Week 7 New Super Bowl Favorite

The 6-1 Kansas City Chiefs are the new favorite to win the Super Bowl, ahead of 49ers, Eagles, and Cowboys. 

The Bills looked dominant in weeks 2-4, then went to London and have looked like shit since then. They're 4-3 and just don't seem like a contender at the moment. Which they have time to fix that...but their best hope of making it to the Super Bowl was getting that #1 seed and the only bye, forcing the Chiefs/Dolphins* (or whoever the other top teams are by January) to play each other. But with a 4-3 record, even if they round into form, their odds of getting the bye are not ideal. 

The Dolphins just lost to the Eagles. Like, it's cool to drop 70 on the Broncos. It really is. But Miami needs to beat a good team before we're sure they're a Super Bowl contender. 

I can't say it enough, the November 5 Germany game between KC and Miami is huge. If Miami wins that, it would vault them into first place in the AFC via head-to-head tiebreaker. Lose, and Chiefs might be able to secure the #1 seed and rest players in the regular season. 

- - -

Coming into the season, I wasn't confident that the Chiefs would be the same Super Bowl contender we saw last year. I know how hard it is to repeat AND there were bad vibes around Kelce's injury and Chris Jones' holdout. Well the bad vibes are gone. The defense is legit good, the only team to hold every opponent to 20 or less. The offense looked sharp again. Hardman already made an impact with a 50-yard punt return and Charles Omenihu helped the defense in his first game for the Chiefs. At this point, it feels like all the pressure is on other teams to prove they belong in the same conversation with the Chiefs. Pretty nice spot to be in at week 7. (Of course, there's 11 more weeks in the regular season. It can all go to hell for tons of reasons, including injuries. Nothing is guaranteed. Et cetera.)

- - -

Who's the second best team in the division?

The Raiders? With the -49 point differential and just got blown out by TYSON BAGENT and the Bears?

The Chargers? Who have 2 wins after week 7? And are 14th out of 16 in the AFC standings?

Or the Broncos? Who also have 2 wins and gave up 70 points this year?

Okay, it's the Chargers. But still. 2-4 is not where you want to be after choking a playoff game.

- - -

AFC

Cross-Offs: Patriots, Broncos, Raiders, Jets

Playoff Teams: Chiefs, Dolphins, Ravens, Jaguars, Bills.

I know it's early but it looks your four division winners are in this group. I'm not ready to believe in Steelers or Browns. As of right now, I would put the Bengals and Texans as more likely to be wild-card teams. 

NFC

Cross-Offs: Giants, Bears, Vikings, Panthers, Cardinals, Commanders, Packers

Packers are a new addition. I was believing through 3-4 weeks. Last two weeks, back to back losses to Raiders and Broncos. Yeesh.

7 out of 16 crossed-off in Week 7, including every NFC North team except the Lions. 

Playoff Teams: Eagles, 49ers, Lions, Cowboys, probably Seahawks, probably Falcons

Week 6 Chiefs vs Lions Super Bowl

There are no undefeated teams in the NFL. 

There are 5 teams tied with the best record: 5-1. 

Chiefs and Dolphins in the AFC. 49ers, Eagles and Lions in the NFC. 

I know we're not halfway through the season yet, but still...this is the closest we've ever been to a Chiefs-Lions Super Bowl. How close are we?

Chiefs are the AFC favorite at just +230. Lions are behind the Cowboys but only because Dallas is a public team. Lions at +600 to go to the Super Bowl. 

And if you parlay the two tickets, the odds are +2210. So sure, still a longshot. 22-1 odds. But it's not a longshot like Leicester when they were 5000-1 to win the Premier League. 

There are exactly 7 AFC teams with a point differential over 10: Bills, Dolphins, Chiefs, Ravens, Texans, Jaguars and Browns. 

Likewise, exactly 7 NFC teams with a point differential over 10: 49ers, Lions, Cowboys, Eagles, Rams, Seahawks, Saints. 

