’80s Redux: Da Bears sit atop the NFC

And that is why we say that you don’t play the games on paper, Analytic maniacs. (Yes, I’ll be beating this dead horse for the rest of the season.)

The NFC Picture

The Rams are currently the No. 2 seed, but they are now tied at 9-3 with the Seattle Seahawks for the NFC West lead.

Both teams are looking over their shoulders at the 9-4 San Francisco 49ers, who are currently the seventh seed, but still in the hunt for the division title and even the top seed.

San Francisco has beaten Seattle, split with the Rams, and will face the Bears at home in Week 17.

The Eagles are in the No. 3 seed at 8-4. But they are on the verge of a collapse that might let the 6-5-1 Dallas Cowboys get in as a Division winner.

That might be Dallas’ best hope as they remain two games behind the 49ers with both the the Lions and the Carolina Panthers also fighting for the final playoff spot.

Technically, the Cowboys are in the ninth spot, a half-game behind Detroit as they get ready to play tonight. But they are only 0.004 percentage points ahead of the Panthers.

Carolina, like the 49ers, has the week off but would move up to ninth with a Dallas loss.

The Panthers are also just a half-game behind Tampa Bay for the NFC South lead and the No. 4 slot.

With most of the NFC’s top 10 teams playing a lot of divisional games down the stretch, these last five weeks will be insane. Which should make for some great viewing.

The AFC Picture

It’s a two-horse race between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos for the AFC’s top seed.

After Sunday night’s overtime win over Washington, Denver tied the Patriots at 10-2. A tie-breaker against common opponents put the Broncos in first.

After Monday night’s game, more like a massacre, the Patriots (11-2) jumped back into first behind another solid performance by Drake Maye at quarterback.

For now, as the Patriots go on bye this week, Denver and Bo Nix will likely get to 11-2 after they beat the Raiders on Sunday and re-claim the No. 1 seed.

But neither team can afford to slip because the Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Chargers, Indianapolis Colts, and Buffalo Bills are right there at 8-4.

Even the suddenly red-hot Houston Texans still have an outside chance at the top seed and the bye.

Two teams only hope for the playoffs rest in winning their division. Both the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers sit at 6-6.

The Ravens, for now, have the tie-breaker.

But the two teams’ struggles have left the door for an improbable late run by the Cincinnati Bengals.

At 4-8, the Bengals are probably locked out of a wildcard slot, seeing as they are four games back with five to play. They also have four teams between them and the Bills, the current seventh seed.

But Cincinnati is only two games out of the division race and they just got Joe Burrow back.

Even though the division winner probably finished at 9-8, the AFC North might be the most entertaining race down the stretch.