Does anyone on the Vikings staff know the Heimlich maneuver? I mean really.

Side note: The Packers, apparently, needed either the Seahawks or the Vikings to lose this week in order to get into the playoffs. Here's my question. The Packers are 10-6. The Seahawks are 10-6. The Pack BEAT the 'Hawks in week 5, but still (apparently) didn't have the tiebreaker over them. How is head-to-head not the first tiebreaker? Didn't it used to be? Just asking.

UPDATE: I found the rules, and my mistake, here.
I didn't realize that the Cowboys, having lost, were also 10-6, and the rules are different if there are three teams tied. Had the 'Boys won, they'd have been 11-5 and got the first wildcard spot. If there are three teams from different divisions, the first tiebreaker is head-to-head, but only if one team has beaten or lost to both other teams. Dallas didn't play either Seattle or GB.
Next is conference record. Dallas and Seattle were both 8-4, GB was 7-5, so Seattle would have gotten the second spot. Happily, Arizona took care of it for us.

Had Minnesota (choke) not blown it, the tiebreaker also would have gone to conference record. The Vikes and Pack would have had equal division records (4-2) and common-opponent records (5-3 outside the division). But Minnesota would have ended with 8-4 in the conference and taken it.

I don't know why that was such a mystery to me.
- posted by Dactyl @ 6:12 PM