Recapping Week 15: AFC Playoff Picture Experiences Shake-up

Heading into this past weekend, the Baltimore Ravens had a perfect shot at proving they belong with the top dogs in the American Football Conference. Taking on Peyton Manning and the then-10-3 Denver Broncos, a banged up Baltimore defense seemed poised for the challenge.

Needing a victory to clinch the AFC North title, Baltimore struggled early and often against Denver's 5th-ranked overall defense. The firing of Cam Cameron as the team's offensive coordinator earlier that week was supposed to fix the offensive problems, promoting Jim Caldwell as the OC and play-caller. With Ray Rice receiving just 12 carries throughout the entire game, Joe Flacco clearly struggled to get anything going.

If Baltimore wants to make it deep into the postseason, they will need to get Rice the ball early and often. I'm talking, 25-30 carries a game. With an All-Pro playmaker at your disposal, it's hard to understand why coach John Harbaugh has not done anything to address this problem yet.

During Baltimore's current 3-game losing streak, Rice has received just 44 carries (average of 14.6 per game) while Flacco has averaged nearly 32 pass attempts during those games. While Flacco's stat line looks near-perfect in the overtime loss to Washington (16/21, 182 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT, 121.4 rating), in the other two games he completed under 50% of his passes.

The truth is that Flacco has been one of the most inconsistent quarterbacks in the game this season, and has overthrown more receivers than a fifth-year quarterback should be.

There have been five instances in which Flacco had attempted 40 or more passes and Rice had received under 20 carries (at PHI, vs. CLE, at HOU and vs. DEN) this season, and Baltimore went 1-3 over that span while being outscored 117-76.

Need more proof that Ray Rice needs the ball in his hands more and Flacco should be throwing less often? I have one more vital piece of information for you: On six different occasions this season Joe has completed under 60% of his passes, and BAL's record during those six games is 2-4. Flacco has a combined 6 TDs and 6 INTs. During those two wins the defense surrendered just 19 combined points to the Chiefs (2-12) and the Chargers (5-9).

Hopefully, for Baltimore's sake, Caldwell will come to his senses and get Rice the ball early and often. He will need to in order to break Baltimore's current 3-game losing streak this weekend. All Baltimore needs is a victory over the next two games to clinch the AFC North for the third consecutive season. They did, however, manage to back into the postseason this past Sunday with the Dallas Cowboys' victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime.

In other news...

Houston Captures Second Consecutive AFC South Title

With a 29-17 victory over rookie quarterback Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts (9-5), the Houston Texans (12-2) managed to capture its second straight (and second overall) AFC South division title. The victory came in stunning fashion, too, coming off a disappointing 42-14 defeat at the hands of the Patriots (10-4) a week prior, Houston's offense was clicking on all cylinders again.

Arian Foster ran for a season-high 165 yards and quarterback Matt Schaub threw for 261 more. Thanks to 5 total sacks of Luck, the Texans managed to keep its spot as the team with the best record in the AFC. Three of those five sacks were recorded by Defensive Player of the Year favorite J.J. Watt, who managed to tie San Francisco's Aldon Smith for most in the league, with 19.5. With two games to play, both Watt and Smith are just 3.5 sacks away from breaking Michael Strahan's single-season sack record of 22.5, set in 2001.

Luckily for the Colts, they still hold the No. 5 seed in the playoff picture and will get another shot at the Texans in a Week 17 showdown at home. This week against the Chiefs the Colts can clinch a Wild Card spot with a win or a Steelers loss to the Bengals.

Houston can clinch a first round bye and the No. 1 seed with a win over Minnesota or Indianapolis.

Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh: Week 16 Game to Watch

Regardless of what happens in the New York/Baltimore game, all eyes will be on Cincy (8-6) and Pittsburgh (7-7) Heinz Field this Sunday. With only three remaining teams that can clinch the final 2 spots in the AFC playoffs, this is the most important game left in the conference this season.

Cincinnati easily handled the Eagles on Thursday night, pulling away with a 34-13 victory and inching one game closer to Baltimore. Pittsburgh missed out on a huge opportunity with an overtime loss to Tony Romo's Dallas Cowboys. But, luckily for a frustrated Ben Roethlisberger, he can still clinch the sixth seed with wins over the Bengals and Browns these last two weeks.

