Regular season | |
---|---|
Duration | September 7 2006 - December 31 2006 |
Playoffs | |
Start date | January 6 2007 |
AFC Champions | Indianapolis Colts |
NFC Champions | Chicago Bears |
Super Bowl XLI | |
Date | February 4 2007 |
Site | Dolphin Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida |
Champions | Indianapolis Colts |
Pro Bowl | |
Date | February 10 2007 |
Site | Aloha Stadium |
The 2006 season of the National Football League (NFL) was the 87th one played by the major professional American football league in the United States. Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31 2006. The NFL title was eventually won by the Indianapolis Colts when they defeated the Chicago Bears; the Super Bowl championship game, at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on February 4.
Flexible-scheduling
The was the first season that the NFL used a "flexible-scheduling" for the last few weeks of the season, allowing the league flexibility in selecting games to air on Sunday night, in order to feature the current hottest, streaking teams. This was implemented to prevent games featuring losing teams from airing during primetime late in the season, while at the same time allowing surprise, playoff-potential teams a chance to play at night.
Under the flexible-scheduling system, all Sunday games in the affected weeks tentatively had the start times of 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT, except those played in the Pacific or Mountain time zones, which will have a tentative start time of 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT (or 4:15 p.m. ET/1:15 p.m. PT if it is a doubleheader weekend). On the Tuesday 12 days before the games, the league moved one game to the primetime slot, and possibly one or more 1 p.m. slotted games to the 4 p.m. slots. During the last week of the season, the league could re-schedule games as late as six days before the contests so that all of the television networks will be able to broadcast a game that has playoff implications.
Television
This was the first season that NBC held the rights to televise Sunday Night Football, becoming the beneficiaries of the new flexible-scheduling system.[1] ESPN became the new home of Monday Night Football, replacing sister network American Broadcasting Company who chose to opt out of broadcasting league games.[1] Meanwhile, CBS and FOX renewed their television contracts to the American Football Conference and the National Football Conference packages, respectively. [2]
Final regular season standings
Qualified for playoffs |
W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against
AFC East | |||||||
Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 New England Patriots[d] | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 385 | 237 | Details |
5 New York Jets | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 316 | 295 | Details |
Buffalo Bills | 7 | 9 | 0 | .436 | 300 | 311 | Details |
Miami Dolphins | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 260 | 283 | Details |
AFC North | |||||||
Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | |
2 Baltimore Ravens | 13 | 3 | 0 | .813 | 353 | 201 | Details |
Cincinnati Bengals[a] | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 373 | 331 | Details |
Pittsburgh Steelers[a] | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 353 | 315 | Details |
Cleveland Browns | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 238 | 356 | Details |
AFC South | |||||||
Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | |
3 Indianapolis Colts[d] | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 427 | 360 | Details |
Tennessee Titans[b] | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 324 | 400 | Details |
Jacksonville Jaguars[b] | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 371 | 274 | Details |
Houston Texans | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 267 | 366 | Details |
AFC West | |||||||
Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | |
1 San Diego Chargers | 14 | 2 | 0 | .875 | 492 | 303 | Details |
6 Kansas City Chiefs[c] | 9 | 7 | 0 | .562 | 331 | 315 | Details |
Denver Broncos[c] | 9 | 7 | 0 | .562 | 319 | 305 | Details |
Oakland Raiders | 2 | 14 | 0 | .125 | 168 | 332 | Details |
NFC East | |||||||
Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3 Philadelphia Eagles[e] | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 398 | 328 | Details |
5 Dallas Cowboys | 9 | 7 | 0 | .562 | 425 | 350 | Details |
6 New York Giants[g] | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 355 | 362 | Details |
Washington Redskins | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 307 | 376 | Details |
NFC North | |||||||
Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | |
1 Chicago Bears | 13 | 3 | 0 | .812 | 427 | 255 | Details |
Green Bay Packers[g] | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 301 | 366 | Details |
Minnesota Vikings | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 282 | 327 | Details |
Detroit Lions | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 305 | 398 | Details |
NFC South | |||||||
Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | |
2 New Orleans Saints[e] | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 413 | 322 | Details |
Carolina Panthers[f] | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 270 | 305 | Details |
Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 292 | 328 | Details |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 211 | 353 | Details |
NFC West | |||||||
Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | |
4 Seattle Seahawks | 9 | 7 | 0 | .562 | 335 | 341 | Details |
St. Louis Rams[f] | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 367 | 381 | Details |
San Francisco 49ers | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 298 | 412 | Details |
Arizona Cardinals | 5 | 11 | 0 | .312 | 314 | 389 | Details |
- Tiebreakers
- Source: 2007 NFL Record and Fact Book (ISBN 978-1933821856)
- ^ a a: Cincinnati finished ahead of Pittsburgh in the AFC North based on division record (4-2 to 3-3).
- ^ a b: Tennessee finished ahead of Jacksonville in the AFC South based on division record (4-2 to 2-4).
- ^ a c: Kansas City finished ahead of Denver in the AFC West based on division record (4-2 to 3-3).
