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Maybe it's people finally coming around on Andre Johnson as the league's best receiver (or at least good argument fodder against Larry Fitzgerald). Maybe it's fans of every other AFC playoff participant channeling Machiavelli. But at least within the confines of Week 17 and the wild-card race, the Houston Texans are more "America's Team" than that other team.

That SportsNation appears to be rooting for the Texans against the Patriots and against the playoff odds this weekend is a little surprising, considering the team hasn't exactly been highly regarded this season. As you can see, SportsNation ranked it last among the five main wild-card contenders (sorry, Dolphins and Jaguars) at just about every stop.

So what needs to happen for the Texans to claim their first playoff berth? Just beat the Patriots and get help with two wins from the Chiefs, Raiders and what's likely to be the Bengals' second string. Uh-oh. Assuming a win against the Patriots, here are the scenarios.

1. Jets lose or tie against Bengals AND Ravens lose or tie against Raiders
2. Jets lose or tie against Bengals AND Broncos lose or tie against Chiefs
3. Ravens lose or tie against Raiders AND Broncos lose or tie against Chiefs

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Just in case the playoff races weren't generating enough story lines, the NFL has blessed us this holiday week with several side dishes to munch on. Brett Favre and Brad Childress aired out some grievances which led us to ask you which one has more power on the Vikings. Mike Holgren took a job as the main man in Cleveland but fans are wondering if Seattle might have been a better opportunity. The Saints lost and pretty much every former player on ESPN's payroll is laughing at SportsNation's belief that a loss can be a good thing. And there were at least a few folks in Montana who didn't completely dismiss the Redskins' botched fake field goal as the worst play they have ever seen.

• Your Rankings: How do you rank the pack of wild-card contenders in the AFC?
• Chat: First Take's Drew Bennett, 12 ET | Scouts Inc.'s Gary Horton, Fri., 4 ET

This was so much easier a year ago. After Week 15 last season, there was exactly one team in the AFC that had played 14 games without figuring out if it was a winner or a loser. And in that case it was the Texans, a franchise that has more or less defined .500 since its inception (see: Dayne, Ron or Carr, David).

This year? Well, while we debate whether the Colts are great or merely very good, there are half a dozen teams in the AFC that aren't within a Josh Cribbs kick return of great but still have playoff aspirations. There aren't any computer polls or bowl invites involved here, but how do you rank the pack?

Just for the heck of it, here's a look at where SportsNation ranked the eight AFC wild-card contenders at the start of the season and last week.

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Your move, Mr. Brees. Peyton Manning used his national (sort of) stage to full advantage Thursday night, leading the Colts to yet another come-from-behind win in the fourth quarter with a memorable long touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne. Now it's Drew Brees' turn to keep his team marching toward perfection on a national (sort of) stage Saturday night.

Unlike the Heisman race, which seemed in search of a favorite all season, the MVP chase in the NFL has been a two-man duel since early in October.

On the flip side, Wade Phillips and the Cowboys might not be so thrilled about having Saturday's spotlight all to themselves. Phillips matched a season low last week with a 14 percent approval rating from SportsNation, and a loss in New Orleans won't improve matters.

• "If Dallas loses out, I don't see how Wade Phillips keeps his job. Unfortunately, I see Dallas losing out. New Orleans, I see winning out. This is their only test left. Roy Williams is giving instigation to a team that doesn't need to be instigated. I use to think Roy Williams was a class act until this season. The Saints are going to do everything in their power to finish 16-0. ... DAL 16 NO 32." -- Read Feldman9000's full post.

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SportsNation has been consistent in picking the NFC East as the best division in the league throughout the season, most recently in early October, early November and right now. Picking which team is the best within the division? Well, that's a different story. All three key players in the drama (sorry, Jim Zorn) have been ranked ahead of their rivals at some point this season. And things could take another turn for the confused this weekend, with the possibility for anything from a three-way tie atop the division to a solo lead for either the Eagles or Cowboys.

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• More guests: Cowboys' Deon Anderson | Patriots' Junior Seau | Mel Kiper
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Peyton Manning and the Colts have registered some impressive victories over some excellent teams but they will meet a Titans squad on Sunday that is hotter than anything they have seen all season. Quarterback Vince Young and running back Chris Johnson have hogged the highlight reels of late on their way to a five-game winning streak but not all of SportsNation is buying into the Titans' hype. One person that is . . .