It really will be a must-win game for the Steelers on Sunday. A win, and they control their own destiny Week 17, needing just a win over the Browns (they would hold the tiebreaker over the Bengals). But a loss would mean Cincinnati would clinch a Wild Card spot, and the Colts (whether they win or lose against the Chiefs) would capture the final available playoff spot.

Cincinnati is certainly the dark horse to squeeze into the postseason, despite winning 5 of its last 6 games. The victories over that span have come against just one playoff contender (New York Giants, 31-13). The rest of them: Kansas City (2-12), Oakland (4-10), San Diego (5-9) and Philadelphia (4-10) have a combined 15-41 record in 2012. A last-second loss to the Cowboys (8-6) two weeks ago, 20-19, has proven costly for the Bengals and may be the game everyone looks at if they lose to Pittsburgh on Sunday and miss the postseason.

The Bengals are 5-2 on the road this year, but are on a 5-game skid against the Steelers right now and haven't beat them and haven't beaten them on the road since November 15, 2009. Andy Dalton has improved vastly in his second season under center (62.5 comp %, 26 TDs, 14 INTs, 89.4 rating) and is just 86 passing yards away from surpassing his 3,398 rookie performance, but will need solid protection from his offensive line if he plans on recording his first career victory against Pittsburgh (0-3 all-time).

Establishing the run game with BenJarvus Green-Ellis early and often will be key and will allow Cincinnati to set-up the play-action pass and keep Dalton comfortable under center. Pittsburgh, to make up for its depleted defense, will need to play mistake-free football. That's exactly what they were able to do against Dallas prior to Antonio Brown's fumble on a punt return late in the game. If Brown doesn't fumble, Pittsburgh had a great shot at winning the game without going into overtime.

Must-win for both teams, obviously. But even bigger for Pittsburgh, as a loss will eliminate them from playoff contention.

New York Jets Embarrassed on Monday Night; Eliminated from Playoffs

Thanks to a porous performance from the offense (6-8) against the Tennessee Titans on national television, the Jets were officially eliminated from the AFC playoff picture last night. Both offenses, to tell you the truth, looked horrendous. But luckily for Jake Locker's Titans, Mark Sanchez (54.8 comp %, 2,678 yards, 13 TDs, 17 INTs, 67.9 rating) stole the show.

Sanchez's four interceptions and game-ending fumble with under 30 seconds to play led to a disappointing playoff run and basically a disappointing season. Sanchez, who should have been benched for good after 3rd stringer quarterback Greg McElroy led the Jets to a 7-6 win over Arizona two weeks ago, was finally benched by head coach Rex Ryan earlier today.

McElroy (5/7, 29 yards, 1 TD, 118.5 rating in 1 game this season) will make his first career start against the Chargers on Sunday. Long overdue for the second-year quarterback out of Alabama? Yes, I think so. All of New York would agree––well, half of New York anyways, I'm sure Giants fans love watching Sanchez.

The Jets offense had ample opportunities to put points on the board, as the defense managed to stall the Titans offense plenty of times, sacking Jake Locker four times and forcing 10 Tennessee punts. They even managed to limit them to just 12 first downs and, aside from one mistake that allowed Chris Johnson to run for a 94-yard touchdown in the second quarter, the front 7 limited CJ to just 28 yards on his 20 other rushing attempts. No turnovers were forced, but Tennessee committed 14 penalties for 111 yards, giving New York second chances and stalling offensive drives.

With just over two minutes to play, New York had the ball at Tennessee's 23-yard line (down by four points). Sanchez made the decision to lob a pass over the middle to tight end Jeff Cumberland, in triple coverage, as Tennessee's Michael Griffin picked off Sanchez for the fourth time of the game. It appeared to end the Jets' night, but after three Chris Johnson runs managed just four yards, the Jets had forced a 3 & out and set Sanchez up with 1st and 10 on Tennessee's 25-yard line (punter Brett Kern shanked a punt in his own end zone).

What does Sanchez do with this gift from heaven? Fumbles the snap out of shotgun formation on his first play. Game over.

I'm not even near being a Jets fan and we here at All-Out Blitz have gotten very frustrated watching this offense. Despite all of this guaranteed money Sanchez is due, I wouldn't be surprised if New York's front office somehow tried to dispose of him this offseason. Especially if McElroy is able to get something going in these final two games.

Rant over.

AFC Playoff Scenarios

*Texans clinch home-field advantage throughout playoffs with a win over Minnesota OR Denver and New England both lose.

*Broncos clinch first round bye with win over Cleveland AND Jaguars beat the Patriots.

