01-18-2020, 03:09 AM
ATLANTA - The Atlanta Falcons wont apologize for somehow being in first place with a losing record.They shouldnt have to.This one is on the NFL.The league should seriously consider realignment — or, at the very least, a revamping of the playoff system — to prevent a repeat of this looming post-season embarrassment: the Falcons or New Orleans Saints or whoever emerges as champion of the woeful NFC South actually getting to host a first-round game when they have no business playing after December.Its set up the way it is, Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan said with a shrug. Were not worried about what people say.The NFL should be.The playoffs are supposed to reward the best teams, and no one would put Atlanta (4-6), New Orleans (4-6), Carolina (3-7-1) or Tampa Bay (2-8) in that group.Yep, even the Buccaneers are still in the post-season mix, a team that trailed the Falcons 56-0 early in the season and just doubled its win output with a victory over Washington.Normally this time of year, when youre talking about that second win, youre not throwing a lot of parties, coach Lovie Smith quipped. But for us, to be two wins out of first place in the win column, that is big.Its not like this is all that unusual, either.In the last six years, three mediocre teams — San Diego in 2008 and Denver in 2011 with 8-8 records, Seattle in 2010 at 7-9 — not only made the playoffs at the expense of more-deserving teams, but won their opening playoff games against superior opponents largely because they were playing at home.The NFL, you see, gives the top four seeds in each conference to the division champions, regardless of whether a wild-card team — or, as was the case in the aforementioned years — both wild-card teams have better records.Thats certainly going to be the case again this season in the NFC.The Falcons, in fact, could actually win the division with a 6-10 record, having beaten no one outside the South.If that happens, they would still open the playoffs at the Georgia Dome.Other than the World Series, where home-field advantage is ridiculously based on which league wins the All-Star Game, every other post-season series in every other sport gives that edge to the team with the best record.The NBA saw the light a few years ago. Its six division champions are still guaranteed playoff berths and slotted into the top three seeds in each conference, but they dont get home court if they team theyre paired against has a better mark.Its past time for the NFL to adopt something similar.But that doesnt go far enough.The current eight-division alignment and scheduling format should be scrapped immediately, since it clearly breeds these sort of travesties. With only four teams in each division, and just six of 16 games against division opponents, its really not all that farfetched to have wind up with a wretched group such as the NFC South.The NFL should go back to the six-division alignment that worked just fine for so many years before the league expanded to 32 teams. It might look something like this:— AFC East: Buffalo, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Miami, New England and New York Jets.— AFC Central: Baltimore, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.— AFC West: Denver, Houston, Kansas City, Oakland and San Diego.— NFC East: Carolina, Dallas, New York Giants, Philadelphia, Tampa Bay and Washington.— NFC Central: Chicago, Detroit, Green Bay, Minnesota and St. Louis.— NFC West: Arizona, Atlanta, New Orleans, San Francisco and Seattle.This alignment would preserve most of the most important rivalries, with only one geographical anomaly — Atlanta and New Orleans in the NFC West — that actually has historical precedence. The Falcons and the Saints were members of that division from 1970 until the current alignment was adopted for the 2002 season.With larger divisions, the odds are much better that at least one worthy team would emerge from each, allowing the NFL to still guarantee automatic berths to each division champion while freeing up two extra wild-card berths for the worthiest teams. Also, this setup would lead to half of the 16-game schedule being made up of division contests; in the five-team divisions, everyone would still play home and home, while six-team divisions would have three home-and-homes on a rotating basis and single games against the other two rivals.The rest of the schedule would be made up of four intra-conference games, and retain the current setup of four games against the opposing conference. It wouldnt be quite as neat as the current arrangement, but it shouldnt be much of a problem coming up with a formula — based largely on playing teams with similar records the previous season — that would result in even more parity.Parity is fine.A losing team in the playoffs is not.