Stretch Run Begins for Playoff Spots

Two weeks left.

Five teams guaranteed a postseason slot.

Twelve others guaranteed nothing, but still in contention for the remaining seven spots.

Holiday shoppers aren’t the only ones facing a last-minute crunch. In the NFL’s age of parity, there’s usually a long list of playoff contenders as the regular season wears down to a precious few games and this season is no exception.

Some teams enter the weekend knowing they will be in the playoffs as long as they keep winning. Others require the services of a mathematician, or at least a calculator, to figure out their position in the league’s complicated tiebreaking system.

Because Christmas falls on a Sunday, there will be only two games that day, the rest on Saturday along with the normal Monday night game.

The most anticipated matchup had been the Indianapolis Colts (13-1) against the Seattle Seahawks (12-2).

That was before last weekend’s upset of Indianapolis by the San Diego Chargers, ending the Colts’ hopes of an unbeaten season.

Assistant coach Jim Caldwell will be in charge of the Colts on Saturday in place of Coach Tony Dungy, who has taken a leave of absence after his 18-year-old son James was found dead in his Tampa-area apartment from an apparent suicide.

While the Colts (plus 10) try to refocus, that shouldn’t be a problem for the Seahawks in a game being played at Seattle on Saturday starting at 1:15 p.m. (Channel 2). While they already have a first-round bye, a win or a tie gives the Seahawks home-field advantage through the conference championship.

Historical note: This is the first time two teams meeting in the regular season have a combined 25 wins.

New York Giants (10-4) plus 3 at Washington (8-6), Saturday, 10 a.m., Channel 11 -- Each team has won three in a row. In their earlier meeting, the Giants won, 36-0, and that, said Washington Coach Joe Gibbs, not his team’s recent success, is what is on his mind. “It worries me,” Gibbs said, “because if they can do it to us the first time, it concerns us in the rematch.”

Tennessee (4-10) plus 5 1/2 at Miami (7-7), Saturday, 10 a.m. -- Both teams are in that dreaded spot, bad enough to have been eliminated from postseason competition, but not bad enough to be guaranteed one of the top few picks in the draft. Shooting for their fifth win in a row, the Dolphins are trying to avoid back-to-back losing seasons for the first time since 1969.

Atlanta (8-6) plus 3 at Tampa Bay (9-5), Saturday, 10 a.m. -- Both teams are hoping to thaw out their bodies (the Buccaneers played in Foxborough last week, the Falcons in Chicago) and their offenses. Between them, these two teams scored three points last week.

Dallas (8-6) plus 5 at Carolina (10-4), Saturday, 10 a.m. -- With two games separating the top three teams in the NFC South, the Panthers hope to take advantage of the fact that the two other clubs, Atlanta and Tampa Bay, are playing each other.

Detroit (4-10) plus 3 vs. New Orleans (3-11) at San Antonio, Saturday, 10 a.m. -- Under Coach Jim Haslett, the Saints are 29-5 when they lead at halftime. Unfortunately for them, they don’t lead at halftime very often. Did the Lions actually have a piece of the division lead this season? Since then, they have lost seven of eight.

Buffalo (4-10) plus 14 at Cincinnati (11-3), Saturday, 10 a.m. -- Victories in their last two games would give the Bengals their best regular-season record ever. Twice they have finished 12-4 and, in both of those seasons, they reached the Super Bowl. The Bills don’t have much of a record to brag about, but they have beaten Cincinnati seven consecutive times.

Jacksonville (10-4) minus 6 at Houston (2-12), Saturday, 10 a.m. -- Beating the Texans has been routine this season. But if the Jaguars beat Houston, it will be special. Winners of six of its last seven, Jacksonville is guaranteed a playoff berth for the first time since 1999 by winning. The Jaguars also can get in with a tie or loss depending on how several other teams do.

San Francisco (2-12) plus 9 at St. Louis (5-9), Saturday, 10 a.m. -- It’s scoreboard watching time for the 49ers. They are neck and neck with the Texans in the losers’ bowl, where the prize is the first pick in the NFL draft. St. Louis Coach Mike Martz, out because of heart problems, has been medically cleared to return by the season’s end. However, why would he want to with this team?

San Diego (9-5) pick ‘em at Kansas City (8-6), Saturday, 10 a.m., Channel 2 -- The Chargers can’t afford a letdown after their momentous victory over the Colts. A Kansas City victory would tie the Chiefs with the Chargers. Whoever wins, it figures to be close. Nine of the last 10 between these two have been decided by eight points or fewer.

Pittsburgh (9-5) minus 7 at Cleveland (5-9), Saturday, 10 a.m. -- Having beaten two playoff contenders -- Chicago and Minnesota -- in the last two weeks, the Steelers now face a potential spoiler, whose biggest accomplishment is having surpassed last season’s victory total. The Brown defense is No. 1 in the AFC inside the red zone.

Philadelphia (6-8) plus 1 at Arizona (4-10), Saturday 1 p.m. -- The Eagles are playing out the season after four consecutive appearances in the NFC title game, but at least they get to do so this week in warm weather. After 109 meetings between these two teams, they are even at 52-52-5.

Oakland (4-10) plus 13 at Denver (11-3), Saturday, 1:15 p.m. -- A victory by the Broncos would give them their first division title since 1998, a season that ended with a Super Bowl victory. In his last four games against Denver, Oakland quarterback Kerry Collins has thrown nine touchdown passes.

Chicago (10-4) minus 7 at Green Bay (3-11), Sunday, 2 p.m., Channel 11 -- The Bears are eager to see how much their offense will improve under quarterback Rex Grossman, who returned last week after being out since the exhibition season because of an injury. The Packers are eager to know if quarterback Brett Favre will retire after the season.

Minnesota (8-6) plus 2 1/2 at Baltimore (5-9), Sunday, 5:30 p.m., ESPN -- Trying to stave off playoff elimination, the Vikings face a team that may be top-heavy in the loss column but has proved to be tough at home, where the Ravens have won five of their last six. Minnesota quarterback Brad Johnson is 3-0 against Baltimore.

New England (9-5) minus 5 1/2 at New York Jets (3-11), Monday, 6 p.m., Channel 7 -- “If we win enough games at the end of the year,” Patriot Coach Bill Belichick said, “somebody will tell us to keep playing.” The Patriots have won five of their last six and have outscored their last three opponents, 79-10.