After all the games in the 14th week of the regular season, the San Francisco 49ers were undoubtedly in the spotlight as they handed their rivals Seattle Seahawks their second loss of the season and returned to the championship team after showing their strength.

With the regular season coming to an end with three weeks to go, the strong return of the defending champions has certainly added more uncertainty to the 2013 season.

Looking at the current overall situation of the league, the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks lead the American League and the National League respectively, which is also the only two teams that have lost twice in the season, the former is the first in the offensive league, and the latter is the first in the defensive league, which truly interprets the extreme of football at both offensive and defensive ends from different angles, but both of them have not been able to lock the top four seeds in the playoffs in advance because of the excellent records of the rivals in the same region, and it can be seen that the competition pattern this season is more open and more complex.

Outside of these two teams, the 10-3 teams include the New England Patriots of the American League, the Kansas Chiefs, and the New Orleans Saints of the National League. Because of the special rules for the NFL playoff spots, only the New England Patriots have taken the lead in locking up the division championship because of the weakness of their opponents in the same region, becoming the first team in the league to determine the No. 4 seed in the playoffs, while the Kansas Chiefs and New Orleans Saints still have to look at the faces of their opponents in the same region.

The nine-four teams include the Cincinnati Tigers of the American League and the San Francisco 49ers and Carolina Panthers of the National League.

Among the teams with eight wins and five losses are the Indianapolis Colts of the American League and the Philadelphia Hawks and Arizona Cardinals of the National League.

From the overall record, we can see the difference between the competition pattern and situation of the American League and the League of Nations.

First of all, the American League, the entire playoff pattern has basically settled, although there are still variables, but the chances of a comeback are too small and too small.

In the Eastern Conference of the United States, the New England Patriots locked up the division championship early.

In the North Division of the American League, the Cincinnati Tigers need a win to secure the division title because their opponents Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens have both collapsed this season, with the former only 5-8 and the latter 7-6.

In the American League South Division, the Indianapolis Colts are still not in stable form, and just lost to the Cincinnati Tigers this week, but because all the opponents in the same region are out of fire, the Tennessee Titans, who have the best record, are only 5-8, so the Indianapolis Colts only need one more win to lock up the division championship.

It is true that there will always be upsets and surprises in competitive sports, and until the last moment, the "theoretical possibility" always has the chance of evolving into reality; However, considering the overall form trend of this season, the probability of an unexpected comeback is indeed too low and too low, which also means that the three division champions have been basically determined, and the six playoff spots are basically three are also determined.

Midland West is the only variable.

The current American League West Conference is the Denver Broncos and Kansas Chiefs, with three weeks of games left in the season, what needs to be decided between them is the division champion and the division second, with the current record of both of them breaking through 10 wins, it is basically guaranteed to enter the playoffs, but the difference in seeding places, the division winner enters the top four seed round, and the division second enters the wild card round.

In other words, the five spots for the American League playoff spots are almost decided, with only one spot open for contention, and the Baltimore Ravens, who are currently 7-6 for the time being, are slightly ahead, but with three weeks to go in the regular season, there are as many as six teams with theoretical possibilities.

Although there are still six teams in the ranks of wild card competition, the competition between each other is still far from fierce enough, and overall, the competitive landscape of the American League is still somewhat ...... Bored. The main reason is that the contrast between the strong team and the weak team is too obvious, and the gap is opened up at once, so that there is a lack of suspense and sparks, and it is not able to truly continue the confrontation until the last moment.

The second is the National League, the general trend of the entire playoff pattern has also had a clear direction, but there are many more variables, either the strong teams are gathered in one division, or all the teams in the division are collectively declining, and the competition situation within the division is strong and weak at the same time makes the suspense of the playoffs continue, and there are still countless possibilities.

The League of Nations can be divided into two parts, the southern district of the League of Nations and the western district of the League of Nations, and then the eastern and northern districts of the League of Nations, which collectively cracked down.

In the Eastern Division of the National League, the Philadelphia Hawks temporarily won the division with 8 wins and 5 losses, followed by the Dallas Cowboys with 7 wins and 6 losses, the New York Giants with 5 wins and 8 losses and the Washington Red Skins with 3 wins and 10 losses.

