There are a bunch of teams headed to the playoffs, but even more headed home, after next week.

Let's talk about the ones that AREN'T going to make a run at the SuperBowl. I'm leaving out ATL/CAR, and PIT/CIN/BAL/SD as those teams are still alive in the playoff hunt.

NFC East:
Philadelphia Eagles
New York Giants
Washington Redskins

NFC North:
Minnesota Vikings
Chicago Bears

NFC South:
New Orleans Saints
Tampa Bay Buccaneers

NFC West:
San Francisco 49ers
St. Louis Rams

AFC East:
Miami Dolphins
Buffalo Bills
New York Jets

AFC North:
Cleveland Browns

AFC South:
Houston Texans
Jacksonville Jaguars
Tennessee Titans

AFC West:
Kansas City Chiefs
Oakland Raiders


Here is the current draft projection from ESPN, assuming the draft were held today:

1) Tampa
2) Tennessee
3) Oakland
4) Jacksonville
5) Jets
6) Washington
7) Chicago
8) St. Louis
9) New Orleans
10) Atlanta
11) Giants
12) Minnesota
13) Carolina
14) Cleveland
15) San Francisco
16) Buffalo
17) Miami
18) Houston
19) Kansas City
20) Baltimore
21) Philadelphia
22) San Diego
23) Pittsburgh
24) Indianapolis
25) Cincinnati
26) Arizona
27) Green Bay
28) Detroit
29) Seattle
30) Dallas
31) Denver
32) New England

Tennessee and Houston are rather easy fixes; they just need(ed) a healthy QB. They have good QBs on their roster, but an injury at that position is crippling. I suspect both will look at O-line in the draft, and that's probably their only real need. Tennessee could use a better running game and some help defensively, but it's hard to tell what you've really got when your QBs go down that early in the season for the entire season.

Philly needs a consistent QB. I fully expect Kelly do to everything he can to make trades to move up to #1, #2, or #3 and snag Mariotta.

New Orleans needs defense. They need bodies, and they need talent on D. They can score with anyone, but they can't stop anyone from scoring.

Kansas City is just a conundrum. They have good WRs, a very good RB, a very good QB, and at times a stout D. Typical Andy Reid team; they just can't put it all together.

Cleveland needs 1) a QB, and 2) WRs that don't smoke themselves out of the league. Their defense isn't bad, and they've got talent - but not enough brains to use it. They really need a QB, as Manziel is terrible and Hoyer is a career backup (though a serviceable one).

Minnesota has their QB, finally. They need O-line help and a running back (that isn't a child-abusing idiot).

Washington is a mess and will stay that way. RGKnee will go down to injury again, and they'll be left floundering again.

Chicago needs a QB. They've had it with Cutler.

They Giants need a new head coach and they need to rebuild their running game to take some pressure of Eli. They also need their WRs to not all be injured at the same time.

San Fran needs a QB who actually plays QB. Start from their, as they have the rest of the pieces, but Kaepernick ain't getting it done. They also need some help on the O-line.

The Rams need a QB. Bradford is made of glass. That team has loads of talent on both sides of the ball but everything rides on a fragile QB, and that's not good in that division.

Buffalo needs a QB. Their D is stout and their running game is coming on nicely.

Those are the "easy" fixes.

Texans are actually still alive in the playoff picture, but they have to win next week against the Jaguars, and the Ravens and Chargers have to lose.

True. I included them in the "fixing" part simply because I don't think the Ravens will lose to Cleveland.

I like the NFC East just like it is.
No changes needed.

+1 unless the change means a bad a** Cowboys pass rusher.

My take on a common problem which IMO includes college are coaches trying to implement a sophisticated offense and defense outside existing talent levels.Might look good on paper but doesn't win ball games.

Redskins pick between 7-9 in the first round for 2015.

The Atlanat Falcons need fixing, but I can't lay the blame at the feet of Coach Mike Smith, but owner Arthur Blank will. The word is that no matte if the Falcons win this sad division or not, Smith will be fired.

The Falcons mis calculated the talent they thought they had in 2011-2012 when they were an elite, and it has come to haunt them. They made some poor draft decisions, some based on the miscalculation on the talent they hand and then missed on somde import draft pieces.

They won with a weak O line and very weak D line. They thought Bierman and Jerry would be above average. Bierman is too light and Jerry blew out his knee his rookie year and never amounted to much. John Abraham got old and Osamoah is a bust. Weatherspoon went out in pre season at LB, but wasn't exactly Lawrence Taylor to begin with. They have zero pass rush (this week was a fluke).

The O line started weak and became an national disaster when the Falcon lost SIX linemen. That's four starters and the top 2 backups. Who can move the ball when you are fporced to play an undrafted rookie at center and another marginal tackle from your practice squad?

