Aaaaaahhhhh! Freakin CBS just switched to a different game! :mad:
snort Actually, I think a “special team” is pretty much where he belongs, if you get my meaning.
What happened to Ben-all of sudden, I turn around, and Charlie’s in.
The Steelers have somehow played themselves back into playoff contention. Every time I sound the death knell they win. Today was a massacre. If they win next week they have a legitimate shot. Imagine that, they might make the playoffs. Not that that would matter, though, because nobody ever wins from the 6 seed…
I hate to break it to you, but all this Steeler talk is pretty irrelevant in the face of the coming Chargers Super Bowl championship, and the subsequent renaming of the official NFL book o’ records. The new title? “LaDainian Tomlinson’s Big Blue Book of Wonder and Magic”.
Updated playoff scenarios:
We are eliminated next week 3 possible ways:
1)We lose to Balt.
2)Jax and Cinci beats Den
3)Jax wins, Den beats Cinci, and KC loses
So we don’t know who needs to win that Den/Cinci game.
Other situations:
Even though we lost to Jax and Denver, we can catch them both at 9-7 via the same scenario–If Tenn and KC catch the Jags and Broncs respectively, they would win the tiebreak within the division, but we win against KC or Tenn.
If we are in a 3 way tie at 9-7 involving Tenn, we lose by strenght of victory total. We beat them heads up at 9-7 due to better record against common opponents.
WHAT WE NEED TO HAPPEN THIS WEEK(in order of importance)
1)We beat Baltimore at home
2)NE wins in Jax
3)KC wins in Oak
4)Den beats Cin at home
5)Miami wins at home vs Jets
6)Tenn. wins at Buffalo
This would give us our most “outs” for the final week. All of the above games are not just feasible, but probably would hold if no upsets occurr.
If Art Rooney can guide the hand of God this weekend, Cincinatti and Denver would tie, which would keep both teams from getting a 9th win this weekend.
I can’t believe the playoff competition this year. There are four teams at 8-6, and four more at 7-7 - including even my Bills! I don’t expect the playoffs for them; I’m just happy that Losman appears to be settled in any things are going in the right direction. And then it’s the same in the NFC, except you think something more like “I can’t believe all these lousy teams might make the playoffs.” This should be a really exciting two weeks, even if you’re not a Chargers fan who wants to watch Tomlinson put the rushing and all-time TD marks WAY out of reach.
You don’t have to be a Chargers fan to have fun watching the best running back in the history of the game “Gretzsky” the record book, as Mr. Madden says.
2 weeks left in the season and only 7 teams have been eliminated from the playoff race. You might as well pull names out of a hat to try and guess who’s going to grab those wildcard spots.
Well we got one of our wishes…KC won today.
We hold the heads up tiebreaker vs the Jets, or vs the Titans, but if we finish in any 3 way tie with the Titans we lose it…regardless, I still think the following are what we root for, because it gives us the most ways to get in:
1)We beat Balt.
2)NE must beat Jags
3)Den. beats Cinci
4)Miami beats Jets(this is looking more and more critical)
5)Tenn. wins in Buffalo
Alas, I will miss the game this week. 
I will be on the road for the holiday season.
This year has sucked as far as viewing convenience.
You guys will have to root twice as hard without me! 
Now we can stick a fork in the season. It was a hell of a good attempt in the 2nd half of the season, but Baltimore was just too strong.
Damn. At least they won last year. Much as I wanted to see a repeat I’m still pretty content.
Thanks for posting all that. I had a hard time finding it anywhere else.
That’s probably because you’ve been reading the reality-based media.
Seriously, i’ve always believed (no matter what the sport) that once the number of factors you need to make the playoffs (excluding your own victories) exceeds 2, then you’re basically in the realm of wishful thinking.
I was a little worried at half-time today. I was happy that the Ravens essentially dominated the first half, but nervous because Pittsburgh is always a danger when they are still in the game. The second half turned into a bit of a turn-over-fest. That red-zone fumble by Parker essentially sealed the deal.
So, the Ravens sweep the series against the Steelers for (i think) the first time in franchise history, with a combined score of 58-7. Excellent! The Indy loss today was very nice, and our weekend will be complete if Seattle can beat the Chargers.
I was actually being genuine.
What I meant was, while every sports outlet on the planet was reporting that the Steelers’ playoff hopes had been faint, I had trouble finding anyone who had bothered to work out the specific group of wins and losses that the Steelers needed to pull off the miracle.
And I never said I was a Steelers fan!
I never said you were either. I was merely making a comment about the tortuous set of calculations that some sports fans will go to in order to sustain hope in a team that is really, for all intents and purposes, out of the running.
Well, I only hope Cinci makes the playoffs, then gets to play Baltimore, and trounces them.
I would like us to take out the trash within the AFC North and not involve outsiders.
I, too, was hoping that the Bengals would win today, if only because i dislike them less than i dislike Denver.
Pity they couldn’t even manage an extra point to tie the game with seconds left.
Hadn’t you heard? That’s done, the Browns have been out of it for a while now.
While the Browns may suck, at least they don’t embrace the thug life and cover up murders. I do acknowledge, though, that I guess the Bengals are almost as trashy, since they’re doing their best to become Baltimore West.
Weirddave, I salute you. The Ravens were the better team yesterday, as they were last time they played the Steelers. My entire family of Steeler fans are of the opinion that they deserve to go to the Super Bowl and, for your sake, I hope they do. I’ve no qualms about getting by the better team and you guys were better. Merry Christmas!
On the other hand, I do have one quibble with the way one of the Pittsburgh newspapers is talking about yesterday’s game. They keep saying, “It couldn’t get worse.” They’re wrong – it could. Just ask a Lions fan, a Raiders fan, or even, perhaps, a Cleveland fan. Detroit and Oakland are competing for first draft pick and yesterday Detroit fans staged a walk out calling for a new general manager. It seems that, under the current one, the Lions have lost at least 10 games a season. We’re spoiled in Pittsburgh. In the 12 years I’ve been back here, we’ve always had a shot at the playoffs and I think this is only the second time we’ve missed them. I still remember the glory years of the '70s and '80s. This year, we weren’t that good. We’ve got the schedule we earned and with any luck, we’ll do better next year. If we can’t play top-rank, competetive football, and this year we didn’t, we don’t deserve to be in the playoffs or the Super Bowl.
I don’t like the Ravens. I don’t like what Art Modell did to the people of Cleveland, and, frankly, I’ve got a bunch of friends in Cincinnati and enjoy their hospitality at least once a year. I felt sorry for them when I saw the botched extra point yesterday. Still, right now, the Ravens are the best team in the division. If I say I like good football (and I do), I’ve got no choice.
Go Ravens! (Go Bengals, too, but you’ve got a bit further to go!)