When the San Diego Chargers opened the NFL season with a 5-1 record that included a convincing 30-21 win over the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, it seemed like a lock that they would compete for a playoff spot. There was talk of Philip Rivers for MVP, Mike McCoy for Coach of the Year and the team had Super Bowl potential.
Meanwhile, the San Francisco 49ers have been to the playoffs every year since head coach Jim Harbaugh, going to the NFC Championship Game or beyond each time. After adding Stevie Johnson, Bruce Ellington, Brandon Lloyd and Carlos Hyde, this team was supposed to have the offense it needed to support one of the league’s best defenses.
However, both teams have struggled with consistency all season and they enter Week 12 with identical 6-4 records. It doesn’t help either team’s chances that they play in two of the league’s tougher divisions and at this point it looks like only one of these teams has a realistic shot of getting in.
Will The Chargers Make The Playoffs?
San Diego currently sits outside of the final AFC Wild Card spot in a four-way tie at 6-4. Only a half-game separates Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore at the top of the AFC North and while one of those teams is bound to win the division there is a chance that all four teams can beat up on eachother enough to open the door for the Chargers. However, their biggest obstacle remains the Dolphins, which hold the tie break over San Diego based on their head-to-head win. Miami still has difficult games against Denver and New England but they will also play Minnesota and the New York Jets twice. The schedule isn’t nearly as kind to the Chargers as they host St. Louis, New England, and Denver while going on the road to play Baltimore, San Francisco, and Kansas City. Even if San Diego splits those six games they will have a tough time getting in as a Wild Card team and they could look back at the loss to Miami as the biggest reason why they won’t end up making it in the AFC.
Will The 49ers Make The Playoffs?
The 49ers are tied with Seattle at 6-4 just one game back of both the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys for the NFC Wild Card spots. There is a good chance the Packers can still catch the Detroit Lions for top spot in the NFC North if the latter eventually hits a wall. That seems possible as the Lions have had a number of close calls in recent weeks and head to New England on Sunday. If the Lions dip and the Packers take the North, the 49ers should be able to catch Detroit and get to the playoffs.
San Francisco has a relatively favorable schedule that includes games against Washington and Oakland but with two more games against the Seahawks the final NFC Wild Card spot could very well come down to the outcomes between those NFC West rivals.
Ultimately in the end both teams will have nobody else to blame but themselves for whether they get in to the playoffs or not. Both teams left potential wins on the table and with the margin for error so slim in both the AFC and NFC overcoming mediocre play through the first half of the season will be a difficult task for both the Chargers and 49ers. San Francisco looks like the more realistic playoff team if it can find a way to at least earn a split in two games against the Seahawks but there is still a good chance that both of these teams most thought had the talent to contend for a Super Bowl end up missing the postseason altogether.