Roddy White has been injured and not the weapon he was. Mike Smith should get a raise and GM Thomas Dimitrov should get the axe, but it will be the other way around.

They need 6-7 starters to upgrade what they have on the lines before they will be a 10+ win team again.

Okay, time for the "Mission Impossible" fixes.

Let's start with the Raiders. Why? Because, for once, they actually have a QB. Derek Carr is quite good and could really be something special, if the Raiders get a clue as to how to build a team.

For 2015, they have $88.3M on the books. Of that, they can save $5.5M by cutting Matt Schaub. Darren McFadden is not signed to a contract for 2015, and after a 500 yard season should be offered a deal. MJD should be cut and save another $2.5M. Lamarr Woodley (5 tackles, no sacks), Antonio Smith (19 tackles, 3 sacks), Justin Tuck (38 tackles and 4 sacks), and Donald Penn (2 tackles, no sacks) should all be cut, saving $5.35M, $4M, $5M, and $5M each respectively.

Think about this: the Raiders had $32.5M (26% of their entire cap) tied up in these stats:

5/10 passing for 57 yards, 0 TDs and 2 INTs (QBR of 27.9)
194 carries for 617 yards (3.2 per carry), 2 TDs, 2 fumbles and one fumble lost
64 tackles, 7 sacks

Ouch.

Doing those needed cuts saves Oakland $32.5M, leaving them with just $55.8M on the books for 2015. The anticipated salary cap will be around $146M, meaning that Oakland would have about $90M to spend.

They need help on the O-line and in the running game (they are dead last in rushing yards per game at 78.2). They need help stopping the run, as they are 21st against the run. They could also use a veteran QB to assist with Carr's development. I also don't see Woodson coming back for yet another season, so there's a big hole in the secondary, a leader, and the leading tackler that needs to be replaced.

So, they need draft picks.

This might seem crazy, but hey, it's the Raiders. I'd contact Chicago about taking Cutler off their hands for the remainder of his two year contract, in exchange for trading first round picks this year, and taking Chicago's second round pick this year and perhaps a pick in 2016. Yes, that'd eat up about $15.5M in the $90M they have to spend, but doing so you'd have a veteran QB for a back-up, you'd pick up a second round pick this year, and you'd only move back from 3rd to 7th.

I'd look at trading that pick back to Cleveland, Buffalo, or especially Philly in order to get their 1st round pick this year and their second round pick this year.

If they did that, they'd have a mid-late 1st round pick, three picks in the second round and all high or mid round, and an extra pick in 2016.

With those picks, you could easily fill in the RB need, and find help for the D-line and O-line.

Use that largess in available funding to go after a YOUNG, but effective safety and a veteran TE, WR, and O-lineman.

If Oakland did that, they'd rather quickly be a team to be reckoned with.

I'm not even getting into the coaching situation.

the entire NFL needs 'fixing'. A culture of thuggery, abuse, exploitation, union underhandedness and a host of other issues.

I stopped watching years ago.

You can take that to it's origins, which is major college football recruiting. It started with Howard Schnellenberger at Miami, and that success had every coach recruiting the thugs. Thye get to the NFL and get some money and voila!

Agreed, and it sure ain't like the University of Florida is immune (Aaron Hernandez, anyone?).

All the big schools have it, no matter how hard the coaches try to control it. It is even harder now that most schools prohibit Athletic Dorms, so there is no way to keep an eye on them.

From the Raiders and management by genetics of a congenital idiot, to the "Island of misfit toys" that is the New York Jets; how to fix that debacle?

They need a new GM and a new coach. Good luck with both of those.

After that, they actually have a pretty stout defense. They need little, if any, help on that side of the ball.

The offense is a wreck. They need a QB, an RB, at least one more receiver that can stretch the field, and O-line help. Another good TE wouldn't hurt, either.

Going into 2015, the Jets have $99M already spent. $10.5M of that is on Percy Harvin. If he's cut, he counts $0 against the cap. Cut him. Chris Johnson is due $5.25M; cutting him saves $3.5M. Cut him. Chris Ivory is due $2.75; cutting him saves $2M. Cut him.

Any GM that put $16M into those three for next season needs to be shown the door.

That pulls the Jets down to $83M committed and about $62M available to spend.

They need a QB, badly, as Geno Smith is just terrible and Vick is washed up. Sitting at the #5 overall pick isn't a bad place to be to draft a QB, but trading down in the first round (a la strategy for the Raiders) would allow the Jets to get more picks that they desperately need and get a solid QB later. There's not much available in free agency this coming year for QBs, so it's draft or hold with what you've got.

