It’s the most wonderful time of the year — the playoff push. It’s the time of year where seasons are made and seasons are crushed. It’s the time of the year when organizations put everything on the table to take the next step. And the way this season has shaped up, it’s going to be a tenacious finish over the next two weeks with a lot of story-lines to follow. So let’s get to it. These are the games to keep an eye on this Sunday.
New Orleans Saints vs. Dallas Cowboys
The NFC East is shaping up to become the typical December-slugfest for division supremacy that we all know and love. Could this be the year the Cowboys finally pull it together for a true run at the playoffs? Possibly.
Players are buying into what head coach Jason Garrett is selling and it’s showing. Wide receiver Dez Bryant is emerging as the star receiver so many saw him as when he came out of Oklahoma State three years ago and he’s playing like one. Aside from his numbers (79/1,087/10), Bryant is playing through a broken finger for his team. Pretty tricky for a wide receiver but he pulled it off last week catching four balls for 59 yards and a touchdown; and could put up similar if not better numbers against the New Orleans Saints, who are giving up 287 yards per game through the air.
By winning on Sunday, the Cowboys would be one step closer to winning the division and becoming “America’s Team” again like it was circa the 1990s. However the Saints are a big roadblock. New Orleans is coming off a huge 41-0 shutout over the division rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Rolling on the heels of a big win and fighting for suspended head coach Sean Payton’s job, the Saints (6-8) won’t be an easy win for the Cowboys.
Minnesota Vikings vs. Houston Texans
This game is the record breakers. This is a marquee game that could showcase the dawning of a new age of NFL superstars as Adrian Peterson and J.J. Watt look to break NFL single-season records. Not to mention the Vikings playoff hopes linger on this game as well.
Eric Dickerson in 1984, while playing for the Los Angeles Rams, set the NFL single-season rushing record totaling 2,105 yards. The record still stands nearly 30 years later but will it still stand at the end of this season?
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson has already reached 1,812 yards and will need roughly 300 yards over the next two games. That’s 150 per-game the next two weeks and this week’s match-up versus a tough Houston Texans run-defense will be a challenge as the Texans have given up only 93.2. If Peterson can’t notch 150-yards it will make one person happy: Dickerson.
“[H]e’s a phenomenal player and seems like a good dude. If a player was to break it, I’d probably want it to be Adrian, but I like having the record,” Dickerson said to Mike Freeman of CBSSports.com. “I don’t think it’s going to be broken.”
To be broken or not, it says plenty that this discussion is even being held in an era when the game has gone as aerial and pass-happy as it has. Broken or not, that magical ‘84 season Dickerson had? He carried his team to the playoffs with a 5.6 yards-per-carry average. Peterson and his Vikings are in the thick of the Wild Card. His yards-per-carry? 6.3.
Washington Redskins vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Oh how the tables have turned. For years it was the Redskins wallowing in the catacombs of the NFC East. A draft-day trade for the ages later, the Redskins have a dynamic quarterback in Robert Griffin III and have surfaced as a growing force in the division. The Eagles? They have had an Icarus-esque fall from consistent division and playoff contender to a 4-10 team that is starring a head-to-toe rebuilding process dead in the eyes.
The ‘Skins are this year’s Cinderella story, a classic worst-to-first turnaround. Head coach Mike Shanahan has rebuilt this franchise in just two years and has them potentially in the playoffs on the backs of two rookies, Griffin III and running back Alfred Morris.
While Griffin III has orchestrated a Rookie-of-the-Year like performance, passing for 2,902 yards and 18 touchdowns to go along with an 8-6 record, Morris has quietly established himself as the premier workhorse running back that Shanahan loves to use in his offenses. A sixth-round pick out of Florida Atlantic, Morris has racked up 1,322 yards – most amongst rookies.
However it’s not just the Redskins flaunting rookies. The Eagles have turned to former Arizona Wildcats’ quarterback Nick Foles. After starter Michael Vick went down in Week 10, the fourth-round rookie stepped up and has performed admirably with a 77.6 quarterback rate. With the Eagles virtually shutting down Vick for the rest of the season, the team is getting a better look at Foles to see if he can man the ship for the future.
And what better test than this? If Foles can lead the Eagles past the rival Redskins and ultimately crushing the ‘Skins playoff hopes, expect Foles to be around for 2013.
