NFL; WEEK 15, OUTLOOK; BRONCOS & SUPERBOWL XLVIII // NBA: STANDINGS @ 20+

sports-notebook.blogspot.com . . . FOR MORE ANALYSIS, GO TO "MILE HIGH SPORTS RADIO," AM1510 or FM93.7, and to Denver’s best sports blogging team---milehighsports.com. SPORTS NOTEBOOK posts its columns Tuesday and Friday of each week. Ed., Publ., Marvin Leibstone; Copy & Mng. Ed., Gail Kleiner. . . // . . . NFL: WEEK 15, OUTLOOK; BRONCOS & SUPERBOWL XLVIII // NBA: STANDINGS, @ 20+ . . . // NFL--- NFL-2013’s WEEK 14 was of some discomfort for seven of the eight division leading franchises in that they hadn’t been able to advance from being one or two wins ahead of second position holders. The American Conference South’s 9-5 Indianapolis Colts are the only division top franchise with a substantial lead over a number two team, they are 9-5, thus four wins ahead of the 5-9 Tennessee Titans. Within the National Conference West, the 12-2 Seattle Seahawks are ahead of the 10-4 San Francisco 49ers, but by losing this Sunday to the NC West’s 9-5 Arizona Cardinals, and next week to the NC West’s 6-8 St. Louis Rams, the Seahawks could, if the 49ers defeat the NC South’s 4-10 Atlanta Falcons next Monday and then the NC West’s 9-5 Cardinals during Week 16, surely they will see the 49ers champion the NC West. And, if now NC East leading team, the 8-7 Philadelphia Eagles, loses to the NC North’s 8-6 Chicago Bears on Sunday, and in the following week is taken down by the NC East’s 7-7 Dallas Cowboys, then the Cowboys will be leading the NC East. The current NC North’s leading franchise, the 8-6 Bears, could experience a similar fate if they lose to the Eagles during Week 15 and next week to the NC North’s 7-6 Green Bay Packers, they will be watching the Packers ascend to first position. The NC South’s leading team, the 10-4 New Orleans Saints, and the NC South’s number two, the 10-4 Carolina Panthers, could trade positions if the Saints lose to the Panthers on Sunday and to the NC South's 4-10 Tampa Bay Buccaneers during Week 16, providing that the Panthers defeat the NC South’s last place 4-10 Atlanta Falcons the following week . . . WITHIN the AC West, the Broncos losing to the 2-12 Houston Texans this Sunday, and next Sunday to the AC West’s 4-10 Oakland Raiders, could drop the Broncos to number two if now AC West second place team, the also 11-3 Kansas City Chiefs, defeats the Colts during Week 15, and beats the 7-7 San Diego Chargers during Week 16. . . OF COURSE, if some of the above-cited outcomes seem to be impossible given the odds based on recent power rankings and on win/loss divides, we need to think again: during Week 14, the Chargers managed to defeat an expected victor, the Broncos, 27-20, and last Sunday the AC East’s 10-4 Patriots lost unexpectedly to the AC East’s 9-5 Miami Dolphins, 24-20. . . AS TO the NFL franchises at the low end of Do-Or-Die but that can hope rationally, these are the 7-7 Chargers, the 6-8 New York Jets, the 6-8 Pittsburgh Steelers, the 6-8 St. Louis Rams, and the 7-7 Detroit Lions. Each of these teams can finish NFL-2013 at 8-8/.500, or higher, thus as winning instead of losing teams, providing that they win during Weeks 15 and 16 . . . WHICH team to hum sad melodies for? That’s the AC South’s last place 2-12/.143 Houston Texans, which has the worst win/loss record of the year . . . // BRONCOS---THIS 11-3 team is playoff-bound, even if the Kansas City Chiefs manage to attain first position within the AC West. Presently, the Broncos are division numero uno, and, thanks to the Patriot’s Week 14 loss, the Broncos are the AC’s leading team and just one win behind the league’s number one franchise, the NC West’s 12-2 Seahawks. Next Sunday, the Broncos will probably defeat the 2-12 Houston Texans, and with a Week 16 win versus the 4-10 Oakland Raiders they could then be first seed re. the playoffs. Along the bright side is that the Broncos won’t be playing its final two games in freezing weather. To the dim side, they won’t be having home advantage, and there have not been any signs that the Broncos defense could keep from giving away 19 or more points vs. even the weakest opposition. During Weeks 15 and 16, the Peyton Manning-led offense will be working as hard as they have had to during any 2013 game to date, in order to offset points allowed by the Broncos defense. Our take is that they will get the job done, and as we cited many weeks ago it will probably be a Broncos vs. Seahawks Super Bowl come February, contravening current Las Vegas odds the Broncos taking it, though close, by no more than six . . . // . . . NBA---THE Indiana Pacers, like the team's counterpart wihtin the NFL, the Indianapolis Colts, they are the only NBA franchise holding what could be characterized as substantial division and conference leads. With one fourth of the NBA 82-game season over for most of the NBA’s 30 teams, the Eastern Conference’s Central Division Pacers are 20-4 today, eight wins above second place franchise, the 12-14 Detroit Pistons. Next is the East’s Southeast leading team, the 18-6 Miami Heat, five wins above second place franchise, the 13-12 Atlanta Hawks. The remaining four division leading teams are but two or three wins above second place holders. . . STILL nearly at the bottom of the NBA unexpectedly are the Western Conference Northwest Division last place team, the 6-21 Utah Jazz, the West’s Southeast 10-13 Memphis Grizzlies, the West’s Pacific Division 11-13 Los Angeles Lakers, and the Eastern Conference Atlantic’s 7-17 New York Knicks. . . AMONG the six division third place franchises, the Denver Nuggets are in the lead, 14-9/.609. END/ml.