|
Playoff status
Seahawks, Rams inch closer to sewing up division crowns
Posted: Tuesday November 23, 1999 01:50 AM
| |
St. Louis' Kurt Warner consoles San Francisco head coach Steve Mariucci after the Rams beat the 49ers. AP |
By Jon A. Dolezar, CNN/SI
There were a couple of key changes in the CNNSI.com NFL Playoff Projections this week, as two teams are now looking very good atop their divisions with six weeks still to play, while two other teams fell back to the pack in the tightly bunched NFC. Seattle and St. Louis both had very important road wins against division rivals that opened up some breathing room at the top of each conference's Western division. Each team could conceivably win its division title in the next two weeks with some help from other teams. The Packers' 26-17 win over the Lions was huge in keeping their playoff hopes alive, as a loss to Detroit would've dropped the Packers to 4-6 with four road games remaining. Now the Packers are bunched up in the tightly-packed NFC Central, with only 1 1/2 games separating all five teams in the division. We have dropped both Detroit and Minnesota back to the rest of the pack, as the NFC Central is too close to call at this point, with many key games still to be played within the division. That puts St. Louis as the only sure thing in the NFC right now, with seven teams fighting for the remaining five spots.
Let's take a look at the teams in each conference and see where they stand after 11 weeks of the season: AFC
| Good as in |
| Team | Record | Outlook |
Jacksonville
Miami
Indianapolis
Seattle
| 9-1
8-2
8-2
8-2
| Defense keeps forcing turnovers
Marino's leadership will help down the stretch
Eight points away from possibly being 10-0
Three-game lead in West should be enough
|
| In a dogfight |
| Team | Record | Outlook |
Tennessee
Buffalo
New England
Kansas City
Pittsburgh
Oakland
| 8-2
7-4
6-4
5-5
5-5
5-5
| Should make it in with two more wins
Inconsistency is a bit worrisome
Bledsoe better shake out of his slump soon
Loss at home makes Chiefs look suspect
Turnovers could down Steelers
Loss to Broncos hurts hopes for wild card
|
| When is the draft? |
| Team | Record | Outlook |
San Diego
Baltimore
New York Jets
Denver
Cleveland
Cincinnati
| 4-6
4-6
4-6
4-7
2-9
1-10
| In a freefall and there's no end in sight
Stover saves Ravens from bad loss
Trying to spoil someone else's season
Elam keeping Broncos in a lot of games
Dawg Pound not a home-field advantage so far
Bad loss has Coslet looking over shoulder
| NFC
| Good as in |
| Team | Record | Outlook |
| St. Louis | 8-2 | Balanced offense keeps getting it done |
| In a dogfight |
| Team | Record | Outlook |
Detroit
Minnesota
Washington
Tampa Bay
New York Giants
Dallas
Green Bay
| 6-4
6-4
6-4
6-4
5-5
5-5
5-5
| Blew a chance to get some breathing room
Easy game next week with San Diego at home
Redskins a game up on division rivals
Gramatica could be Bucs offensive MVP
Mistakes could end hopes soon
Smith looked great, rest of offense struggled
Off life support... for now
|
| When is the draft? |
| Team | Record | Outlook |
Chicago
Carolina
Arizona
San Francisco
Philadelphia
Atlanta
New Orleans
| 5-6
4-6
4-6
3-7
3-8
2-8
2-8
| Slim hopes still alive after OT win
Win over Browns doesn't count for much
Murrell played well back in starting lineup
The torch has been officially passed to the Rams
How did they win three games?
Defense played well, but blew lead late vs. Bucs
Hung in with the Jaguars for 30 minutes at least
|
| Related information |
| Multimedia |
 Visit Multimedia Central for the latest audio and video
|
| Search our site |
Watch CNN/SI 24 hours a day |
|
|
Sports Illustrated and CNN have combined to form a 24 hour sports news and information channel. To receive CNN/SI at your home call your cable operator or DirecTV. |
|
Copyright © 2000
CNN/Sports Illustrated
An AOL Time Warner Company.
All Rights Reserved.
|
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.
|
| 