___Paul Newberry is a national writer for The Associated Press. Write to him at pnewberry@ap.org or at http://www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963___Online: AP NFL website: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Marcus Allen Super Bowl Jersey . Cain departed in the fourth inning of a 10-5 loss to the Pirates on Thursday. X-rays on Cains bruised forearm were negative. He was hit when Sanchez led off the fourth with a groundout. Joe Montana Super Bowl Jersey .com) - The Calgary Flames were again involved in a game in which a team was held scoreless, only this time they came out on the winning side. http://www.thechiefsshoponline.com/Youth...fs-Jersey/ . Minutes before the final whistle of Sporting Kansas Citys 3-0 victory over a shorthanded Montreal Impact squad on Saturday afternoon, Saputo tweeted: "Our fans deserve better. Eric Fisher Super Bowl Jersey . Last year, Islanders forward Colin Mcdonald released a "Do It For Colin" campaign to promote his teammate and friend John Tavares for the EA sports honour:The most popular sports voting video ever has to go to Chris Bosh who showcased his comedic abilities in his effort to get fans to vote him into the 2008 All Star Game:You can vote for TJ and other star players for the NHL 15 cover vote here. Reggie Ragland Super Bowl Jersey . Ive said it before, Ive worked with top pros and I could have made my own program.HOUSTON -- Houston coach Gary Kubiak collapsed leaving the field at halftime of the Texans game Sunday night against Indianapolis and was taken by ambulance to a hospital. Kubiak hunched over and dropped to his knees at the 24 yard line and was immediately surrounded by medical personnel. He was lifted off the field on a stretcher and taken by cart to the ambulance. The Texans didnt say what was wrong with Kubiak, but did say he didnt have a heart attack. The team said the 52-year-old coach, a former NFL quarterback who calls the teams plays, was conscious and was with his family as he was taken to the hospital. "He had an episode; he was light-headed and dizzy," Houston general manager Rick Smith said in an interview on NBC. "He was evaluated by a number of specialists ... he is awake and coherent." Defensive co-ordinator Wade Phillips took over as coach. Up 21-3 when Kubiak collapsed, the Texans unraveled in the second half, falling 27-24 for their sixth straight loss after opening the season 2-0 with Super Bowl hopes. "We have to assess ... obviously, theres a lot of info," Smith said. "Hopefully, Gary will be back with us tomorrow." Kubiaks collapse came a day after Denver Broncos coach John Fox was hospitalized in North Carolina as he awaits aortic value replacement surgery. The 58-year-old Fox will have surgery in a few days and will miss several weeks while recuperating. Fox had been told earlier about his heart condition and was hoping to put off the operation until February. As part of his trip to North Carolina on a bye week, he met with his cardiologist in Raleigh and was told to seek medical attention immediately if he felt any discomfort. On Saturday, Fox became dizzy playing golf near his off-season home in Charlotte and was taken to a hospital, where tests revealed he couldnt wait any longer to have the surgery. In college, Minnesota coach Jerry Kill took a leave of absence last month so he could better manage and treat his epilepsy. He has had five seizures on game day in his two-plus seasons with the Golden Gophers. Kubiak has long been known as a top offensive coach, mentoring quarterbacks in Denver under Mike Shanahan and now Matt Schhaub -- and Case Keenum -- in Houston.dddddddddddd Kubiak has had no known public health problems. Kubiak was hired in 2006, along with general manager Rick Smith, after the Texans finished a franchise-worst 2-14. Smith spent 10 years with Kubiak while the coach was offensive co-ordinator of the Broncos. Smith was Denvers defensive assistant for four seasons before moving into the front office for his last six years with the Broncos. The pair has helped transform the Texans, which began play in 2002, from league laughingstock to contender. The team went 6-10 in their first year and 8-8 in each of the next two seasons. Expectations were high in 2010 after Houston finished at 9-7 for its first winning record in 2009. But the Texans instead fell to 6-10, which led to many fans calling for Kubiaks firing. His original contract was due to expire after the 2010 season, but owner Bob McNair has stepped up to keep Kubiak and defended him several times amid the bumps. Among recent departures were assistant head coach Alex Gibbs (for Seattle) and offensive co-ordinator Kyle Shanahan went to join his father, Mike, in Washington. Kubiak hired former Denver offensive co-ordinator Rick Dennison to replace Shanahan and former Atlanta offensive co-ordinator Greg Knapp to become Houstons quarterbacks coach. Dennison worked on the Broncos staff during Kubiaks 11 years as Denvers offensive co-ordinator, and Knapp coached Schaub for three seasons with the Falcons. The highest-profile assistant brought to Houston was Phillips, the veteran son of the late Bum Phillips and a former head coach in Denver, Buffalo and Dallas. Last year, the Texans announced contract extensions for both Smith and Kubiak, rewarding them for taking the team to the playoffs last year for the first time. Kubiaks three-year agreement has him under contract through 2014. McNair said at the time he offered Kubiak a four-year deal, but the coach preferred to make it for three. Kubiak made his mark as Denvers offensive co-ordinator under Shanahan, winning two Super Bowls. An eighth-round pick out of Texas A&M, he spent nine years as John Elways backup. He finished his career 4-1 as a starter, all in emergency relief of Elway. ' ' '