Is it that simple? Are those our 14 playoff teams? If it is that simple, remind me just to make money off of this.

favorite bands, revisited

back in 2014, I did a full top 80 bands

in 2020 census, I did a top 10 bands

I thought maybe I could make an update focused on being helpful to me, just to keep tabs on the bands I like. (Also, like just in case my Spotify got deleted or something, I'd have a backup.)

All of these are based on the reality of how much I like/listen to them, not a judgment on absolute quality. 

Tier One

311

Alkaline Trio

Dashboard Confessional

Motion City Soundtrack

New Found Glory

Panic! at the Disco

Vampire Weekend

Tier Two

Death Cab for Cutie

Jimmy Eat World

Fall Out Boy

Weezer

Jack Johnson

Ozma

Third Eye Blind

The Hold Steady

Tier Three

AJR

New Politics

The National

The Stereo

Brand New

Saves The Day

Unwritten Law 

Midtown

Tommy Prine

Waterparks

Seaway

Blink 182

Tier Four

Reel Big Fish

Sugarcult

Less Than Jake

Sublime

Strike

The Starting Line

The Impossibles

The Pixies

Jimi Hendrix

Forever the Sickest Kids

The Get Up Kids

My Chemical Romance

State Champs

Sum 41

Twenty One Pilots

Tier Five

Bracket

American Hi-Fi

Incubus

Flaming Lips

The Anniversary

The Juliana Theory

Flickerstick

Cartel

Hey Mercedes

Zebrahead

Tier Six

Just Surrender

Lucky Boys Confusion

Ultimate Fakebook

The Red Hot Valentines

The Audition

All Time Low

The Promise Ring

The Urge

Hit The Lights

The Menzingers

Reggie and the Full Effect

Milencolin

Against Me

Pedro the Lion

When Did the Patriots Dynasty End?

Let's work through it.

The Patriots won Super Bowls in the 2014, 2016 and 2018 NFL seasons. 

If you are a strict judge, going by their last title, you could make the argument that their last successful moment was winning Super Bowl LIII. 

But Brady and Belichick were still going strong in the 2019 NFL season. The Patriots went 12-4 and won the AFC East. Just because they didn't win the Super Bowl doesn't end a dynasty, as they didn't win in the 2015 and 2017 seasons also. Winning the AFC East here is crucial. This was the 11th season in a row that the Pats won the division. From 2001 to 2019, the Patriots won the division 17 out of 19 seasons. Insane. 

So we're in agreement that the Patriots dynasty was still active in the 2019 season. 

But look at what happens in 2020. 

Tom Brady leaves.

The Patriots go 7-9. 

They miss the playoffs, which is essentially unheard of during their 19-year run.

And they go from winning the AFC East every year to finishing 3rd in the division. 

Since the start of the 2020 season, the Patriots have yet to win the division or win a playoff game. 

By 2020 the Patriots dynasty was over. 

- - -

The simplest way to mark the ending would be to say in the off-season when Tom Brady went to Tampa Bay. Perhaps it's the best. 

But...

Another way of looking at it would be that a dynasty doesn't just end. The torch has to be passed. 

It just so happens in the four years since the Patriots won their last Super Bowl, one team has won multiple Super Bowls. And they did it at the end of the 2019 season, marking the start of the 2020 off-season. 

So when the Chiefs won Super Bowl LIV, the torch was passed to the new kings of the league. 

- - -

So those are really the two best answers. Either when Brady left the Patriots on March 20, 2020 or when the Chiefs won Super Bowl LIV on February 2, 2020. And yeah, they're only 6 weeks apart with no games being played in between, so we're really splitting hairs. 

- - -

Just for fun though. If we roll with the theory that Super Bowl LIV ended the Patriot dynasty...it really requires a closer look at the 2019 Week 14 game where the Chiefs went into Gillette and beat the Patriots. The two teams ended the season at 12-4 and without the playoffs arranging itself just the way it did, the outcome could have been wildly different.

