My Redskins at this point are very much a contender, either for the division le or a wild-card berth. The schedule is definitely in their favor.
The Bucs' offense, now led by Chris Simms, has sucked in two straight losses, and the Redskins know securing a second road victory today will be critical to their postseason hopes. They then have back-to-back home games, with four of their last seven at FedEx Field, where they're
4-0 
. They play St. Louis (4-4) and HORRIBLE Arizona (2-6) on the road.
But six of their last eight games also will be played against teams still very much in the playoff mix. In a conference in which a 9-7 record likely will not be enough this year to get a wild-card spot, another 5-3 mark in the second half seems almost mandatory.
Unless they were to win the division, the Redskins' chances are intertwined with the fortunes of others. Serious contenders in the NFC include the
entire NFC East, though
4-4 Philadelphia's chances of getting back in the race without suspended wide receiver Terrell Owens seem diminished. The Eagles will know far more about their playoff possibilities in the next two weeks -- they entertain Dallas tomorrow night and travel to the Meadowlands the following week to take on the Giants. After that, four of their last six games will be at home, but it may be too late, especially with games against contending teams such as Seattle, the Giants, Rams and Redskins.
The Giants, riding a three-game winning streak, face a far more difficult second half. Their opponents in the first eight weeks were a combined 31-35. Their foes in the second half are
35-29 and four of their last six games will be on the road, with trips to Seattle and Oakland.
After Minnesota at home today, they'll also have what could be a season-defining four-game stretch against the visiting Eagles, on the road in Seattle, at home against the Cowboys and on the road at Philadelphia. If the Redskins and Giants stay close, their Christmas eve game at FedEx Field might mean in or out for either team.
The Cowboys have a brutal
three-game stretch over 11 days. They'll play Detroit at Texas Stadium next week, then host Denver on Thanksgiving day. After that, it gets even tougher, with three road games in their final five, and each against a team that is now .500 or better.
Outside the NFC East,
Carolina, already on a five-game winning streak, may have the easiest time of it. Its next three games, all against nondivision opponents, also come against teams with shaky quarterback situations -- at home against the Jets and games at Chicago and Buffalo. Three of the Panthers' final five games are at home, including a key NFC South matchup against Atlanta on Dec. 4. They'll face the Falcons again Jan. 1 in the regular season finale in a game that could decide the division le, though both teams likely will be in the postseason.
The Falcons' next two home games should not be too burdensome with Green Bay and Tampa Bay coming to town. But the Falcons also play four of their last six on the road, including a Thanksgiving game in Detroit.
The Seahawks, tlong's team, would have the NFC's best record at 7-1 if not for a missed 47-yard field goal by Josh Brown at the end of regulation Oct. 2, allowing my Redskins to win the game in overtime.
At 6-2, they've got a two-game lead in the NFC West over the second-place Rams and could strike a killer blow to the Rams' division le hopes this afternoon in Seattle, where they're 4-0. The Seahawks play three of their last five on the road, but four of their final eight games come against dead-enders San Francisco (twice), Tennessee and Green Bay. So Seattle is a shoe in for the playoffs.....which helps ease the pain for
tlong because of his HORRIBLE Blazers.
The surprise team has been Chicago, da Bears. After a 1-3 start, the Bears are 5-3 and, after today's game against San Francisco, three of their next five games are at home. They've also got to face Carolina, Pittsburgh and Atlanta over that stretch.
The key for my Redskins is to win today at Tampa. If they can win that, I will feel very confident that they can go 4-3 the rest of the way to secure a wild card berth, and if they beat the Giants at home, they might win the division.
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