Read This Post If You Want A Headache!

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, the scenarios for the Eagles to earn home field advantage throughout the playoffs!

Q: Can the Eagles still earn the top seed in the NFC?

A: Yes, but it's a longshot. There are two scenarios. The first one requires four things to happen:

1. Eagles beat Vikings and Cowboys.
2. Saints lose to Bucs in Week 17.
3. Falcons lose to Panthers in Week 17.
4. Bears lose to Packers in Week 17.

In this scenario, the Eagles and Falcons both finish at 12-4, and the Eagles get the tiebreak since they beat Atlanta earlier this season.

The second scenario plays out if the Bears beat the Packers and create a three-way tie of 12-4 teams (Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia). If that happens, the Eagles would FIRST need three things to happen:

1. Eagles beat Vikings and Cowboys.
2. Saints lose to Bucs in Week 17.
3. Falcons lose to Panthers in Week 17.

However, even if those three things happen, the Eagles ARE NOT guaranteed the top spot.

The head-to-head tiebreak would be irrelevant because the Falcons and Bears didn't play each other. Conference win-loss percentage is the next step, but all three teams would be 9-3 against the NFC.

Next up would be win-loss percentage in common games, but there needs to be a minimum of four common games between the three teams, which there are not.

And so it would come down to strength of victory - a tiebreak that cannot yet be determined because Week 17 has to play out. In other words, you'd take the combined win-loss records of the teams that the Eagles, Bears and Falcons each beat this season. The team with lowest opponents' win-percentage gets bounced, and the other two teams run through the set of tiebreakers again.

[...]

Basically, you want to root for teams the Eagles have beaten this season to win in Week 17. And you want to root for teams the Bears and Falcons have beaten this season to lose in Week 17.

[...]

It's important to note here that if the Saints, Falcons, Eagles and Bears all finish 12-4, the Saints get the one-seed, the Bears get the two-seed, the Eagles get the three-seed and the Falcons get the fifth-seed (as the top wild card).

I don't feel so good.

Now to the simple scenarios that my feeble human mind can wrap it's head around. There is but one scenario for the Eagles to get the #2 seed. Eagles beat Minnesota and Dallas, and Green Bay beats Chicago in Week 17. If none of these scenarios happen and the Eagles do not get a bye, they will be a #3 seed where they will face either Green Bay, New York Giants, or Tampa Bay. Want another headache? Here are the Green Bay, New York, and Tampa Bay scenarios!

Green Bay clinches a playoff spot:
1) GB win
2) GB tie + NYG loss or tie + TB loss or tie
3) NYG loss + TB loss

NY Giants clinch a playoff spot:
1) NYG win + GB loss or tie
2) NYG tie + GB loss + TB loss or tie

Tampa Bay clinches a playoff spot:
1) TB win + NYG loss or tie + GB loss or tie
2) TB tie + NYG loss + GB loss

Want to avoid these feelings of nausea, headaches, and weakness? Support a 2010 AFC team.

So You Are A Phillies Fan And You Don't Know Who To Root For On Sunday.....

Tomorrow is going to be an exciting day in sports. There could be some strange bedfellows, awkward celebrations, and utter heartbreak for a baseball team who could possibly lose out on the playoffs on the 163rd day, after holding a massive lead in the division 2 months ago. Before I go into about what Phillies fans should be hoping for, here is a list of the scenarios based on the results of tomorrow's games. The Phillies/Braves game starts at 1:35 whereas the Padres/Giants game does not get underway until 4:05.

1). Phillies win, Giants win: Giants win NL West, Padres travel to Atlanta to play Braves in a wildcard tie-breaker on Monday.
2). Phillies win, Padres win: Padres win NL West, Giants win wildcard, Braves are eliminated.
3). Braves win, Giants win: Giants win NL West, Braves win wildcard, Padres are eliminated.
4). Braves win, Padres win: 3-way tie. Giants and Padres will travel to San Diego for NL West tiebreaker game on Monday, the loser of the NL West tiebreaker will travel to Atlanta to play the Braves in a wildcard tiebreaker on Tuesday.