*Ravens clinch AFC North with win over Giants.

*Colts clinch wild card with win over Kansas City OR Bengals beat Steelers

*Bengals clinch wild card with win over Pittsburgh.

*Steelers clinch wild card with wins over Cincinnati and Cleveland.

Up next...Recapping Week 15: NFC Playoff Race Coming Down to Final 2 Weeks

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Monday Night Football Live Blog: Jets Fighting for Playoff Hopes

Coverage of this past weekend's slate of Week 15 games will be coming your way tomorrow morning. For now, however, we will be taking this time to bring you live coverage of the Monday Night Football match-up between the 6-7 New York Jets and the 4-9 Tennessee Titans.

Not the most exciting match-up, we know. But we've got the time to do a live blog for the evening and since we haven't gotten the opportunity to do too many this season, why not take advantage?

Besides, this is Tennessee's chance to play spoilers and eliminate Mark Sanchez and the Jets from playoff contention. Plus this is the season's last Monday Night Football and we're only 8 days away from Christmas, so we're in an extra good mood.

Tennessee is clearly out of the postseason this season, with no possible mathematical way for them to make an appearance. New York, however, has a shot. A very slim shot, albeit, but it's still a shot. Here's their playoff scenario:

Must win final three games @ Tennessee, vs. San Diego, @ Buffalo

...AND...

Indianapolis must lose final 2 games

...OR...

Pittsburgh beats Cincinnati; Cleveland beat Pittsburgh

...OR...

Cincinnati beats Pittsburgh; Baltimore beats Cincinnati

Take a few moments to wrap your head around all of that. So not only do the Jets need to do something they haven't done since last November/December (win three consecutive games), but they also must rely on other teams to get into the postseason.

Titans in 2012

2-4 record at home

0-2 in December

2-1 vs. AFC East

Jake Locker: 1-2 record, 916 passing yards, 4 TD, 4 INT, 82.5 rating at home

Jets in 2012

3-3 record on road

2-0 in December

2-1 vs. AFC South

Mark Sanchez: 3-3 record, 1,185 passing yards, 4 TD, 4 INT, 74.0 rating on road

All-Out Blitz's pick: Jets win 24-10

In-Game Live Blog Updates

Last-minute injury report:

Jets--Dustin Keller (ankle), Stephen Hill (knee) are both out. Newly-signed wideout Braylon Edwards will be playing.
Titans--Damian Williams (hamstring), Colin McCarthy (concussion) and Scott Solomon (knee) are all out. Backup QB Rusty Smith will also be inactive tonight.

*The Jets are wearing helmet decals that say "S.H.E.S." in honor of the 20 children and 6 adults who were killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, CT last week. Also, just a few minutes ago there was a moment of silence at LP Field in honor of the victims as well.


First Quarter
*Kick-off officially at 8:41 pm eastern time, as Darrius Reynaud took the kick to the 22-yard line for Tennessee. The young Jake Locker will take his offense out on the field first.

8:45 pm: Jake Locker hits WR Nate Washington on a 30-yard pass on 3rd & 4. Just like that the Titans have set-up camp deep in New York territory on the team's opening drive.

8:49 pm: The promising drive stalls as New York stops the Titans' Chris Johnson for a loss of 10 on a 3rd down option play. Tennessee settles for a field goal attempt by Rob Bironas, which is blocked. New York will start its first offensive drive at their own 37.

Apparently Bironas had trouble finding his helmet before coming onto the field to attempt the first FG of the night.

8:51: Braylon Edwards will need to step up big for the Jets tonight, who will be without TE Dustin Keller and WR Stephen Hill.

8:53: Heading into the game RB Shonn Greene needed just 117 rushing yards to top 1,000 for the second consecutive season of his 4-year career. He could accomplish that feat tonight rather easily if the Jets get him the ball early and often.

8:54: Edwards makes his first catch as a Jet in 2012, a 14-yarder on a key 3rd down.

8:57: Tim Tebow makes his first appearance of the evening, running on a QB sneak up the middle to convert the Jets' second 3rd down of the opening drive. A pass interference call one play later puts the Jets inside the red zone.

9:00: Controversial touchdown pass from Sanchez to TE Jeff Cumberland. It was ruled a TD on the field, but after seeing the replay it appears to slip through his hands and hit the ground.

It will automatically be reviewed since this season all scoring plays and turnovers are automatically reviewed upstairs...ball has been ruled to have hit the ground after further review by referee Gerry Austin. That will bring up 4th down for NY.

