For the last 16 weeks, trying to cut through the snowy static to see the NFL playoff picture was like watching a black-and-white TV with a bent coat hanger for an antenna.
Today, though, it will all come through in high definition.
There will be no uncertainties by day’s end, no need for a calculator, what-if scenarios or rosary beads.
Clarity. At last.
As it stands, there isn’t too much postseason fuzziness — unless you’re counting the North, South, East and West.
The Denver Broncos, meanwhile, are desperately trying to avoid their own sad slice of history. They play a winner-takes-all game at San Diego and, should they lose, would become the first NFL team to blow a three-game division lead with three to play and miss the playoffs.
After starting 4-1, Denver is 4-6 in its past 10 games.
The Chargers, who have won 13 consecutive December games, would with a victory become just the ninth 8-8 team to reach the postseason. It’s no wonder why NBC used its flex-scheduling option to move Broncos-Chargers into the Sunday night slot.
Likewise, there’s no resolution yet in the AFC East. With Miami and New England at 10-5, and the New York Jets at 9-6, the Dolphins have the inside track for the division crown. If Miami beats the Jets at the Meadowlands, it will complete its stunning worst-to-first turnaround. The Dolphins, remember, were 1-15 last season before Bill Parcells overhauled the franchise.
As for the Patriots, they need to win at Buffalo and hope for either a loss by Miami or Baltimore, which plays host to Jacksonville.
If the Ravens win, they’re in as the AFC’s second wild-card team behind fifth-seeded Indianapolis. Baltimore has won its final home game five consecutive times.
Although the New York Giants have clinched their division and the top seed in the conference, things are not entirely sorted out in the NFC East. That’s what makes the Dallas-at-Philadelphia game so interesting.
If the Cowboys win, they’re in as a wild-card team. The Eagles need more help: They need a win, and losses by Tampa Bay as well as Minnesota and/or Chicago.
Minnesota can secure the NFC North with a home victory over the Giants. If the Vikings stumble, the Bears will be waiting. Chicago can win the division with a victory at Houston and a loss by Minnesota.
In the NFC South, both Atlanta and Carolina have clinched playoff spots, and Tampa Bay has a chance to make it three teams from that division heading to the postseason. The easiest path for the Buccaneers is to beat Oakland at home, and for the Eagles to beat the Cowboys.
A victory over the Raiders might look like a layup, but the Buccaneers have lost three in a row since starting 9-3 — and that’s after leading or being tied in the fourth quarter of each of those three losses.
“When you’re 9-3 at one point and you’re a couple wins away from the playoffs, and now we’re fighting just to get in … it’s tough looking at it,” Tampa Bay running back Warrick Dunn said.
That’s how the playoff picture can be: tough on the eyes. But today, with everything in HD, the squinting comes to an end.
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