Dallas and the NY Giants have both head to head games remaining and Dallas has one remaining with Philadelphia. Dallas should edge out the Giants for the #4 seed and Atlanta grab the #5 seed. The #6 seed will be decided on the last week of the year. The last seed will come down to Chicago, Detroit or the Giants. Chicago has an easier schedule but will be without QB Jay Cutler for several weeks. Detroit has a brutal final five games and the Giants have two with Dallas, one with Washington (lost first game to the Redskins), the Jets and Green Bay. Chicago should squeeze out the #6 seed, besting the Giants and Detroit.

The NFC final play-off format should be: #1 Green Bay, #2 San Francisco, #3 New Orleans, #4 Dallas, #5 Atlanta, and #6 Chicago. New Orleans and Atlanta should advance to the divisional round. Atlanta will finally bounce Green Bay and New Orleans will defeat San Francisco, setting up a third meeting between Atlanta and New Orleans for the NFC title.

The AFC West winner should be Oakland (7-4). Denver (6-5) has pulled out miraculous wins in the last few weeks but that will come to an abrupt end. New England (8-3) will capture the AFC East with a win over the NY Jets twice. The Peyton Manning-less AFC South will fall to Houston (8-3). Houston chose probably the best year to suffer QB woes with Manning out, Jacksonville with a fresh look and Tennessee with an over-the-hill vet. Baltimore (8-3) will advance to the playoffs, but I just have a strange feeling they will not do it as an AFC North champion. Pittsburgh (8-3, the team who plays up to contenders and down to also-rans) and Cincinnati (7-4) are tied and only one game behind Baltimore. Either way you view the picture, the #5 and #6 seeds will come from the AFC North. The 6-5 NY Jets and Tennessee will not see post-season action.

Everything pertaining to the seedings will revolve around this week's Cincinnati and Pittsburgh re-match. Pittsburgh has the tie-breaker over New England, but not Baltimore or Houston, but Houston is without their starting QB and Baltimore will regress in the last part of the season. The AFC final play-off format should be: #1 New England, #2 Pittsburgh, #3 Houston, #4 Oakland, #5 Cincinnati, #6 Baltimore. Cincinnati and Baltimore should advance. Pittsburgh and Baltimore should, as well, face for a third time this season.

In another American-loved sport, a bidding farewell for Tony La Russa as he leaves the game of baseball 'on his terms.' He retires as a manager with only 35 wins separating him from 2nd place on the all time managerial list (2763-2728). He managed in the majors minus a few weeks after the Chicago White Sox fired him and Oakland hired him in 1986, since 1979. I am approaching 40 and was in 3rd grade when La Russa took over the White Sox. After Bobby Cox retired, La Russa held the mantle as longest tenured manager, then after his retirement, it will fall to Angel's Mike Scioscia.

.