Now who the Phillies play on Wednesday and what team I will be inches away from at Citizens Bank Park on Friday is not yet determined. Using the same numbers for the scenarios, here is what each of them would result in for the Phillies in terms of their NLDS opponent.

1). Phillies opponent will be based on the tiebreaker results. If the Padres win, the Phillies will play the Padres. If the Braves win, the Phillies will play the Reds, who are starting Edinson Volquez in Game 1.
2). Phillies will play the Giants and a rested Tim Lincecum will be pitching Game 1.
3). Phillies will play the Padres..
4). Phillies opponent will be based on the tiebreaker results. If Giants win/Padres win, Phillies will play the Padres. If Giants win/Braves win, Phillies will play the Reds. If Padres win/Giants win, Phillies will play the Giants. If Padres win/Braves win, Phillies will play the Reds.

As hard as it is to believe, the worst case scenario would be the scenario where the Phillies win and the Padres win, the same result those who have enjoyed the schadenfreude have rooted for the past couple of days. As mentioned above, the Phillies would face a rested Tim Lincecum in Game 1, who would also be able to pitch in Game 4, if necessary, at AT&T Park. And while anything can happen in the playoffs and anyone can beat anyone on any day, this is as close to a disaster as you could possibly imagine for the Phillies. But the counter to that is the LDS series are mathematically speaking the most luck driven series of the playoffs because it is only best-of-5 instead of best-of-7. In other words, it can better to play the toughest opponent in the shorter series, where luck can play a bigger factor.

Perhaps the best scenario for the Phillies would be a scenario where the Braves win. Of course, its counterpart would be having the Padres win and us having a 3-way tiebreaker. And while this does involve the chance of playing the Giants, it would be without Lincecum starting Game 1. The Giants being in a tiebreaker means Tim Lincecum pitches in said tiebreaker. While that certainly gives the Giants a leg up in that game, it leaves them bare and exposed in the NLDS. But because I can't in good faith root for the Braves to beat the Phillies, I'll settle for the Phillies winning and the Giants winning, resulting in a Padres/Braves tiebreaker where the Phillies would either play the Padres or the Reds.

Any scenario where the Phillies play the Reds is fine with me, same with any scenario where the Phillies play the Padres. I am well aware that nobody is a guaranteed victory and I will not be celebrating an NLCS berth before this Wednesday, but I will certainly feel like the Phillies chances to advance will be higher by avoiding a series where Tim Lincecum pitches on Wednesday after a week of rest and in Game 4 in San Francisco on normal rest, even with the prospect of luck, because the Giants could very easily lose out and the Phillies can avoid their strongest adversary this year all together.

Your Week 17 Playoff Scenarios

Get ready for a migrane.

I do not recall a year when there was so much that can determined from one week of football in the playoffs. Sure Week 17 is always big and crazy and unpredictable, but never do I recall so much seeding up in the air in one conference and so many teams alive in the other conference. Get the Ibprofen ready because from NFL.com, here are your Week 17 NFL playoff and seeding scenarios!

NFC

CLINCHED:
New Orleans — South division and home-field advantage.
Minnesota — North division.
Arizona — West division.
Philadelphia — playoff spot.
Green Bay — playoff spot.
Dallas — playoff spot.

ELIMINATED:
Detroit, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Washington, Chicago, Seattle, Carolina, Atlanta, San Francisco, NY Giants.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS
Minnesota clinches a first-round bye:
1) MIN win + PHI loss or tie
2) MIN tie + PHI loss

ARIZONA CARDINALS
Arizona clinches a first-round bye:
1) ARI win + MIN loss + PHI loss

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
Philadelphia clinches East division:
1) PHI win or tie

Philadelphia clinches a first-round bye:
1) PHI win
2) PHI tie + MIN loss or tie

DALLAS COWBOYS
Dallas clinches East divison:
1) DAL win

Dallas clinches a first-round bye:
1) DAL win + MIN loss + ARI loss or tie

AFC

CLINCHED:
Indianapolis — South division and home-field advantage.
San Diego — West division and first-round bye.
Cincinnati — North division.
New England — East division.

