The Sunday slate of Week 16 is over in the NFL and the Playoff picture seems to be clearer but obviously seeding and power rankings are left to be determined. Here are some quick thoughts on the NFC and AFC.

NFC 

  • The NFC South was definitely the strongest division in the league in terms of quality in the Saints, Falcons, and Panthers. I can’t help but feel the Saints have become a complete team over this past offseason and it is showing this year how even with limited flashes of Drew Brees’ brilliance they can stay competitive in games. Could you have imagined the Saints anytime in the past 5 years being able to win with Drew Brees only throwing 1 TD a game?! THE TWILIGHT ZONE HAS ARRIVED IN NEW ORLEANS. Saints are definitely a team I am keeping an eye on as a strong NFC contender.
  • The Rams and Vikings seem to be the class of the NFC. The Rams look like they have the edge only because the Vikings have gotten this far with starting Case Keenum for the majority of the year. That week 1 dominance from Sam Bradford seems like it was ages ago and it still feels like the Vikings are waiting for something bad to happen to Keenum. If Gurley can keep up his production we might see the Rams in the Super Bowl. Gurley just has not been a fantasy stud, he makes the Rams really good.
  • Wanted to point out even if the Seahawks make the playoffs this year that this year was definitely a changing of the guard. Last year it was Dak and Zeke who made a statement in the NFC but this year Jared Goff and Carson Wentz improving definitely changed the landscape of the league. The Rams and Eagles have potentially knocked out the Seahawks and Cowboys.  Although it was mostly due to Rodgers’ injury it still feels like a lot of perennial contenders are getting challenegd by new teams. AND LETS NOT FORGET ABOUT JIMMY G STORMING THE LEAGUE NEXT YEAR!

AFC

  • That was definitely a big game the Patriots won today even though the Bills were in the game due to a pick six. Brady has definitely taken a step back the past 5 games, throwing a pick in each of them. This team definitely has a 2011 Patriots vibe to them and I wonder if they make Super Bowl 52 but get bounced hard out of it by the NFC representative.
  • Asides from the Patriots, who else is good in the AFC? The Patriots look extremely vulnerable right now and I just can’t see a AFC team that could potentially upset them. I’m starting to feel like if Baltimore can get hot they have a puncher’s chance but them losing Jimmy Smith seems to knock down their potential. Seriously, every AFC team has flaws and everybody has had the narrative that the Steelers are going to take the Patriots down but it was the same last year. The Steeler’s came into the game with Bell and Brown healthy but still ended up losing big.
  • It’ll be a really fun offseason of what if’s if the Bills miss the playoffs after the Nathan Pederman 1 game experiment. Do the Bills potentially lose that game with Taylor anyways? Sure. But that doesn’t mean people are going to let them off the hook for that strange decision.

The NFL is heating up and the playoffs are just around the corner. Check back to 411SportsNow to see my latest thoughts!