Quote:
Originally Posted by Hoopsdoc
As the 2006 Colts showed us, anything can happen once you reach the playoffs. But you have to get there first. That’s the main consideration. And the Texans winning last night was worse for the Colts playoff chances than the alternative.
We also haven’t won the AFC South since 2014 and last night made that more complicated, because now both the Jags and Texans are only 2 games behind us in the win column. We have to play them both twice.
I’m not concerned about the 1 seed because I think New England has that locked up with their easy remaining schedule. The Bills and Ravens are the toughest games New England has left, along with the likes of the Bengals, Jets, and Dolphins. I’ll be surprised if they lose more than one game the rest of the way.
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o
Your historical citation of the last time that the Colts won the division title doesn't have a lot to do with this season ...... hypothetically, if the Colts had not won the division title since 1997, it still would have little to do with the fact that they are 8-2, are playing like one of the best teams in the NFL, finally have a very good quarterback for the first time since Philip Rivers, and are 2 and-a-half games ahead of the Texans more than halfway into the season.
The 2006 Colts started the season at 9-0, and finished the season at 12-4. They were a proven perennial contender with arguably the greatest quarterback ever leading the team, and there was nothing surprising about them making it to the Super Bowl and winning it. The previous season they went 14-2, and choked against the Steelers in the playoffs. The following season (2007) they went 13-3, and choked in the playoffs against the Chargers. So your inference that
"Wow, anything can happen in the playoffs !!!" wasn't in regard to a team that snuck into the playoffs with a record of 9-7 and made it to the Super Bowl, like the 2008 Arizona Cardinals did.
THAT would be an example of anything can happen in the playoffs. The Colts choking against the Steelers in 2005 and the Chargers in 2007 were examples of anything can happen in the playoffs, only they were examples in the negative context rather than the positive.
There's 2 possibilities for the Colts at this point, and it has little to do with the Texans ...... the Colts are either going to continue to play strong and finish the season at 12-5, 13-4, or 14-3 to easily take the division title, or the Colts are going to take a nosedive, blow the division, and sneak into the playoffs with a record of 10-7.
Subsequently, the outcome of last night's game has little to do with the Colts' chances to be a bona-fide contender for the conference championship ...... if the Colts are for real, there is no way that the Texans or the Jaguars will catch them. If the Colts take a nosedive to finish at 10-7, they aren't going anywhere in the playoffs anyway.
o