AFC Wild Card Hunt Shaken Up By Week 15 Results

Week 15 for the American Football Conference was nothing short of epic. It had its fair share of heartbreakers and comebacks, and the results of the games played by AFC teams has left the AFC playoff picture a jumbled mess.

There are two teams in the AFC that have clinched the playoffs: the 14-0 Colts and the 11-3 Chargers. Both teams have clinched their respective divisions, and if the Chargers win one more game or New England loses one more game, Indianapolis and San Diego will be the two teams with a first-round bye in the playoffs.

The three and four seeds are also all but decided, as one more win by the Patriots or loss by Miami would win New England their division for the seventh time in nine years. The Bengals would capture the AFC North title with one more win or one more loss by Baltimore.

But that is where it gets messy.

The wild card spots would be occupied by the Ravens and Broncos, who are both 8-6, if the season ended today. They are the only two eight-win teams in the AFC, and if they win out, they would each be in the playoffs. The Broncos would have all but clinched the postseason already had they avoided a loss to the Raiders with less than a minute left.

However, if they do not both win out, there are some 7-7 teams that would have a chance to make it in: the Steelers, Jaguars, Titans, Texans, Jets, and Dolphins. Six teams, all creeping one game back of the two current wild card leaders, and only two teams of the eight can get in.

There are six games in Week 16 with wild card significance: Baltimore at Pittsburgh, Houston at Miami, Jacksonville at New England, New York Jets at Indianapolis, Denver at Philadelphia, and San Diego at Tennessee.

The Ravens go into Pittsburgh looking to sweep the defending champs a year after losing to them twice in the regular season and in the AFC Championship. They would knock the Steelers out of playoff contention and heavily increase their own playoff chances in the process with a victory.

The Steelers are coming off of a miracle victory against the Green Bay Packers in which Ben Roethlisberger engineered his thirteenth come-from-behind game-winning drive in either the fourth quarter or overtime by throwing a touchdown to Mike Wallace with three seconds remaining.

After a five-game skid made it seem like they were out of the post-season, a win at home against the Ravens would keep their playoff hopes alive, and they would have a record identical to that of the Ravens.

The match-up between the Texans and Dolphins may be the game of the week in Week 16, as it is the only game between two 7-7 teams in the AFC. The loser will be all but eliminated from the post-season, while the winner’s playoff hopes are kept alive.

Houston started the season 5-3, but suffered a four-game losing streak afterward. Two straight wins since then have brought them to .500, and a third straight would keep them breathing. The Texans squeaked by the lowly St. Louis Rams in Week 15, winning by a field goal to get to 7-7.

The Dolphins, on the other hand, have had more ups and downs on their season than a pogo stick. After starting 0-3 and losing 2008 MVP runner-up Chad Pennington, they’re 7-4 since, and are barely alive in the playoff hunt. The Fins were down 24-6 early against the Titans in Week 15, and ended up forcing overtime, but Chad Henne was intercepted on the opening drive of overtime, and a personal foul on Greg Camarillo put Tennessee in position to kick the winning field goal.

Jacksonville heads to Gillette Stadium in Week 16, where the Patriots are unbeaten this season. While the Pats can clinch the AFC East in this game, the Jaguars need the win in order to stay alive.

A win for the Jaguars last Thursday against the Indianapolis Colts would have had them in a much better position, but a last-second victory that we have come to see as routine for Peyton Manning and the Colts thwarted the Jags’ hopes of improving to 8-6.

Jacksonville has lost two games in a row, and if they lose this one they can kiss their playoff chances goodbye. If they win, however, they have a good chance at finishing the season 9-7, as their final game is a date with the Cleveland Browns.

The Jets lost a low scoring game to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 15 in the final few minutes of the game. They now face the only unbeaten team in the NFL, the Indianapolis Colts. Normally, this would be good news for the Jets, as the Colts have clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs, and would usually rest their starters at this point.

However, they will almost undoubtedly play as if this was any regular season contest, as they are hunting perfection. Rebounding from the loss against the Falcons will not be an easy task, especially against what could be the best team in NFL history, but they will have to do it to avoid playing golf, not football, in January.

The Denver Broncos could have essentially wrapped up a spot in the playoffs by beating their rival Oakland Raiders in Week 15, but lost after leading by 6 in the final minute of the game, becoming the fourth team contending for the playoffs to lose to Oakland.

As previously mentioned, Denver will still clinch the playoffs if they win out, and will play the less-than-amazing Chiefs in Week 17, meaning that a playoff spot is probably theirs if they can defeat the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16.

The Eagles have clinched a spot in the playoffs, but with a win over Denver and a Dallas loss in Week 16, they would clinch their division. Their Week 17 matchup with the Cowboys would go from potentially deciding the winner of the NFC East to becoming meaningless. To avoid putting a big dent in their playoff chances, the Broncos will have to snap their two-game losing streak against the Eagles, who have not lost since November 15th.

The Tennessee Titans’ season was in jeopardy when they blew a 24-6 lead against the Dolphins, allowing a game they should have had to go into overtime. Fortunately, after the Fins won the coin toss, second-year quarterback Chad Henne threw the game away by getting picked off by Michael Griffin on the third play in overtime, and Rob Bironas kicked the Titans to their seventh win of the season.