ELIMINATED:
Cleveland, Kansas City, Oakland, Buffalo, Tennessee.

Baltimore, the Jets, Denver, Pittsburgh and Houston can also make the playoffs if they tie this week with various other things happening. Jacksonville and Miami cannot make the playoffs with a tie.

BALTIMORE RAVENS

Baltimore clinches a playoff spot:
1) BAL win

NEW YORK JETS
NY Jets clinch a playoff spot:
1) NYJ win

DENVER BRONCOS
Denver clinches a playoff spot:
1) DEN win + NYJ loss or tie + BAL loss or tie
2) DEN win + NYJ loss or tie + PIT loss or tie
3) DEN win + NYJ loss or tie + HOU win
4) DEN win + BAL loss or tie + PIT loss or tie
5) DEN win + BAL loss or tie + HOU win
6) PIT loss + BAL loss + HOU loss + JAC loss
7) PIT loss + BAL loss + HOU loss + NYJ loss
8.) PIT loss + BAL loss + JAC loss + NYJ loss
9) PIT loss + HOU loss + JAC loss + NYJ loss
10) MIA loss or tie + NYJ loss + BAL loss + HOU loss + JAC loss or tie

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

Pittsburgh clinches a playoff spot:
1) PIT win + HOU loss or tie + NYJ loss or tie
2) PIT win + HOU loss or tie + BAL loss or tie
3) PIT win + NYJ loss or tie + BAL loss or tie + DEN loss or tie

HOUSTON TEXANS
Houston clinches a playoff spot:
1) HOU win + NYJ loss or tie + BAL loss or tie
2) HOU win + NYJ loss or tie + DEN loss or tie
3) HOU win + BAL loss or tie + DEN loss or tie

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS
Jacksonville clinches a playoff spot:
1) JAC win + PIT loss + BAL loss + DEN loss + HOU loss
2) JAC win + PIT loss + BAL loss + DEN loss + NYJ loss
3) JAC win + PIT loss + BAL loss + HOU loss + NYJ loss
4) JAC win + PIT loss + DEN loss + HOU loss + NYJ loss
5) JAC win + NYJ loss + DEN loss + HOU loss + BAL loss

MIAMI DOLPHINS
Miami clinches a playoff spot:
1) MIA win + NYJ loss + BAL loss + HOU loss + JAC loss or tie

Homina homina homina my head hurts.

All I'll say is that some of these teams have greater chances of winning the Powerball than actually making these playoffs. And the funny part was, here was the Eagles playoff scenario from last year before Chicago's Week 16 Monday Nighter against Green Bay.

"Philadelphia Eagles- Need to beat Dallas, have Tampa Bay lose to Oakland, and have Chicago lose on of their next two. Can also clinch if Chicago wins both games and they beat Dallas."

It can happen, Jacksonville and Miami, the seemingly improbable is always possible in the NFL. After all, who gave Oakland any chance at all to beat Tampa Bay last year?

Now if you'll excuse me, an overdose of Motrin is exactly what my doctor is ordering me to do right now.....

This Is Why I Love Group Play

I mentioned it in a few of the live blogs, but I love group play like this. It always gets so wild and zany and unpredictable that it's so fun to watch unfold. And tomorrow will be the perfect case and point as no one has clinched a semifinal berth in Group B and no one has been eliminated in Group B. However, some teams do have one hell of a hill to climb and an extradorinary amount of luck to get through (*cough*cough*United States*cough*cough). Seeing as it's a Saturday night and you probably have not done much today, I decided that I would fry all of your brains. That's right, listed below are the scenarios that each team needs to advance tomorrow. From CBC.com

TIEBREAKERS:In the event that two teams in one group end up with the same amount of points at the end of the round robin, the first tiebreaker is goal difference, followed by total goals scored.

