# NFL Week 15
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327
**Category:** The Game Room
**Created:** [December 15, 2011, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327 "2011-12-15T19:48:29Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 8
### Author:  [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/141 "2011-12-19T01:55:34Z")
> [@chizzuk](#):
>
> Why in the world did Tebow run backwards for 30 YARDS at the end of that game? I have never seen a 30-yard sack before. How dumb is that?
The long sack is my favorite play in sports (slight hyperbole, perhaps). They are just so exciting.
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### Author:  [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/142 "2011-12-19T01:57:35Z")
> [@chizzuk](#):
>
> How dumb is that?
It wasn’t dumb. It was fourth down while losing by 18 with 40-odd seconds left. It was a last gasp.
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### Author:  [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/143 "2011-12-19T02:14:36Z")
Did a Lions vs Raiders matchup seem ‘unusual’ to anyone else? I just don’t remember them playing each other much before, kinda like Cowboys vs Ravens it just doesn’t seem to happen very often. I wonder how many times they’ve met in the last decade or two. I googled, poorly, but only saw it hasn’t been since 2007.
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### Author:  [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/144 "2011-12-19T02:15:21Z")
Every team plays every other team once every four years at minimum.
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### Author:  [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/145 "2011-12-19T02:22:59Z")
> [@chizzuk](#):
>
> Why in the world did Tebow run backwards for 30 YARDS at the end of that game? I have never seen a 30-yard sack before. How dumb is that?
Should he have thrown it away?
> [@SenorBeef](#):
>
> Every team plays every other team once every four years at minimum.
Really? I don’t know if this is true. I don’t remember the last time Miami played either San Francisco or St. Louis.
Edit: I guess it is true. My memory seems to be worse than I thought.
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### Author:  [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/146 "2011-12-19T02:27:01Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#):
>
> When NE converted that 4th down, I immediately thought SHUT UP EASTERBROOK
Fortune favors the bold.
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### Author:  [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/147 "2011-12-19T02:30:24Z")
Gracias, Señor. That’s an interesting fact. I wonder what % of fans knew that.
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### Author:  [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/148 "2011-12-19T02:30:53Z")
> [@chizzuk](#):
>
> Why in the world did Tebow run backwards for 30 YARDS at the end of that game? I have never seen a 30-yard sack before. How dumb is that?
It was 4th down and if they didn’t convert the game was over anyway. Not dumb at all.
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### Author:  [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/149 "2011-12-19T03:28:33Z")
Fucking Chargers giving me hope once again.
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### Author:  [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/150 "2011-12-19T03:30:53Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#):
>
> Really? I don’t know if this is true. I don’t remember the last time Miami played either San Francisco or St. Louis.
>
> Edit: I guess it is true. My memory seems to be worse than I thought.
The NFL scheduling is very simple. Every year, 14 of your 16 games are pre-determined. You play everyone in your division twice (6 games) and your division is matched up with two divisions, one NFC, one AFC, and plays every team in those two divisions (8 games).
So, Miami and the AFC East are playing the NFC East and AFC West this year. Next year they’ll get two different divisions to play. Thus, you can never go longer than four years without playing a team.
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### Author:  [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/151 "2011-12-19T03:33:13Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#):
>
> Really? I don’t know if this is true. I don’t remember the last time Miami played either San Francisco or St. Louis.
>
> Edit: I guess it is true. My memory seems to be worse than I thought.
Before the NFL went to 32 teams, and a new scheduling format, it wasn’t always the case, and you could get long gaps in games between teams (particularly interconference matchups), since part of the schedule was determined by a team’s prior-year placement in its division. IIRC, the new scheduling format minimizes that effect.
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### Author:  [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/152 "2011-12-19T03:43:59Z")
Thanks, Erdosian. That is pretty simple. What determines the other two?
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### Author:  [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/153 "2011-12-19T03:49:46Z")
> [@lieu](#):
>
> Thanks, Erdosian. That is pretty simple. What determines the other two?
It’s the two other teams in your conference that finished with the same division standings.
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### Author:  [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/154 "2011-12-19T03:50:54Z")
> [@lieu](#):
>
> Thanks, Erdosian. That is pretty simple. What determines the other two?
From here: [NFL Schedule Formula](http://www.docsports.com/current/nfl-schedule-formula-021.html)
> [@](#):
>
> The biggest chunk of games comes from division play. Each team plays each of the other three teams in its division twice - once at home and once on the road. That accounts for six of the 16 games.
>
> Each team plays each of the four teams in one of the divisions in their own conference. This rotates, so every division plays every other division in their conference once every three years. Two of those four games are at home, and two are on the road.
>
> The next four games are played against the four teams in a division in the other conference. This alternates also, so each division will play each other division in the other conference once every four years. Two of these games are at home, and two are on the road, and that will be the opposite the next time the divisions meet.
>
> The last two games come against two teams in their conference which they are not already playing that finished in the same place in their division standings as they did - i.e. - if the AFC East is playing the AFC West, then the third place team in the AFC East would play the third place teams in the AFC North and AFC South.
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### Author:  [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/155 "2011-12-19T03:52:00Z")
> [@lieu](#):
>
> Thanks, Erdosian. That is pretty simple. What determines the other two?
I believe the last two games are against the two teams from the remaining two divisions in your own conference which finished in the same place in their division as your team did the prior year.
For instance, this year, the Packers (NFC North) played the NFC South and the AFC West. As the Pack finished in 2nd place in the NFC North in 2010, they also played the Giants (2nd in the NFC East) and Rams (2nd in the NFC West).
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### Author:  [@hazynlazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hazynlazy)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/156 "2011-12-19T03:56:40Z")
Calvin Johnson is absolutely incredible. Not that we didn’t already know that.
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### Author:  [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/157 "2011-12-19T04:49:35Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#):
>
> When NE converted that 4th down, I immediately thought SHUT UP EASTERBROOK
> [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](#):
>
> Fortune favors the bold.
Are we neglecting the influence of cheer babe professionalism?
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### Author:  [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/158 "2011-12-19T04:56:18Z")
The Cold Coach = Victory postulate didn’t hold up in Kansas City, where both coaches were kind of bundled up.
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### Author:  [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/159 "2011-12-19T08:14:34Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#):
>
> Are we neglecting the influence of cheer babe professionalism?
He’s wrong about that too. Any team that has cheerleaders is automatically displeasing the football gods.
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### Author:  [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)
#### Post date: [December 19, 2011, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-week-15/606327/160 "2011-12-19T09:18:35Z")
I’m actually thinking at this point that Romeo figured out, after being a total failure as head coach in Cleveland, exactly why he was such a pathetic one. He can be another coach that gets his mistake-prone period out of the way in Cleveland, and then moves on to success elsewhere…
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