Every year when the playoffs roll around, I think about this. Would be interesting to hear the BBTL take on the matter...
What is the point in reseeding the playoffs after the Wild Card games, instead of just having a fixed bracket like we did back before 1990?
The season is so long, and injuries are such a huge x-factor, that, come January, it seems like a total crapshoot who the strongest remaining teams are, regardless of seed and regardless of record. This is especially true with the division winners automatically having higher seeds than the wild card qualifiers.
In theory, the #1 seed (this year the Broncos) is rewarded (vis-a-vis the #2 seed - in this case the Patriots) by reseeding after the WC games. But in practice, that is a huge crapshoot from year-to-year. I don't even think you can say that it works out that way most years, as opposed to maybe half of the time.
As a fan, I'd rather just know right now that the Patriots are playing the winner of Game X, so that I can focus in on that game and on those possible opponents.
What is the point in reseeding the playoffs after the Wild Card games, instead of just having a fixed bracket like we did back before 1990?
The season is so long, and injuries are such a huge x-factor, that, come January, it seems like a total crapshoot who the strongest remaining teams are, regardless of seed and regardless of record. This is especially true with the division winners automatically having higher seeds than the wild card qualifiers.
In theory, the #1 seed (this year the Broncos) is rewarded (vis-a-vis the #2 seed - in this case the Patriots) by reseeding after the WC games. But in practice, that is a huge crapshoot from year-to-year. I don't even think you can say that it works out that way most years, as opposed to maybe half of the time.
As a fan, I'd rather just know right now that the Patriots are playing the winner of Game X, so that I can focus in on that game and on those possible opponents.