- ^ a d: Indianapolis clinched the AFC #3 seed based on their head-to-head victory over New England (Week 9).
- ^ a e: New Orleans clinched the NFC #2 seed based on their head-to-head victory over Philadelphia (Week 6).
- ^ a f: Carolina and St. Louis did not qualify because the N.Y. Giants and Green Bay had a better conference record (7-5 to 6-6).
- ^ a g: N.Y. Giants clinched the NFC #6 seed based on better strength of victory than Green Bay (.422 to .383).
Playoffs
Within each conference, the four division winners and the top two non-division winners with the best overall regular season records) qualified for the playoffs. The four division winners are seeded 1–4 based on their overall won-lost-tied record, and the wild card teams are seeded 5–6. The NFL does not use a fixed bracket playoff system, and there are no restrictions regarding teams from the same division matching up in any round. In the first round, dubbed the wild-card playoffs or wild-card weekend, the third-seeded division winner hosts the sixth-seed wild card, and the fourth seed hosts the fifth. The 1 and 2 seeds from each conference received a first-round bye. In the second round, the divisional playoffs, the number 1 seed hosts the worst-surviving seed from the first round (seed 4, 5, or 6), while the number 2 seed will play the other team (seed 3, 4, or 5). The two surviving teams from each conference's divisional playoff games met in the respective AFC and NFC Conference Championship games, hosted by the higher seed. Although the Super Bowl, the championship round of the playoffs, is played at a neutral site, the designated home team is based on an annual rotation by conference.[3]
Playoff seeds | ||
Seed | AFC | NFC |
---|---|---|
1 | San Diego Chargers (West winner) | Chicago Bears (North winner) |
2 | Baltimore Ravens (North winner) | New Orleans Saints (South winner) |
3 | Indianapolis Colts (South winner) | Philadelphia Eagles (East winner) |
4 | New England Patriots (East winner) | Seattle Seahawks (West winner) |
5 | New York Jets (wild card) | Dallas Cowboys (wild card) |
6 | Kansas City Chiefs (wild card) | New York Giants (wild card) |
- Home team in capitals
AFC
- Wild-Card playoffs: INDIANAPOLIS 23, Kansas City 8; NEW ENGLAND 37, N. Y. Jets 16
- Divisional playoffs: Indianapolis 15, BALTIMORE 6; New England 24, SAN DIEGO 21
- AFC Championship: INDIANAPOLIS 38, New England 34
NFC
- Wild-Card playoffs: SEATTLE 21, Dallas 20; PHILADELPHIA 23, N. Y. Giants 20
- Divisional playoffs: NEW ORLEANS 27, Philadelphia 24; CHICAGO 27, Seattle 24 (OT)
- NFC Championship: CHICAGO 39, New Orleans 14
Super Bowl
- Super Bowl XLI at Dolphin Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida:
Indianapolis (AFC) 29, Chicago (NFC) 17
Pro Bowl
News and notes
Major rule changes
- End zone celebrations became more restricted. Players cannot celebrate by using any type of prop, or do any act in which they are on the ground. Players may still spike, spin the ball, or dunk it over the goal posts. Dancing in the end zone is also permitted as long as it is not a prolonged or group celebration. The Lambeau Leap, though, is still legal. [4]
- Defenders were prohibited from hitting a passer in the knee or below unless they are blocked into him. This rule was enacted in response to the previous season's injuries to Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer, Pittsburgh Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Brian Griese.
- Down-by-contact calls could now be reviewed by instant replay to determine if a player fumbled the ball before he was down, and who recovered it. Previously, these plays could not be reversed once officials blew the whistle.
- The "horse-collar tackle" rule enacted during the previous 2005 season was expanded. Players are now prohibited from tackling a ball carrier from the rear by tugging inside his jersey. Previously, it was only illegal if the tackler's hand got inside the player's shoulder pads.
- To reduce injuries, defensive players cannot line up directly over the long snapper during field goal and extra point attempts.
Officials' uniform makeover
The 2006 season marked the debut of new officiating uniforms which are supposed to be more comfortable for officials to wear in extreme weather over the old polyester uniforms. The uniforms were designed by Reebok using a proprietary material technology to keep officials both warm and dry during the winter months of the season. On the shirt, the position and number are removed from the front pocket and the lettering and numbers on the back side were black-on-white and are smaller print and the sleeve shows the uniform number. Officials also wore full-length black pants with white stripe during the winter months to stay warm, which was criticized by media and internet board posters. This was the first major design overhaul since 1979, when the position name was added to the shirt, but later abbreviated in 1982.
New NFL commissioner
On March 20 2006, Paul Tagliabue announced his plans to retire as NFL commissioner. During an NFL meeting in Northbrook, Illinois, on August 8 2006, league team owners selected Roger Goodell, the NFL's then-current chief operating officer, as the new commissioner. Tagliabue continued to serve as NFL commissioner until Goodell officially replaced him on Friday September 1.
