Sports

Garceau: 5 In, 5 Out Of The NFL Playoff Picture

/ CBS Baltimore

Since the Ravens won their first Super Bowl in the 2000 season the NFL has been a playoff parity party with an average of five new teams making the postseason annually. With 5 of the 12 playoff being newbies that means there's also about 5 playoff teams from the previous season that fail to go back to the playoffs.

December means NFL teams are in the stretch run eyeing division titles or wild-card sports that will earn them a spot in the playoffs. Here's a look at teams that right now qualify for the 5 in and 5 out spots.

5 in that weren't playoff teams in 2015:

  1. Dallas - From an NFC East worst 4-12 to 11-1 and the best record in the NFL. These 'Boys are good!
  2. Oakland – Has a team ever won a Super Bowl and then started packing the moving vans? The Raiders offense is championship good. Vegas is going to love Derek Carr.
  3. NY Giants – They won't catch the Cowboys but the G-Men have quietly won 6 straight to improve to 8-3. Eli to OBJ could be a nasty wild-card combo.
  4. Baltimore – They'll have to win the AFC North to get there but the Ravens have the defense to do it. Nothing special about a 6-5 record but it's a nice rebound from last year's 5-11 season.
  5. Atlanta - The Panthers owned the division a year ago but it's the 7-4 Falcons with a 1-game lead over the surging Buccaneers at the top of the NFC South.

Next Best: Detroit (7-4) Minnesota and Green Bay in pursuit. Miami (7-4) The Dolphins won 6 games a year ago; they go for their 7th straight win Sunday.

5 out that were playoff teams in '15:

  1. Carolina – From 15-1 and the Super Bowl to the toilet bowl (4-7). What happened Cam?
  2. Cincinnati – The 3-7-1 Bengals are going nowhere fast after making the playoffs the past 5 years.
  3. Arizona – They won 13 in '15 but the Cardinals have flopped in '16. They've lost 3 of their last 4 to drop to 4-6-1.
  4. Green Bay – Picked by many to be a Super Bowl team not much super about this 5-6 Pack. Aaron Rodgers is among the game's best but the Green Bay pass defense has been inept.
  5. Minnesota – The defending NFC North champs still have a shot at 6-6 but it doesn't look good for a team that has lost 6 of their last 7 games.

First published on December 2, 2016 / 9:47 AM EST

© 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Read more
f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.