If more than two teams end up with the same amount of points, the first tie breaker is the greatest number of points obtained in the games between the teams involved, followed by goal difference and goal difference (again, taking into account only the games between the teams involved).

[....]

Brazil leads the group with six points, followed by Italy and Egypt (three points each) and the United States (no points).

BRAZIL: The South American champions can clinch first place in the group and a spot in the semifinals with a win or a draw against Italy on Sunday.

ITALY: The world champions can clinch a semifinal spot if it earns more points on Sunday from its game against Brazil than Egypt gains from its contest against the United States. If both Italy and Egypt earn a draw on Sunday, Italy goes through. Italy sports a +1 goal difference ahead of Sunday's game.

EGYPT: The African champions can clinch a semifinal spot if it earns more points on Sunday from its game against the United States than Italy gains from its contest against Brazil. If both Egypt and Italy earn a draw on Sunday, Italy goes through. Egypt has a 0 goal difference going into Sunday.

UNITED STATES: The CONCACAF Gold Cup champions must beat Egypt on Sunday to have any chance of claiming a semifinal berth. A loss or a draw against the Egyptians would eliminate the U.S. from contention, as would a draw or win by Italy. The U.S. sports a goal difference of -5 going into Sunday's game.

THREE THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND

A loss to Italy by two goals on Sunday and an Egypt win by three goals against the United States will eliminate Brazil

If Italy loses to Brazil by a goal, they could still advance, as long as the United States beats Egypt, creating a three-way way tie at three points.

However, there is also a scenario where the Italians could win and be eliminated. If they beat Brazil by one goal and Egypt beats the United States by three goals, there would be a three-way tie at six points. Goal difference in that scenario: Brazil +3, Egypt +3, Italy +2.

Is anyone still sane? Good grief, that's chaotic! And yet, when this starts to play out and some of these scenarios start developing, it becomes so crazy and so intense to watch that if something exciting happens, you'll never forget it. The U.S. can still qualify. Brazil can still be eliminated. What a day tomorrow should be.

And I am hopeful that I will have a live blog up tomorrow for the games (they're both on at 2:30 PM ET on the ESPN and ESPN2, respectively). That being said, my internet has been giving me the virtual middle finger throughout the day. Somehow, I got it to work now, but if the problem persists, I am in no way confident that I can get it again. I'll send y'all the CiL email tomorrow if I am good (that would mean that I am online). But it's all in the hands of my computer and internet. I'll be around. I am hoping that my computer and internet will be as well.

Week 17 Playoff Scenarios

Great thanks to Awful Announcing who did an absolute yeoman's work putting all of this together. I've never had to think so much when trying to figure out a playoff picture in quite some time.

NFC:New York Giants- Clinched top seed and first round bye with Week Sixteen win over Panthers, will have homefield advantage throughout the Playoffs.

Carolina Panthers- Can clinch the second seed and first round bye with a win over New Orleans, or a Falcons loss. If Carolina loses, and the Falcons win, they will secure the 5th seed

Minnesota Vikings- Can clinch the NFC North with a win against the Giants or a Bears loss on Monday Night (Green Bay), or in Week Seventeen. They have no shot at a Wild Card spot.

Arizona Cardinals- Have locked up the 4th Seed by winning the NFC West. Cannot move up to the 3rd seed under any scenario

Atlanta Falcons- Secured a Playoff spot by beating Minnesota in Week Sixteen. With a win at home against St. Louis, and a Panthers loss in New Orleans, the Falcons will get the 2nd seed and a first round bye. If the Philly beats Dallas, they will end up with the 5th seed, if Dallas wins...they get the 6th spot.

Dallas Cowboys- Win and they're in. With an Atlanta loss against the Rams, and a win, they're the 5th seed. Otherwise they're in the 6th spot.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers- Has to win at Oakland, and needs losses from both Chicago (in one of their remaining two games) and Dallas. Can only clinch the sixth seed.