Point / Counterpoint: Are the 2023 Chiefs Good?

Point: The Chiefs look sloppy. Mahomes has thrown 5 interceptions in 6 games. Their offense could only score 19 vs the Broncos. They barely beat the Zack Wilson Jets. Their game vs the Vikings came down to the wire. They don't have any good wide receivers. The Chiefs are not very good.

Counterpoint: The Chiefs are 5-1. The one game they lost was to the Lions by one point, and that was without both Chris Jones and Travis Kelce. Mahomes has had some strange throws, but no reason to think it will continue all year—he plays best when the pressure is on. The defense has been excellent. The offense has been doing enough to win while experimenting with trick plays. Rashee Rice is emerging as a good receiver. They Chiefs are good. 

Point: It's super hard to repeat as Champions. You've said it yourself, you don't see the Chiefs as winning the Super Bowl. 

Counterpoint: That's true. This Chiefs team, especially right now, doesn't seem like a Super Bowl-winning team. 

The first step is seeing who gets the #1 seed and the bye in the AFC, as with only one bye and potentially 3 elite teams, that bye is huge. 

The second step is getting to the Super Bowl. 

The third step is winning that game. 

With a 5-1 record and their only loss being to a NFC team, the Chiefs are super well positioned to contend for the AFC top seed. Their games vs Miami and Buffalo will be huge and it would help if Miami can drop a random game here or there. 

As for the second step, it's all about how you're playing in January. So if the offense is sloppy and they don't have any good receivers in January, that's a red flag. But they've got time to figure that out. 

As for the Super Bowl, we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Right now Eagles or 49ers would be favored but it depends on injuries and luck and everything else. 

Point: Right now Chiefs are 5-1 to win the Super Bowl. So Vegas is giving them a 20% chance. 80% chance they don't win it. 

Counterpoint: Yeah. The favorite is the 49ers at 4.5-1. Chiefs are 2nd. It's correct for any team that the field is more likely than that team. But having the best odds in the AFC is still a good place to be.

Week 5 Power Poll

AFC

Cross-Offs: Patriots, Broncos, Raiders, Jets

I think Richardson is made of glass so I'll stick with Jags as AFC South Favorite. (Although I don't love the Jags this week after two weeks in London.)

I'm not convinced any team in the AFC North is good yet. 

Still seems like Dolphins, Bills and Chiefs are the top 3. Can't cross any more teams off because they're all so mediocre. 

NFC

Cross-Offs: Giants, Bears, Vikings, Panthers, Cardinals, Commanders

These teams stink. 6 out of 16 crossed-off in Week 5. 

Playoff Teams: Eagles, 49ers, Lions, probably Cowboys

That leaves 3 playoff spots for these 6 teams: Bucs, Seahawks, Falcons, Saints, Packers, Rams. At this point, Seahawks seem most likely. Then Saints. I would have said Packers if they would have beaten the Raiders. 

Calcutta Power Poll

1 49ers

2 Eagles

3 Chiefs

4 Dolphins

5 Bills

6 Lions

7 Cowboys?

It gets pretty murky around here. Vegas still likes the Ravens above the Lions but I don't. And it likes the Cowboys just behind Dolphins and Bills which seems too high. (Public team tax I guess). 

Feeling good about my Calcutta 49ers and Cowboys. Jaguars and Falcons both moving in the right direction. Steelers and Chargers still doing fine. Jets are who they are without Rodgers. And Packers would have been a lot better with a win last night. 

Mark desperately needs Burrow to get Bengals back into form. Lions are his best team. Saints and Browns have signs of life, but that Chubb injury hurts.

Matt's a two team roster with Eagles and Bills leading the way. 

And Kirat's got Chiefs and Dolphins with Ravens plus Seahawks and Bucs doing fine. 

