In recent years, one of the eight NFL divisions periodically will produce a champion with a record at or below .500. This year, the league could have two division champions that fail to win at least as many games as they have lost.
As Week 17 approaches, more and more fans will complain about the fact that the No. 5 seed in each conference will be required to travel to face a No. 4 seed with a grossly inferior record. In the AFC, that team likely will be the Chiefs or the Steelers. In the NFC, that team likely will be the Seahawks.
Seattle won’t have room to complain; five years ago, the 7-9 Seahawks hosted the 11-5 Saints in the wild-card round, and home-field advantage helped make the difference. In the aftermath of Seattle’s win (thanks to the original ding-ding grabbing Beastquake run), some argued that the outcome justified the seeding. The truth was, and is, that playing at home gives the inferior team an edge; if the Seahawks and Saints had played that year in New Orleans, the Saints likely would have advanced.
As a result of this all-too-common glitch (which given its frequency makes it something more than a glitch) arising from the reality that having only four teams in a given division creates situations in which a team that merely isn’t as bad as three others will get a playoff game at home, fans and media will again clamor for change -- especially with the phenomenon happening twice this year. Some would say that a division champion that fails to get to .500 shouldn’t get a playoff berth at all. The more rational view is that the No. 4 seed should not be allowed to host a playoff game if that team isn’t at least at or above .500.
It would be a surprise if that change is made, now or ever. As one source with knowledge of the overall dynamics recently explained it to PFT, the overwhelming sentiment in past years has supported that notion that winning a division must have significance and meaning, regardless of record.
Still, despite the fact that the 32 teams are neatly arranged in two conferences with four divisions and four teams in each division, having only four teams in one division sets the stage for a team to win a division with a bad record -- especially since all four teams in a given division now play largely the same schedule every year.
And so in more and more years, look for at least one division champion to sneak into the postseason with a better record than the first wild-card in the conference and in turn to have a home-field advantage in the wild-card round that fairly could be called unfair.