Philadelphia Eagles- Need to beat Dallas, have Tampa Bay lose to Oakland, and have Chicago lose on of their next two. Can also clinch if Chicago wins both games and they beat Dallas.

Chicago Bears- Can still win the NFC North with two wins and a Minnesota loss. Can also obtain the 6th seed with two wins, a Vikings win, and losses from Dallas, Atlanta and Tampa Bay.

AFC:

Tennessee Titans- Clinched the top spot and homefield advangage with win over Steelers in Week Sixteen.

Pittsburgh Steelers- Have won the AFC North and have secured the 2nd seed, as well as a first round bye.

Indianaoplis Colts- Have clinched the top Wild Card spot by finishing second in the AFC South.

Denver Broncos/San Diego Chargers- Whoever wins their Week Seventeen Matchup will clinch the 4th seed by winning the AFC West.

Baltimore Ravens- Clinch only clinch the 6th spot. They can do so with a win over the Jaguars in Week Seventeen. They can also get in with a loss as long as the Dolphins beat the Jets, and the Bills beat the Patriots.

Miami Dolphins- Can win the AFC East with a win over the Jets and will have the 3rd seed. Lose and they're out.

New England Patriots- Can win the AFC East, and the 3rd seed, with a win over the Bills and a Jets win over Miami. They can also lock up the 6th seed with a Dolphins win, and a Ravens loss to the Jags.

New York Jets- Can win the AFC East, and the 3rd spot, with a win against the Dolphins and a Patriots loss to the Bills. Can lock up the sixth seed with a win against the Dolphins, a Patriots win, and a Ravens loss

Just to clarify the Eagles' scenario with the Bears winning would involve the Bears winning the NFC North, which would mean them winning out and a Vikings' loss to New York.

For more fun on the playoffs, I encourage you to visit these links. I would like to warn you ahead of time. That Yahoo Sports! NFL playoff scenario generator is addicting.

Your Full NFL Playoff Scenario List (Awful Announcing)
If The Season Ended Today... (NFL.com)
NFL Playoff Scenario Generator (Yahoo! Sports)

Week 16 In Terms of the Playoffs

Okay, by now, you guys all know what the Eagles playoff scenario is this year. The Eagles win out and either the Falcons or the Buccaneers lose one. Yes, because Tampa has lost two straight, they are now vulnerable and the Eagles can leapfrog them instead of Atlanta. For Atlanta, their remaining schedule includes Minnesota followed by St. Louis. The Bucs have San Diego this week and next week it's Oakland. It looks like if anything is going to happen, this is the week it's going to happen.

Now that it's kind of pointless to go through the games just in terms of the Eagles, I decided to change things up a bit and go through the whole playoff scenario from an NFL perspective. Let's start with teams that are eliminated.

In the NFC:
Detroit
St. Louis
Seattle
San Francisco
Green Bay
New Orleans

In the AFC
Kansas City
Cincinnati
Oakland
Cleveland
Jacksonville
Houston

Indianapolis vs. Jacksonville: While the Jags are out, Indianapolis is well in the race and could potentially clinch a playoff berth this week.

Baltimore vs. Dallas: The Ravens were a stunning Walt Anderson call away from having a shot at winning the AFC North. Now they are in a dogfight for the AFC Wildcard. The good news, they own the 3-way tie breaker over Miami and New England. The bad news, they're playing a desperate Cowboys team. A loss by the Cowboys could potentially make the Eagles lives easier.

Cincinnati vs. Cleveland: I like cheese.

New Orleans vs. Detroit: The road to futility continues.

Arizona vs. New England: The Cards have clinched the NFC West title and are looking like too much of a finesse team. Look familiar, Andy Reid? The Pats are in two dogfights at once. The AFC East and the AFC wildcard. As much as I hate to say it, I think the Pats are gonna do it.

