Is it time to dissolve the AFC and NFC conferences.

[CardShark]

When the two merged, they were kept seperate to ensure both have a representative playing for the championship. At this point I'd rather have the two best teams have the opportunity to make it to the SuperBowl.

 

[AntSports Steve]

I agree. Many years, the NFC or AFC championship game it really the "Superbowl".

I think that would also help the Wild Card as only the best non-divisional winners would get in. Didn't a 10-6 team NOT make the playoffs last year?

Now, the NFL has a lot of history to go up against.

 

[Pariah]

I think you have to have the conferences, if for nothing else than just organization's sake.

 

[Azlen]

It's an issue in all major sports leagues (even most minor ones as well) and I don't see it changing anytime soon.

 

[Rivercard]

I think you have to have the conferences, if for nothing else than just organization's sake.

Totally agree.

 

[vince56]

Call me old fashioned, but I always liked the idea of winning your division, then your conference, then the league championship.

 

[The Commish]

Well don't call is dissolving, call it reallignment. Create Eastern and Western conferences. I think the old East vs West rivalry plays out well in professional sports. This is how I would reallign the NFL:

Western Conference

San Diego
Denver
Kansas City
Oakland
Arizona
St. Louis
San Francisco
Seattle
Houston
Dallas
New Orleans
Detroit
Chicago
Green Bay
Minnesota

Eastern Conference

Buffalo
Miami
New England
New York Jets
New York Giants
Philadelphia
Washington
Baltimore
Cincinatti
Cleveland
Pittsburgh
Atlanta
Carolina
Tampa Bay
Indianapolis
Jacksonville
Tennessee


You would probably have to put Tennessee or Indianapolis in the Western Conference to make it even not to mention create divisions in each conference. You get the idea though. This does change the makeup of the league quite a bit. Of course this would never happen, but its fun to think "what if".

 

[vince56]

that doesn't solve the initial problem though of having the best teams play each other.

The only way you could actually solve the problem is to have divisions and/or conferences only as alignment defaults, and have a league-wide playoff seeding.

 

[The Commish]

that doesn't solve the initial problem though of having the best teams play each other.

The only way you could actually solve the problem is to have divisions and/or conferences only as alignment defaults, and have a league-wide playoff seeding.

This is true. If it were to be changed to the NBA/NHL format by taking the top teams 8 in each conference and having a playoff, it would add one more game to the postseason. I would be willing to consider it.

 

[so far away]

Don't forget about the TV revenue, which networks get which games? MAJOR stumbling block.

 

[gusmahler]

It's an issue in all major sports leagues (even most minor ones as well) and I don't see it changing anytime soon.

It's not a problem at all in European soccer leagues. Each team plays all the other teams twice. League champ is the team with the best record. No playoffs.

That idea would never fly in the US.

 

[kerouac9]

Yeah, there's obviously something wrong with the NFL and the way it's organized.

C'mon, guys. Don't fix what ain't broke. Everyone thought that the AFC was way better than the NFC last season, and the Seahawks still gave the Steelers a run for their money. At the lower levels, the AFC is probably overall stronger, but the elite in each conference are as good as anyone.

Yeah, we should organize the NFL on the same basis as the NBA is organize. That's a successful template.

 

[Idahawk]

Yeah, there's obviously something wrong with the NFL and the way it's organized.

C'mon, guys. Don't fix what ain't broke. Everyone thought that the AFC was way better than the NFC last season, and the Seahawks still gave the Steelers a run for their money. At the lower levels, the AFC is probably overall stronger, but the elite in each conference are as good as anyone.

Yeah, we should organize the NFL on the same basis as the NBA is organize. That's a successful template.

True that.....double true !

 

[CorporalCardinal]

I will say this though, I think we should expand the playoffs to include 2 more wildcars I.E. 8 playoff teams per conference, after all you had teams with winning records who miss the playoffs who at any other time in recent NFL history would have made it. But, tell the truth, long as the NFL exists and we still have the Cards, I really don't care how they seperate the league.

 

[Pariah]

It's not a problem at all in European soccer leagues. Each team plays all the other teams twice.

So we'll have a 62 game season?

 

[CorporalCardinal]

So we'll have a 62 game season?

OH THERE IS A GOD AND HE WANTS ME TO BE HAPPY! There really would be NO offseason then .....I'm sorry, I'll go hide now.

 

[bratwurst]

This would kill a lot of rivalries. Dallas for one would NEVER go for being in the west, because they want to play DC, Philly, and NY twice each year. They fought to stay in the NFC East because of it, and they won because they have power in this league.

When we got moved to the NFC West it was because we were the red headed step child of the East. Its probably a good thing looking back that we don't have to deal with that travel, but a lot of teams around the league would fight this HARD.

 

[jw7]

C'mon, guys. Don't fix what ain't broke.

