Three NFL division leaders have a chance to prove their playoff prospects this weekend. For the St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears, the task couldn't be much more difficult. For the Jacksonville Jaguars, the challenge is somewhat easier.
St. Louis, which won only once last season, heads to New Orleans, where the Saints celebrated their first Super Bowl title in February. A mismatch? Hardly.
The Rams under rookie quarterback Sam Bradford are tied for the NFC West lead at 6-6 and won their last two road games. Even if beating the Saints is beyond their reach, getting into the playoffs for the first time since 2005 isn't.
"Of course we respect the fact they won the Super Bowl, but that was last season," Rams cornerback Ron Bartel said. "We're more concerned with ourselves. It's a big game for us, we're trying to get to the playoffs. It's a big game for them, they're trying to win their division just like us. So the Super Bowl and all that, that's out of the window."
Chicago, atop the NFC North, hosts the AFC East-leading New England Patriots and gets the opportunity to show all those skeptics that its turnaround is for real.
Patriots coach Bill Belichick believes it. After calling the Bears' third-ranked defense "disruptive," Belichick then praised Chicago's offense and special teams. The Bears have won five in a row, one more than the Patriots have.
"They're a very explosive team that can score on any play from anywhere," Belichick said. "They can throw a 90-yard touchdown pass or (Matt) Forte can make a 67, 70-yard run. Or (they get a) strip sack, turnovers, kick returns. They're very, very dangerous."
Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio was on the hot seat when the season began. Now he is in the AFC South driver's seat: If the Jaguars win the rest of their games, they take the division title. The first step toward that could be taken against the Oakland Raiders on Sunday.
"We've embraced every challenge, kind of identified what it is and then gotten prepared for the opportunities," Del Rio said. "It hasn't always played out the way we'd like, but I think we've learned some lessons from those experiences, and then we go back and make the corrections and keep plugging ahead, and so that part's been very good."
Four teams: New England, the Pittsburgh Steelers, Atlanta Falcons and the New York Jets, can clinch playoff berths, although it's a complicated scenario for all but the Patriots. If they win, they're in.
The Steelers are home for the Cincinnati Bengals, the Falcons are at the Carolina Panthers, and the Jets host their division rival Miami Dolphins.
Also on Sunday, it's Philadelphia at Dallas, the New York Giants at Minnesota, Green Bay at Detroit, Kansas City at San Diego, Seattle at San Francisco, Tampa Bay at Washington, Cleveland at Buffalo, and Denver at Arizona.
On Monday, Baltimore is at Houston.
The round began on Thursday with the Indianapolis Colts beat the Tennessee Titans 30-28 to end a three-game losing streak.
Colts quarterback Peyton Manning threw for 319 yards and two touchdowns in his 63rd 300-yard game, tying Dan Marino for tops on the all-time list.
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