9:03: Nick Folk's 22-yard field goal attempt is good. 3-0 Jets, 4:22 to play in the opening quarter.

9:11: Tennessee's Chris Johnson hasn't been the same since his 2,000 yard in 2009, but he still displays his explosiveness every once in a while. He hits holes at lightning speed but runs east-to-west far too often. If he was Barry Sanders, he could get away with lateral running a little easier, but he's not. Does he not understand that you can't bounce it to the outside every play?

At this point, Jake Locker has looked like a stronger runner than Johnson, who just took off down the field for a 15-yard gain and a TEN first down.

9:12: End of quarter 1. Still 3-0 Jets with the Titans facing a fourth down and short.


Second Quarter
9:18: The Jets need to find a way to make Shonn Greene a bigger part in the offense. A powerful back like Greene needs to be utilized as much as possible, especially if you have an unreliable quarterback under center. Greene has 25 yards on 6 carries thus far tonight.

9:22: Another punt coming for the Jets. The good news for Jets fans, however, is that at least Sanchez appears to be spreading the ball out and getting everyone involved. Five completions to five different players (Edwards, Greene, Cumberland, Bilal Powell and Konrad Reuland).

9:24: There's something we haven't seen in a while, but doesn't come as much of a surprise. Sure, I've been hard on Chris Johnson, but we all know he can break a long run at any moment. That's what he just did: 94 yard rushing touchdown for CJ. Longest run in franchise history for Tennessee. 7-3 Titans.

It was the sixth 80+ yard TD of Johnson's 5-year career with the Titans. Also the 48th touchdown of his career, rushing and receiving (including postseason).

Johnson has the names of all 20 of the victims of the Newtown, CT school shooting on his cleats tonight (photo shown below), and that TD was no doubt dedicated to those children and the families of the children.

9:30: Tim Tebow stays in the game for two consecutive plays, as he runs for a first down while running the triple option. Two tight ends were lined up in the backfield along with RB Joe McKnight. They're changing things up a bit on offense here.

9:35: This actually may be the longest I've seen Tebow in a game at one time this season. Four straight now as the Jets face a 3rd & 16 following a delay of game. He miraculously avoids a second straight sack and throws the ball away to bring up 4th down. I'm not really sure what Rex Ryan is doing here, to tell you the truth. Titans get the ball back with just over 6 minutes to play in the half.

Here's Locker's chance to start to break this one open. If he really wants to, anyways.

9:41: Tennessee's offensive line is really struggling tonight. New York doesn't even need to blitz, they are getting pressure on Locker with their front line and Johnson can't even get back to the line. If you take away NY's one mistake that led to the 94-yard TD, CJ has managed just 9 yards on 9 carries.

9:44: We've been waiting for this for a while now, appears to be a Sanchez interception (Jason McCourty). It will be reviewed to determine whether McCourty was in bounds, but if the play is upheld it'll be Mark's 14th interception of the season and Tennessee ball.

Call is confirmed upstairs, Titans ball. It appears as though the Jets are already throwing in the towel and we still have four minutes until halftime. Coming up with a defensive stop and going into the half with a 7-3 deficit would be a huge win for NY.

9:47: Locker is still running for his life and is forced to step out of bounds on third down. There's the stop that I just mentioned. 3 & out. This game is as ugly as I was expecting.

9:52: "4-9 football teams do 4-9 things" --Jon Gruden. Sounds about right.

2 minute warning in Tennessee.

9:57: Does anyone wanna win this one? A promising start to a late Tennessee drives stalls after another Locker sack and a near-interception. The Jets are trying to force things to happen and neither team can get any sort of rhythm. The Jets final drive of the half ends with a Sanchez sack. U-G-L-Y.

Halftime: Titans 7, Jets 3
Sanchez's first half rating: 16.7
One explosive offensive play: C. Johnson 94-yard TD
1 turnover (Sanchez INT)
4 total sacks, 7 combined punts
*Johnson's TD run is the only first half highlight worth mentioning


Third Quarter
*What's the over/under that the Jets break 200 total yards for the game (99 total yards in first half...81 of which came on the ground)? Our pre-game 24-10 prediction is looking pretty generous right now.

10:16: Rex Ryan was impressed by Johnson's run, apparently saying at halftime that he's "never seen anything like it before."

10:18: First offensive play of the second half is Braylon's 2nd catch of the game, moving the chains already. New York had 10 first half first downs.

