FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Chances are, like most things, the hype machine for Sunday's Week 17 showdowns will lap the excitement brought to us from the actual games on the field, but there's no doubt the final week of the NFL regular season is chock full of important contests. First, the San Diego Chargers get a gift from God that the Denver Broncos are incredibly mediocre and actually are in good position to win the AFC West despite being 4-8 just three weeks ago. Who wants to bet the Chargers, if they win impressively Sunday, are a trendy choice by ESPN analysts to get hot and represent the AFC in the Super Bowl? The other intriguing match-ups in the AFC involve the mess in the East and that final wild card spot. It will be very interesting to see what kind of reaction the fans at Giants Stadium give the Jets should they lose to Chad Pennington and the Dolphins, but even more interesting (or boring) is how their offseason goes with them being the new "place to be" for the Brett Favre Saga this spring ... and maybe summer. I don't expect the Bills to spoil the Patriots shot at a playoff spot, but the boys at Orchard Park bear watching to see if Dick Jauron is in fact shown the door after a third straight 7-9 season. One wonders if a victory, despite only forging a still disappointing 8-8 finish, will clinch another year for Jauron, or if this whole business of the mysterious extension that was signed, or maybe signed, is just moot and the team already decided to bring him back. Of course, it is mildly fun to imagine a season where the AFC was supposedly thought to be down earlier in the season, but could certainly have an 11-5 team NOT make the playoffs. Should the Patriots beat the Bills, the Dolphins win the AFC East with a win at the Meadowlands and the Ravens beat the Jaguars, Baltimore would get the final wild card spot, keeping the Brady-less Patriots on the outside looking in. Over in the NFC, sure you've got the Eagles and Cowboys playing for their playoffs lives, a still undecided NFC North and South and the very real possibility of the Atlanta Falcons being 11-5 and in the playoffs a year after suffering through the Michael Vick fiasco and Bobby Petrino's sudden resignation, but am I the only one most interested in seeing the Detroit Lions polish off an 0-16 season at Green Bay? I'm not old enough to have seen the 0-14 Yuccaneers from 1976, so I like the idea of being able to witness an 0-16 team one year after seeing a 16-0 season. Also, with the Lions going 4-0 in the preseason and being able to cover their preseason finale victory at Ralph Wilson Stadium over the Bills, I get a weird sense of enjoyment out of saying that I saw the Lions win a football game in the same season they went 0-16.