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Ramgator
I recall the 7 and 9 Seahawks taking out the Saints in a playoff game not TOO long ago. Divisional games / rivalries that MEAN something are very important to the integrity of the NFL. The NFL has been KILLING other pro sports in popularity. Even when down, there's a buzz when the Cowboys play the Redskins or the Bears play the Packers. That amplifies when it has Division Champ at stake. Look at the NBA....There are ZERO rivals anymore because of their format. If it was pretty frequent that an 11 and 5 team was out and a 7 and 9 OR WORSE was making the cut...maybe. But it's pretty rare. The NFL has been doing it right for a long long time.
The NFL has changed it's format many times and will again at some point. The NBA doesn't have as many fans for reasons other than their playoff structure.
But I didn't say to do away with divisions, just not reward a division winner disproportionately. I'd much rather see that become a tie-breaker level of reward than an automatic entry into the playoffs over a team that won more. Why should the 6 games you play in division count more than the (now)11 that you don't? Even the conferences don't really make a difference. This isn't like the AL vs the NL in baseball. The NFC and AFC are no different from one another. And the divisions are still based on when the leagues were separate. It's all arbitrary at this point.
If one demands that divisions are paramount, then I think re-alignment is in order. If regional rivalries are so important then make them truly regional. But best records 1-16 or 1-32 should be used IMO. The way each team plays so many out of division games, league record should now take precedent.
Tradition is important but the Rams/Saints, Rams/Falcons, etc. used to be tradition and now they're not. Things change and new traditions will emerge.