Pittsburgh vs. Tennessee: If the Titans win, they have home field advantage. If the Steelers win, then all they have to do is win next week or hope the Titans lose next week in order to secure it.

San Francisco vs. St. Louis: ONIONS!

Miami vs. Kansas City: If the Dolphins win out, they will in fact win the AFC East. The Chiefs and the Bretts, er, Jets stand in their way.

San Diego vs. Tampa Bay: The Chargers need to win this week, hope Denver loses this week, and beat the Broncos next week in the Rematch of the Game That Eddie Gunz Had A Minor Influence Over in order to secure the playoffs. The Bucs need a win to set themselves up next week with a great chance of clinching the playoffs. The Eagles are hoping that San Diego can somehow, someway pull it off. For if that happens, all the Eagles will need to do is win out.

Buffalo vs. Denver: All the Broncos have to do is win and they're in!

New York Jets vs. Seattle: The Jets are well in the AFC East race and subsequently the wildcard. Seattle is, well, I'll spare Seattle fans from jokes.

Houston vs. Oakland: Is that Tony the Tiger I see over there?

Atlanta vs. Minnesota: This is the Eagles best chance right here. The Vikes are red-hot. The Falcons barely beat the Bucs last week. By winning, the Vikes will secure a 3-seed and secure the Eagles in that all they will need to do is win out.

Philadelphia vs. Washington: If Washington loses, they'll join the list of NFC teams gone from the playoffs. E-A-G-L-E-S EAGLES!

Carolina vs. New York Giants: Let the battle of home field advantage in the NFC begin!

Green Bay vs. Chicago: Da Bears are still in the race. If they win, they'll get to experience the Drama That Is Scoreboard Watching During Week 17. If they lose, well, then maybe Dr. Kornheiser will finally shut up about Brett Favre. Oh wait, what am I saying?

Feel free to examine further and correct anything that I missed.

If the season ended today... (NFL.com)

What the Eagles Want To See Happen in Week 15

Really, it's simple. If the Eagles win out and the Falcons lose just one game, that's it. The Eagles are in the playoffs. By winning out, the Eagles would have beaten the Browns, the Redskins, and the Cowboys. The Falcons play Tampa Bay, Minnesota, and the Cowboys. While I'm sure no one would have thought at the beginning of the year that it would come down to the Eagles and the Falcons in the NFC wild card race, from an Eagles fan's prespective, that's what it has come down to. With that in mind, things hardly ever go as planned for Philadelphia, so let's see at what else would be good news for the Eagles this week.

New Orleans (7-6) vs. Chicago (7-6): This one is more on a personal level of who is more dangerous to get hot should the Eagles stumble. I personally think the Saints are more dangerous even thought da' Bears beat the Eagles. Had it not been for Andy Reid, we would have won the game and been in control of our own destiny. Period. Atlanta would be an after thought, like these two now are.

Tampa Bay (9-4) vs. Atlanta (8-5): Atlanta's the one team outside of the Eagles' opponents that they are worried about. When and if the Eagles leapfrog the Falcons, we'll talk about the Bucs.

Washington (7-6) vs. Cincinnati (AFC): Here's hoping the Bengals can challenge the Redskins just like they did everyone else in the NFC East. The Eagles are already ahead of the Redskins and the Eagles do play the 'Skins again, but having them knocked down another level (especially against an AFC team) would never hurt.

Green Bay (5-8) vs. Jacksonville (AFC): A loss to the Jags and the Pack are out of the playoffs. The sound of another team down is always a good sound to hear.

San Francisco (5-8) vs. Miami (AFC): Yes, the Niners are still in it. A loss to the Dolphins, though, and they'll start the offseason with 19 other teams.

Minnesota (8-5) vs. Arizona (8-5): If the Eagles make it to the playoffs, they'll most likely play one of these teams. I see the Vikes as a team barely hanging on whereas the Cards are hungry and on the rise.

