The AFC is making it very interesting this year Jim Purcell, Publisher Posted:12/01/08
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The AFC is an interesting conference to watch because it offers the best competition going into the postseason. Meanwhile, the NFC’s playoff picture has become remarkably clear, I think.
I cannot believe I am saying this, but I will because it’s true: The New York Jets (8-3) are the team to beat from the AFC East. Most likely, depending on how the Steelers from the North perform, I think we’re actually talking about home field for the Jets.
The Jets are coming off a 34-13 victory over the previously undefeated Tennessee Titans, improving their record to 8-3. Jets QB Brett Favre ably picked off the Tennessee defense and Jets dominated not only on the scoreboard, but also in time of possession (40:30 to 19:30) and first downs (28-16). What is there to say? The Jets have it going on.
For my part, though, I do not think the New England Patriots (7-4) are anywhere near done with contending for the East outright. But, next week offers a chance for them to prove that they’re still in the hunt when the Pats play the 8-3 Steelers at home. If the Pats beat the Steelers, there is something to talk about. I think the Pats are beating them, though. NE QB Matt Cassel is consistently throwing for more than 400 yards and is not turning the ball over. The question mark in New England is the defense, though. Can this aging, injured defense do the job?
The 6-4 Colts are interesting because they’re winning, but I’m not believing they’re back from the dead yet. They have a future Hall-of-Fame quarterback in Peyton Manning and their offense is starting to click, but they have some more to prove.
Meanwhile, when the best team in the AFC West is the greatly injured Denver Broncos (6-5), it is saying that the entire division has taken this year off. In the AFC North, no one can count out the Steelers or the Ravens (7-4) from running the table. I just don’t think they are going to, since there are some consistency issues with the Steeler offense and there is still a QB question in Baltimore.
It’s easy to talk about the NFC: Giants (10-1) and Cardinals (7-4), with the Bucs (8-3) rising to the top, and the Panthers (8-3) not out of anything yet.
The Giants flattened the Cards last week, with QB Eli Manning throwing for 234 yards against perhaps the best Cardinals team of the last couple decades. The Giants are firing on all cylinders and they’re the guys to beat.
The Cardinals are going to take their division (which is historically bad this year). QB Kurt Warner has the offensive tools to make a run, but the question is how long Cinderella is going to be at the dance. Can the Cards win big games they need to in order to go deep into the playoff picture? I don’t think so.
But in the NFC South, the 8-3 Buccaneers and 8-3 Carolina Panthers are making some noise. Both these franchises are experienced, deep in talent and are relatively uninjured. If someone is going to end the Giant dream of representing the NFC in the Super Bowl this year, it’ll be one of these two. Sure, the Bucs have a way of losing the big games in the playoffs, as does Carolina. But they each have the talent and ability to be a dream spoiler in New York.