Personally, I'd trade that pick down to Cleveland or Buffalo for their first rounder and their second rounder, or to Philly. Then, trade down again. There isn't an Andrew Luck coming out this year, so getting into the second or even third round for a QB with Simms already on the roster and being stuck with Geno for another year (which they are) while putting in the other pieces might be the best option. The Jets are not going to be great in 2015 and likely not in the playoffs again; they need to look to the future after Geno and put some pieces in place for a QB when they can get one.

Jacksonville.

Surprisingly, this might be the easiest "broken" team to fix.

They have a QB in Bortles who will be, if not great at least serviceable. They hold the #4 draft pick, which is always valuable.

They need help on the O-line and in the running game, another WR would be good. They've got a reasonable defense, especially up front, though some secondary help would go a long ways.

You'll see a trend here: trade that pick down. They can get a good O-lineman in the middle of the first round and with so many teams needing a QB, there will be a run on them at the top of the draft, I think. That's especially true since there aren't a lot of QBs coming out this year that really make a big difference right away.

Jacksonville goes into 2015 with only about $43M dedicated against the cap; giving them nearly $100M to negotiate with and not a lot of free agent signings needed on their roster. With that kind of money, and a tax-free state, they can quite easily lure a WR and some secondary help down to the Sunshine State.

I think Jacksonville will be just fine moving into 2015. Lovie Smith isn't going anywhere, they have a QB, a ton of cash, and needs in positions that they can fill.

Rams don't have a pick from Washington this year last year was there last one off that trade.

Ah, I stand corrected. It's hard to keep track of DC mortgaging everything on a soon-to-be broken down QB.

That right there qualifies you as a man who has great insight! The "The teams that are being successful are doing this, so we have to do it in order to be successful" way of thinking, even when "we" don't have the talent that makes it work for them is a form of insanity. A team needs to build a system that works for them with the talent that it has available.

hell, our new Freshman QB was just arrested for driving without a license, speeding, and was caught with two bags of Mary Jane in the car. Thug behavior is endemic, in all levels of football.

REDSKINS are fixin' to be a "dynasty!!"

I'm thinking they trade that pick for several later round picks and go for building the O line and secondary. Everything else is in pretty good shape.

The only team in the league right now that can claim to be anywhere close to a current dynasty is the Patriots. Twelve straight division titles (no other coach/QB duo in history have more than 6), 5 SB appearances, 3 victories, in the last fifteen years.

Yeah, it is, until RGKnee goes down again.

If he can just get some protection (at least a 3 step drop) then I believe he will survive. Hell he proved he can still throw in the Eagles game and Bryce Harper taught him to slide. If he does the same this week with Dallas he could be back on track.

I still like him.

A Cousins' trade could get us some decent players, I believe.

I'm glad a lot of teams aren't as good as the Ploughboys. Playoffs and such.

The cowgirls are back in the playoffs for the second time in 15 years. I'd not be bragging much at this point.

I don't see calling them ploughboys as doing much bragging. This isn't okok, ok?

I always did proclaim, however, that the choker homo was a good QB and gave it his all, even if he sometimes tried to force it in on 3rd or 4th and 10 to try to keep them in the game. I have also maintained a team cant do much with out an O line or defense.

I do take some satisfaction that I apparently have been proven at least somewhat correct by the fact that Romo now sits at the top of the QB ratings.

Even before this lucky season he had broken most records set by any previous Dallas QB and held more team QB records than any before except for SB appearances.

Yup I would let Cousins go and maybe a couple of the receivers. Not too sure McCoy will want to stay after all this Gruden junk as well. There are several good QB's that will be around late in the draft who will not expect to start.

The freeking RAMs need one way tickets to LA.

Seahawks could use a good QB and secondary.

Probably goes to HS football now too. They think its some kind of icon crap around here.

If you did away with teams 1-32 we'd be better off imho.

I've been to how many HS football games for parking with the FD and as standby. I don't recall watching a single one. Reading a book is much more interesting.

Cowboys did very well this year and are sitting pretty right now. Lots to be proud of and brag about in Dallas!

They could really use two more good O-linemen

Yep...the Cowboy's coach should coach of the year honors, imo.


David...when you say O'line help, are you including a TE?

You can always use more OL help.

COY honors will go to Bruce Arians, he's done an amazing job in Arizona, he's just had to many injuries too key players late in the season for them to go anywhere in the playoffs.

Garrett would probably get it IF Arians doesn't.

Right on the money.

y

Thanks, byc.

4, I didnt even say the cowgirls were better than most teams. Sorry I pricked a nerve.

Agreed. Arians should get it in a cake walk.