Tennessee is now 7-1 since Vince Young took the starting quarterback role after the team fell to 0-6. The only team Young has lost to this year is the Colts. The Titans get the Chargers at home in Week 16, in a game where San Diego can clinch the second seed in the playoffs. The Chargers have won nine games in a row, so a win to keep the season alive won’t be easy for the Titans.

If Pittsburgh, Jacksonville, Philadelphia, Tennessee, and the Jets all were to win next week, there would be utter chaos in the AFC Wild Card picture; seven teams would be 8-7 going into the final week of the regular season. Regardless of what happens, the AFC playoff picture is a complete and utter mystery, and won’t be solved until the regular season comes to a close.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Trent Green Retires

Reports say that free agent quarterback Trent Green will retire from the NFL.

Green played for the San Diego Chargers from 1993-1994. An eighth round pick by San Diego in ’93, he spent the entire 1993 season on the bench and was only on the practice squad team the following year before being cut.

Green spent the remainder of 1994 with the CFL’s BC Lions, but was released by them following the end of the season.

In 1995, he was signed by the Washington Redskins, and did not become a starting quarterback until the 1998 season.

In his first and only season as Washington’s starter, Green had  respectable season, passing for 3,441 yards, 23 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, with an 81.8 passer rating. In the offseason, he signed a four-year contract with the St. Louis Rams.

Trent Green’s first season with St. Louis ended early after being hit by San Diego Chargers safety Rodney Harrison. He missed the rest of 1999, and Kurt Warner took the starting job in his stead, and kept it after winning Superbowl XXXIV. Green was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs the following offseason.

Green played for the Chiefs for six seasons. In his career in Kansas City, he threw for over 21,000 yards, 118 touchdowns, 85 interceptions, and had an 87.3 passer rating.

He made it to the Pro-Bowl in 2003 and in 2005, and played in the postseasons of 2003 and 2006. He lost both of his playoff games to the Indianapolis Colts, and was traded to the Miami Dolphins after 2006.

In 2007 with the Dolphins, Green played the first five games of the season, going 0-5 as a starter. He was then placed on injured reserve after being hurt trying to block Houston Texans defensive tackle, missing the rest of 2007.

In 2008, he was signed by the Rams again. He played in only three games, starting one and losing it. He was then released after the season, and announced his retirement today at the age of 38.

Brad Childress Gives Favre Deadline

Reports last night said that former Atlanta Falcons, Green Bay Packers, and New York Jets quarterback Brett Favre has had surgery on a tendon in his right arm. Before these reports, it was thought that Favre had not yet undergone surgery and would still need to do so pending a potential reinstatement.

The debate about whether Favre will come back from retirement yet again has been as up and down as the heart monitor of a barely living medical patient that just won’t die. Since before the off-season, there have been several rumors of the possibility of Favre returning to play for the Minnesota Vikings, even after he retired for a second time in February.

Minnesota Head Coach Brad Childress spoke out Monday, saying that if Favre wanted to play for the Vikings, he would need to report to the team by the end of the week. The Vikings currently have Tavaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels, whom they acquired from the Houston Texans, battling for the starting quarterback role.

The three time NFL Most Valuable Player will now need to decide whether he really wants to come back again. He has shunned rumors of a possible return already, however he did the same thing last off-season before returning from retirement to play for New York. Favre will be 40 in October, and if he does join Minnesota, he will be the third new installment at quarterback to an NFC North team this off-season, along with Jay Cutler and Matt Stafford.

Greg Ellis Cut By Dallas Cowboys

Following rumors that he would be either be cut or traded to another team, longtime Dallas Cowboys defensive end and linebacker Greg Ellis was released today by the team.

The 6′6″, 265-pound Ellis has spent his entire 11-year career to this point with Dallas. He was a first-round pick out of North Carolina in 1998 and started every game that year, finishing the ’98 season with 27 tackles, 3.0 sacks and a forced fumble. Since then, he has been a great player and a large contributor to the Dallas defense.

Ellis thought about leaving his team towards the end of his Cowboys career, mainly because former head coach Bill Parcells changed the 4-3 Cowboys defense to a 3-4. He did not fit well in the 3-4, and saw a decline in his stats playing as a defensive end.

However, like former Bill Parcells player Willie McGinest, Ellis converted from an end to a linebacker, adjusting to the new defense.

Though he finished his 2006 season early with a torn Achilles tendon, Ellis came back to Dallas the following season. It was his only Pro Bowl season to date, in which he started all 16 games, had a career-high 12.5 sacks, 24 solo tackles, seven assisted tackles and three fumbles forced.

Ellis has averaged over 34 tackles and 7.0 sacks every year in his career. He has a career total of 377 solo tackles, 128 assisted tackles, 77.0 sacks, 20 fumbles forced and nine fumbles recovered over the 11 years.

Career achievements for Greg Ellis include being selected to the 2007 Pro Bowl, as well as winning Comeback Player of the Year in the same year.

Ellis is 33-years-old while leaving the Cowboys.

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