The Broken NFL Playoffs
I'm not necessarily a sports guy. I was never a jock, never had posters of sports figures on any wall. Ever. I own no sports memorabilia or clothing. I don't even wear baseball hats, as I think they look juvenile on grown men unless you actually happen to be on a field somewhere playing the sport. There are a couple of sports figures I deeply admire - Muhammad Ali comes to mind - but only because I admire them for the way they use their fame and position for positive social gain.
I am a slave to no organized sports schedule. Except for two: Wimbledon and the NFL playoffs (I'm also a huge fan of MMA, but I don't consider that too "organized"). In the first instance I love the sport of tennis, being one of the few sports I actually played in my youth. I like the one-on-one aspect of the game. In the second, I love the game of football, especially in the playoffs. I have never really rooted for one team over another, I just wanted to see a good game.
Although my local franchise, the NY Giants won last years Superbowl in a fantastic game, Kerry J. Byrne makes a powerful argument at Sports Illustrated that the current NFL playoff system is deeply flawed, allowing mediocre teams to dominate the playoff picture.
The current system offers what economists and sociologists might call moral hazard: It alternately rewards inferior teams, such as the 8-8 Chargers or 9-7 Cardinals, simply because they were better than three rivals in a weak division, or punishes superior teams, such as the 12-4 Colts, 11-5 Patriots or 9-6-1 Eagles, who had to fight through brutal regular seasons in tougher divisions. That's not a very good system.
I'd have to agree. If this in any way interests you go read the article.
