(Disclaimer: This article was written Wednesday November 10. Some of the factual info could be outdated by Publish date November 17.)
NFL
We are entering week 10 of the 2021-22 NFL season. The season has gone by so fast, and the playoffs are coming really soon. November is one of the best months for football. We get to see how good the dome and warm weather teams can play outside on the road when it's freezing cold. Also, teams are really beginning to attempt making some fast, hard playoff pushes. Starting more recently in week 9 of the NFL, there were a lot of big upsets. The Jagz beat the Bills. The Cowboys got blown out by the Broncos and The Rams lost at home to the Titans. The season is beginning to become more intense now at the halfway point teams are beginning to look for making a playoff push. Here is the NFC playoff picture:
Bye team #1 seed- Arizona Cardinals (8-1)
In the Hunt: Panthers, Vikings, Seahawks
Now there is a lot to unpack here, starting with the Hunt. You can clearly see the NFC is less deep than the AFC, because they don't have as many competitive teams. The 7 seed is 4-4 and all hunt teams have losing records. The most interesting part is The Rams and Cardinals. They are maybe the two best teams in the conference. They play in the same division, so one of them will likely get the #1 seed and bye as well as having home field throughout the playoffs. The other will be stuck with zero home playoff games. The Bucs and Packers though can’t be overlooked as Superbowl threats. The Bucs still have Brady and a stifling defense, though they’re banged up in the injury department. Once Aaron Rogers comes back, we know who the Packers are.
Moving on to the AFC
Bye team #1 seed- Titans (7-2)
In the Hunt- Chiefs, Browns, Bengals, Broncos, Colts
The AFC has more teams in the hunt as you can tell. Also, four of the five teams in the AFC hunt have a winning record compared to the NFC who has none. The AFC is a way more competitive conference for making the playoffs as Wildcards. It’s
kind of shocking to see the Titans as the #1 seed. They are an extremely good team, but with Derrick Henry injured, they are going to need Tannehill to step it up in the passing game. They signed veteran RB Adrian Peterson to help out in the running game. The Ravens, Chargers, and Bills are all really good teams, but they all could still lose their division. The Patriots are nipping at the Bills’ heels. The Ravens have to focus on beating out the Bengals, Browns, and Steelers, who are all right there. The Chargers have to maintain a solid streak of wins to beat out the Raiders, Chiefs, and Broncos who all have winning records. This may be the best the AFC has been in a long time. There is so much depth it's crazy. Now let’s do the top ten NFL teams, Thanksgiving edition. Remember these are not factual or copied from CBS or ESPN or anywhere, this is solely my opinion.
1 Arizona Cardinals- 8-1
2 Green Bay Packers- 7-2
3 Tampa Bay Buccaneers- 6-2
4 Los Angeles Rams- 7-2
5 Baltimore Ravens- 6-2
6 Tennessee Titans- 7-2
7 Buffalo Bills- 5-3
8 Dallas Cowboys- 6-2
9 Los Angeles Chargers- 5-3
10 Cleveland Browns- 5-4
Now let me explain the reasoning for my top 10. The Cleveland Browns at 10 got rid of Odel and it honestly feels like it benefited them a lot. They are also 2nd in the league in rushing yards per game. Kareem Hunt and Nick Chubb are the best running back duo in the league. They keep teams off the field. They also have
the 3rd best yards against in the league. They keep your star offensive players off the field and make it difficult on them to move the ball. At number 9 we have the Chargers. They convert on 44 percent of 3rd downs. They keep the ball moving. They win a lot of close games. That is good and concerning. It means they have experience in close tight situations but also have a tendency to play down to their opponents. They are not great anywhere but solid everywhere, which lands them at 9. Cowboys at 8, They have the 3rd best scoring offense, averaging 30 points per game. They have the 3rd best rushing offense averaging 141 rush yards per game. They also have the 4th best passing offense averaging 291.5 passing yards a game. This team offensively is elite. They have great running backs and wide receivers. They are 18th in scoring defense. When they play good teams and can't score 30, their defense a lot of times can't make up the difference. They are also 18th in giveaways. When they play good teams, it's harder to judge. Even with the defensive improvements from last year, they still need to get a little better defensively to crack the top 5. In 7th is the Bills, a lot of times it's hard to know what to expect from the Bills. They are very inconsistent. Offensively and defensively they are solid though. They are 4th in scoring offense. They also have the #1 defense in the league only allowing 14.8 ppg. That is so good. They have the #1 turnover differential in the league at +11. They are just inconsistent. They need a little time to get back on track. This team though has monster potential with a very good offense and defense. They don't turn the ball over and they take the ball away. This is one of my sleeper teams to make the Superbowl.
6th is the Tennessee Titans. They have a solid defense and Running game, along with a good enough passing game to be
okay without Derrick Henry. They have the 4th best rushing attack in the league in yards per game. They have the 4th best defense in yards against per game. They have a positive turnover differential. They have 13 total turnovers forced so far this season. They dominate time of possession and make it extremely difficult for qbs to move the ball. Their defense gets a lot of sacks and their running game is stifling. That alone lands them at 6. Number 5 is the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens unique offense built around Lamar Jackson by Greg Roman is very good year in and year out. are 2nd in the league in total offense. First in the league in rushing offense. 8th in the league in passing offense. Their defense is having a less good year, but is still formidable enough to back up the great offense they have. They also have the best punt return team in the league picking up an additional 16 yards per Punt return. They also have a great head coach who always has his team ready to perform. Starting off the top 4 is the Los Angeles Rams. I wasn't quite sure how to rank them because I feel at their best they can be the best team in the league. They are just really inconsistent. They are 4th in the league in total offense and 5th in the league in scoring offense. They also have the 3rd best passing game in the league. They have the 11th best scoring defense which is more than formidable considering their offense is one of the best. Their coach is creative; the only thing holding them back are flat out stinkers. Getting blown out by the Titans at home being an example. Now onto the top 3 with the defending Super Bowl Champs Buccaneers. This is another team with a very good offense. Their defense is banged up right now, but by the playoffs the team should return to its top 10 status. They also have Tom Brady, an X factor they don't turn the ball over very much. They are 3rd in yards gained. They also have the #1 scoring offense in the league averaging 32.5 ppg. That stat is extremely high. They have the best offense in the league. Along with having a formidable defense lead by Todd Bowles, a great defensive mind. They have a plus 4 turnover differential and are solid everywhere landing them at 3. At #2 is the Greenbay Packers. The obvious start is Aaron Rogers. He is one of the best qbs in the league. I trust him to lead his team deep. They can play well in the cold and indoors. They are not top top anywhere but solid in all aspects. The Packers have a +6 turnover differential and only have 8 total giveaways. They are 6th in yards against. Their offense hasn't been much to brag about so far this season. Aaron Rogers is trustworthy though and they don't turn the ball over much. Their offense though without turning the ball over much is good enough to win playoff games. They are the only team to beat the Cardinals. They have one big game before. They have a great secondary and experience in years past. The #1 team is the Arizona Cardinals who have the best record in the league at 8-1. They won this week without their starting qb mvp leader and star wideout, Kyler Murray and Deandre Hopkins. They are towards the top in all major statistical categories. They have the hottest offense and team in the league. They are on their way. They are clearly the current #1 team, although they aren't unstoppable. I would give any of the top 8 teams a chance to beat them. Currently though, they are still #1.
There are so many good teams in the NFL currently. The next time I give you an update we will be so super close to the playoffs. I am so excited - this is such an exciting time for NFL football. I can't wait for the next December update.
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