Larry Stone: News and Notes

Here's hoping you didn't expand your waistline too much over the holiday weekend. It's December and that means something new for all of us: serious playoff talk.

Mike Keith will keep you abreast of the AFC playoff picture throughout the next month. It seems obvious the chase will go down to the last weekend. If the playoffs began today, here's how the AFC would shake out:

Wild Card Game 1: Buffalo (Wild Card 3rd seed) at Seattle (Division Champ 3rd seed)
Wild Card Game 2: Miami (Wild Card 2nd seed) at Tennessee (Wild Card 1st seed)
Jacksonville (Division Champ 1st Seed) and Indianapolis (Division Champ 2nd seed) would await the winners for home games. Jacksonville would play the lowest seed that survives the wild card round.

In the NFC, the playoff picture looks more like a collage. The only teams mathematically out of the race are Philadelphia, Atlanta and New Orleans. Some thing to watch in the elder conference:

1. Arizona: The Cardinals have played themselves right back into things. Arizona may be 5-6 overall, but they hold a division-leading 4-2 mark in the NFC East. Two divison games remaining against the Eagles and Redskins could put the Cardinals back in the fold.

2. Winning at home will win the NFC Central. If Shawn King can be adequate at quarterback, the Tampa Bay Bucs have the easier road in the NFC Central. They leave Raymond James Stadium just twice the rest of the way, going to falling Oakland and finishing the season at Chicago.

Detroit must go to Tampa, Chicago and Minnesota; the Vikings play Monday night at Tampa, then visit Arrowhead Stadium. Green Bay, already with 5 losses, must visit Chicao, Minnesota and Tampa. Add to that, Green Bay plays improving Carolina and Arizona out of conference.

3. Don't count out the Carolina Panthers. With a 5-6 mark, the Panthers could sneak in the back door. It would appear their toughest remaining games come the next two weeks, at home versus the Rams, then at Green Bay. They close with the struggling 49ers, Steelers and Saints. It would be quite an accomplishment for George Seifert to make the playoffs with this team.
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Some other notes: Cleveland fans can't decide: Dayne or Warrick. That was the talk Sunday night on the Browns postgame show. Many callers said Dayne was simply a north-south runner, and lacked the catching ability needed to be a quality NFL back. Of course, the Browns shouldn't be counting that top draft pick yet. The Saints, Falcons, Eagles and Bengals remain in the hunt. The Browns' remaining opponents are a combined 25-20, while the Eagles' final four opponents rate 26-18.
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The Titans go for their 14th straight AFC Central win Sunday at Baltimore. A win would tie the Titans with the 1993-94 Dallas Cowboys for the second-longest division winning streak since the AFL/NFL merger in 1970. It would be a tall task to hold the longest streak, but victories over Jacksonville and Pittsburgh would break Miami's 15-game record set during the undefeated season.

I know..one game at a time. Still, give the Titans' coaching staff credit for focusing on the division opponents. In the last two seasons, Tennessee has lost just one time in the AFC Central. The extra focus Jeff Fisher placed on the division following the 1997 season has paid off.
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The Rams' noise complaints remain an issue with Dick Vermeil's troops. Is it just me...or did the Rams start worrying about the noise before they ever got to Adelphia Coliseum. They wanted to wear electronic ear plugs!

Note to Dick: you've got a good team, but you devalue their effort by making it appear you wouldn't have lost at Tennessee or Detroit if it had not been for the noise.