10:20: Another Sanchez mistake, overthrowing Cumberland and straight into the hands of McCourty. It's McCourty's second INT of the night and 4th of the season. Titans take over at the NY 46 for their first offensive drive of half No. 2.

10:23: Locker loves the bootlegs to his right, he thrives off them as he just picked up TEN's 7th first down of the evening. It was Kenny Britt's first catch of the game, 41st of the season according to ESPN's Mike Tirico.

10:25: Penalties continue to destroy any hope the Titans generate, a holding call takes Tennessee out of field goal range and a failed 3rd down conversion will force another Brett Kern punt. The penalty was Tennessee's eighth of the game.

10:38: Tennessee takes over at their own 10 as they attempt to get a scoring drive going for the first time since early in the second quarter.

10:40: Another 3 & out. Kern will make his 6th punt of the night deep inside his own end zone. The punt goes out of bounds at their own 35, giving New York fantastic field position. If New York can't get anything out of this next drive, then all hope will officially go down the drain, despite the score still being just 7-3.

10:43: A 20-yard run by Joe McKnight puts the Jets at the TEN 15-yard line and pushes the Jets over the 100-yard mark on the ground. Total group effort: McKnight 35, Greene 35, Powell 20, Tebow 15, Sanchez 4. 109 total.

10:45: Tennessee brings the heat but Sanchez gets the ball out quickly to TE Cumberland for a TD. Linebacker Tim Shaw (McCarthy's replacement) has good coverage on the play but seems to lose track of where the ball is. The 17-yard touchdown through the air and the extra point by Folk gives NY a 10-7 lead with just over three minutes to play in the quarter.

Maybe the Jets do have some fight in them, as they were able to take advantage of the poor punt from Kern.

10:49: More pressure on Locker as he overthrows Nate Washington by a couple of feet on a deep pass down the right sideline. Can Jake get a little protection at all tonight?

It's a good thing he's still got that play-action bootleg to the right in his arsenal, as he hooks up with rookie Michael Preston for a first down on the next play.

10:50: Second red zone attempt of the game for the Titans. Last one came in the first quarter and ended with a blocked FG off the leg of Bironas.

10:54: Locker takes the ball into the end zone himself on a designed running play to his left, following his lead blockers the whole way. Locker was 3-for-4 on the drive before he capped it with a 13-yard TD run. A Bironas extra point gives Tennessee the lead back, 14-10, with under a minute to play in the third.

10:56: A short run on first down by Powell takes us to the end of the quarter. With 15 minutes to play, Tennessee leads the Jets 14-10. Rex Ryan better get his squad to rally together as they only have one quarter left to stay alive in the playoff hunt.


Fourth Quarter
*Tennessee leads nearly every offensive category through three quarters of play with the exception of total plays, first downs and giveaways.

11:03: New York has limited the penalties tonight, but there was a crucial one on that 3rd & 2 that eventually led to a punt after Akeem Ayers sacked Mark Sanchez (4th sack for Titans tonight). Titans offense back on the field at LP Field.

11:07: Neither team has managed to keep its quarterback upright on 3rd downs. Locker is dropped for the fourth time tonight as well, forcing another Kern punt and another fair catch from NY return man Jeremy Kerley. A holding call against the kicking team (Titans) adds 10 yards on to the end of the play, giving New York solid field position to start the next drive.

11:10: Two consecutive short passes that Sanchez has now missed, both check down passes. He's now 9/21 for just 93 yards.

Sanchez completes a pass for 8 yards on 3rd and 10. Another punt coming, but hey, at least Sanchez is now over the 100 passing yards mark for the night!! That's good news, right?? His rating has climbed to 36.7 for the game as well. Offense still not making any progress, however.

11:14: Tennessee's penalty count just went up to 12 for 86 yards after Deuce Lutui is called for holding. Basically tackled his man.

Cromartie barely misses an interception on the very next play. If "almost-interceptions" counted as interceptions, I think Locker would have about 3 so far tonight. Ouch.

11:19: Locker underthrows an open Lavelle Hawkins on 3rd and long. The two teams have combined for a 7-for-23 3rd down conversion rate tonight. New York takes back over at their own 23-yard line after Kern's eighth punt of the game. I'm feeling a long, 10-play scoring drive from Sanchez. We're overdue for one, wouldn't you say?

