NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Irish, I absolutely know that you know how playoff seedings (which is what the article is about) are determined and that potential playoff seedings can only be determined after all the bye weeks have been completed.

The article, as written, was misleading at best.

 

I was wondering about that article too, with it putting Atlanta ahead of Philadelphia in spite of their head-to-head matchup in that pathetic Thursday Night season opener.

That game was a disgrace to both franchises - and it should be Exhibit A for doing away with Thursday Night openers. But the Iggles came out of it with the win.

 

No, I get it, and I agree it could be misleading..but, in this day and age of them having to get out several articles a day. I think it is accurate. It is based on TODAY and by today's information, the Rams are the #1 seed over the Saints BECAUSE they haven't had their bye week...thus they have one more win than the Saints do. It's pretty cut and dry. Today, none of the tie breakers come into play between those two teams, because the winning percentage is on the side of the Rams.

 

Head to head isn't applicable here because it is a 3-way tie and the Seahawks haven't played the Falcons or Eagles, the next tie breaker for a 3-way tie is Conference record which is Falcons 4-2, Seattle 3-2 and Eagles 2-3.


I get Lyman's argument that playoffs can't be determined until all bye weeks are complete....well, they actually can't be determined until ALL GAMES are complete.

These outlets want you to read articles and if possible, talk about them so that they draw more people to read them...Mission accomplished here.

 

nfl.com has been running the playoff tracker since week 4. I personally wouldn’t have a playoff tracker until after week eight at the earliest. Even then there’s still time for the playoff picture to turn completely upside down.

 

The only thing "accurate" about that article is that TODAY the Rams are percentage points above the Saints. But when it goes on and projects the Rams as the #1 seed because of those percentage points is pure bullshit and you know that!

My whole point is that a valid journalist would go on and explain why the Rams are percentage points ahead and go on to explain that if BOTH teams win out, then the Saints, not the Rams, would be the number 1 seed. Its a classic example of shitty journalism that casual fans today seem to accept.

 

What else was stated really?

They aren't "projecting" anything. As of today, they held the spot on a technicality. So, today, they hold the #1 seed. Projecting means "expecting a winner" at the end. With teams practically tied, I wouldn't use the word projecting.

Is it too early for these types of articles? In my opinion yes, but my job isn't to get people to click on the article to sell sponsors...The fact we are having a conversation states the obvious, it's never too early. If people were ignoring it, then you'd have an argument it's too early.

@Tim, back me up here, do your sponsors want content that brings about conversation, which leads to more clicks (thus their ads being seen by a larger audience) or something read by and/or ignored by a handful of people?

Whether it elicits a positive or negative response, their only worry is that it gets a response.

If you want to see less of this, then when the headlines read "NFC playoff picture" after week 9, don't click on it. That's the only way the content is going to die out in the future. If it receives more clicks, it's going to receive more follow up articles, whether relevant to the real playoff picture 8 weeks from now or not. That's my point.

 

The Steelers had less wins than the Bengals and Ravens but percentage points put them in first place a couple of weeks ago. You can’t have a real playoff type list, at least not a accurate one, until after the bye weeks are finished.

 

The sad part is that even though we all know that they are useless this early in the season, we all read these stupid articles because we are junkies of the game.

 

HE stated quite clearly:

"Although the Saints now own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Rams" That explains that the Saints, if tied in the end, would be the number 1 seed
"L.A. is on top because it has played and won one more game than New Orleans has." That explains WHY the Rams are percentage points ahead.

The only subjective "opinion" given in this article is this:
"So the Rams are the favorites to earn home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, just not the overwhelming favorites they would have been if they had beaten the Saints." The writer is using the fact that the Rams have already EARNED that tie breaking win, thus they are the favorite to earn the home field advantage. Objectively, you would have to decipher every remaining opponent and set a realistic view as to the odds of each team winning each game, including that elusive "extra" game the Saints have not played due to their bye week.

 

No arguing this post!!

 

Honestly, the ONLY thing I take out of an article like this is... Using tie breakers, where do teams stand at this point? That way you can determine what needs to be done to get your team in a position to make the playoffs.

For the Browns, an article like this (and there are some if interested)tells me, the only way the Browns are making the playoffs is if they miraculously win out, AND a few things negatively happen to the Chargers and/or the AFC South division.. The Browns could help their own cause, if winning out, that gives the Bengals two losses and the Ravens one more loss, which puts them within ONE game of catching each of them in the standings.

So, does an article like this have merit...actually it does, if your team is realistically in contention..and even if it isn't, it will tell you when you are mathematically eliminated.

 

Or when you have clenched.

 

Well, it looks like I wasted a lot of my time and everyone else's.

I wasn't saying the article was wrong. The Rams are, in fact, percentage points ahead of the Saints today. But this article is just a sample of what I feel is wrong about journalism today. I thought I made that statement - twice. That, my friend, is my opinion. I think it was poorly written and misleading. A reader should expect that someone who writes for NBC Sports/PFT can author an article that presents more than simply what exists today by starting there and then proceeding to elaborate why it exists today and what to consider looking forward.

@Underdog was exactly right. "Journalism 2018...being first is more important than being correct."

 

Lyman, to be fair, if you go to nfl.com they say that the Rams are projected to be #1 seed too. All the playoff trackers assume teams aren’t going to change positions. They all stay at the same seed

 

I agree with, Lyman. The stats are all across the board, all say the same thing, but when reporters/writers start interjecting their opinions, they can and do make mistakes.

 

And . . . More often than not, their opinion is slanted to confirm an earlier bullshit article they've written.

 

Wow... just got in and its a 31-14 game in the 2nd... Steelers gone crazy!

 

Lotsa luck getting anything out of Andrews. He has been top notch and all surgeries are different. Geez that was at Cat's comment from ages ago.

 

Panthers got smoked tonight