What if..?

[rwolfe09]

Alright, I have playoff possibilities running through my head and I wanted to ask you all for help. Right now, Baltimore is the final wild card team at 9-5. Miami, NY and New England are also 9-5. I will briefly run down each team's schedule and give my thoughts.

Baltimore Ravens
12/20 - @ Dallas
12/28 - vs Jacksonville

New England Patriots
12/21 - vs Arizona
12/28 - @ Buffalo

Miami Dolphins
12/21 - @ Kansas City
12/28 - @ NY Jets

NY Jets
12/21 - @ Seattle
12/28 vs Miami

Alright. Figure that Dallas beats Baltimore and then Baltimore beats Jacksonville. They finish at 10-6. New England wins out and finishes 11-5. Miami wins out as well and goes 11-5. With Miami winning out, NY would finish 10-6. Now, I'm not discounting Kansas City because I think they can beat Miami. Here is my question.

If Miami and the Patriots finish 11-5, would Miami win the division and New England get the wild-card position? And if Miami goes 10-6 along with NY going 10-6, obviously New England wins the division but who would get the wild card? I don't see Baltimore beating Dallas but if that does happen, the entire playoff race gets more thick and obnoxious. Please help! Hahaha. I can't completely wrap my head around this.

[dream_017]

Tie break rules

[The Lung]

From: http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=497212

8. An 11-5 team could miss the playoffs

It's obvious that the growing gulf between the NFL's haves and have-nots will result in some supposedly "good" teams not going to the playoffs.

In the NFC, where 9-7 -- and sometimes 8-8 -- is enough for a spot in the six-team tournament, 10-6 might not do it this year.

In the AFC, which has seen several teams win 10 but stay home for the postseason (most recently, the 2007 Browns), an eleven-win team could get shut out this year.

If the 9-5 Jets and 9-5 Dolphins win next Sunday, the winner of their Week 17 game will capture the AFC East, even if New England wins its last two games.

This will thrust the Pats into the wild-card pool. If the Ravens and Patriots win out, both teams would be 11-5. However, New England would fall behind Baltimore based on conference record, the second tiebreaker for determining wild-card positioning. If the Colts win one more game to reach 11 victories, they would hold a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pats.

In a year in which an 8-8 team might win the AFC West, such an outcome would support the notion that the league should come up with a format that does not guarantee a playoff berth to one of the four teams in every division.