• "This is a whole new Titans squad. They are completely different than the first time these two met this season. Hard to believe one person can make that much of a difference. Vince Young is looking better than he ever has. The Colts, however, are still undefeated and have managed this tougher schedule quite well. But personally this is going to be the upset of the week and I think the Colts will actually lose one more before season's end, kind of like Denver did in 1998." Read all of Feldman9000's Week 13 picks.

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Tony Romo stayed a perfect 4-0 in Thanksgiving Day games as the Cowboys exploded for 24 points after scoring only a single touchdown against the fading Redskins in the final minutes of Week 11. While Dallas leaves its fans on the edge of their seats week after week, the perfect 10-0 Saints seem to just steamroll over every team in their path. Our NFL analysts Marcellus Wiley and Tedy Bruschi are split on who they think will win Monday night in the Superdome, while SportsNation is clear that they believe the Saints will win and keep pace with the undefeated Colts.

• "The Colts got so lucky that the Ravens didn't execute on the Colts' mistakes. The Colts will and should be looking for redemption and the Cowboys aren't going to have a chance getting to the second round of the playoffs if they can barely beat WASHINGTON 7-6. Romo and the Cowboys are going to fluke." Read 1830Robert's full post.

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• More guests: HOF OT Anthony Munoz | Cowboys DL Igor Olshansky | Len Pasquarelli
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Brad Childress gets Brett Favre and quickly ends up with a hefty contract extension. Lovie Smith gets Jay Cutler and finds people wondering if he'll soon be unemployed. Some guys have all the luck. Nevertheless, the Bears enter Sunday's showdown against the Eagles just one game off the wild-card pace, despite losing their past two. And Cutler's old team in Denver has lost three in a row and may be without Kyle Orton against the Chargers this week. One SportsNation blogger thinks Cutler is still the right guy for the Bears, but does his new team or his old team need a win more this week?

• "Cutler has the ability to win games for his team; an ability that was overly praised when Brett Favre was in Green Bay but is now largely overlooked in evaluating today's quarterbacks (for some reason, people have fallen in love with "guys who just know how to win," forgetting that those guys have either rock solid defenses or unstoppable running games). But don't ask me, ask any of the many quarterback-starved teams in the league if they would give up exactly what the Bears gave up to get Cutler to begin with right now." Read afjumpfan23's full post.

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SportsNation would rather have Peyton Manning than Tom Brady dating their sister, but the roles are reversed if a wingman is called for. Maybe it's time to have the quarterback beauty contest settled on the field.

In the other big rivalry game of the week (no, not Chiefs-Raiders), Chad Ochocinco is winning the PR war (and food fight) for the Bengals, but fans favor the Steelers.

• Vote: Pick winners | Vs. spread | Cowboys-Eagles | Ravens-Bengals | Steelers-Broncos
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• Special guests: Jets LB Bart Scott | "First Take" analyst Drew Bennett | Len Pasquarelli
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What does Tony Romo have to do to catch a break? Wait, poor choice of words. Romo should be breathing easy these days. Criticized heavily during the Cowboys' slow start -- he had slipped all the way to No. 17 in SportsNation's quarterback rankings as recently as Oct. 12 -- Romo bounced back with three great games in a row. By Monday, he was back up to the cusp of the top 10 at the position in SportsNation's eyes. Enter Roy Williams, who managed the seemingly impossible feat of handing a popularity contest to Terrell Owens.

SportsNation says Romo isn't a leader, but one blogger is ready to follow him to a win against the Eagles.

• "I will believe, for now, that 8 touchdowns and 0 interceptions in the last 3 games is not coincidence or a streak. I will believe that the stench of the T.O. signing and leaving has finally left us. Romo is reaching more receivers -- to include the backs. Romo is tucking and running more than I've probably ever seen him do, and I'll take that & Just don't get hurt & Because our back-up QB is [Jon] Kitna. Why is all of this happening? Because T.O. is not crying for the ball. Because the show that is T.O. is not the looming and ominous cloud hanging over Romo anymore." Read MoAz2213's full post.