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If you are a fan of an NFL team in Denver, Chicago, Phoenix, Indianapolis, New Orleans, Green Bay or Houston, your upcoming Christmas stocking is likely to feature a big lump of coal inside.
That’s because your favorite NFL team currently has a 1% or less statistical chance of reaching the NFL playoffs in the final five weeks of the regular season.
For many of us, this time of year is already quite stressful. Trying to satisfy everyone during these hectic weeks leading up to Christmas is already tough enough.
For NFL fans in the cities mentioned earlier, the reality is finally settling-in that your favorite team really does stink this year and has a 99% chance or more to miss the NFL playoffs.
Denver Broncos
Denver fans are really suffering this year. The team spent nearly $50 million per year to acquire the one piece of the puzzle which Broncos fans thought would take them back to the top. Quarterback Russell Wilson jumped ship from Seattle to Denver last year. He was hoped to be the spark needed to revive the pro football fortunes in the Mile High City.
Denver has a record of 3-9 today. Even if they were to win five straight games to finish 8-9, the Broncos will still miss the AFC playoffs.
At this point, Denver Broncos fans would gladly take a one-game winning streak.
I don’t remember a bigger free agent dud than Russell Wilson has been in Denver this season. The former Super Bowl winner in Seattle appeared to desire a change of scenery after playing his first ten seasons with the Seahawks.
Orange Crush fans in the Rocky Mountain region loudly welcomed Russell Wilson to the Broncos. After Denver finished 7-10 in 2021, the Broncos believed that a top-level quarterback was exactly what this team needed to rescue their lingering offensive woes. Denver’s defense had allowed the third fewest points in the AFC during 2021. All this team needed was to score more points on offense, and Broncos should quickly become a factor in the AFC West this season.
Russell Wilson, a nine-time NFL Pro Bowl quarterback while in Seattle, was ready for a new beginning in Denver. The Broncos reworked his contract and agreed to pay him nearly $50 million per season ($245 million over five years). The franchise bet heavily on their new quarterback to quickly deliver success on the football field in Denver.
Through the first 12 games of his time in Denver, Russell Wilson has thrown just eight touchdown passes. Over his previous ten NFL seasons, Wilson has thrown at least 20 touchdowns in every year. He’ll need to throw another dozen touchdowns in the final month to avoid setting a new career low.
Last Sunday in Baltimore, Denver was only able to manage three field goals on offense but held a 9-3 lead against Baltimore late in the fourth quarter. The Broncos then allowed a game-winning touchdown in the final minute – engineered by the Ravens’ back-up quarterback – as Denver lost 10-9.
If you think the Broncos fans are depressed, let’s now discuss the New Orleans Saints.
New Orleans Saints
Monday night in Florida, the Saints were leading Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers 16-3 with less than four minutes to go in the game. With a win, the disappointing Saints would have regained some hope for the season and moved to 5-8. Despite that poor record, the Saints would have moved to just one-half game behind Tampa Bay for the lead in the dreadful NFC South division.
Knowing that Tom Brady is the NFL’s biggest magician late in football games, the Saints failed to capitalize on several opportunities to put this game away late in the fourth quarter. Right on cue, Tampa Bay’s talented 45-year old legend rallied the Buccaneers to score twice in the final three minutes. Tampa Bay scored a shocking 17-16 last-second win over New Orleans.
The Saints have floundered on the field in recent years. The retirements of long-time quarterback Drew Brees (two years ago) and long-time head coach Sean Payton last season have left a leadership gap. The Saints tapped defensive coordinator Dennis Allen to take the head coaching job.
The Saints talent on offense and defense (and huge payroll) led fans to believe that the 2022 New Orleans Saints would be a competitive football team. Though a few key injuries caused some problems for the Saints this year, every NFL team has to deal with injuries. New Orleans has now lost four of its last five games. Worse yet, this team appears to have given up on their season.
I have long held that the NFL brass likes to see its favorite teams and players (such as Tom Brady in Tampa and Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City) win the close games and make it into the playoffs. A combination of talented players and a little good fortune/key penalty calls by NFL referees also doesn’t hurt their chances.
Younger Dallas Cowboys fans haven’t seen their team play in a Super Bowl in 26 seasons. However, many of us older fans long wondered if CBS meant “Cowboys Broadcasting System” during the 1970’s, 80’s, and 90’s. Dallas always seemed to get a friendly whistle (or no-call) from the refs when rallying to win close games or advance in the NFL playoffs.
Many NFL fans believe that the Green Bay Packers also received a lot of favorable rulings from the officials over the years. Not this season!
Green Bay Packers
This season, the Packers (5-8) have gone from a Super Bowl contender to a team which trails NFC North leader Minnesota (10-2) by a whopping six games in the loss column with a month to go. How has this happened to Green Bay?
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers (now 39) has yet to pass for 300 yards in any game this year for the Packers. On defense, Green Bay has allowed opponents to rush for 155 yards per game on the ground (third worst in the NFL). Also, the legendary Lambeau Field home advantage has not materialized as the Packers are just 3-3 at home in 2022.
In a nutshell, Green Bay’s offense is lagging, their defense allows other teams too long on the field, and the Packers have not dominated teams at home this season. The team’s current 5-8 record is quite disappointing but looks to be about right.
Houston Texans
The eyes of the nation’s pro football fans were on Houston last Sunday as beleaguered quarterback Deshaun Watson came back to town with his new team, the Cleveland Browns.
The Houston fans rightfully gave Watson an earful of boo-ing on nearly every snap. The former Texans’ quarterback had to settle more than twenty civil lawsuits related to alleged inappropriate conduct with a number of Houston-area massage therapists in 2020. Somehow, the Texans worked a trade to ship Watson to Cleveland and will receive the Browns #1 NFL draft pick for three straight years.
Despite taking a 5-0 lead on a field goal and safety against the visiting Browns, the Texans did what they always do in recent years. They found a way to hand the football game to Cleveland.
The 5-7 Browns scored three touchdowns without the benefit of their offense being on the field during a 27-14 win over Houston on Sunday. The bumbling Texans allowed a 76-yard punt return for a touchdown (the Browns’ first punt return for a TD since 2015).
The Texans also handed the Browns two defensive touchdowns. One came on a walk-in touchdown after the Houston quarterback fumbled at the five yard line. Later, a batted-ball interception led to another prance-in defensive score for Cleveland courtesy of the Texans’ hapless quarterback, Kyle Allen.
At 1-11-1, the Houston Texans may soon own another number one. The team will receive the NFL’s #1 draft pick next spring as long as the Texans don’t find a way to blow that, too. They must keep losing to remain ahead of three-win teams such as the Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Rams, and Denver Broncos. Can they do it?
If you are a die-hard fan of any of these NFL teams, you might want to utilize the month of December for more enjoyable or productive endeavors.
These NF-Hell teams are not worthy of your unwavering support – at least for the remainder of this year.