The Southern Strategy

How bad has the NFC South been this year? They've been absolutely putrid, especially in non-division games. There's a lot of talent in this division. Heck, the Saints have been a perennial contender since 2006, the panthers are fresh off a 12-4 season, Atlanta isn't far removed from having the #1 seed in the NFC, so what went wrong? The simplest answer is...collusion.

The idea came after the 2010 season when Seattle went 7-9 and made the playoffs as a 4 seed. What happened was that the rest of their division all received top 15 draft picks. That draft served as a springboard for that division, making it what it is today.

So why all of the non-division game suckage by the NFC South? If the NFC South tanks so low that all of the teams finish among the worst records in football, than only one team has to make the playoffs and get a poor draft pick. The other three teams can be assured of a top 15 draft pick. The teams have even taken it a step further, by all playing so poorly, that all 3 "losers" are nearly assured a top 10 pick. The only "loser" in this scenario, is the actual division winner.

So why would all 4 teams go along with it?
At this point, none of these teams really want to make the playoffs. They're all purposefully tanking, attempting to out-tank each other to get those premier draft picks. How else could one explain Tampa Bay being 1 game out of the number 1 draft position yet only 2 games out of 1st place? Why would Benson donate all of that money to the NFL Hall of Fame if not to secure that #1 pick?

Trust your eyes, not your brain. You eyes do not deceive you, no division could be this bad. This Saints team can't be this bad, neither can the Panthers, Falcons, or...ok, Tampa may really be that bad, but that's besides the point.

Trust your eyes. Is it physically possible for an entire division of NFL teams to collectively put forth such putrid efforts, or is it more likely that they are all engaging in NBA-esque tanking on purpose. Search your feelings, you know the truth.