NFL Week 16 Play by Play Thread

NFL Week 16 Play by Play Thread Dec 22, 2019 17:28:04 GMT Xeliou66 and movieliker like this

Quote

Post by DC-Fan on Dec 22, 2019 17:28:04 GMT

Dec 22, 2019 17:05:47 GMT movieliker said:

Dec 22, 2019 16:56:25 GMT DC-Fan said:

Yes, forgot that Green Bay is also in the running for the #1 seed.

But Seattle can't claim the #1 seed without help. Seattle lost to New Orleans so Seattle not only has to win, they need New Orleans to lose. Similar with Green Bay. Green Bay lost to San Francisco so Green Bay not only has to win, they need San Francisco to lose. And New Orleans lost to San Francisco so New Orleans not only has to win, they need San Francisco to lose. San Francisco is the only team that doesn't need help and can claim the #1 seed by winning their final 2 games.

I think that is wrong. If all 4 --- Seattle, Green Bay, New Orleans and San Francisco --- end up tied, the tie breaker for a 3 or 4 way tie, is different than the tie breaker for a 2 way tie.

Seattle gets the #1 spot with a 3 or 4 way tie --- Seattle has the better conference record.

I think that's wrong.

1st, assuming Seattle beats Arizona today, Seattle and San Francisco will both be 12-3. Since they play next week, unless they tie, it's unlikely there'll be a 4-way tie.

2nd, the 3 and 4-way tiebreakers only apply if the 3 or 4 teams tied for a seeding or a wild-card playoff spot are all in different divisions. When 2 teams are in the same division, the divisional tiebreakers apply first. So the first tiebreaker would be to break a tie for the NFC West champion. Whoever loses that tiebreaker would automatically be the #5 seed and have no chance for the #1 seed. Then the tiebreaker applies to Green Bay, New Orleans, and the NFC West Champion.

If San Francisco is the NFC West Champion (which they can do by winning their last 2 games), then they would be the NFC #1 seed because they've beaten both Green Bay and New Orleans. So both Green Bay and New Orleans need at least 1 San Francisco loss to claim the NFC #1 seed.

Seattle may claim the #1 seed if they win the NFC West and are in a 3-way tie with Green Bay and New Orleans (I haven't verified that yet), but if Seattle wins the NFC West and is in a 2-way tie with New Orleans, then New Orleans gets the NFC #1. So unless there's a 3-way tie between Seattle, Green Bay, and New Orleans, Seattle would need some help to claim the NFC #1.

This is why the NFC playoffs will be more interesting this year. While Action Jackson and Baltimore are clearly the AFC's best team and should go to the Super Bowl, there are 4 strong teams that can represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.