed blowing another team out in their own stadium. That was kind of fun to me. Sure it would've been nice to do that at home but I saw all those sad fans with #12 jersey's on. Was alright. I slept well.

I just wish it was a real playoff caliber team rather than losers. "blowing them out" might have effected us for SF.

 

[KingCorcoran]

Now that we’ve added another Wild Card with 14 teams making the playoffs out of 32 which is almost half its time to update our playoff seedings .

It would be easy to implement what the NBA did several years ago. Division winners still make the playoffs but seedings are based on records.

Teams with better records like the Cowboys last year shouldn’t be on the road against division winners with 4 less wins .

Maybe if we finish 3rd again as Wild Card needing to win 3 games on the road in the playoffs , Jethro will lead the way implementing change .

 

[KingCorcoran]

Now that we’ve added another Wild Card with 14 teams making the playoffs out of 32 which is almost half its time to update our playoff seedings .

It would be easy to implement what the NBA did several years ago. Division winners still make the playoffs but seedings are based on records.

Teams with better records like the Cowboys last year shouldn’t be on the road against division winners with 4 less wins .

Maybe if we finish 3rd again as Wild Card needing to win 3 games on the road in the playoffs , Jethro will lead the way implementing change .

The problem with that is the NFL adjusts the schedule to pit teams that had poor records against some teams that also had bad records. The NBA dos not do that. And, 6 of 17 games are intra-division games. Look at New Orleans this season. They are the most likely team to go 6-0 in division games, and they play the AFC South, the weakest division in the AFC. While the Eagles, Giants, and Cowboys kill one another, and the 49ers play the all NFC East, the Saints could easily be the top seed in the NFC. If the schedule were balanced, then yes, your notion would make sense. As it is, under current scheduling circumstances, it makes no sense.

 

[Diehardblues]

Difference between nba and nfl is that in the nba the playoff series are 7 games. So even if they don't get home court they still get 3 games at home. The loss isn't as severe on the books

The revenue from playoff game is same as regular season as ticket sales are evenly shared with all 32 teams. All they get is concession and parking.

 

[Diehardblues]

The problem with that is the NFL adjusts the schedule to pit teams that had poor records against some teams that also had bad records. The NBA dos not do that. And, 6 of 17 games are intra-division games. Look at New Orleans this season. They are the most likely team to go 6-0 in division games, and they play the AFC South, the weakest division in the AFC. While the Eagles, Giants, and Cowboys kill one another, and the 49ers play the all NFC East, the Saints could easily be the top seed in the NFC. If the schedule were balanced, then yes, your notion would make sense. As it is, under current scheduling circumstances, it makes no sense.

That’s the most reasonable argument I’ve heard but schedules based on how you finished in division only impact 2 of your conference games and the 1 non conference 17th game.

IMO these are minimal factors which don't outweigh the greater factor of lesser record division winners having home field over better record Wild Cards.

I hope it’s just a matter of time where this issue continues to occur and the league takes action. We shall see.

 

[Mac_MaloneV1]

Sure, but that doesn’t mean our odds are better to win as a 5th seed.

There are times where you'd be better off as a 5th seed playing the 4-seed division winner than, say, the 3-seed division winner playing the 6 seed.

I would rather be the Cowboys playing at TB than SF hosting Seattle, Buffalo hosting Miami or Cinci hosting Baltimore.

 

[mattjames2010]

Absolutely. Tampa Bay had no business hosting that playoff game; it should have been the Cowboys.

Winning your division should always come with that benefit. That's the point of divisions....

 

[mattjames2010]

Should Division winners automatically get in though? A team can win their division with 7 wins and get in while a team with the third or 4th-best record in their division wins 8 or more and misses the playoffs. I think it should be NFC vs AFC all the way.

Yes, otherwise what the hell is the point of divisions?

 

[fivetwos]

@Diehardblues

Doesn’t bother me as much as the new format overall, and the schedule is heavily weighted toward division play, so when you have a situation where all four are good, they beat up on each other.

Maybe a compromise where the venue changes if the division winner has a losing record AND theres at least a three game difference between the teams. Otherwise I think they’d need to scrap the division situation and go with two conferences, and I know for sure the league values those rivalries and for good reason.

As far as the new format, it’s too small a sample size, but the one seeds now have way too much of an advantage.

Getting a week off is one thing, but when no other team in the conference has the same, it becomes huge. Guaranteed no road games, and if a six or seven seed that snuck in, and maybe shouldn’t be there happens to pull an upset and are happy getting that far, you get that team at home after a bye. All this while they watch the rest of the teams beat up on each other.

I noticed this the minute I first heard of the change. Brady blew up my narrative in year one, but KC was a one seed.

Bengals/Rams made me feel like a fool. Both were fours.

Last year featured both one seeds. So, not enough for it to be a topic, but I think we are going to see mostly one seeds in the SB from here forward.

There’s really no fix that I can see, except reverting to the perfect system they threw away for a money grab…and that ain’t happening….ever.

I should probably be careful what I wish for, because if this inequality ever becomes an issue that needs addressing, they will likely use it as an excuse to add yet more playoff teams.

 

[LonnieElam]

Winning your division should always come with that benefit. That's the point of divisions....

True, they won the DIVISION and got into the playoffs - you know since they won the DIVISION - but if a team team wins a DIVISION, and a wildcard team has a better record, they should host the playoff game, not the team that won the ***** DIVISION. ...division.

 

[TequilaCowboy]

Winning your division should still be worth something, and home field is one of them. Who cares if TB had a worse record than Dallas. The NFCE has had weak teams also and Jerry would not want to lose home field advantage for a rule he creates of giving it to the team with the best record. You play with the cards you are dealt. There are too many WC teams now and its like hockey. You play the season to see who gets eliminated from the playoffs, not who makes it. But i get it.....TV playoff money.