Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbooks) - In the end, you could have taken all of your complicated AFC wild card permutations and set them ablaze.
This wasn't Week 17 of the 2006 season, when a bunch of wacky things happened and a Kansas City Chiefs team we sort of forgot still had playoff life backed into the playoffs (sorry Herm, but you did) at 9-7.
And the final Sunday of the 2009 campaign was in no way reminiscent of its 2008 counterpart, when JaMarcus Russell and the Raiders won at Tampa Bay in a shocking upset that brought an abrupt end to the Jon Gruden era, and with another assist from the Texans against the Bears, put an Eagles team in the postseason field that would go all the way to the NFC Championship.
No, nothing especially stunning happened in this version of Week 17, unless you count the worst afternoon in the decade-long marriage of Donovan McNabb and Andy Reid. The Eagles' 24-0 loss at Dallas was the equivalent of being downgraded from first-class next to a hot blonde (the No. 2 seed and a first- round bye) to a middle seat near the tail of the plane between Kirstie Alley and the Half-Ton Teen (the No. 6 seed and a trip back to Dallas next week).
But we already knew the Eagles and Cowboys were going to the playoffs, so the real race to watch was in the AFC, where every conference member with more than five wins and not named the Tennessee Titans still had postseason life as Sunday began. The Dolphins, Jaguars, Steelers, Texans, and Broncos all had visions of playing into mid-January dancing in their heads, but needed help that never arrived.
That's because the Ravens and Jets both took care of their business, beating the Raiders and Bengals, respectively, to realize the destiny that each controlled entering the day.
The less-than-strange Sunday had the odd effect, however, of producing three Week 17 rematches - Jets/Bengals, Eagles/Cowboys, and Packers/Cardinals - next weekend. The only non-deja vu game will be between New England and Baltimore at Gillette Stadium, where the Patriots were 27-21 winners over the Ravens back in Week 4.
Here's the way the entire Wild Card weekend schedule looks:
Saturday:
N.Y. Jets (9-7) at Cincinnati (10-6), 4:30pm (NBC) Philadelphia (12-4) at Dallas (8-8), 8:00pm (NBC)
Sunday:
Baltimore (9-7) at New England (10-6), 1:00pm (CBS) Green Bay (11-5) at Arizona (10-6), 4:30pm (FOX)
Below is a capsule look at each of the 12 playoff participants, listed in order of seed:
AFC
1 - Indianapolis (14-2)
-How They Got Here: AFC South Champion
-First Round: Bye
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 3-1 (W Arizona, W New England, W Baltimore, L N.Y. Jets)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 19th (1968, 70-71, 75-77, 87, 95-96, 99-00, 02-09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 15-16 (two titles)
-Head Coach: Jim Caldwell (14-2 in one season with Colts)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 0-0
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Peyton Manning (7-8)
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2 - San Diego (13-3)
-How They Got Here: AFC West Champion
-First Round: Bye
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 3-1 (L Baltimore, W Philadelphia, W Dallas, W Cincinnati)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 12th (1979-82, 92, 94-95, 04, 06-09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 9-11
-Head Coach: Norv Turner (32-16 in three seasons with Chargers, 90-98-1, overall)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 3-2 with Chargers, 4-3 overall
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Philip Rivers (3-3)
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3 - New England (10-6)
-How They Got Here: AFC East Champion
-First Round: vs. Baltimore
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 2-3 (L N.Y. Jets, W Baltimore, L Indianapolis, W N.Y. Jets, L New Orleans)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 16th (1976, 78, 82, 85-86, 94, 96-98, 01, 03-07, 09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 20-12 (three titles)
-Head Coach: Bill Belichick (112-48 in 10 seasons with Patriots, 148-92 overall)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 14-3 with Patriots, 15-4 overall
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Tom Brady (14-3)
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4 - Cincinnati (10-6)
-How They Got Here: AFC North Champion
-First Round: vs. N.Y. Jets
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 3-3 (W Green Bay, W Baltimore, W Baltimore, L Minnesota, L San Diego, L N.Y. Jets)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 9th (1970, 73, 75, 81-82, 88, 90, 05, 09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 5-8
-Head Coach: Marvin Lewis (56-55-1 in seven seasons with Bengals)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 0-1