You gotta be kidding me

In our Eliminator league, Mark had won the first 4 weeks in a row.

In week 5, I had good games from Breece Hall, De'Von Achane and Sam LaPorta. Entering Monday Night Football, I only trailed Mark by 5 points. And I had Jordan Love at QB facing the Raiders, a bottom 5 defense. 

Here's Jordan Love so far this season:

If Love put up 25 or more, it would push my team to the 2nd highest score of the season and into bonus money territory. 

But all I really need is 5.5 out of him to win the week. 

Long story, short, he's struggling. He gets to 7 points late in the 4th quarter and I think it's sealed up. But then he throws his 2nd pick of the night. Back to 5. 

We don't even have rules for a tie because it's never happened. 

With 2 minutes left, the Raiders have a 4th and 2. If they go for and pick it up, that ends the game and Mark and I tie. I'm desperately hoping they kick, so Love can get the ball back. I only need a few passing or rushing yards. 

They kick. They miss. 

Love gets his 5 passing yards and is up to 6 points. 

There's 44 seconds left. All I need him to do is not fumble or throw an interception. I don't even need a touchdown. Like a turnover on downs is fine. 

You already know what happens.

Chucks it deep, interception in the end zone. 

I lose week 5 by 1 point.

Niraj KC Visit - 2023

Niraj got in late Thursday so the only thing we did that night was play a 1am game of Camel Up with Mrs. Hoagie Central. 

Friday we started with lunch at Chicken n Pickle. Tasty food and cornhole too.

They let me play in the Gameyard just fine.

From there we headed to the brand new Black Hoof Disc Golf in Lenexa.

I took each of the first 5 holes and seemed like it might be a blowout. But Burnsy shook off the rust and we tied the next 5 holes. And then on 11, he wins the hole and is now up 6-5 despite winning just one hole. Now it's a ballgame.

After 15 holes, Niraj was still up 8-7. We tied on 16. On 17, we both had putts that were about 10 footers. His hit the front rim, and mine found the chains. So I'm up 9-8 heading into the final hole.

On 18, there was minimal drama and we tied the hole, so that left the final score as 9-8. 

Closest disc golf game I've ever had.

From there we went to Alma Mader brewing and we met up with one of Niraj's friends, Chris. We had a few beers and then had burgers at Green Room for dinner. 

Saturday, Niraj and I took the boys to BRKthrough. This is the place with 30-40 challenge rooms and you're competing to get the high scores.

And sure enough, the four of us earned First Place on the leaderboard.

From there we went to Meat Mitch to load up on KC barbecue.

Seriously fun day out with the kids.

We came back home and regrouped a bit, board games, etc. 

Then for the evening portion, we ventured downtown. We started at Taps on Main, which had a self-service beer wall that we were very into. I got to try 5 different beers and we had some good wings and nachos.

From there we made our way on foot to the Green Lady Lounge, a jazz club I'd always wanted to visit. It was pretty rad.

After two hours of jazz, we went to Tom's Town for a high-end night cap. Kansas City nightlife at its best.

By Sunday, we had done almost everything on our list. 

We started with a little RedZone and a video call with Mark.

Then we went out on what ended up being a sportsbar bar crawl. 

Maloney's was a bust because they didn't have Sunday Ticket (wtf) so we audibled to a nearby Buffalo Wild Wings. 

We saw the end of the Noon games there and the start of the Chiefs game. But in the 2nd quarter we went looking for something a bit livelier. 

We tried Westport Ale House but it was both crowded and charging $15 cover. So then we tried Fountain Haus because we saw a sign promoting a 200" screen which both of us read as 200-foot screen. We go inside and realize it's 200 inches. 

So then we tried Tin Roof and even though it was packed, we secured a table right in front of a giant screen and had the best vibes, no cover. Win.

We watched the 2nd half of Chiefs-Vikings and it was a good game down to the wire, plus a Chiefs win. Not much more you can ask for.

