WHAT WE LEARNED: NFL WEEK 10

BY ADAM GREENE

Each week the NFL landscape becomes a little bit clearer, with storylines either solidified or proven wrong. Here’s what I’ve picked to point the magnifying glass at for Week 10.

PLAYOFF SEEDING TAKING SHAPE

We’re in the final stretch of the regular season, with every team having played at least nine games and short of some spectacular comeback (which has happened) or monumental collapse (which has also happened), the key franchises that should be involved in the chase for the Vince Lombardi Trophy are pretty clear.

In the AFC, the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-0), thanks to being good and enjoying one of the easiest schedules in the league, have a clear path to the No. 1 seed. The Kansas City Chiefs (8-1) are currently the two seed and the Buffalo Bills (7-3), in spite of their last-second loss Sunday, are the No. 3. Thanks to their upset of the Tennessee Titans, the Indianapolis Colts (6-3) are currently the No. 4, with those Titans (6-3), the Las Vegas Raiders (6-3) and Baltimore Ravens (6-3) all in the three Wild Card spots. The Ravens sneak into the final spot thanks to their 4-3 AFC mark.

The Cleveland Browns (6-3), if the seven seeds hold up and the NFL’s emergency COVID-19 playoff plan isn’t implemented, would be left out of the current bracket. The Miami Dolphins (6-3) would currently be out in the cold in either scenario.

Over in the NFC, the New Orleans Saints (7-2) currently hold down the No. 1 seed, for however long that lasts with Drew Brees out. The Green Bay Packers (7-2) are two and the Arizona Cardinals (6-3), surprisingly, are the No. 3 thanks to their 2-0 NFC West mark. The Philadelphia Eagles (3-5-1), even after Sunday’s embarrassing loss to the New York Giants, remain the No. 4. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-3), Los Angeles Rams (6-3) and Seattle Seahawks (6-3) would fill the Wild Card spots.

If the NFL added an eighth seed due to coronavirus cancellations, the Chicago Bears (5-5) would slide into it.

The NFC will shuffle around this week as the Rams play at the Buccaneers and the Cardinals play at the Seahawks. With all those teams two games up on their next closest Wild Card competitor, the Bears, none will drop from the bracket with a loss.

As for the AFC, the Steelers, Chiefs and Bills are so much better than every other team, it hardly matters who gets tabbed as the playoff sacrifices. As it stands, the Titans and Ravens face off this week, which could knock one of them out of the current seeding if the Browns take care of business against the Eagles and Dolphins win at Mile High against the slumping Denver Broncos.

RAVENS ON THE ROPES

Speaking of the Ravens, I predicted in the preseason that Baltimore would miss the playoffs over the exact offensive issues we see causing them so much trouble right now. Their saving grace, it appeared, as the season began, was that their schedule was incredibly easy. With the emergence of the Miami Dolphins, that might not be enough.

Over the next two weeks, the Ravens play the Titans and the Steelers, two teams that have handled them completely in their last match ups. There’s every reason to believe Baltimore will enter December 6-5 and on the outside looking in, which makes their Dec. 14 game against the Cleveland Browns a “must win.”

Working in their favor, even if they drop the Browns game, is contests against the Dallas Cowboys, Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Giants and Cincinnati Bengals. That looks like a 10-6 finish at worst, barring some insane upset.

The problem is, the Browns are playing pretty much the same schedule. The Dolphins too aren’t looking at a slog through the final month and a half of the season. The only winning teams on their upcoming docket are the Chiefs, Raiders and Bills.

With the aforementioned Titans and Raiders also vying for one of those three Wild Card spots, the ease of the Ravens’ schedule and even 10 wins might not be enough to make the cut. They can do a lot to secure a return to the postseason, their third in a row, with a win over Tennessee Sunday.

THE PRO BOWL WILL BE EVEN MORE RIDICULOUS

When the league moved the Pro Bowl from Hawaii to Orlando a few years ago, it made you wonder why any player would risk injury in such a meaningless game in such a meaningless place to everyone other than Elder Price from Book of Mormon. This year it was supposed to have been in Las Vegas, which would have been incredible. But, you know, the apocalypse happened and everyone put on the breaks.

Since they’re already putting players and coaches at risk amidst the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic, a silly, horribly played All-Star game should be off the table, but the NFL isn’t waving the white flag just yet.

Oh no. They’re replacing the actual Pro Bowl with an EA Sports Madden 21 Pro Bowl, apparently populated by the players selected to the game by their peers and fan voting. Yes, the worst installment of the annual NFL licensed game, so glitchy and awful a fan revolt started over the summer demanding the league strip EA of its license, will offer a “virtual Pro Bowl experience.”

Conceivably current and former players, as well as celebrities, will participate in the playing of the game or games. I’m not sure how it’ll all work out, as NFL fandom is relegated to the role of the little brother in this scenario, watching someone else play the game with an unhooked controller in your lap.

Frankly, I’d like to see the NFL open up its Pro Bowl festivities beyond Madden 21. Maybe add a few rounds of Mario Kart and Fortnite, just to make it interesting.

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