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
It’s not for the NFC East anymore. The triple-threat match for division supremacy has now spilled over to NFC North with the rise of the Cincinnati Bengals. With Cincinnati sitting in second in the division, it has the very real possibility of shunning the once dominant Pittsburgh Steelers whose playoff hopes hinge on this game.
Cincinnati has been close to putting it together for years and with last year’s golden drafting of Andy Dalton and A.J. Green, the team seems destined to make a legitimate push. They rank in the top-10 in both total offense and defense. Matched with last seasons surprising playoff run, the young team, already has some playoff experience to learn from.
As much as coach’s will say “this is just another week”, this week is not. This is a statement game for the Cincinnati Bengals. The once dominant Steelers, are finally showing their age and have been hampered by injuries all season long. If the Bengals could put a stake to the heart of their division rivals playoff dreams, the Bengals could be targeting the Ravens next for title of “Top Dog” in the AFC North.
New York Giants vs. Baltimore Ravens
Did we mention that the NFC East and the AFC North are absolute battlegrounds for division leaders? Yes? Well this is just ironic. The two hottest divisions in the league have their top teams squaring off this week.
The Ravens are tops in the division but have struggled as of late. They fired offensive coordinator Cam Cameron and promoted former-Colts head coach Jim Caldwell to coordinator. The team has also suffered critical injuries along the defense with linebackers Terrell Suggs and Ray Lewis battling bicep and triceps injuries, respectively.
Not to mention wide receiver Torrey Smith is now questionable with a concussion suffered last week after landing hard on the turf after attempting to catch a jump ball.
The Giants, in the midst of a three-way tie with Washington and Dallas, are pulling their usual December “should we stay or should we go” shenanigans. They have proved they can turn it on when they want but do they want it enough this year?
In a bumpy season they have had player after player step up like Ramses Barden, Andre Brown, David Wilson, and Stevie Brown.
One player who will definitely be giving it his all is wide receiver Victor Cruz. Already the team’s leading receiver, Cruz is playing for a little angle the rest of this season.
In the wake of the heartbreaking shooting-tragedy in Newtown, Conn. Cruz found himself to be one of the victims’ favorite player. Cruz found out Saturday, that he was six-year-old Jack Pinto’s favorite player via Twitter and called the Pinto family that night to tell them Sunday would be dedicated to their son. Cruz wrote “My Hero” and “R.I.P Jack Pinto” on his gloves and cleats for last week’s contest against the Atlanta Falcons.
This Wednesday, Cruz visited the Pintos as he promised and presented them with the equipment he honored their son with.
“I saw how affected they were just by my presence alone. I got out and gave them the cleats and the gloves, and they appreciated it,” Cruz said.
San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks
With Saturday football back on the NFL schedule, there is no Monday game this week. That means the cap to Week 16 is a battle for the NFC West. The winner of this game is virtually wins the division and the loser will most likely get a Wild Card spot. Either way, each team is in good shape to make it to the playoffs. It’s just a matter of division pride and rivalry with a hint of record-breaking.
Remember the NFL single-season record J.J. Watt was going for against Minnesota? The Niners’ Aldon Smith is going for the same record – most sacks in a single season. Both Watt and Smith have 19.5 sacks going into this week and need just 3.5 sacks to get the record held by former-Giant Michael Strahan in 2001.
But that’s not the only thing to keep an eye out for. These division rivals also boast two very interesting elements to their team.
One of which is defense. The 49ers and Seahawks have the second and third total defenses in the league. However, Seattle will be at a disadvantage as starting cornerback Brandon Browner will be out as he serves a four-game suspension for testing positive for Adderall.
Fellow corner Richard Sherman, has been in the process of appealing a four-game suspension for testing positive for the drug as well. However, it seems he will still play versus the Niners.
“I’m anticipating we’ll have him. We know nothing else at this point,” head coach Pete Carroll told USA Today.
While both teams flaunt stellar defenses, both with have a tricky time with the mobile quarterbacks both teams possess. Both rookie Russell Wilson for Seattle and Colin Kaepernick of San Francisco have proven running abilities. Combined the quarterbacks have rushed for 781 yards and eight touchdowns. While both insist on passing first, Wilson and Kaepernick have proven abilities to flee the pocket and gain serious yardage on the ground.