And then we went across the street, to one of my favorite restaurants, and now a Niraj staple, Beer Kitchen. I got the Hogtied sandwich.

Another jam-packed fun visit. Great times!

Week 4 Favorites

Let's take an updated look at the best teams in each conference. Starting in the AFC.

I was sitting in a sportsbook yesterday and saw this graphic:

So it's kinda funny right? Last week, the Dolphins were 3-0 and had just scored 70. So they had a 45% chance of going to the Super Bowl? But after one road game, they're down to 20%. And the Bills took all those odds from them. 

Look, I get it. The Bills were dominant this week, and beat the Dolphins so sure, they're ahead of them. But they also lost Tre White for the year. 

I came into the year thinking that the Chiefs might have a down year, and didn't think they were worth taking in Calcutta factoring in the price tag. But I think the Bills at 40% right now is just as artificial as the Dolphins at 45% last week. Prisoner of the moment. 

Here's the current Vegas odds:

So it's Chiefs, Bills, Ravens, Dolphins and then a big drop to the Chargers. The Bengals are cooked this year, sorry. Same for Browns without Chubb. I would put the Jaguars above the Bengals, but they haven't looked good yet either. 

If you look at the top 4, we're saying the Chiefs and winner of the AFC East are the top two teams. So we could be headed toward another Bills vs Chiefs playoff game. I don't believe in the Ravens as a real playoff threat. Chargers or Jaguars could win a game but that's about it. 

It will really come down to the health of the Chiefs, Bills and Dolphins. Plus, homefield advantage. Hypothetically, if the Chiefs secure the 1 seed, and the Bills win the East, then the Dolphins would have to go through Buffalo in the cold/snow to reach Arrowhead in the cold. The track meet Dolphins wouldn't be as favored there as they would be if they could secure homefield throughout and make the winner of Chiefs/Bills come to Miami. 

Chiefs play Dolphins on Nov 5. Chiefs play Bills on Dec 10. Bills end the season in Miami.

My take: It's not about which one of these teams is the best, but who gets the #1 seed. (Also, entirely possible the Dolphins just become mediocre, or Chiefs or Bills for that matter.)

NFC

I don't have any ESPN analytics numbers for the NFC, but here's the Vegas odds:

49ers, Eagles and Cowboys all look elite. And look who's the only other team in the mix at less than 10 to 1...the Lions. As much as we all love the Lions, I don't think we can put them on the same level as the other three. 

So it's an eerily similar story in the NFC as the AFC. The 49ers are the best team, also in the West, and the two next best teams are in the East, fighting for the division. 

At this point, I trust the Eagles a lot more than the Cowboys. The Super Bowl Loss Hangover, which used to be my most reliable metric, now doesn't appear to be a thing. 

I think 49ers and Eagles are fighting for the 1 seed but ALSO that either team could win on the road. Cowboys flaming out in the playoffs seems likely. 

At this point, I think the biggest question is where will the 49ers-Eagles NFC Championship game get played.

First-Place Lions

As everyone knows, this has always been a Chiefs and Lions blog. And just 17 short years after founding it, the Lions are favored to win their division.

The Lions are 3-1. 

2-0 on the road, picking up wins at Arrowhead Stadium against the defending champs and Lambeau Field, their main competition for the division. 

1-1 at home, with their only loss coming in overtime. 

Here's their schedule leading up to Thanksgiving:

Very realistic to be 4-2 or better after that stretch, with 3-3 being the floor. 

They host the Packers on Thanksgiving and that game could basically clinch the division. A coronation on national TV.

It's been a long time coming for Detroit. But it looks like a good time coming.

Bears vs Chiefs

One image tells a whole story. 

1. Chiefs scored on 7 straight possessions. 

2. It's 41-0 in the 3rd. 

3. Blaine Gabbert is in for Mahomes. In the 3rd quarter. 

4. Jawaan Taylor is in the game and didn't get a penalty. 

I'm not sure which is the hardest to believe. 

