THE NFL needs to change playoff rules

[McBa1n]

What about the 3rd place team that goes 11-5? They don't get a guarenteed home game?
I don't like it. If that's what the league wants, then get rid of the divisions - it's stupid. The whole point of winning your division is to get that home playoff game. It also means you were the best team in that division and you've outplayed 3 other teams that you're rivaled with.

It's bad for the game. Besides, if a top wild card team has to go on the road, it's their own damn fault for winning the division. It rewards teams that just aren't as good as their division rivals...
It's perfect the way it is. The #1 seed gets enough softballs as it is to get to the Superbowl. It can't get much easier for them.

[Daveyboy]

Im happy how it is. Go Rams!

[BetWeather]

Yeah Like The Chiefs.
10-5 and no playoffs.... Bull-Ship !

[Grind House]

Ok, but I still hope the division winner loses first playoff game. Would just be a travesty to see St Louis or Seattle knock out a great team just by virtue of getting the home game.

If they must be in the playoffs they should at least have to go on the road and earn a victory

If a great team gets knocked out by a piece of shit team, they weren't great in the first place. If a team has a 11-5 record and doesn't get in, maybe they should've won 13 or 14. Win your division and quit bitching about a wild card.

[floridagolfer]

There's never been a .500 team that's deserved to play in the postseason and there never will be. This ought to be the first item on the agenda the next time the owners meet; if a division winner isn't over .500, it stays home and the next eligible team takes its place.

[icancount2one]

I agree. 8-8 and below should simply not be playoff eligible. If you don't post a winning record, you don't get in. Period.

This is a really good solution. Though I did love seeing the Pats miss the playoffs two years ago.

If a team that wins the division DOES NOT have a better record than a WILD CARD team than the WILD CARD team should have home advantage.

This might work out, and it would definitely be better than the current system.

Then teams like Atlanta/Philly/N.O. should completely blow out teams like the 49ers simply because they are so much better and play in a BCS conference.

Some crappy teams have heavy advantages at home, like Seattle or Arizona.

[Ninersnut]

http://forum.sbrforum.com/nfl-handicapping/844498-whos-ready-whole-offseason-bitching.html

Yup and it begins.

[The Bet Master]

Well if there was no guaranteed playoff spot for the division winner, there would be a lot more meaningless game which means less profit, and less excitement.

[k13]

Some crappy teams have heavy advantages at home, like Seattle or Arizona.

sf/atl game was in atlanta

[BRAVES1985]

.500 team should not have a home game they gotta change the rule

[nobs]

http://forum.sbrforum.com/nfl-handic...-bitching.html

Yup and it begins.

Yup except for the fact that I started this thread 3 weeks before you started that thread

[nobs]

.500 team should not have a home game they gotta change the rule

exactly, and this division winner may not even be .500. Could be a 7-9 winner

[BetWeather]

but you don't deserve home court for being a division winner over a better record wild card team

[RonChapman68]

Why does a team deserve to be in the playoffs and get a home game simply because they won their division ?

For real, the NFC WEST leader is 5-6 right now and that division will probably be won by an 8-8 team who played a shit schedule. So this team will get a home playoff game while at least 1 Eleven win team doesnt make the playoffs.

This is like putting TCU in the championship game simply because they won their shit division.

Every team in the NFC west plays a SHIT schedule and they will all lose at least 8 games. Let the NFC West winner go to hell and put in one of the 4 NFC teams who are 7-4 and not even in 1st place.

I think a team with a bad record winning thier division should be in playoffs, but not allowed to host the playoff game.

[k13]

giants, packers, bears, saints they all suck anyway, why should they deserve a playoff spot?

Seattle already beat the bears, packers can't even beat the lions, giants deserve to die, saints can't beat arizona.

[JohnGalt2341]

I think a team with a bad record winning thier division should be in playoffs, but not allowed to host the playoff game.

I agree 100%

[BetWeather]

Chiefs could miss the playoffs at 10-6...

Now that is a bunch of BS !

[boneheaded1]

Everybody quit your crying. You win your division. If you don't, you take your chances. It another division sucks, then that's just too bad. It's not your concern anyways. Your concern is to win your division. Who cares if the division winner is under .500

How often does that happen?

Ok look, the answer is simple. Win your division.

[tomcast]

I wouldn't want them to change that rule

[Vol_Bengal]

They're not going to do away with divisions... you'll continue to have division winners getting automatic bid and 2 wildcards...

What you will see changed soon is that once the 6 teams are determined then seeding will be based purely on record, etc. and divisional winners, etc. will have nothing to do with it. So if a wild card team has a better record than the divisional winner then it would host the home game and the division winner would travel.

[unde0087]

NFL is going to look like a joke when all other teams trying to make the playoffs have to get to 10 or 11 wins and this divison first 1 to 7 wins is in.

[unde0087]

If you can't even get to .500 you don't have any business being in any playoffs in any sports.

[brooks85]

If you dont win your division with at least a 9-7 record you shouldn't get in. It would be great if they did this and expanded the season to only 17 games, im tired of .500 seasons.

[slacker00]

How about expanding the playoffs? There should be a guaranteed playoff game for any team with a winning record.

This year, that would have allowed the Giants (10-6), Bucs (10-6) and Chargers (9-7) to get into the playoffs. The way it would work is that the bye week would be lost for the #1 and #2 seeds if there are enough qualifying teams, thus this year the Pats would have retained a bye week, but the other 3 teams would have lost a bye week due to qualifying teams. 3 extra wildcard playoff games would have occured last weekend:

Giants @ Bears
Bucs @ Falcons
Chargers @ Steelers

3 great games, IMHO!!! This is definitely something the NFL should think about. An incredible way of expanding the NFL season in a way that rewards the quality play of achieving a winning record in the NFL.

[nobs]

Seahawks are done. Glad they lost or they would have gotten another home game against a team with a much better record than them.

They finished 7-9 and could have gone to the Super Bowl just having to win 1 road game at Chicago.

Glad it didnt happen.