Amid the scramble for NFL playoff spots and postseason position tomorrow, the Jets and Ravens know just what they have to do: win and they’re in.
The final week of the regular season is simple for them, but not so simple for five other teams chasing two AFC wild card berths — including reigning Super Bowl champions Pittsburgh.
The Steelers, along with Denver, Houston, Miami and Jacksonville would need a little — or in some cases a lot — of help from their rivals to keep their campaigns going.
Meanwhile in the NFC, all the playoff tickets have been booked, but teams are still battling for division bragging rights and, for one team, a coveted first-round bye.
Dallas host Philadelphia in a battle to decide the NFC East division title and perhaps a bye.
The teams met on the final day last year, too, when Philadelphia triumphed 44-6 to claim a playoff berth and Dallas ended their season.
If the Eagles win, they clinch the second seed behind New Orleans in the NFC and get a week to rest before beginning the postseason.
The Cowboys’ shot at the bye will be gone if the Vikings win earlier in the day, but if Minnesota lose to the New York Giants, the Cowboys can get the bye with a win and loss by Arizona to Green Bay.
If neither Philly nor Dallas claim the second seed, the teams could meet in the first-round.
The Jets, helmed by rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez and first-year coach Rex Ryan, have a chance to clinch a playoff berth when they host playoff-bound Cincinnati in the the final regular-season game at Giants Stadium.
After a discouraging 10-7 home loss to Atlanta on Dec. 20, Ryan thought the Jets were “obviously” out of the postseason running.
But the Jets took charge of their playoff destiny with 29-15 victory over previously unbeaten Indianapolis last week.
“Every team wants to be in the situation where you control your own destiny. But to have the opportunity to actually play the last game of the season, the last regular-season game, with everything riding on it in front of your fans, I think most teams would take that, sign up for that opportunity,” Ryan said. “If we win the game, we’re the fifth seed. If we don’t, we’re out. That’s the math that I can figure out.”
There’s no algebra needed for Baltimore, who can secure a playoff berth with a victory over the Raiders in Oakland but will be eliminated with a loss.
“We’ve got an opportunity to get in the tournament,” coach John Harbaugh said. “To me, that’s motivation enough. I’m sure our guys will be ready.”
Pittsburgh, who won a record sixth Super Bowl title last season, could see any shot at defending that crown end tomorrow when they close the regular season at Miami.
After a shocking five-game skid, the Steelers have revived with back-to-back victories, but their chances depend not only on a victory but also on the results for Baltimore, Houston, the Jets and Denver.
“This is our bed. We’re going to lay in it,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “We’re not going to cry over spilled milk. If there’s any level of disappointment in terms of how this thing unfolds, it’s going to be on us.”
Miami has a miniscule chance to advance, needing to win and have Jacksonville, Baltimore, Houston and the Jets lose.
Houston take on playoff-bound New England, who could rest key players including quarterback Tom Brady part of the game to avoid injuries. Jacksonville, losers of three straight, try to keep their slim hopes alive when they visit Cleveland.
Like the Jaguars, Denver once appeared playoff bound. But since a 6-0 start they have lost seven of nine and need a win over Kansas City as well as plenty of help to get through.
The Colts, who created a furor when they pulled their stars last week and saw their chance at an unbeaten season end, will likely rest quarterback Peyton Manning and others again when they finish up the season in Buffalo.
New Orleans, who started the season with 13 straight wins, now find themselves trying to avoid a third straight defeat and gain momentum going into the playoffs when they visit Carolina.
In other games, Tampa Bay host Atlanta, Detroit host Chicago, St Louis host San Francisco, Seattle host Tennessee and playoff-bound San Diego host lowly Washington.
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was
RALLY: It was only the second time the Taiwanese has partnered with Kudermetova, and the match seemed tight until they won seven points in a row to take the last set 10-2 Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s doubles final in Stuttgart, Germany. The pair defeated Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri and Estonia’s Ingrid Neel 4-6, 6-3, 10-2 in a tightly contested match at the WTA 500 tournament. Chan and Kudermetova fell 4-6 in the first set after having their serve broken three times, although they played increasingly well. They fought back in the second set and managed to break their opponents’ serve in the eighth game to triumph 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Chan and Kudermetova took a 3-0 lead before their opponents clawed back two points, but