Playoff positioning and guessing who we'll meet in the Divisional Playoffs

by BeansCarter on Nov 16, 2008 9:20 PM CST

After 10 wins and a 3-game lead over the rest of the AFC, I thought it made sense to take a look at the playoff picture.

Assuming there are no massive surprises over the next few weeks, I think we can get a decent idea of how things will shake out.

We probably need 3 more wins to lock up HFA throughout the playoffs. Although... the Jets and Steelers each have 7 wins (and we play them both), so if either of these teams win out we'll actually need 4 wins to guarantee HFA.

However... the chance of either of these teams winning their next 6 is low. It may very well be that no division winner other than us will have a record better than 11-5.

We have 3 easy games on our schedule... Lions, Texans, and Browns. Realistically speaking, HFA is ours.

Now, here is the seeding diagram for the playoffs...

As Division seed #1, we would host the lowest seeded winner of the first round. Assuming that current division leaders hold on to their divisions, and assuming one or both of the wild-card teams win in the first round of the playoffs, we'll end up facing one of the following 4 potential WC teams... Ravens, Patriots, Colts, Dolphins.

Who would you like to face most? Who gives us the greatest matchup advantage?

Poll

Who would you like to face first in the playoffs?

Baltimore Ravens

4 votes

Miami Dolphins

37 votes

New England Patriots

9 votes

Indianapolis Colts

8 votes

58 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

I prayed that the Cubs would get

the Dodgers and not the D-Backs in the first round of the baseball playoffs. We all know how that worked out. I like some match-ups better than others, but I refuse to ask for a team.

Titans Blogger at Music City Miracles even though gramsey hates it.

by Jimmy on Nov 17, 2008 8:57 AM CST reply actions

I'd rather not...

…play the Ravens or the Colts in post-season at all.

by hartley on Nov 17, 2008 8:58 AM CST reply actions

I concur

Titans Blogger at Music City Miracles even though gramsey hates it.

by Jimmy on Nov 17, 2008 9:05 AM CST up reply actions

I don't want the Colts for one simple reason

At that point we will have played them twice and hopefully won twice. Beating a team three straight times is damn near impossible.

The Ravens are self explanatory. Smash mouth and even though I think we’d win we would be beat up going forward…..

The PAIN TRAIN is comin baby!

by BigW on Nov 17, 2008 10:04 AM CST up reply actions

The Titans did it in 1999

Titans Blogger at Music City Miracles even though gramsey hates it.

by Jimmy on Nov 17, 2008 10:15 AM CST up reply actions

Since 1978

Two teams have met in the Playoffs where one of the teams swept the 2 games during the regular season 18 times.

The team doing the sweeping is 11-7, which is pretty good. The latest being the 2004 Rams beating the Seahawks 3 times.

The last time they lost? Last year, as the Giants lost both times to the Cowboys, then won in the playoffs.

Looking at it a little closer, the record gets better as the playoffs progress:

Wild Card: 5-5
Divisional: 3-2
Championship: 3-0

by mgrex03 on Nov 17, 2008 12:32 PM CST up reply actions

I don't think it's gonna work like that, myself.

I was talking to my buddy, and he all but convinced me that the Colts are gonna be the Five-Seed, which will probably send them to Denver. And I’m not at all sure that they’ll come out of that game alive. First off, Denver is a brutal place to play, and then too, the Broncos can afford to get into a shoot-out with ANYBODY. It’s not that the Colts cannot win that game, but they’d have to have their best stuff to win it, and I don’t think they will. They just haven’t been consistent enough.

Meanwhile, the Ravens took a bad loss and have a rough schedule coming up. Regardless, if the Ravens make the playoffs right now, I think they (or the Steelers, if they fall apart here at the end) are the more likely 6-seed.

Bottom line, I personally think you’ll see the Pats going back to NYC for the other WC, which would leave Tennessee to face either the Jets, the Pats, or the Broncos. The only way the Titans see the Five-Seed is in the AFC Championship Game.

DannoE

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one."
Go Titans!

by DannoE on Nov 17, 2008 1:55 PM CST up reply actions

the titans would get the lowest seeded winner in the first round

so we could definitely play the fifth seed as our first playoff game

by hal41605 on Nov 17, 2008 2:24 PM CST up reply actions

Thanks.

Yeah, I figured that out right after I wrote this, but of course there’s no EDIT function here.

DannoE

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one."
Go Titans!

by DannoE on Nov 18, 2008 6:47 AM CST up reply actions

if espn's crappy message boards

can have an edit button, why not SBN?

by hal41605 on Nov 18, 2008 9:22 AM CST up reply actions

Personally, I'm licking my chops at playing Denver

Peyton is 6-1 all time against the Broncos, when he has played more than 1 series.

This included twice in the playoffs:

January 4, 2004
January 9, 2005

While the teams are much different from the 2004 season, Manning is still under center, and the Broncos can’t stop anyone. I’d love a shoot out game. My money would be on Cutler making a mistake before Manning. But I’m a little biased.

And obviously nobody except the Titans should be focusing on Playoff matchups, but if the Colts make it, I’d love to see them play Denver.

by mgrex03 on Nov 17, 2008 3:09 PM CST up reply actions

But how many of those were in Denver?

DannoE

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one."
Go Titans!

by DannoE on Nov 18, 2008 6:49 AM CST up reply actions

Neither of the games you just mentioned were.

And the whole point of my post was to say how hard it is to travel well to Mile High.

DannoE

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one."
Go Titans!

by DannoE on Nov 18, 2008 6:50 AM CST up reply actions

Manning really struggled in Denver 2 years ago

32-39, 349 yds, 3 TDs.

He’s never lost there, even in snow games. He owns the Broncos, more so than any other specific team.

by mgrex03 on Nov 18, 2008 10:38 AM CST up reply actions

Please.

No bad mojo.

You say he “owns” them, it could turn out very badly.

Nothing is for certain this season. I am literally taking it “one game at a time”. I know who I’m rooting for and against to make a wild card more likely but I take nothing for granted this year.

"I throw, you catch. It's NOT that hard!"
Peyton Manning, SNL, 2007

by peytonsthebest on Nov 18, 2008 12:31 PM CST up reply actions

Let me preface this by saying

I’m not a Manning fan or a Colts fan however; I don’t see Denver beating Indy in the playoffs. Either at Denver or on the North Pole. Denver’s D is absolutely horrible. If Indy’s offense functions as it should there is no reason they should lose.

The PAIN TRAIN is comin baby!

by BigW on Nov 20, 2008 12:13 PM CST up reply actions