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Carson Palmer (0-1)
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5 - N.Y. Jets (9-7)
-How They Got Here: AFC Wild Card
-First Round: at Cincinnati
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 3-2 (W New England, L New Orleans, L New England, W Indianapolis, W Cincinnati)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 13th (1968-69, 81-82, 85-86, 91, 98, 01-02, 04, 06, 09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 8-11 (one title)
-Head Coach: Rex Ryan (9-7 in one season with Jets)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 0-0
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Mark Sanchez (0-0)
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6 - Baltimore (9-7)
-How They Got Here: AFC Wild Card
-First Round: at New England
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 1-6 (W San Diego, L New England, L Cincinnati, L Minnesota, L Cincinnati, L Indianapolis, L Green Bay)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 6th (2000-01, 03, 06, 08-09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 7-4 (one title)
-Head Coach: John Harbaugh (20-16 in two seasons with Ravens)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 2-1
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Joe Flacco (2-1)
NFC
1 - New Orleans (13-3)
-How They Got Here: NFC South Champion
-First Round: Bye
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 3-1 (W Philadelphia, W N.Y. Jets, W New England, L Dallas)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 7th (1987, 90-92, 00, 06, 09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 2-6
-Head Coach: Sean Payton (38-26 in four seasons with Saints)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 1-1
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Drew Brees (1-1 with Saints, 1-2 overall)
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2 - Minnesota (12-4)
-How They Got Here: NFC North Champion
-First Round: Bye
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 4-1 (W Green Bay, W Baltimore, W Green Bay, L Arizona, W Cincinnati)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 26th (1968-71, 73-78, 80, 82, 87-89, 92-94, 96-00, 04, 08)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 18-25
-Head Coach: Brad Childress (36-28 in four seasons with Vikings)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 0-1
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Brett Favre (0-0 with Vikings, 12-10 overall)
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3 - Dallas (11-5)
-How They Got Here: NFC East Champion
-First Round: vs. Philadelphia
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 3-2 (W Philadelphia, L Green Bay, L San Diego, W New Orleans, W Philadelphia)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 30th (1966-73, 75-83, 85, 91-96, 98-99, 03, 06-07, 09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 32-24 (five titles)
-Head Coach: Wade Phillips (33-15 in three seasons with Cowboys, 81-54 overall)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 0-1 with Cowboys, 0-4 overall
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Tony Romo (0-2)
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4 - Arizona (10-6)
-How They Got Here: NFC West Champion
-First Round: vs. Green Bay
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 1-2 (L Indianapolis, W Minnesota, L Green Bay)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 6th (1974, 75, 82, 98, 08-09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 4-5
-Head Coach: Ken Whisenhunt (27-21 in three seasons with Cardinals)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 3-1
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Kurt Warner (3-1 with Cardinals, 8-3 overall)
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5 - Green Bay (11-5)
-How They Got Here: NFC Wild Card
-First Round: at Arizona
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 3-3 (L Cincinnati, L Minnesota, L Minnesota, W Dallas, W Baltimore, W Arizona)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 16th (1966-67, 72, 82, 93-98, 01-04, 07, 09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 18-12 (three titles)
-Head Coach: Mike McCarthy (38-26 in four seasons with Packers)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 1-1
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Aaron Rodgers (0-0)
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6 - Philadelphia (11-5)
-How They Got Here: NFC Wild Card
-First Round: at Dallas
-Record vs. 2009 Playoff Teams: 0-4 (L New Orleans, L Dallas, L San Diego, L Dallas)
-Playoff Appearances (Super Bowl Era): 18th (1978-81, 88-90, 92, 95-96, 00-04, 06, 08-09)
-Playoff Record (Super Bowl Era): 15-17
-Head Coach: Andy Reid (108-67-1 in 11 seasons with Eagles)
-Head Coach Playoff Record: 10-7
-Starting QB (Playoff Record as Starter): Donovan McNabb (9-6)
