First and Tendencies

Week 10 in the 2006/2007 NFL season served as a perfect example of the distinction between teams that belong and teams that are merely biding their time until Week 16 concludes and their seasons end. Consider the following matchups:

- Denver @ Oakland
- San Diego @ Cincinnati
- Chicago @ the New York Football Giants
- Baltimore @ Tennessee
- Buffalo @ Indy
- St. Louis @ Seattle
- Tampa Bay @ Carolina

Pick any game really, and you'll find that a strong statement was made. If you watched Denver and Oakland, you just knew that Denver was going to get it together eventually. If at one point you thought to yourself, "Hey, Oakland looks like they're actually going to win this one", then clearly you weren't watching the same game. Pittsburgh was in a similar predicament with Oakland earlier in the season, and they imploded, which really just sums up the Steelers season.

San Diego put up 40+ points in the last 30 minutes to overcome a crappy first half, and while LT played a big role in the outcome, Rivers had to be the difference. Chicago looked as if it was in for another Arizona and/or Miami performance, but before long the Bears took over that game and left no doubt as to what the eventual outcome of that game would be.

Peyton & Co., for the second time this season, edge out an inferior opponent by a point, succeeding in spite of themselves. As for Seattle, they can thank the genius Rams' staff for going for it on 4th and 1 deep in Seahawks territory, instead of using this season's hottest kicker to add another three points on the board. They can also thank themselves for staying the course and doing the things winning teams do.

And finally, Carolina looked as rusty as their two-week hiatus would suggest. Absolutely no running game, no rhythm and, as usual, no skills on third down. If not for the dominant play by the Panthers defense, the O never would have had a chance to correct the poor start.

But this is what sums up my point here today. These teams won for a reason, despite evidence that suggested they should have lost. Simply put, there's an intangible character that winning teams possess. Forget talent, forget schemes, forget all the prep work that goes into coming up with a game plan. Teams who win games like these, end up in the playoffs; those who lose them, go home. Those in the playoffs this year will look back at their victories this week and view them as a key reason why they are among the few to move on to the postseason.

Perhaps a more interesting study would be the New York Giants. I realize injuries have played a role, plus the conditions weren't ideal at the Meadowlands, but when the G-Men pack up their lockers after falling short of getting Tiki his ring, they can put Week 10 under a microscope and get all of their answers.

Don't believe these victories were significant? The seven winning teams mentioned above are seven of the 12 that WILL make it to the playoffs. Guaranteed.