11:21: It had appeared as though Rex Ryan had come to his senses. Started this drive with a couple of Shonn Greene carries which resulted in a first down, but then a deep Sanchez pass intended for Edwards was picked off by Michael Griffin. Errant throw which was unnecessary. Tried to force it in, gave Griffin an easy INT.

Another holding penalty against Tennessee on Griffin's return negated the decent field position, but Tennessee holds possession with a four-point lead and 7 minutes to play, nevertheless.

11:24: Another designed run play for Locker comes up one yard short on 3rd down. Tennessee only managed to take off about a minute and a half on the game clock before the ball was given back to Sanchez and Co.

With 5:20 to play, this drive (starting at NY's own 8) may be New York's final chance to re-take the lead.

11:27: With Greene getting the ball on 3 of the first 4 plays this drive, I just thought I'd share with you the impact he's made on offense this season...In the 6 NY wins, Greene has been heavily involved. But in the team's 7 losses, Greene got 16 or fewer rushing attempts and just 1 total TD.

Take the ball out of Sanchez's hands and into Greene's for 25+ times a game, Rex. That's all I'm going to say. He's received 20 or more carries on just four occasions this season, all of which resulted in victories.

11:30: More Tennessee penalties have kept the NY drive alive as we reach the two-minute warning in Nashville. Will be interesting to see if Sanchez can close this one out and stay alive in the postseason hunt.

11:33: Uhm, oh my. What on earth was that? Inside Tennessee's 25-yard line and Sanchez throws another errant pass off his back foot, into triple coverage. Griffin makes his second pick of the game and gives the Titans the ball back inside their own 5 with 1:51 to play. Sanchez's 4th of the game and 17th INT on the year.

Awful.

11:35: Tennessee plays it safe and gives it to Johnson three straight times. The result? Four total yards and a Kern punt with :53 to play. New York will get the ball back one more time with zero timeouts.

11:37: Wacky ending to this one. For the second time this game Kern kicks one off the side of his foot and the Jets will get the ball at the TEN 25.

11:38: First play for New York's offense and Sanchez FUMBLES the snap out of the gun and gives the ball up for the 5th time this game. With no TOs left, Locker can kneel the ball and run out the final 39 seconds of play.

Unbelievable finish. Titans improve to 5-9 while the Jets fall to 6-8 and are eliminated from the postseason for the second consecutive season after two straight AFC Championship appearances.

FINAL: Titans 14, Jets 10

More recap and reaction from tonight's game, as well as the rest of Week 15, will come tomorrow morning/afternoon. Thanks for following along tonight!

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Down the Stretch: Bold Predictions for the Final 3 Weeks of Play

Three weeks left to play, 8 playoff seeds still available.

You do the math.

As teams prepare for Week 15 action tomorrow afternoon, there's only one thing that we're sure of: the final three weeks of the regular season will be chaos.

Here are some bold predictions from the All-Out Blitz involving the final three weeks of the regular season. You can count on us:

*The loser of the Steelers/Cowboys showdown misses playoffs

This may be one of the biggest must-win games of the weekend, and it applies to both squads. Dallas (7-6) are tied for second in the NFC East while Pittsburgh (7-6) is sitting in third, and could be tied for second with a win. The winner doesn't necessarily make the postseason, but it certainly does boost its chances. The loser, however, may find itself out of the running due to the stiff competition.

*Adrian Peterson becomes 7th player to rush for 2,000 yards in a season

With three games to play, Peterson is 400 yards shy of 2,000 for the season and the Vikings are 7-6. In the middle of the playoff hunt, the Vikings aren't going to be getting away from running the ball down the stretch since that's what has gotten them this far. It'll be tough, considering after a Week 15 match-up with St. Louis the Vikings have to play Houston and Green Bay, but it's definitely attainable. All he has to do is average 133 yards per game down the stretch. Piece of cake for a guy who has run for 100 yards in 7 consecutive games.

He may even come close, or break, Eric Dickerson's single-season rushing record of 2,105 if he can run for another 200-yard game tomorrow. He's only 506 yards away from surpassing Dickerson's record, set in 1984.

*Seattle makes postseason while Russell Wilson becomes OROY dark horse

With guys such as Andrew Luck, RGIII, Doug Martin, Alfred Morris etc. dazzling in their respective rookie seasons, it's easy to overlook Seattle's 3rd round pick Russell Wilson. But it's also easy to see that he's become the leader and franchise quarterback that the 'Hawks have been searching for since seasoned veteran Matt Hasselbeck left for Tennessee. Wilson's nearly 2,500 yards and 20 TD passes and running back Marshawn Lynch has the Seahawks at 8-5 and just a game back in the NFC West. Seattle wont beat out San Fran for the division, but a wild card seed is in clear sight.