Denver (AFC) vs. Carolina (10-3): Any time an NFC team (other than the Eagles) are playing an AFC team, it's good to root for the AFC team, in this case, the Broncos.

New York Giants (11-2) vs. Dallas (8-5): Now that the Eagles have beat the Gmen, the Eagles are now the biggest fans of the Giants. They can knock off Dallas, which would be a huge help, then take take on Carolina and Minnesota. If the Eagles get in, those could be big games to determine who we play. But let's not concern ourselves with that now.

Cleveland (AFC) vs. Philadelphia: E-A-G-L-E-S EAGLES! More on this game on Friday.

What The Eagles Are Rooting For Week 14

It's hard to believe it's that time already, but well, it's that time already. One of the best times of the year, the times of discussing all of the wild and willy playoff scenarios! Personally I love reading all of the crazy things that have to happen for certain teams to make the playoffs, and while there is nothing that complicated now, it's never too late to look at what the Eagles want to happen in order to put them in a better position so they aren't rooting for 3 teams to win, 2 others to lose, and 2 teams to tie.

First off, it must be prefaced that all of the below would only be helpful if the Eagles beat the Giants, something they must do. If the Eagles want to avoid becoming fans of half the teams in the NFL on week 17, they ought to win out (which unfortunately involves beating 3 teams that beat us earlier in the season). Also, this is one man's opinion of what would benefit the Eagles the most. If you disagree, feel free to do so in the comments section.

Jacksonville (AFC) vs. Chicago (6-6): While this one is not overly important as "da Bears" are below the Eagles and Neckbeard the Pirate (a.k.a. Kyle Orton) is throwing picks faster than Grossman and thus not much of a threat in the wildcard, it would be nice to see the Jags deliver a final knock out blow to Chi-town.

Minnesota (7-5) vs. Detroit (0-12): Again, not much importance in this one, but let's just give The Race To Lose A First Round Playoff Game To A Much Superior NFC South Team (a.k.a. The NFC North) to the Vikes.

Houston (AFC) vs. Green Bay (5-7): If the Texans win, this will knock out the Pack for sure. 1 down, many to go.

Atlanta (8-4) vs. New Orleans (6-6): While it would be good to see the Saints knocked out cause when hot, they are as dangerous as the '07 Patriots (see MNF game vs. Green Bay), the sad truth is the Eagles are Saints fans cause the Falcons are 1.5 games ahead of us. Not only that, but the Dirty Birds are the only team 1.5 games ahead of us that we do not see again this year. I dismissed others above as not important, this one's a biggie right here.

Philadelphia (6-5-1) vs. New York Giants (11-1): GO EAGLES!!!!!!! Need I say more. And what a win this would be, people are already crowning the Gmen as if they were the '07 Pats. And remember what nearly happened last year when the Eagles went on the road against a team that people had already crowned as The Best Damn Thing Since Sliced Bread....

Arizona (7-5) vs. St. Louis (2-10): Will the Cards just clinch already?

Dallas (8-4) vs. Pittsburgh (AFC): Again, another HUGE game. The Eagles have "dem Cowbitches" the last week of the season (at home, I might add) but the Eagles are mathematically going to need Dallas to lose more games than that in order for the Eagles to go to the playoffs. A Cowboys game vs. the Steelers is just what the doctor ordered.

Baltimore (AFC) vs. Washington (7-5): While it is my personal opinion that the Skins are overrated, the bottom line is is that they've won 7 games and they're ahead of the Eagles by half a game in the standings. The Ravens are definitley a team on the rise and this a game that they will need if they want to keep pace with the Steelers in the AFC North. While the Eagles do play the Redskins one more time this year, it would always be a good idea to have them softened up a bit.

Tampa Bay (9-3) vs. Carolina (9-3): These two are tied for the lead in the NFC South. And subsequently the winner will have a good chance at earning a first round bye and the other will be thrown into the wildcard race. No boldened team to root for here, just the hope that whomever does lose this game will hit a bad losing streak and fall out of the playoff race.