Is the AFC up for grabs?
The NFL’s regular season is winding down. The playoffs are nearing, and the elite teams should be separating themselves from those in the “everyone else” category.
That is true in the NFC, where the Dallas Cowboys clearly stand alone as the conference’s front-runner, and there is room to wonder if there will be a viable postseason challenger, given the setback suffered by the Seattle Seahawks when they lost safety Earl Thomas to broken bone in his leg Sunday night.
But it is a far, far different situation in the AFC. The won-loss records suggest that the Oakland Raiders and the New England Patriots are the Super Bowl co-favorites but, in reality, everyone in the postseason field but the AFC South winner will have a legitimate chance to emerge as the last team standing.
The Cowboys (11-1) had Sunday off following their controversial victory Thursday night at Minnesota, which extended their winning streak to 11 games. It was a good Sunday for Dallas even without playing a game. The Washington Redskins’ loss at Arizona clinched a playoff spot for the Cowboys. The New York Giants’ defeat at Pittsburgh increased the Cowboys’ lead in the NFC East to three games.
And while the Seahawks seemed to remain within striking distance of the Cowboys for conference supremacy by beating the Carolina Panthers, 40-7, on Sunday night, that lopsided triumph came at a steep cost. Thomas was taken from the field on a cart after suffering an injury to his lower leg in a first-half collision with teammate Kam Chancellor while breaking up a pass. Thomas reportedly left the X-ray room on crutches, and NBC reported that he’d suffered a cracked tibia. Coach Pete Carroll confirmed during his postgame news conference that Thomas had suffered a broken leg.
Thomas wrote on Twitter during the game that he was contemplating exiting the sport entirely. Thomas said he had “no regrets” and wrote: “A lot is running through my mind, including retirement.”
It’s entirely possible that was an emotional reaction by Thomas and he’ll change his mind once the immediate disappointment of the injury wears off. But his absence from the lineup for the foreseeable future will weaken the Seattle defense considerably. The Panthers struck quickly after Thomas’s departure Sunday night for a long-distance touchdown pass from quarterback Cam Newton to wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr.
The Seahawks cannot be dismissed as a Super Bowl threat. They have Russell Wilson at quarterback, after all. Their rushing offense was highly productive against the Panthers with Thomas Rawls at tailback. But their issues along the offensive line are glaring at times; Wilson’s pass protection was positively Vikings-like on some plays Sunday night. Would the Seahawks really be able to win a postseason game at Dallas?
Is there any NFC team capable of that? The Giants have a history of unlikely runs to Super Bowl titles with Eli Manning at quarterback, and they beat the Cowboys in the season opener. But their performance Sunday in Pittsburgh did not suggest that there is postseason magic in the offing. The Detroit Lions lead the NFC North, are on a four-game winning streak after their victory Sunday at New Orleans and have quarterback Matthew Stafford playing at a near-MVP level. But few are ready to declare them an honest-to-goodness powerhouse.
Who is capable of coming out of nowhere in the NFC to make an improbable Super Bowl run? The fading Atlanta Falcons? The out-of-the-playoffs (at least for now) Redskins? The Tampa Bay Buccaneers? They’re suddenly formidable. But just reaching the postseason would be an accomplishment for them in quarterback Jameis Winston’s second NFL season.
Identifying a favorite in the AFC is not as easily done. The Patriots (10-2) beat the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday in Foxborough, Mass. But tight end Rob Gronkowski is on the injured reserve list after undergoing back surgery Friday for a herniated disk. Quarterback Tom Brady has missed practice time in each of the past two weeks because of a knee injury. The aura of invincibility has been punctured.
The Raiders (10-2) came from behind with the game’s final 29 points in a 38-24 victory Sunday over the Buffalo Bills. But their MVP candidate, quarterback Derek Carr, didn’t take any snaps under center in his first game since suffering a dislocated pinky on his throwing hand. It’s difficult to imagine that injury won’t affect Carr to some degree.
The AFC playoff field will be deep and full of possibilities. The Kansas City Chiefs just keep finding ways to win, as they did Sunday at Atlanta with safety Eric Berry’s interception for a decisive two-point defensive anti-conversion. The Denver Broncos are having quarterback issues. But they had quarterback issues last season and their defense nevertheless carried them to a Super Bowl title.
The Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens are in a virtual tie for first place in the AFC North with matching 7-5 records. Each has been wildly inconsistent this season. But the Steelers have a two-time Super Bowl winner at quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger, and they still have players such as tailback Le’Veon Bell and wide receiver Antonio Brown around Roethlisberger on offense. They’ve won three straight games. And who would be eager to face them in the playoffs?
The Ravens have a top-notch defense. And their offense looked better in Sunday’s 38-6 dismantling of the Miami Dolphins in Baltimore. Quarterback Joe Flacco, a former Super Bowl MVP, threw for 381 yards and four touchdowns en route to ending the Dolphins’ six-game winning streak. The Ravens would back down from no one in the playoffs. They would face a postseason game in Foxborough without flinching. As Dolphins coach Adam Gase said Sunday, teams like the Ravens know how to play at this time of the year.
“I think we have really great leadership. … Those guys have been there,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “Joe has been there. Terrell (Suggs) has been there. Lardarius (Webb) has been there, right on down the line. To bring a guy like Eric (Weddle) in that has the kind of experience like he has. … we have phenomenal leadership.”