Every Wildcard round has team with better record on the road (1 Viewer)

[kardplayer]

Hopefully this wasn't mentioned in another thread...

For all the heat about the NFC West team being at best .500 and getting to host a game, all 4 games feature the road team with the better record (straight up or via a tiebreaker):

Jets 11-5 @ Colts 10-6

Ravens 12-4 @ Chiefs 10-6

Saints 11-5 @ NFC West 8-8 or 7-9

Packers 10-6 @ Eagles 10-6 (But Packers would win a tiebreaker as they beat Eagles H2H)

Not sure that's ever happened before...

 

[Hipple Long Ware & Peete]

somethings just wrong about that...

 

[Breesisdaman]

I think they should keep the division winners but if they have a losing record or have substantially less wins than their opponent then it is they that should be traveling to the wild card team. This will give teams more incentive to have a better record ala the Colts who routinely have rested starters in later weeks because the #1 seed was wrapped up. It would be better for fantasy football as well once the number of games won mattered as much as winning the division does.

 

[Adebisi]

I think they should keep the division winners but if they have a losing record or have substantially less wins than their opponent then it is they that should be traveling to the wild card team. This will give teams more incentive to have a better record ala the Colts who routinely have rested starters in later weeks because the #1 seed was wrapped up. It would be better for fantasy football as well once the number of games won mattered as much as winning the division does.

If a team had wrapped up the #1 seed, how would they be affected at all by any of this?

 

[Breesisdaman]

I think they should keep the division winners but if they have a losing record or have substantially less wins than their opponent then it is they that should be traveling to the wild card team. This will give teams more incentive to have a better record ala the Colts who routinely have rested starters in later weeks because the #1 seed was wrapped up. It would be better for fantasy football as well once the number of games won mattered as much as winning the division does.

If a team had wrapped up the #1 seed, how would they be affected at all by any of this?

Sorry bad example. #1 seed would not be affected . You get the point though right regardless of the lame example?

 

[Adebisi]

I think they should keep the division winners but if they have a losing record or have substantially less wins than their opponent then it is they that should be traveling to the wild card team. This will give teams more incentive to have a better record ala the Colts who routinely have rested starters in later weeks because the #1 seed was wrapped up. It would be better for fantasy football as well once the number of games won mattered as much as winning the division does.

If a team had wrapped up the #1 seed, how would they be affected at all by any of this?

Sorry bad example. #1 seed would not be affected . You get the point though right regardless of the lame example?

Yeah, I get what you are saying. But I'm not sure I agree with it.What if Team A plays in the toughest division in football and ends up 10-6, but Team B plays in the easiest division in football and ends up 13-3 (but in 2nd place in the division)?

 

[Drink G2]

I don't think your example even translates well. What are the chances teams A) aren't close to being caught by anyone from behind for the Homefield as well as B) Don't have a chance to move up to get the bye.

Teams who aren't blowing away the league don't rest there players...because obviously they are still doing stuff wrong.

Its a one year thing. Theres no need to mess with something that isn't broke. Wildcard teams didn't win their division they don't deserve home field. I don't see people shouting to change how teams are chosen for the playoffs after the Raiders swept their division but didn't make the playoffs.

 

[Hipple Long Ware & Peete]

I think a need to be better than .500 to host a playoff game rule would be a good thing.

 

[renesauz]

I think they should keep the division winners but if they have a losing record or have substantially less wins than their opponent then it is they that should be traveling to the wild card team. This will give teams more incentive to have a better record ala the Colts who routinely have rested starters in later weeks because the #1 seed was wrapped up. It would be better for fantasy football as well once the number of games won mattered as much as winning the division does.

NFL schedules are notoriously unbalanced. One division winner has to play 6 or 7 playoff qualifiers during their regular season, while another gets by with only 2? One winner faces the AFC East as their cross-conferance foes, and the other gets the AFC West? NFC North while another gets the (CHOKE) NFC West? UNtil schedules can be reasonably balanced, no perfect solution exists. The current system is not perfect, but it's as good as it gets with schedules that CAN'T be balanced.DISCLAIMER: I'd have no problem with the NFL instituting a 9 win qualifier to host a playoff game, or even just to make the playoffs. I know that seems contrary to what I already posted, but I do agree that this system is NOT perfect, and the Seahawks are the ultimate, ALL TIME example of the imperfection.

 

[David Yudkin]

Since going to 4 divisions in 2002, this year has been far and away the worst in terms of visiting teams having a better record than the home teams on wild card weekend.

Here's the breakdown (the third column is for times when both teams had the same record):

2010: 3-0-1

2009: 1-2-1

2008: 2-1-1

2007: 2-2

2006: 0-4

2005: 1-1-2

2004: 0-4

2003: 1-2-1

2002: 1-2-1

 

[CalBear]

Yeah, I get what you are saying. But I'm not sure I agree with it.What if Team A plays in the toughest division in football and ends up 10-6, but Team B plays in the easiest division in football and ends up 13-3 (but in 2nd place in the division)?

There's no way the easiest division in football could have two 13-win teams; that would mean at least 16 wins outside the division, even if the other teams went 0-16 and 2-14. The NFC West had just 13 wins outside the division this year. The second place 13-3 team went at least 8-2 outside the division in that scenario.