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A lot can happen when you take a week off. The Pittsburgh Steelers lose five in a row and are in real danger of missing the playoffs altogether, while the Baltimore Ravens look to slip into the wild card after an inconsistent season. Conceivably and unbelievably, if the Cincinnati Bengals were to lose all of the three remaining games, and the Ravens were to run the table, Baltimore could actually win the AFC North despite the Bengal’s 6-0 division record. In the East, the New England Patriot’s hold on the division is tenuous at best with both the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets only one game back. For my money, the lone playoff representative for the AFC East will be the division champ, whoever happens to stumble out of this pile. My sentiments are that the two hotly contested wild card spots up for grabs will go to one of the teams from the AFC North, South, or West. As of now, the Ravens, Jacksonville Jaguars, and the Denver Broncos are the frontrunners for those coveted spots.

What happens between now and New Years, will obviously determine the final seedings for the AFC playoffs. The San Diego Chargers and the Indianapolis Colts stand as the class of the conference, but don’t be surprised if the Patriots, Broncos, or even the Ravens pull off some upsets come January 2010. Speaking of the undefeated Colts, they stand alone at the mountain after quite an entertaining game yesterday between the New Orleans Saints and the Dallas Cowboys. In knocking off the Saints and keeping their playoff hopes alive, the Cowboys still will walk away from December at best with a .500 record, but that should be the least of their worries. If they can string together some wins, steal the division crown back from the Philadelphia Eagles, and head into the playoffs on a head of steam, this will be one team no one wants to play. Their only problem is consistency, as their offense struggles when their defense plays stellar, and vice versa.

The Saints meanwhile, still are the team to beat. Despite the loss, they almost came back from being down 20 points early in the 3rd quarter. Although QB Drew Brees lobbied for trying extra hard for that perfect season, he should take solace that a perfect season is great, but means nothing if you can’t win the Super Bowl. Even if they happen to go 19-0, the luster has already disappeared with the 2007 Patriot’s run at perfection. Besides, 20 years from now, the Saints will just become bitter, annoying old men like the ‘72 Dolphins clinging onto something that most people revere, but no one likes to be constantly reminded of that very “something”.

That being said, New Orleans still look like the best team in the league right now, they just ran into a focused, way more desperate Cowboys team in need of a win. The Colts are 14-0, and could go 16-0 before all is said and done, but I can see a playoff loss to the Patriots, or the Chargers. Make no mistake however, both the Saints and the Colts have gotten this far on great coaching by their respective men in charge. First year head coach Jim Caldwell knows not to rock what works, and as a clone of Tony Dungy, has done the right things to keep this well-oiled Indianapolis machine running at peak performance despite a myriad of injuries plaguing the team.

If the Saints are the best team in the league, by default, who does that leave as beta dog in the NFC? In my much chagrined opinion, the Eagles, Arizona Cardinals, and the Green Bay Packers could go deep into the playoffs. When Donovan McNabb stays upright, the Eagles go further despite what hardcore Philly fans will tell you about the much appreciated heroic understudies. Couple that with the array of talented receivers McNabb has at his disposal, and you might see a Super Bowl berth. The Vikings have not impressed me of late despite their 2 loss record; I can believe a third matchup with their rivals, the Packers in the playoffs could result in Green Bay coming out with a win. Their vaunted defense keeps them close in every game, but should teams focus on stopping RB Adrian Peterson, and take their chances that Brett Favre will stumble in the passing game, then opponents could duplicate that convincing loss against the Arizona Cardinals.

As for the incumbent NFC Champions, I won’t even try to decipher the Cardinals. They still have the inside track to win the NFC West, but their inconsistency belies any notion that they could easily get hot at the right time and go on a torrid run to the Super Bowl as they did last year. Getting WR Larry Fitzgerald back will be paramount, but keeping QB Kurt Warner in the huddle has proven to pay even more dividends. Once they apply some super glue to the hands of RBs Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells, the balance desired from the running game (sans fumbles) will make this a very dangerous Arizona team down the stretch.

If you were to ask me for some super sneaky Super Bowl sleeper picks heading into the playoffs (it’s too easy picking the Colts and Saints), I could tell you with a straight face to look out for the Dallas Cowboys (ignore my favoritism), and the New England Patriots. You heard it here first if I happen to be right, and I’ll be the last to remind you if I’m wrong.

2 weeks ago: 8-7-0
Year to date: 78-91-3

Green Bay Packers +2 @ Pittsburgh Steelers

Miami Dolphins +4.5 @ Tennessee Titans

New England Patriots @ Buffalo Bills +6.5

Arizona Cardinals -14 @ Detroit Lions

San Francisco 49ers +7.5 @ Philadelphia Eagles

Atlanta Falcons @ New York Jets -6

Chicago Bears +11 @ Baltimore Ravens

Cleveland Browns +2 @ Kansas City Chiefs

Houston Texans -14 @ St. Louis Rams

Cincinnati Bengals +7 @ San Diego Chargers

Oakland Raiders @ Denver Broncos -14

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Seattle Seahawks -6.5

Minnesota Vikings -9 @ Carolina Panthers

New York Giants -3 @ Washington Redskins