Division Titles and the Postseason
The 2021 NFL regular season is coming to an end and the playoffs are right around the corner. Some teams such as the Detroit Lions and Houston Texans are already eliminated from the playoffs hunt. Those teams knew they did not have much of a chance of making any real waves this year.
Other teams are having great campaigns. The Green Bay Packers clinched their division this past weekend with a win over the Baltimore Raves. Both the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dallas Cowboys need just one more victory to secure their spots as well. Other than that though, all the others are still open. Some are nearly locked up while others are so close there is no room for error.
AFC East
The New England Patriots lead the AFC East by just one game after being upset by the Indianapolis Colts this last Saturday. Right on their heels are the Buffalo Bills while the Miami Dolphins can still catch New England. Miami’s chance at winning the division is extremely small, but has a knack for giving the Patriots fits every year. This means it will most likely come down to a battle between New England and Buffalo. It may not take forever to see that conclusion. These two teams play each other for a second time this season this weekend. If the Patriots win, the title is almost certainly theirs. If New England loses though, that’s when things will get interesting
Regardless of the outcome of that game, I fully expect the Patriots to win the AFC East. They are just too good right now. They also happen to have Bill Belichick on their sideline. It will be hard to keep arguably the greatest coach in NFL history from losing the division after missing the playoffs last season.
AFC North
This division is the tightest it has been this far into a season than it has ever been. It is so close that just one game separates the first-place team from the last. In fact, none of these clubs have a losing record. The Cincinnati Bengals are in first place with the Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Cleveland Browns in that order. The rest of each teams’ schedule is no cakewalk either. None of these franchises has a game against a club with a losing record left.
Trying to pick a winner here is similar to spinning the needle on a Twister board. If I had to put my money on one of these teams to win the AFC North, it would be the Ravens. They have too much talent and have a great coaching staff.
AFC South
This division comes down to two teams right now. Those are the Tennessee Titans and the Colts. The other teams in the AFC South are currently battling to see who will get a higher draft pick in this coming offseason. The Titans are currently in the first place spot and just one game ahead of Indianapolis. That one matchup might be impossible to overcome. Tennessee has a much easier schedule and owns the tie-breaker against the Colts. The Titans have a great shot at winning this title even without the injured Derrick Henry.
AFC West
The Kansas City Chiefs are two games ahead of the Los Angeles Chargers in this division after beating them this last Thursday. The Chiefs do have a tough couple of games coming up though. Kansas City plays the Steelers and the Browns back-to-back their next two games. The only problem here is I do not see them losing both of these games. The Chiefs have looked close to the team that won the Super Bowl just a few seasons ago. Winning in Arrowhead Stadium in December is never easy to do for visiting clubs. That is part of the reason I am picking Kansas City to win the AFC West.
NFC West
The Arizona Cardinals and Los Angeles Rams have the same record and share the pole position in the division. This happened after the Cardinals got upset by the Lions this past Sunday while the Rams beat the Seattle Seahawks this Tuesday night. Arizona holds the tie-breakers though as the two teams split their two matchups this season, but have the better division winning percentage.
Los Angeles can win the title in two ways. They could have the same record the rest of the year as the Cardinals, but Arizona would need to lose to the Seahawks the final week of the season. Then it would go to their conference records for which the Rams have the better one. Or Los Angeles will need to win all their remaining games and hope the Cardinals lose at least one matchup. The only one of those games Arizona may lose is the one against the Cowboys in Dallas. I do not see either of those situations unfolding so I predict the Cardinals will win the NFC West.
Closing Thoughts
This article was published on the Belly Up Sports website and specifically its NFL page. Belly Up Sports also has a Twitter page where you can interact with the network. I also have written for this outlet before so see my most recent story if you would like. If you would like to talk to me directly, feel free to chat with me on my Twitter as well. Try to keep it clean and proper. If you are incapable of doing so, ignore that completely and battle it out with me. Just a few warnings for those who dare challenge me. I am highly competitive and hate to admit when I am wrong. So be prepared for a war of words.
