The National Football league loves its parity. It’s not a coincidence that teams rarely make it back to the playoffs two or three years straight. It’s a design that has served the league well.
In 2016, it appears that we have hit peak parity. Going into the Monday night game between the Arizona Cardinals and New York Jets, there are only a handful of teams with no shot of reaching the postseason (Browns, 49ers, Dolphins, Bears). Everybody else either has a flicker of a flame or a raging inferno.
Yes, there are a few teams that look a cut above the rest. Nobody seems capable of stopping the New England Patriots on even a decent day, while the Minnesota Vikings are showcasing the best defense in football. For everyone else, it’s all about the Any Given Sunday mentality.
So many love the Pittsburgh Steelers, but they have been blown out by the Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles. Now, Ben Roethlisberger is out for an unknown amount of time with a torn meniscus in his left knee. The Denver Broncos are defending champs, but they are a missed Graham Gano field goal from being 3-3, and have Trevor Siemian at quarterback.
The San Diego Chargers are only 2-4, but they have been very impressive for most of their 360 minutes this season. It will be a long climb back in the AFC West, though, with three good teams ahead of them.
Speaking of those teams, what about the Oakland Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs? Oakland was 4-1 going into Sunday before getting beaten soundly by the Chiefs in a driving rainstorm. The Chiefs moved to 3-2 and now look like a team to be reckoned with, despite having a 43-14 loss at the hands of the Steelers two weeks ago.
Maybe the greatest example of parity is in the NFC East. The Washington Redskins are 4-2 and the Dallas Cowboys are 5-1 after beating the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Those two are battling atop the division, while the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles fight to stay in the race at 3-3 and 3-2, respectively. Dallas appears to be the frontrunner, but it’s tough to say the Cowboys are in the clear.
Even toward the upper echelon of the league, there are real questions about almost every team. The Seattle Seahawks are excellent, but can that offensive line hold up against the riggers of a 16-game season? What about the defense of the Atlanta Falcons? Head coach Dan Quinn is scheming his way to stops with that group, but can he continue the magic trick?
No team is a greater example of “what the hell do we know?” more than the Buffalo Bills. After two weeks, Buffalo fired its offensive coordinator and had games coming against the Patriots and Cardinals, already sitting at 0-2. Since, the Bills have reeled off four consecutive wins and are a game out of the AFC East leads.
With 10 weeks to go, anything can, and will, happen.
Power rankings
Top 10 home-field advantages
1. Seattle Seahawks, CenturyLink Field
2. Denver Broncos, Sports Authority Field at Mile High
3. Pittsburgh Steelers, Heinz Field
4. Green Bay Packers, Lambeau Field
5. Kansas City Chiefs, Arrowhead Stadium
6. New Orleans Saints, Superdome
7. Baltimore Ravens, M&T Bank Stadium
8. Oakland Raiders, Oakland Coliseum
9. Washington Redskins, FedEx Field
10. Buffalo Bills, New Era Stadium
Quotable
"“Have a glass of scotch and chill out a little bit [and] watch the film,” Rodgers said after the Packers’ 30-16 loss at Lambeau Field. “I’m my biggest critic, and I look at this as finely as I look at every other game and improve.”"
– Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, commenting on the next move after Sunday’s defeat
At some point, it becomes fair to question whether we have seen the best of Rodgers. He has completed less than 60 percent of his throws and is without any dominant performances this season, save the first half of Green Bay’s Week 3 win over the Detroit Lions.
If the Packers are going to get to the Super Bowl or even approach it, Rodgers has to be in the MVP conversation. Without that level of play? Good luck.
Random stat
Against the Detroit Lions, the Los Angeles Rams got a 300-yard passing performance out of Case Keenum. It was only the second time in his career that Keenum has eclipsed that mark. He’s lost both times.
Info learned this week
1. Panthers are cooked
After losing 41-38 to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday afternoon, it’s fair to bury the Carolina Panthers. Carolina is 1-5 and at this point, only the Cleveland Browns have a worse record. The Panthers don’t seem to be able to overcome what was a rough loss in Super Bowl 50, and it’s costing them their 2016 season.
Also, this start makes you question general manager David Gettleman’s decision to cut ties with All-Pro cornerback Josh Norman. Norman was perhaps the best corner in football last year, and his absence has destroyed that secondary.
2. Ravens fall in brutal fashion
Baltimore has now lost three consecutive games, all by a single score. In fact, all of the Ravens’ six games have been within a six-point margin. The Ravens had a lead against the New York Giants with under two minutes to go, only to watch Odell Beckham Jr. take over.
New York has to feel like it has new life. At 3-3, the Giants are right in the middle of the NFC East race. The Ravens, on the other hand, have to feel relieved considering the rest of the division lost as well. If Baltimore is going to make a real playoff push, though, it needs to figure out some different offensive schemes.
3. Redskins showing why they still run the East
Yes, the Dallas Cowboys went into FedEx Field and beat the Redskins in Week 2, but Washington appears to have found itself over the past four weeks. Quarterback Kirk Cousins is playing winning football by avoiding turnovers, and has helped the Redskins earn a pair of divisional wins against the Philadelphia Eagles and Giants.
As for Philadelphia, maybe the Carson Wentz hype was being a bit premature. Yes, the kid looks very good, but he needs help. Wentz was 11-of-22 for 179 yards without a touchdown. If the Eagles are going to continue fighting for a divisional title, the defense and running game need to step up.
4. Bengals facing long road back to postseason
The New England Patriots are really good, perhaps even great. On Sunday, they showed why again with a victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, sending the Queen City cats to a 2-4 record. The Bengals have reached the playoffs in each of the last five seasons under head coach Marvin Lewis, but the task is looking very daunting to make it a half-dozen.
Cincinnati still has to play the Ravens twice and hosts the Steelers. In addition, the Buffalo Bills will come to town and Christmas Eve sees a trip to take on the Houston Texans. If the Bengals are going to get back into the postseason, the time is now.
5. AFC South is a circus
We don’t know very much about any of these teams. The Houston Texans are likely the best of the bunch, especially after engineering a 14-point comeback in the final three minutes of regulation against the Indianapolis Colts. At 2-4, the Colts are sitting in last and now face the Tennessee Titans, who after a pair of consecutive wins are 3-3.
It’s tough to see more than one team in this division reaching the playoffs. The Jacksonville Jaguars are also in the mix, sitting at 2-3 after beating the Colts and Bears. It promises to be a wild ride for these four teams, with nobody out of it yet.
History lesson of the week
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost the first 26 games of their franchise’s history before finally winning a game in Week 13 of the 1977 campaign against the New Orleans Saints. Tampa Bay then won the following contest against the St. Louis Cardinals, its first home win.
Two years later, the Buccaneers hosted the NFC Championship Game. Tampa Bay lost to the Rams, 9-0.
Parting shot
It’s already looking like time to ponder the first-round draft choice for some teams. The Browns, 49ers, Bears, Panthers and Jets each have one win or less and with the parity in the league, it will be very tough to jump so many teams ahead of them.
For the 49ers, Browns and Bears, the first notion has to be getting a quarterback. Luckily for them, there are going to be some options in DeShone Kizer and Deshaun Watson to name a few. Carolina could add a very important piece to its secondary, while the Jets have an opportunity to get another offensive weapon or defensive back.
It’s only October, but the rest of this season is going to be one long, painful nightmare for those teams. Keep dreaming of April.