Saints Playoff Hopes Still Alive

The New Orleans Saints could still make the second season of the NFL. That's right, the oftentimes aggravating black and gold still have a chance of making the playoffs. Admittedly the chances of the Saints making the postseason are along the same lines of monkeys flying out of my backside the next time I stand up.

This is the time of year when the phrase "mathematically eliminated" is used a lot in sportscasts and on sports talk radio. If you like football and you like math then you know you could still see the Saints playing in the "big game" in Houston early next year.

Here's what has to happen for the Saints to make the postseason. First things first, they are going to need a lot of help. They are going to need more help than that lady who has fallen and can't get up if a Superbowl is in the future for the black and gold.

Tonight Saints fans will find themselves in an odd position. Saints fans will be pulling for a division rival. The Carolina Panthers must defeat the Washington Redskins in tonight's Monday Night Football game. Should that happen the Saints are still on the precipice of the playoffs.

The best record the Saints can achieve is 8 wins and 8 losses. For that to happen the team will have to beat Tampa Bay and Atlanta in the final two games of the year. Should that happen the Saints would hold tiebreakers over the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Panthers and Buccaneers, should they also post 8-8 records.

In order for that to happen the Tampa Bay Bucs and the Detroit Lions would have to lose their final games of the year. The Green Bay Packers would need to defeat the Vikings next Sunday and then both the Packers and Minnesota would need to lose their final games of the season in week 16 of the NFL season.

This is why sports and math very seldom mix. It's too darn complicated.

The bottom line is this if Carolina wins tonight, the Saints will need to win their final two games