Welcome to the playoffs.
OK, so the postseason doesn’t officially begin until Jan. 8, 2005. Playoff implications abound during Week 15, however, with only five teams officially eliminated. Particularly when it comes to the Buffalo Bills.
The journey to Cincinnati amounts to a mini-playoff in itself, with the Bengals and Bills each fighting to keep their tenuous hopes alive.
Both need help, and lots of it. But there aren’t many teams above them in the standings playing better right now than these two.
Cincy’s momentum took a pair of body blows last week. The Bengals lost to New England, which is certainly no crime. The defeat left them trailing five teams, including Buffalo, for the last AFC playoff spot.
In the process, they also probably lost first-year starting quarterback Carson Palmer, the triggerman for an orange-and-black offensive explosion over the past month, with a knee injury.
Jon Kitna, whose rewards for winning the National Football League’s comeback player of the year award in 2003 included a spot on the sideline and a baseball cap, is a more-than-capable replacement for Palmer. But chemistry plays a vital role in an offense that operates as explosively as the Bengals’ had been, and nothing ruins a recipe like switching ingredients.
Kitna (or Palmer, should he stage a miraculous recovery) may not be on the field that much, anyway. Head coach Marvin Lewis’ defense, expected to be Cincy’s strong point, lags well behind the offense, particularly against the run, and should spend quite a bit of time trying to get the ball back for that offense.
Willis McGahee figures to rip through the NFL’s 28th-ranked run defense. The Bengals haven’t been overwhelming against the pass, either. Unless Drew Bledsoe reverts to the scattershot form he displayed in road losses at Baltimore and New England before Buffalo’s four-game winning streak began, the Bills should be able to take control early. That would lessen the impact of Rudi Johnson and the running game, while allowing Buffalo to get after Kitna before he can get the ball to Chad Johnson.
Cincy’s playoff hopes are so slim that they approach fantasy, so there’s the possibility of a letdown, as well. The Bills, favored by three points, need at least two of the teams above them to continue faltering, but there can’t be much doubt in their locker room that they’re going to take care of their end of things. Bills, 30-20.
Pittsburgh (-16) at N.Y. Giants: The Steelers, like the Bills, are road favorites this weekend -- there are seven in all -- and should cruise. I just can’t bring myself to spot any home team 16 points, though. Steelers, 24-9.
Washington (-4) at San Francisco: 49ers owner John York refused to give coach Dennis Erickson a vote of confidence beyond this week. That should really get the pathetic Niners, one of the five official corpses, fired up. Redskins, 10-3.
Carolina at Atlanta (-4): Picking all three road teams to win Saturday goes against most of what I believe, but the Panthers are the NFC’s Bills at the moment. Panthers, 27-24.
Seattle at N.Y. Jets (-6): A Seattle upset would help Buffalo, but it’s not going to happen. Jets, 31-16.
Dallas at Philadelphia (-12): The Cowboys have at least one big effort left in their lost season. Eagles, 26-23.
Minnesota (-3.5) at Detroit: If the Vikings lose this one, Mike Tice had best get to work on that resume. Vikings, 27-17.
San Diego (-9) at Cleveland: A lot of points for a road favorite, but there’s not much reason to think the Browns, another member of the Futile Five, have any life left. Chargers, 28-0.
Jacksonville at Green Bay (-4): The Packers give the Bills a hand. Packers, 21-16.
Baltimore at Indianapolis (-9): As do Peyton Manning and friends. Colts, 34-23.
Denver at Kansas City (-1): Not to mention Kansas City. Chiefs, 23-20.
Houston at Chicago (-1): Believe it or not, both these 5-and-8ers are officially alive, according to the NFL. For this week, at least. Bears, 9-7.
New Orleans at Tampa Bay (-7.5): Same for these two duds. Ah, parity. Bucs, 27-13.
St. Louis (-1) at Arizona: In a sign of just how bad the NFC has become, even Arizona still has a shot at the postseason. And a pretty shaky foe this week. Cardinals, 17-16.
Tennessee at Oakland (pick ‘em): Believe it or not, this is the only game this weekend between two teams officially out of the chase. Which might be why the oddsmakers didn’t bother setting a line. Titans, 33-21.
New England (-9.5) at Miami: The Patriots don’t have to concern themselves with playoff implications. And the Dolphins were out of it by the end of September. Patriots, 31-13.
(Last week: 11-5 overall, 9-7 against the spread. Season: 135-73 overall, 109-96-3 against the spread.)
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | Dec. 18 2004 |