Week 3 Blowouts

Let's start with something you don't see every day. Or ever. 

The Dolphins just put up the most points in the Super Bowl era. A 70 burger. 

They could have tied the 73-point record from 1940 if they had kicked a field goal, but they kneeled it out. Could have gone for 77 and the all-time-record. 

Among teams that have scored 70+, this was the 2nd best margin of victory. 

There were seven teams who accrued a point differential of -50 across 17 games last year. The Broncos did it in one game. 

Which is worse? Going 0-11 vs Patrick Mahomes or losing 20-70? Doesn't matter, the Broncos did both. 

Elsewhere, the Bills beat Washington 37-3 at Fedex Field and the Chiefs beat the Bears 41-10 at Taylor Swift Stadium.

- - -

You would think the most painful loss at the day would be the 70-20 in Miami, but nope, it was in Green Bay. 

The Saints entered the 4th quarter up 17-0 at Lambeau Field. 

But Derek Carr injured his throwing shoulder in the 3rd quarter. Here were the next four drives for the Saints: Punt. Punt. Punt. Punt. 

The Packers come alive in the 4th, scoring 18 on three possessions, doing the analytics thing of going for two when down 14 and it works. 

So now the Saints need Jameis to go down the field and get points in the final three minutes. And he does. Gets them down to the Green Bay 28. It's a 46-yard field goal attempt for rookie kicker Blake Grupe. Who picked a bad time to miss his first NFL kick. 

- - -

Also the Cowboys must be confused about how spreads work. The line was Cowboys -12. And they sort of nailed it exactly, losing to the Cardinals by exactly 12. 

- - -

Unrelated, but the two most famous NFL players are both on the Kansas City Chiefs and have won 2 Super Bowls. Things that in 2017 wouldn't have made any sense. 

- - -

Division Check-In

NFC North

Both the Lions and Packers are 2-1. Vikings and Bears are 0-3. Bears are a lost cause. Vikings seem to have dug too deep a hole. Like they'll be 2-4 after week 6, on track for a 6 or 7 win season. 

So uh, Lions at Packers is pretty big game. And DETROIT is favored at Lambeau. Wild stuff. 

NFC East

That sound you heard was the Cowboys bandwagon crashing into a cactus. Eagles remain class of the division. 

NFC West

49ers are the best team in the NFC. Seahawks look like a wild-card team. I still don't believe in the Rams as a playoff team, despite starting better than expected. 

NFC South

This will be a cluster all year. But Carr injury and yesterday's loss stings for New Orleans. Atlanta and Tampa will stay in the mix. 

Playoff Teams: 49ers, Eagles.

(9 teams in the middle)

Cross Offs: Bears, Giants, Cardinals, Panthers, Vikings. 

AFC West

Normalcy is restored. Chiefs are good. Raiders and Broncos are bad. Chargers have signs of promise but won't actually win in the playoffs. Chiefs play Dolphins in Germany on November 5 and play Bills in Kansas City on December 10. 

AFC East

This is a two team division. The Jets and Patriots stink. The Bills and Dolphins are two of the top 3 AFC teams. They play this week in Buffalo and in the season playing in Miami in January, avoiding both heat and snow related games. The Dolphins have been better but are one Tua injury away from irrelevance. The most competitive division race (because both teams are good) right now. 

AFC North

Do the Steelers feel like a 2-1 team? They do not. 

The Browns have limited two teams to 3 points each. 

The Ravens will regret not beating the Colts. 

Somehow three teams are 2-1 and the team in 4th place is the Bengals. 

This is the most interesting division race involving all four teams. Can't cross off any of these teams. 

AFC South

This division sucks. They're all bad and don't deserve our attention, time or energy. 

Playoff Teams: Bills, Dolphins, Chiefs. 

(9 teams in the middle)

Cross Offs: Broncos, Jets, Patriots, Raiders.