*Giants lose 2 out of final 3 games, miss postseason...

This one really is a bold, ballsy prediction here. You can never count Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning's Giants out of it. New York has proven time after time that they can win games when it matters most, and they even currently own a one-game lead in the NFC East. However, there are just too many signs pointing towards a changing of the guard this season in the East. New York has blowout victories over teams such as San Francisco (26-3), Green Bay (38-10) and New Orleans (52-27) this season, but inconsistencies have ridden the G-Men of pulling away with the division and they have a tough remaining schedule.

Matt Ryan has never beaten the Giants, and they are the only NFC team Matty Ice has yet to beat. But Ryan is 32-4 at home during his career and is poised for revenge against New York following an early playoff exit at the hands of the Giants last season. With Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs likely making returns for the Ravens next week, Eli could be in for a long day for a second consecutive week. Given two of three losses in the final three weeks, and an easy remaining schedule for Washington and the Giants miss the postseason with a 9-7 record. Count on it.

*Bill Belichick does not rest starters, Patriots end regular season on 10 game winning streak

Let's face it, the Patriots are not going to rest Tom Brady & Co. That's just not Belichick's style. People need to stop complaining about the Patriots "running up the score." This is the National Football League, and Bill and Tom don't want to play "pity football" by running the clock out, they don't have to. The Patriots proved last week that they are the No. 1 team in the league by blowing out the Houston Texans defense.

With the top defense in San Francisco visiting Gillette Stadium on Sunday night, I don't expect anything different from New England. It could end up being another embarrassing one-sided match-up if the Pats defense can contain Colin Kaepernick.

*Chargers win out, finish 8-8 for second consecutive season

Philip Rivers plays his best football in December, we're all well aware of that. And after a 34-24 victory over the Steelers last week in Ben Roethlisberger's return, it's looking a lot like another mediocre 8-8 season thanks to a strong finish. But after four straight mediocre seasons with no postseason appearances, we're thinking that the Norv Turner era could be seeing its final three games in San Diego.

*Wild Card spots are Colts' and Bengals' to lose

At this point, there's really only three legitimate contenders for the two AFC wild card seeds, meaning only one team will be utterly disappointed at the end of the month. After watching a porous effort out of Pittsburgh's offense on Sunday, they are just one more loss away from being eliminated (currently 7-6, but can't afford another loss). The Colts (9-4) and Bengals (8-6; defeated Eagles 34-13 on Thursday night) currently hold the two seeds. The Colts just need one more win to solidify a playoff spot, while the Bengals can control their own destiny with a victory over Pittsburgh next weekend.

The other contenders include the 6-7 Jets, who will need to finish the season 3-0 to even have a shot, and a bunch of 5-8 teams (Bills, Dolphins, Browns and Chargers) who can't all win out. So the bold prediction here? Well, I guess this isn't all that bold, per se, but the Colts and Bengals will capture wild card seeds and your AFC playoff teams will be as follows: Patriots, Texans, Broncos, Ravens, Colts, Bengals).

*Calvin Johnson breaks Jerry Rice's single-season receiving yards record

Detroit's Madden cover boy Calvin Johnson Jr. has avoided the so-called "Madden Curse" this season by producing 1,546 yards for the Lions. Though Megatron experienced somewhat of a slow start compared to his 2011 campaign, he now finds himself just 303 yards shy of breaking Jerry Rice's 17 year old record of 1,848 receiving yards in a single-season. All Johnson has to do is average 101.0 yards per game for the final three games to break the record that was set in 1995.

Considering he came up just short of the record last season (just 167 yards shy), Johnson must realize that the record is within reach yet again. The one surprise that we've seen with Johnson in 2012 compared to last season is that he's caught just 5 TD passes this season, despite his 96 receptions and 1,500+ yards. Oh well, the record is his if he wants it.

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Week 14: Teams on Brink of Playoff Berths

Two teams–Green Bay and San Francisco–clinched their respective divisions with victories last weekend. This week's slate of games play a huge role in the playoff hunt.

Scenarios for Week 14:

*New Orleans can clinch the NFC South with a win and an Atlanta loss.

*Houston can clinch the AFC South with a win and a Tennessee loss.

*New England can hold a three-game lead in the AFC East with a win and a New York loss.