In the North Division of the National League, the Green Bay Packers are 6-6 and drawn, the Chicago Bears are 7-6, the Detroit Lions are 7-6, and the Minnesota Vikings are 3-9 and 1-draw.

Look, this is the League of Nations, even if the strength declines, the state ups and downs, everyone remains on the same baseline, with the same pace to vividly interpret the true meaning of "brothers in distress", the bayonet fight between the weak team and the weak team will not be weaker than the peak duel of the top strong team of the American League, because every game may be a life-and-death cliff battle, no one can take it lightly.

Similarly, if the strength explodes and the state rises, the National League teams are also brothers and sisters go hand in hand, and the competition between strong teams and strong teams will never lack sparks and highlights, and every game is enough to make fans exclaim, and the routine of "the brave wins when they meet on a narrow road" will never be outdated! The visibility of the top teams against each other easily surpassed that of the American League.

The 10-3 New Orleans Saints and the 9-4 Carolina Panthers are a team that defended their division title by beating the Panthers at home in the just-concluded Week 14 game, but they will travel to the road to face the Panthers again in two weeks, which will determine the course of the season; The 4-9 Tampa Bay Pirates and the 3-10 Atlanta Falcons are difficult brothers and sisters, and the season has already failed.

In the National League West, the 11-2 Seattle Seahawks, the 9-4 San Francisco 49ers, and the 8-5 Arizona Cardinals still have the hope of competing for the playoffs, and even the St. Louis Rams, who are 5-8, have benefited from the chaos in the North and East divisions of the National League, and still have the ability to fight for wild cards. Not to mention that the Seattle Seahawks have not been able to secure the division championship for the time being, and even the playoff position has not been fully certain.

It is no exaggeration to say that the West Division of the League of Nations and the West Division of the United States League are the group of death this year, and the overall strength of the overall explosion has made the consumption within the division extremely intense, and the violent internal friction often makes them need to bear more pressure and challenges when facing other teams, such a fierce competition pattern has continued until the end of the season, and now it is still not possible to distinguish the winner or loser, which also makes the spark of the internal war in the division become more and more intense and hot.

Objectively speaking, because the entire National League is in the chaotic pattern of the Spring and Autumn Warring States, although the eleven-win Seattle Seahawks and the ten-win New Orleans Saints have not been able to lock the division championship in advance, but if nothing else, they have both entered the playoff spots, the difference is only in the top four seeds or wild card seats, the difference between home and away is particularly important for the Seattle Seahawks, and may even affect the battle for Super Bowl seats.

At the same time, the remaining four of the six playoff spots have an infinite number of possible permutations, and there are now as many as 10 teams capable of challenging places, and it's not a theoretical possibility — but every game will be reshuffled and the playoff landscape will be changed; In addition, the difference in strength between them is also between them, and the direction of each victory or defeat cannot be easily predicted and asserted, which is really too exciting.

Compared with the United States, which is flat and stable, the League of Nations, which is contending with hundreds of schools, is much more exciting.

In the midst of the chaos, the San Francisco 49ers have quietly entered the top eight of the league's official power rankings, and are in a dignified fifth position, behind the Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks, New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints, and even surpassing the Kansas Chiefs, who have a better record.

Relying on a steady and strong posture to beat the Seattle Seahawks, the San Francisco 49ers showed their strength and form to the whole league, and many industry insiders have said that the defending champions have returned to the championship ranks; The League of Nations, which has already been in a mess, is now in chaos, and even the most senior and professional analysts and commentators do not dare to easily conclude which six teams will enter the playoffs in the end.

What's even more bizarre is that even the four teams in the National League that have missed the playoffs – the Washington Redskins, Tampa Bay Pirates, Atlanta Falcons and Minnesota Vikings – don't dare to assert that they won't be able to bounce back at the end of the season.

Is it incredible?

But this is the NFL, this is the National League, the playoff team that was still in the glory last season has fallen to this point this season, and how many people still remember the Atlanta Falcons who fought the San Francisco 49ers in the final last minute in the National League finals last year?