With Chuck Pagano likely out of a job in Indianapolis unless the Colts earn what would be a shocking AFC South title on Sunday, it seems that his people have been leaking some pretty bad stuff about the organization on his way out of town.
But what if the Colts were to actually make the playoffs? Would that change anything regarding Pagano’s status as the team’s head coach?
As unlikely as it might be, there is a scenario in play that could lead the Colts to the AFC South title. All it will take is nine different games going in their favor on Sunday.
Let’s look at this scenario for a second.
Beat the Tennessee Titans
Considering Tennessee has three wins on the season and will be playing without Marcus Mariota, this isn’t all too unlikely.
Though, Indianapolis will also be stuck going with a backup in this one. Either Josh Freeman or Ryan Lindley — both of whom were not on the team this time last week — will be under center for the Colts.
Houston Texans lose to the Jacksonville Jaguars
Again, this could very well happen. Jacksonville is a vastly improved team that has shown an ability to be competitive on a consistent basis.
Six of the Jaguars’ 10 losses on the season have come by one score. That’s an indication Gus Bradley will have his team ready for this one.
With that said, the return of Brian Hoyer from injury will help Houston out big time here. It beat Jacksonville 30-21 back in Week 6.
Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns
We all know that Pittsburgh is going to be out for blood after putting up a dud of a performance last week against the Baltimore Ravens. It also has something to play for here, specifically a spot in the AFC playoffs.
With Johnny Manziel out due to a concussion, Austin Davis will get the start for Cleveland. Davis lost his only start of the season back in Week 9 against the Cincinnati Bengals. He completed 25-of-38 passes for 230 yards without a touchdown in the 37-3 loss.
Denver Broncos beat the San Diego Chargers
With something to play for in this one, Denver is going to want to lay the hammer down against a last-place Chargers team at home on Sunday.
Coming off an overtime win against the Cincinnati Bengals, it sure looks like Denver has righted the ship following two consecutive losses.
With a win here, Denver will earn the AFC West title. A loss coupled with a Kansas City Chiefs win against Oakland, and the Broncos will find themselves road tripping in the wild card round.
Denver beat the Chargers in San Diego 17-3 back in Week 13.
Oakland Raiders finish .500, defeat Kansas City
Oakland was actually in the mix for a playoff spot up until Week 15. With seven wins on the year and four of their eight losses coming by one score, the Raiders have been pretty darn competitive in Jack Del Rio’s first season.
Kansas City did hand Oakland a 14-point loss back in Week 13. Though, it must be noted that the Raiders actually held a six-point lead heading into the fourth quarter before Derek Carr imploded in the final stanza.
Rex Ryan hands his old team a big loss
The Buffalo Bills are likely just as talented as the New York Jets. A few bad breaks, some egregious penalty-filled games and injuries are three things that have the Bills playing the role of spoiler instead of actually looking to earn a playoff spot.
We also know very well that Ryan would love to beat his old team in a game the Jets might need to have in order to earn a surprising trip to the postseason.
Buffalo beat the Jets 22-16 in New Jersey back in Week 10, which is an indication that these teams are much more evenly matched than most want to let on.
Miami Dolphins beat the New England Patriots
Okay, this is where the Colts dream turns into a nightmare. There is absolutely no way the Patriots will lose to a Dolphins team that has quit on its interim head coach over the past month or so.
That’s only magnified by the fact that New England needs a win here to clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
The Patriots beat Miami 36-7 back in Week 8 and have outscored their division rivals by a combined 57 points in their past two games.
Baltimore Ravens find a way to defeat Cincinnati
Okay, now it’s getting a bit absurd. Can the Ryan Mallett-led Ravens come out on top over a Bengals team that’s still battling for a first-round playoff bye? Yeah, we aren’t having any of this.
Cincinnati barely escaped a game Ravens team 28-24 back in Week 3. Though, it must be noted that Joe Flacco, Steve Smith and Justin Forsett were all on the field in that game.
While Baltimore has been competitive this season (eight of Baltimore’s 10 losses have come by one score), there’s no reason to believe it will be able to hang with the Bengals here.
Atlanta Falcons beat the New Orleans Saints
With two consecutive wins after losing six in a row, the Falcons are playing much better football under first-year head coach Dan Quinn.
While that won’t be enough to get the team into the playoffs, Atlanta would sure love to finish the season over .500.
Atlanta did drop a high-scoring affair to the Saints back in Week 6, its first loss of the season after starting 5-0. With a 6-9 record, the Saints really don’t have anything to play for here. This could be an indication that the Falcons will take care of business at home come Sunday.
There we have it. Here is the nine-game parlay the Colts must win in order to earn a trip to the playoffs and potentially save Pagano’s job.
Time to put some money on this.
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