In the NFC the Giants defeated the Cardinals to improve to 10-1 and are a lock to win the NFC East. The Cardinals fall to 7-4 but are going to win the NFC West by default. The Bears improve to 6-5 with a victory over the Rams to claim a share of the NFC North lead with the Vikings. The Vikings are sitting at 6-5 and are hoping the Packers lose tonight to the Saints to fall to 5-6. If the Packers lose they will be on the outside looking in. The Panthers fall to 8-3 against the 7-4 rival Falcons. The Falcons surprising victory keeps their division hopes alive as their jocking for position to make the playoffs along with the 8-3 Buccaneers. The Bucs look like they are going make the playoffs as they have the easiest remaining schedule of all the NFC South teams. The Cowboys improve to 7-4 with a nice win against San Francisco and appear to have an easier remaining schedule then the 7-4 Redskins. The Redskins beat the woeful Seahawks in a tight game which may prove that maybe they will not be a playoff team this year. The long and short of it is not much is settled in either conference, and the last few weeks of the season will be pivotal for virtually every team with playoff aspirations.

How often can you say nine games into a season that all teams from one division have a winning record? That scenario is very unlikely and rarely plays out over a whole season. With that said, only three teams from a division can make the playoffs. This is also uncommon, although it did happen twice last year as both the AFC South and the NFC East each had three teams make the playoffs.

As many people may have guessed, the NFC East is again one of the powerhouse divisions in football, with all four teams positioning themselves to make playoff runs. That division is hotly contested every single year. Another division is making its claim as the toughest in the league and that’s the AFC East. Coming into the season the AFC East was no where near as heralded as the NFC East, but they can also boast that all their teams have winning records.

Unlike the NFC East, the AFC East is yet to have a clear cut favorite to win the division. The Jets and the Patriots are both 6-3 and are heading into a Thursday night showdown that could give us a glimpse as to what might happen down the road, although the loser will be very much in the thick of things. Miami is playing the dysfunctional Oakland Raiders in what is a very winnable game. The Buffalo Bills, who have been struggling losing there last three games, are facing the 3-6 Cleveland Browns. After this week there is a good chance that there will be a three way tie for second place, with all teams being 6-4 and only one game out of first place.

The NFC East is a bit of a different story despite the overall success of the division as a whole. The New York Giants have distinguished themselves as the best team after beating the Eagles Sunday night, but that doesn’t mean that the other three teams are out of the playoff picture. The Redskins are 6-3 and find themselves playing the perennial paper champion Cowboys in what will be a crucial game that could define the future of both teams. The Eagles, coming off a loss to the G-Men, have a great chance to keep their playoff hopes alive playing the pathetic Cincinnati Bengals. So basically, nothing will be settled in either one of these divisions as far as how many teams will make it to the postseason until the last two or three weeks of the season. However, all the teams control their own destiny, and we may witness a rare situation in which six playoff teams reside in the NFL’s East Divisions.