jeff@dciem.UUCP (Jeff Richardson) (12/04/84)
Here are the Richardson Rankings following the games of week 14. Even though
lower ranked teams won 6 of the 14 games last week, I think my rankings have
turned out to be a pretty good indication of how good the team has been over
the course of the season. (I think they're working out even better for the
NHL, which is a surprise to me; I figured they'd be better for football.)
Last This WEEK 14
Week Week TEAM (DIV) GP W L T PCT GOOD BAD RATING RESULT
2 1 SEATTLE (AW) 14 12 2 0 0.857 11.4 1.2 0.862 W Detr
4 2 SAN FRANCISCO (NW) 14 13 1 0 0.929 10.0 1.1 0.816 W Atla
1 3 MIAMI (AE) 14 12 2 0 0.857 10.0 1.3 0.811 L Raid
3 4 DENVER (AW) 14 11 3 0 0.786 10.1 2.0 0.789 L Kans
5 5 LA RAIDERS (AW) 14 10 4 0 0.714 9.8 1.8 0.784 W Miam
8 6 DALLAS (NE) 14 9 5 0 0.643 9.0 4.5 0.662 W Phil
10 7 NY GIANTS (NE) 14 9 5 0 0.643 8.7 4.4 0.653 W NYJe
6 8 CHICAGO (NC) 14 9 5 0 0.643 7.5 3.4 0.648 L SDie
9 9 WASHINGTON (NE) 14 9 5 0 0.643 7.2 3.3 0.639 W Minn
12 10 ST. LOUIS (NE) 14 8 6 0 0.571 7.9 4.8 0.610 W NEng
11 11 LA RAMS (NW) 14 9 5 0 0.643 7.7 4.9 0.602 W NOrl
7 12 NEW ENGLAND (AE) 14 8 6 0 0.571 6.0 3.4 0.596 L St.L
13 13 SAN DIEGO (AW) 14 7 7 0 0.500 5.8 4.0 0.564 W Chic
19 14 KANSAS CITY (AW) 14 6 8 0 0.429 5.4 6.3 0.468 W Denv
17 15 GREEN BAY (NC) 14 6 8 0 0.429 4.9 6.2 0.453 W Tamp
15 16 PHILADELPHIA (NE) 14 5 8 1 0.393 4.4 5.8 0.450 L Dall
14 17 PITTSBURGH (AC) 14 7 7 0 0.500 6.3 8.4 0.426 L Hous
16 18 NEW ORLEANS (NW) 14 6 8 0 0.429 3.9 6.4 0.412 L Rams
20 19 CINCINNATI (AC) 14 6 8 0 0.429 3.1 6.1 0.392 W Clev
18 20 NY JETS (AE) 14 6 8 0 0.429 4.2 7.3 0.390 L NYGi
22 21 DETROIT (NC) 14 4 9 1 0.321 2.8 8.0 0.313 L Seat
21 22 INDIANAPOLIS (AE) 14 4 10 0 0.286 2.4 8.6 0.282 L Buff
23 23 TAMPA BAY (NC) 14 4 10 0 0.286 3.3 9.5 0.278 L GBay
24 24 CLEVELAND (AC) 14 4 10 0 0.286 2.1 8.6 0.268 L Cinc
25 25 MINNESOTA (NC) 14 3 11 0 0.214 1.6 9.1 0.230 L Wash
26 26 BUFFALO (AE) 14 2 12 0 0.143 1.9 9.8 0.217 W Indi
27 27 ATLANTA (NW) 14 3 11 0 0.214 2.4 10.9 0.198 L SFra
28 28 HOUSTON (AC) 14 3 11 0 0.214 2.6 11.3 0.188 W Pitt
Now that I have some tie-breaking information, I can try to make some
predictions about the NFC playoff teams. I'll pick the Giants to win the
East. A tie will be broken in their favour against anybody in their division
except St. Louis, so if they win both of their games (which are against St.
Louis and New Orleans) they get the division title for sure, and even if they
split, they'll still win it unless one of the other 3 teams wins both of their
remaining games, and they all have tougher schedules than the Giants. The
wild-card spots are much more confusing. If Dallas beats Washington this
Sunday, then according to my calculations, they'll be in for sure because
ties against the Rams and/or Washington will go in the Cowboys' favour (by
head-to-head and conference record, respectively). I like the way the Cowboys
have smartened up since their loss to Buffalo, and they're at home to the
'Skins, so I think they'll do it. But if they don't, they'll have to beat
Miami and hope that neither the Rams nor the Cardinals win both of their
remaining games. (actually, they can afford two Cardinal wins if the Saints
upset the Giants) I can't predict the other wild-card spot because a tie
at 10-6 between the Rams and the Redskins will come down to net points,
assuming the Rams beat Houston and lose to San Francisco instead of vice versa.
(If it's vice versa, the Rams will get the nod because of conference record.)
As my old high school Physics teacher used to say, "now that you're totally
confused, carry on."
--
Jeff Richardson, DCIEM, Toronto (416) 635-2073
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