The six teams that are 10-1 or better to win the Super Bowl, sorted by conference are:

Chiefs

Bills 

Dolphins

49ers 

Eagles 

Cowboys

My preseason Super Bowl pick was 49ers over Chiefs and I would like to cash out the value of that ticket before it goes downhill.

Chiefs D

The story for the Chiefs this year has been their defense. Let's take a look at the Jaguars drives yesterday. 

1. Reached KC territory, punt

2. 3 and out punt

3. Started on own 2, punt

4. Takeover at KC 17 after muffed punt, only gain 3 yards, field goal

5. Takeover at KC 37 after fumble, fumble themselves on first play (botched screen pass that went backwards)

6. Reach KC 45, sacked on 4th and 5

7. Go 44 yards in 23 seconds to get a field goal before halftime

Halftime

8. Punt

9. 3 and out punt

10. Reached 1st and goal from KC 1, settled for field goal from KC 4

11. Reached 1st and 10 from KC 14, turnover on downs

- - -

Jaguars reached red zone three times. Zero touchdowns allowed. Two field goals and a turnover on downs. 

Here were the yards gained on the three Jaguars scoring drives: 3, 44, 73. So Jacksonville only went down the field and got points on 2 out of 11 drives. (One was gifted by a muffed punt, not the KC defense's fault.)

5 punts

1 turnover

2 turnover on downs

3 field goals

And last week, similar story for the Chiefs defense. One of the touchdowns was a pick 6. The other came after a fake punt from the Lions 17. Without the fake punt, the Lions have one 75-yard scoring drive the whole game. 

Promising start if the KC offense/special teams can stop turning the ball over.

Week 2 Projections

This will be an every week feature. I'm still riding high on the new football season and it's fun to think about it. Let's take it conference by conference.

AFC

The only 2-0 teams are the Dolphins and the Ravens.

The Dolphins went on the road to beat the Chargers and the Patriots. They get Broncos at home and then Bills on the road. I do think they're good but I also doubt that Tua plays all 17 games. 

The Ravens beat the Texans at home and the Bengals on the road. They get Colts next week with possibly Gardener Minshew. I'm not convinced they're an AFC title contender, but they could for sure win the AFC North at 11-6 or something. 

The good/decent 1-1 teams are Chiefs, Bills, Jags, Titans. 

The 0-2 surprises are really just the Bengals...and Burrow aggravated his calf injury today. 

If I was picking 7 playoff teams right now...Dolphins, Bills, Chiefs, Ravens seem in strong position. I'd give the nod to Jags over Titans but not super confident. If we say Jags, there's room for two more of Titans, Browns, Steelers, Bengals, Chargers.

Cross Off: Jets, Patriots, Texans, Broncos, Raiders, Colts. Now if the Jets were able to get a new QB in the building maybe they could be a wild-card. 

NFC

Meanwhile there are 6 2-0 teams in the NFC. Cowboys, 49ers, Falcons, Bucs, Eagles, Commanders.

The class of the conference so far is 49ers, Cowboys, Eagles. Let's pencil all three as playoff teams. 

Cross Off: Giants, Bears, Panthers, Cardinals. I've seen enough. 

So that leaves four spots for: Bucs, Commanders, Falcons, Packers, Lions, Vikings, Rams, Seahawks, Saints. Still pretty crowded. 

Just for fun, let's see who owns the teams I'm penciling in to the playoffs:

Dolphins - Kirat

Bills - Matt

Chiefs - Kirat 

Ravens - Kirat

49ers - Dave

Cowboys - Dave

Eagles - Matt

hmmmmm

holy shit, is it 5784 already?

For years and years, Hoagie Central has been a big supporter of all the important jobs and rituals associated with blowing shofars and anything else. It turns out I was ahead of my time. 

I encourage all followers of Hoagie Central around the world, to pass on the essential belief to their loved ones that "your mouth opens the door."