We have all the playoff teams ranked in our own power rankings. Of course the Wild Shamrock way is we are not going to hold back. These are 12 teams that are not having a conversation about making Rex Ryan the new coach in Miami. If that is what is available, I would thank God for what each of these twelve teams has as their leader. Pull up a bar stool and take a gander at what we’ve got going down. Could be the most crazy playoffs the league has ever seen. Anything can happen. Keep the shots flowing. Leaving the bottle on top of the ball would just make things easier.

#1. NEW ORLEANS SAINTS 13-3 (SEED #1 NFC)  You cannot write a better script than what the Saints have done. Home in the Dome. First round bye. Rest up nagging injuries. High powered offense. Defense has played rock solid. Superbowl is in a dome they are familiar with. Sean Peyton and Drew Brees will dissect a perfect plan for each opponent.

I think the one fluke play last year against the Vikings is not forgotten. I think the Saints will use that to help them prevail through their own conference. I thought they were the best team last year. I think they’ve gotten better.

#2. CHICAGO BEARS 12-4 (SEED #3 NFC) The Bears are a very scary team to play with that defense. A great defense can stop a great offense, 9 out of ten times in this sport. They have a very creative offense with lots of weapons. They have some receivers banged up as Trubisky was throwing  the likes of Josh Bellamy aka Rock Hands and number 1 bust, Kevin White. They will need their number one play-makers on the field because the playoffs are a different animal. I like Coach Nagy’s philosophy to not take the petal off the metal. Especially exterminating a division foe in the last week of the season. Hopefully Coach Nagy avoids being too cute in situations to avoid disasters with tricky gadget plays that could change the momentum of the game. I expect Bears to get deep in the playoffs. It is hard for a new rookie head coach to go all the way in his very first year. However it is the NFL. and  anything can happen. Plus again that defense scares the crap out of anyone. It is possible. The dream is real. My favorite picture I continue to show each week that describes this ferocious defense.

#3. LA RAMS 13-3 (SEED #3 NFC)  Rams needed a bye week to rest their star running back which they needed for the Gurley Man. This team hit rock bottom for a few weeks towards the end of regular season. A few games in their own division are what they needed to tune themselves up and get back on the right track. The NFC is very tough to get through a lot of great teams. The Rams playoff experience from last year will help them this year as they got their feet wet. The key will be the Rams defense. The playoffs are where Wade Phillips’ defense rises up and stops teams in their tracks. They have a lot big names. If Ndamukong “cheap shop artist” Suh and one of the best in the league, Aaron Donald, get the pressure on the quarterback ,Rams will be very tough to beat. They have corner backs that can make huge, plays especially if they force a lot of pressure. Bad throws can lead to a few pick sixes.

#4.LA CHARGERS 12-4 (SEED #5 AFC) Every AFC team seems to have holes of some kind. The Chiefs defense. Tom Brady looks very old. Running quarterbacks like Lamar Jackson get in any kind of a hole and they have a hard time making any kind of comeback throwing the football. Chargers should not be a number 5 seed. They are tied for the best record in the conference. Plus they have the most complete team in the conference. A defense and offense which seems unfair in the NFL world. It is time for Phillip Rivers. The gunslinger used to knock off great teams in the playoffs when he first started in the league. He would get the one big win and then lose the following week. Since he has not been to the playoffs in a few years, this is his best team. They are the best team in the conference. They are a team that can win on the road which they are forced to do anyways.

#5.KANSAS CITY CHIEFS 12-4 (SEED #1.AFC) Since Kareem Hunt was caught in a video from his past pushing the women this team has not been the same. Sure they still won some games. They put up points. After they cut the running back, it seems like they have had as crisp of an offense as they were most of the season. The key to the Chiefs is exercise the demons. Find a way to win a playoff game at home. This is a different Chief team with the change at quarterback. Plus they have a first round bye. However the past few years at home, their history may come back to haunt them at Arrowhead stadium as it might not be a very scary place to play for the opponent. The key to the Chiefs is the defense has to make more stops. I would feel a lot better with their chances if they even had a middle of the pack defense. Will Mahomes regress in the playoffs? Mahomes has been awesome the whole season. Will the playoffs be enough pressure to get inside his head and just have a bad day at the office? It seems things are aligned for that kind of game in the Chief land.