*Baltimore can re-gain the AFC North lead (due to tiebreaker over Pittsburgh) with a win.

*Denver can take sole possession of the AFC West with a win and an Oakland loss...and vice versa.

*Even if New York, Cincinnati, Tennessee and Oakland (all currently 7-5 and in the Wild Card hunt) pull off a victory tomorrow, the Steelers (10-3 after Thursday night's hard-fought victory over Cleveland) would still hold a strong two-game lead in the AFC Wild Card race.

*In the NFC, Detroit, Chicago and Atlanta are in a dog fight for the Wild Card spots. All sitting at 7-5, things could get interesting this weekend.

Here are my picks for tomorrow's games:

Ravens over Colts...Even without Ray Lewis on the field, Baltimore's smash-mouth defense are likely to tear Indy's offensive attack apart.

Falcons over Panthers...I'd love to see Cam Newton continue his strong case for the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year award, but against a playoff-hungry Falcons in town that doesn't seem likely.

Texans over Bengals...Having T.J. Yates start just his second career game against a scrappy Bengals squad scares me a little, but as long as Yates protects the football like last week his running game should do the heavy lifting.

Lions over Vikings...Even if Adrian Peterson ends up playing tomorrow, he wont be 100%. Detroit's defense–even without Ndamukong Suh on the field–can contain a banged up Peterson long enough for Matt Stafford to put up some points on Jared Allen & Co.

Bucs over Jags...Josh Freeman's shoulder seems to be slowly healing and he could suit up for Tampa Bay tomorrow. I think it's about time for them to snap that nasty six-game losing streak against a rebuilding Jaguars franchise.

Dolphins over Eagles...Vick is back for Philly but Miami (4-8) is one of the hottest teams in the league right now, winning four out of the last five weeks (the loss was a one-point defeat to Dallas on Thanksgiving). Over that span, Matt Moore has helped the offense put up 30 or more points on three different occasions.

Jets over Chiefs...Battling injury all season long, Kansas City has virtually been knocked out of playoff contention at 5-7, needing a miracle to end the season with four victories to get in the postseason. New York is trying to catch New Enland in the East and is in need of a victory here.

Saints over Titans...This loss would pretty much ruin Tennessee's chances at capturing the division title if Houston also wins (like I'm predicting). I just don't think the defense has what it takes to stop NO's Drew Brees, and Matt Hasselbeck doesn't have the firepower to keep up in a shootout.

Patriots over Skins...Inconsistent play at the quarterback position has been the Achilles heal of the Washington Redskins all season. Tom Brady is bound to have a big game against Washington's defense with targets such as Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski.

Niners over Cardinals...Alex Smith's revitalized career after five disappointing seasons in San Fran has been one of 2011's nicest surprises. Smith's campaign for 2011 Comeback Player of the Year award will continue against the Cards. If they get a big lead early on it wouldn't surprise me if coach Harbaugh sat the starters in the second half.

Broncos over Bears...I'm a believer in Tim Tebow's ability to win. He's obviously not a pocket passer, or even much of a passer at all. His accuracy is lacking and his ability to see down the field has shown weaknesses. But he's the leader Denver has been missing for years now, and they finally have a winner in Tebow.

Packers over Raiders...Carson Palmer seems to think he's going to be able to go out and keep up with Aaron Rodgers in a possible shootout. Sorry, Carson, but I don't think so. Not only is Rodgers the best signal caller in the game right now, but he also has one of the strongest supporting casts in the league.

Chargers over Bills...San Diego has suffered some heartbreaking losses over the last few weeks, and Buffalo has lost five straight games now. Both at 5-7, SD and Buffalo are both fighting for pride right now and San Diego seems the more liklier team to pull out a much-needed W.

Giants over Cowboys...The G-men have won four of their last five and the 'Boys are in their usual December free-fall–1-4 over that span. A Giants victory would put them at first place in the East with a 7-6 record...Dallas would be a close second (also 7-6, but NY owns tiebreaker).

Monday night game: Seahawks over Rams...Possibly one of the most boring primetime match-ups of the season, these two teams were fighting for the division around this time last year. This year? Seattle finds themselves at 5-7 (3-3 at home) and St. Louis at 2-10 and the very bottom of the West. Marshawn Lynch has been one of the few bright spots in Seattle, and I am suspecting an outstanding performance from him in the run game.

Photo credit

Matt Moore: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

Julius Peppers: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images