Is it an advantage to sit, rest and game plan in the first round of the playoffs? Or does the advantage go to the teams that have had a chance to play and build momentum. Ian Allan explores.
Not since 2004 have all four teams seeded Nos. 1-2 won their initial playoff games. So eight years in a row, at least one road playoff team has won. In five of the last eight years (over half) two or three road teams have won.
Overall, home teams have gone 34-18 in the divisional round this century -- so about a 2-1 mix.
In two of the 13 seasons in this century, all four home teams have won.
For this year, three of the home teams are favorites -- Seattle, Denver and New England. Right now, San Francisco is a slight favorite at Carolina. So this year is a little different, with one of those road teams actually favored.
Here are the 52 divisional games that have been played so far this year, with the home teams in ALL CAPS and the upsets in bold.
| DIVISIONAL PLAYOFFS SINCE 2000 | |
|---|---|
| Year | Result |
| 2000 | OAKLAND 27, Miami 20 |
| 2000 | Baltimore 24, TENNESSEE 10 |
| 2000 | MINNESOTA 34, New Orleans 16 |
| 2000 | N.Y. GIANTS 20, Philadelphia 10 |
| 2001 | Philadelphia 33, CHICAGO 19 |
| 2001 | NEW ENGLAND 16, Oakland 13 (OT) |
| 2001 | PITTSBURGH 27, Baltimore 10 |
| 2001 | ST. LOUIS 45, Green Bay 17 |
| 2002 | OAKLAND 30, N.Y. Jets 10 |
| 2002 | PHILADELPHIA 20, Atlanta 6 |
| 2002 | TAMPA BAY 31, San Francisco 6 |
| 2002 | TENNESSEE 34, Pittsburgh 31 (OT) |
| 2003 | Carolina 29, ST. LOUIS 23 (2OT) |
| 2003 | Indianapolis 38, KANSAS CITY 31 |
| 2003 | NEW ENGLAND 17, Tennessee 14 |
| 2003 | PHILADELPHIA 20, Green Bay 17 (OT) |
| 2004 | ATLANTA 47, St. Louis 17 |
| 2004 | NEW ENGLAND 20, Indianapolis 3 |
| 2004 | PHILADELPHIA 27, Minnesota 14 |
| 2004 | PITTSBURGH 20, N.Y. Jets 17 (OT) |
| 2005 | Carolina 29, CHICAGO 21 |
| 2005 | Pittsburgh 21, INDIANAPOLIS 18 |
| 2005 | DENVER 27, New England 13 |
| 2005 | SEATTLE 20, Washington 10 |
| 2006 | Indianapolis 15, BALTIMORE 6 |
| 2006 | New England 24, SAN DIEGO 21 |
| 2006 | CHICAGO 27, Seattle 24 (OT) |
| 2006 | NEW ORLEANS 27, Philadelphia 24 |
| 2007 | N.Y. Giants 21, DALLAS 17 |
| 2007 | San Diego 28, INDIANAPOLIS 24 |
| 2007 | GREEN BAY 42, Seattle 20 |
| 2007 | NEW ENGLAND 31, Jacksonville 20 |
| 2008 | Arizona 33, CAROLINA 13 |
| 2008 | Baltimore 13, TENNESSEE 10 |
| 2008 | Philadelphia 23, N.Y. GIANTS 11 |
| 2008 | PITTSBURGH 35, San Diego 24 |
| 2009 | New York Jets 17, SAN DIEGO 14 |
| 2009 | INDIANAPOLIS 20, Baltimore 3 |
| 2009 | MINNESOTA 34, Dallas 3 |
| 2009 | NEW ORLEANS 45, Arizona 14 |
| 2010 | Green Bay 48, ATLANTA 21 |
| 2010 | N.Y. Jets 28, NEW ENGLAND 21 |
| 2010 | CHICAGO 35, Seattle 24 |
| 2010 | PITTSBURGH 31, Baltimore 24 |
| 2011 | New York Giants 37, GREEN BAY 20 |
| 2011 | BALTIMORE 20, Houston 13 |
| 2011 | NEW ENGLAND 45, Denver 10 |
| 2011 | SAN FRANCISCO 36, New Orleans 32 |
| 2012 | Baltimore 38, DENVER 35 (2 OT) |
| 2012 | ATLANTA 30, Seattle 28 |
| 2012 | NEW ENGLAND 41, Houston 28 |
| 2012 | SAN FRANCISCO 45, Green Bay 31 |
--Ian Allan