#6.NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 11-5 (SEED # 2 AFC) I want to write the Patriots off. I know the playoffs don’t have any division foes for the Patriots to feast on. I think any of the teams in the AFC can beat the Patriots. However this is the playoffs and the Evil Empire is a snake you have to cut the head off of. Because any parts of the Patriot armor will grow back. Besides it’s all about the game plan that the man under the hooded sweat shirt will come up with.

Do you think if Billy Boy finds a peep hole he is looking at the cheerleaders? Hell no, it’s all about the other team’s game plan.

Patriots will find the opponent’s game plan because no mission is impossible for this band of cheats.

#7. BALTIMORE RAVENS 10-6 (SEED #4 AFC) Ravens have a great defense. The best in the AFC. This alone can win playoff games. It seems like the Ravens are blueprinting the team they beat in their last Superbowl, the 49ers. They had a great defense, then made the switch to quarterback and went with the kneeler, Colin Kaepernick. The Ravens turned to Lamar Jackson late into this season. As we know ,the 49ers went to the Superbowl and lost. It was a great run by Colin Kaepernick. His only great season. Running quarterbacks are one hit away of being knocked into tomorrow. If Ravens find themselves behind or tied in the last minute drive, it’s hard for these running quarterbacks to stay in the pocket and pass the football. The defense knows that and they key on that.

#8. SEATTLE SEAHAWKS 10-6 (SEED #5NFC) No legion of boom defense this season. Seattle is in the playoffs. You can give credit to the coaching. Who wants to stroke Pete Carol’s ego? Russell Wilson is the biggest reason the Seahawks are winning games. He will be the biggest factor related to them getting through and winning any playoff game. He has some help, a young defense has done some great things. The running game has opened up the passing game. Only major problem I see is the Seahawks are not at home. I can see them winning their first game in Dallas. What about after that? Seahawks win huge games at home and can play any style of game. On the road they laid clunkers. This team was supposed to be taken to the back of the shed to be shot  and put out of its misery before the season started. Perhaps they are on the rise again without all the crazies they once had on the defensive side of the ball.

#9.INDIANAPOLIS COLTS 10-6 (SEED #6. AFC) This is one of the hottest teams in the league right now. They are one of the scariest teams to play right now. Teams like this, that have played their last six or so games of regular season and are hot at the right time, are very dangerous especially in the first round. HOUSTON, you have a problem. First they played you twice already and beat you once and they gave you the first game way back in the beginning of the season. Andrew Luck, since coming back from injury, looks and plays the part well of one of the elite quarterbacks in the league. They just need to stop boneheaded mistakes this team is prone to make on any given Sunday.

#10.PHILADELPHIA EAGLES 9-7 (SEED#6 NFC) Another team coming in red hot. The plot has the same characters and the same scenario perhaps with a different twist. They call him St. Nick. He delivered a huge Christmas gift for the whole city of Philadelphia. He has led the Eagles to the playoffs. The Eagles were on life support. Some would say road kill. Once again Carson Wentz goes out with an injury and Nick Foles takes over. Last year when this happened, Eagles had already cemented their playoff berth. This year the looks of the situation did not look good. St.Nick did it. Eagles have awoken from the Superbowl hangover and now have a chance to defend their title instead of being some stat of a team winning and unable to make it to the playoffs the next season.

#11.HOUSTON TEXANS 11-5 (SEED #3 AFC)    Houston, to me, has ran out of gas. They are like that hot gal bent over under the hood working on the engine of their car. You start slowing down thinking you will lend a hand and then you see her face. You drive away quickly and scared. Texans seem to have seen their own ugly selves in the mirror. They had a chance to cement the number two seed but failed. This is a team which after the nine game winning streak, has been riding the struggle bus which might make them a victim of an early exit.

#12.DALLAS COWBOYS 10-6 (SEED #4 NFC) Fool me once, can’t fool me twice. This team played in the worst division in football. They won ten games. One week they look like they can beat anybody. Usually only at home. Then they look terrible the next week. The Cowboys are the girl in the neighborhood that is crazy. Has too many personalities. One day she wants to kiss, the next day she wants to slice your throat. Crazy Joe Davola from Seinfeld would be normal in comparison.