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RADIO," AM1510 or FM93.7, and to Denver
NFL---NO division leading franchise will play another during NFL-2014’s Week
15, limiting likelihood of dramatic changes among the eight number ones for the
approach to Week 16. The National Conference West’s number one team, the now
11-3 Arizona Cardinals, began the week last night with a win over the NC West’s
last place 6-8 St. Louis Rams, and on Sunday the American Conference North’s
leading team, the 8-4 Cincinnati Bengals, will probably crush the AC North’s
last place 7-6 Cleveland Browns during the same afternoon, while on Sunday the
NC North’s 9-3 Green Bay Packers are expected to defeat the AC East’s third
place team, the 7-6 Buffalo Bills.
Still, the NC South’s 5-7 Atlanta Falcons
are scheduled to go up against AC North’s 8-5 Pittsburgh Steelers, a game that
can go either way. For example, if the Falcons lose to the Steelers and the NC
South’s 5-6 N.O. Saints prevail over the NC North’s last place 5-8 Chicago Bears
on Monday night, then the Saints will rise above the Falcons and occupy AC
South’s number one slot.
And four division leading teams will be
facing franchises that are directly behind them in the standings----NC East’s
9-4 Philadelphia Eagles vs. the 9-4 Dallas Cowboys; AC East’s 10-3 N.E. Patriots
against the 7-6 Miami Dolphins; 10-3 Denver Broncos vs. the 8-5 San Diego
Chargers; AC South’s 9-4 Indianapolis Colts vs. the 7-6 Houston Texans, but only
the Eagles vs. Cowboys match can reverse which will be on top of the NC East for
Week 16, in that the other has leads of two or more won games to date. Also at the edge of reversal are the
8-4 Bengals should the 8-5 Steelers defeat the 5-7 Falcons on Sunday.
As to the 11-3 Cardinals maintaining supremacy, much will depend on Week
15’s NC West’s 9-4 Seahawks vs. the 7-6 S.F. 49ers match. The Seahawks could win
this and then face and defeat the Cardinals during Week 16, causing a NC West
tie at first position.
Now let’s call it a set-up for vengeance:
the Patriots lose two of its next three, and Seattle
But success occurs when realities and
rational expectations for them marry up, and right now, even at Week 15, no-one
can be certain of what all of the realities
are.
Broncos, Chargers---EVEN in three of its eight wins, the S.D. Chargers defense has allowed
21 or more points to an opposing team, and during three of its five losses the
Chargers defense gave away 37, 35 (to the Broncos, Week 8) and 23, while the
Broncos defense has allowed no more than 26 but once during the current season,
this alone signaling possibility of another Broncos victory over the Chargers.
Moreover, the Broncos receivers have accrued
36 TD’s since Week 1, from rushing 11 TD’s, vs. the Chargers 26 and five. Also,
of the Chargers eight season wins, only one of them has been against a team
rated high within the standings, a 30-21 victory vs. the Seahawks, Week 2.
Other game categories favor the Broncos for
Sunday, as well, but not with great significance, 3,923 passing yards over the
Chargers 3,417, 295 first downs above the Chargers 257.
Likely to keep the Chargers in the game will
be its QB Philip Rivers-led offense, if the Denver defense regresses from
performance factors of the Broncos last two games. Rivers isn’t far behind QB
Peyton Manning when it comes to achievements, his pass completion rating is
slightly better than Manning’s to date, 68.5 percent over Manning’s 66.9.
NBA---A fourth of the NBA-2014/15 season is now over, and so metaphorically
a first lap of four around a track has played out, with only one of 30 NBA
franchises close to the 20 games won of the 82 to be completed by each team by
mid-April, 2015. The distinction belongs to the Western Conference’s leading
team, the WC Pacific Division’s leading franchise, the 19-2 Golden State
Warriors, now above second place team, the 16-5 L.A. Clippers. Second best in
the WC and leading the WC Southwest are the 17-4 Memphis Grizzlies, atop the
second place 16-5 Houston Rockets. Third best within the WC and leading the WC
Northwest are the 17-5 Portland Trail Blazers, seven wins above second place
team, the 10-12 Denver Nuggets.
Within the Eastern Conference, the EC Atlantic Division’s number one
team, the 16-6 Toronto Raptors, have the lead, behind them the EC Atlantic’s
8-12 Brooklyn Nets. Leading the EC Southeast, that’s the 15-6 Atlanta Hawks and
15-6 Washington Wizards, and atop the EC Central are the 13-8 Cleveland
Cavaliers and 13-8 Chicago Bulls.
Only the WC Northwest’s Trail Blazers and the EC Atlantic’s Toronto
Raptors have comfortable leads, seven wins above a number two team respectively.
Within the WC Southwest, the differences between first and next to last team is
only one game, to wit; fourth place team, the 17-7 Dallas Mavericks, has won as
many games as number one the 17-4
Grizzlies.
Nuggets---OF the 11 of 15 Western Conference teams that have accrued
double-digit wins to date, the 10-12/.455 Denver Nuggets rank 11th. It is still
in second place within the WC Northwest, but by only one win above the 9-13
Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that’s improved steadily in recent days and just
defeated the Eastern Conference Central’s leading team, the 13-8 Cleveland
Cavaliers, 103-94. Another winning streak is essential now for the Nuggets, if
this team is to have some assurance of a post-season slot.
Given the Nuggets coaching staff and team roster, that they are below
.500 surprises. The Nuggets usual starters have more than a dozen years of
professional basketball experience combined, nearly each having played for more
than one NBA team, and all can claim double-digit ppg. Only one of its five
straight wins of last month can be said to have been won against an easy to
defeat franchise---two of the five wins were versus first place teams, and on
December 10th the Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat, 102-82.
The next five games up for the Nuggets are
vs. credible organizations but none that can force the Nuggets further down in
the standings easily. Nuggets HC Brian Shaw and his playmakers need to recover
that fusion of skills that made the November winning streak possible---the next
five games, win or lose, could be the right set for whatever experimentation
might lead to that.
END/ml
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