Shutdown Corner’s Playoff Projection: Are Giants best team in NFC East?
Fair warning: If the Eagles beat the Giants in Philly this weekend, we will gently tuck our tails between our legs and flip back — Eagles as the East champs and the Giants (perhaps) vying for one of those coveted wildcard spots.
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And the Giants might not actually mind that. They’ve won the Super Bowl under Tom Coughlin as a wildcard, even though their most recent title came as a 9-7 East champ.
Here are some questions you might have about how the early playoff picture stacks up:
Still believing in the New Orleans Saints, eh?
Sure, why not? Are you buying the Atlanta Falcons with their shell of an offensive line and playmaker-less defense? What about the first-place Carolina Panthers and their share of issues with injuries, sporadic play and roster holes?
The Saints have left something — a big something, in fact — to be desired this season. It hasn’t been pretty, no. The schedule is daunting, too, which gives us great pause. But we’re still betting on them coming out of their bye in decent enough shape, with six more home games, to eek out the NFC South.
But we’re putting nothing in ink at this point. It’s not as if the Panthers’ schedule (next three: at Cincinnati Bengals, at Green Bay Packers, vs. Seattle Seahawks) or the Falcons’ schedule (one non-division game remaining against a team with a losing record) are that much softer.
Are the Baltimore Ravens really good enough to get in as a wildcard?
Well, they are 3-2, and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ past few games give us the idea that they are no sure bet. Among the other wildcard possibilities in the AFC (assuming we have the division winners pegged), we’re talking about teams such as the Houston Texans, Buffalo Bills and Steelers — all 3-2 teams with shaky résumés — 2-2 outfits such as the Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns, and a 2-3 Kansas City Chiefs team that might not go away but might not be all that special either.
The Ravens have some things we like. A good coaching staff is one. A playoff-proven quarterback is another. Hungry, volatile and motivated veterans such as Steve Smith and Terrell Suggs. And players such as Suggs, Torrey Smith, Eugene Monroe and Lardarius Webb have yet to play their best ball. We’ll go ahead and assume they soon will get on track.
Explain your NFC North picks
Yeah, they likely need some ‘splainin’. The Detroit Lions beat the Green Bay Packers by two scores a few weeks ago, and yet here we have the Packers on top of the North, with the Lions slipping in as the No. 6 team in the conference as a wildcard.
What gives?
Well, the Lions’ recent setback — even if it can be explained — has us a bit skittish. Full disclosure: If the Lions had a reliable kicker (4-of-12 on FG attempts) up to this point, they likely would be 4-1, not 3-2. And not having a healthy backfield or Calvin Johnson clearly cost them dearly on Sunday.
But what if they don’t find solutions to these problems in short order? It would not be a total stunner to see the host Minnesota Vikings, with Teddy Bridgewater back, pull off the upset Sunday with some extended rest coming off their brutal Thursday night loss last week.
That said, we also can see the North coming down to the Week 17 Lions-Packers meeting. That one is in Green Bay.
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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Eric_Edholm