No kidding. I just heard the other day that the average NFL franchise is now worth $800 million. They have multi-billion dollar television contracts and are a marketing machine. Heck, some people even start message boards to talk about their teams.

I like the new 4 team divisions, and as much as we used to hate the Cowboys, I like the developing Seahawks rivalry. It's nice to keep it in the same time zone.

 

[ajcardfan]

No kidding. I just heard the other day that the average NFL franchise is now worth $800 million. They have multi-billion dollar television contracts and are a marketing machine. Heck, some people even start message boards to talk about their teams.

I like the new 4 team divisions, and as much as we used to hate the Cowboys, I like the developing Seahawks rivalry. It's nice to keep it in the same time zone.

Yeah, I like how it is too. I was sick-and-tired of the NFC East fans and teams. I'm enjoying the new rivalries we're developing with the Niners, Rams and Hawks. And, most of their fans aren't a bunch of mouth-breathers like the Cowboys and Giants fans.

 

[WildBB]

Yeah, I like how it is too. I was sick-and-tired of the NFC East fans and teams. I'm enjoying the new rivalries we're developing with the Niners, Rams and Hawks.

Throw in there an expansion franchise for LA at some point and you have some great rivalies forming in the NFC West.

 

[CardShark]

What if you kept the conference format for the regular season and then based playoff games by records? Teams with the best records against teams with the worst records, regardless of conference. Eight teams per conference. Ties would go to the team with the greatest average margin of victory in the regular season. This would also encourage teams to score alot of points in the regular season and maybe not rest their starters for the last couple of games.

1st Round

14-2 Cardinals vs. 8-8 Dolphins
14-2 Steelers vs. 8-8 Cowboys
12-4 Patriots vs. 8-8 Colts
12-4 Broncos vs. 9-7 Giants
10-6 Seahawks vs. 9-7 Redskins
10-6 Bengals vs. 10-6 Buccaneers
10-6 Panthers vs. 10-6 Bears

Then re-seed the ensuing rounds by regular season records. The best against the worst with top seeded teams always maintaining home field advantage. I just want to see the 2 best teams in the SuperBowl.

 

[SeaChicken]

Well don't call is dissolving, call it reallignment. Create Eastern and Western conferences. I think the old East vs West rivalry plays out well in professional sports.
...

Hey man, coast wars died with Tupac and Biggie.

 

[SeaChicken]

True that.....double true !

The Chronic - what? - 'cles of Narnia!

That video is hilarious. Unfortunately, the tight arses at NBC had it removed from YouTube.

 

[kerouac9]

What if you kept the conference format for the regular season and then based playoff games by records? Teams with the best records against teams with the worst records, regardless of conference. Eight teams per conference. Ties would go to the team with the greatest average margin of victory in the regular season. This would also encourage teams to score alot of points in the regular season and maybe not rest their starters for the last couple of games.

1st Round

14-2 Cardinals vs. 8-8 Dolphins
14-2 Steelers vs. 8-8 Cowboys
12-4 Patriots vs. 8-8 Colts
12-4 Broncos vs. 9-7 Giants
10-6 Seahawks vs. 9-7 Redskins
10-6 Bengals vs. 10-6 Buccaneers
10-6 Panthers vs. 10-6 Bears

Then re-seed the ensuing rounds by regular season records. The best against the worst with top seeded teams always maintaining home field advantage. I just want to see the 2 best teams in the SuperBowl.

I don't know. I'd rather it go the other way, with the divsion champion being chosed based SOLEY on division record, and then the (two in each conference) wild cards being best overall records. Then conference games are that much more important (and the Redskins would have won the NFC East last season instead of the Giants) and regional rivalries would improve and be starkly dramatic while out-of-division games would still be good and you'd be looking at the best overall teams being the wild cards (best overall records).

This way, also, the Cards would have finished second in the NFC West last season, and the 49ers would have finished third (oddly).

Re-seeding rounds is a horrible idea. I like the idea of the playoff brackets and the big upsets (like Pittsburgh winning four playoff games on the road en route to the Super Bowl). I don't mind a 16-team playoff system where only the top seed in each conference gets a bye, but last year 17 teams finished the season with winning records, so someone would still have had an arguement for being excluded.

On the other hand, in 2004 only 13 teams had winning records, but you had two 8-8 teams in the Vikings and the Rams go to the playoffs. With 16 teams, you greatly increase the possibility that a 7-9 team makes the playoffs, which would be disasterous.

 

[jw7]

What if you kept the conference format for the regular season and then based playoff games by records?

No, there is rhyme and reason to this. You have to win your division then your conference regardless of the records of teams in the opposite conference.

For years in the 80s and 90s the NFC was dominant. Recently the AFC has been dominant. This is healthy. It lets management plan the structure of their teams against known rivals, plays into trade decisions and so forth.

The NFL is an incredibly healthy product. Every preseason, any fan of any team can have hope because there is so much parity.