Tagliabue became NFL commissioner on October 26, 1989. During his tenure, the league has added four new teams; saw four franchises move (including two franchises---the Rams and Raiders---from Los Angeles, the second-largest television market in the U.S.); the construction of seventeen new stadiums; began its own in-house television specialty cable network, the NFL Network; has greatly increased television rights fees with its broadcasters, including the addition of the Fox network; and has maintained labor peace with the players' union.
Return of "The Duke" football
For the first time since Super Bowl IV at the conclusion of the 1969 season, the official NFL game ball was known as "The Duke" in honor of Wellington Mara, whose family owns the New York Giants. Son John is the current CEO of the team. The NFL first used "The Duke" ball in honor of Mara in 1941 after then-Chicago Bears owner George Halas and then-Giants owner Tim Mara (Wellington's father) made a deal with Wilson Sporting Goods to become the league's official supplier of game balls, a relationship that continued into its' sixty-fifth year in 2006. [5]
"The Duke" ball was discontinued after the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger, and the merged league began using a different standardized ball made by Wilson. The only other time that "The Duke" ball name was used was during the two Thanksgiving Classic games in 2004.
One side of the new 2006 "Duke" football featured the NFL shield logo in gold, the words "The Duke", and the NFL commissioner's signature. The obverse side has a small NFL logo above the needle bladder hole, the conference names between the hole, and the words "National Football League" in gold. As per the custom, specially branded balls were used for the first week of the 2006 season ("Opening Kickoff"), Thanksgiving Classic, conference championships, Super Bowl XLI and Pro Bowl games.
Unprecedented sell-outs
Through week 11 of the season, all NFL games had been sold out, and for the 24th time, all blackout restrictions had been lifted. Cite error: A <ref>
tag is missing the closing </ref>
(see the help page). The streak was ended by the Jacksonville at Buffalo game in Week 12. [6]
Saints go home
The New Orleans Saints returned to their home at the Louisiana Superdome in Week Three. The Saints played home games during the 2005 NFL Season in San Antonio, TX, Baton Rouge, LA, and East Rutherford, NJ, due to the damage to the Superdome caused by Hurricane Katrina. The Saints finished the regular season 10-6, clinched a 1st Round Bye, and beat the Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. The Chicago Bears vanquished the Saints in the NFC Championship, 39-14.
Game highlights on iTunes
Starting September 18, fans were able to download highlights of their teams' games through Apple Computer's iTunes Store online service. Each video costs US$1.99 each but fans have the chance of buying a "Follow Your Team season ticket" which brings every game of that team to the fan for $24.99. [7]
Also available will be NFL GameDay, the NFL Network's comprehensive Sunday night review which features post-game reactions and game analysis, all for $1.99 a show or $19.99 for the full season.
Death of Lamar Hunt
Lamar Hunt died in Dallas, Texas on December 13 from complications from prostate cancer at the age of 74. He is credited with challenging the NFL with the formation of the American Football League, which led to the subsequent merger of the two leagues.
Death of two Broncos
At 3 a.m. on January 1, 2007, Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams was shot and killed in Denver, within hours after the last regular season game against the San Francisco 49ers. Less than two months after, on February 24, 2007, Broncos running back Damien Nash collapsed and died after a charity basketball game at a high school. Both players died at the age of 24.
Milestones
The following teams and players set all-time NFL records during the regular season:
Record | Player/Team | Date/Opponent | Previous Record Holder[8] |
---|---|---|---|
Most Points, Career | Morten Andersen, Atlanta | December 16 vs. Dallas | Gary Anderson, 1982-2004 (2,434) |
Most Field Goals, Career | Morten Andersen, Atlanta | December 24 vs. Carolina | Gary Anderson, 1982-2004 (538) |
Most Passes Completed, Career | Brett Favre, Green Bay | December 17 vs. Detroit | Dan Marino, 1983-1999 (4,967) |
Most Touchdowns, Season | LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego (31) | N/A | Shaun Alexander, Seattle, 2005 (28) |
Most Rushing Touchdowns, Season | LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego (28) | N/A | Shaun Alexander, 2005 Priest Holmes, 2003 (27) |
Most Rushing Attempts, Season | Larry Johnson, Kansas City (416) | N/A | Jamal Anderson, Atlanta, 1998 (410) |
Most Kick Returns for a Touchdown, Season | Devin Hester, Chicago (5; 3 punts and 2 kickoffs) | N/A | Tied by 9 players (4) |
Regular season statistical leaders
Team
Points scored | San Diego Chargers (492) |
Total yards gained | New Orleans Saints (6,264) |
Yards rushing | Atlanta Falcons (2,939) |
Yards passing | New Orleans Saints (4,503) |
Fewest points allowed | Baltimore Ravens (201) |
Fewest total yards allowed | Baltimore Ravens (4,225) |
Fewest rushing yards allowed | Minnesota Vikings (985) |
Fewest passing yards allowed | Oakland Raiders (2,413) |
Individual
Scoring | LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego (186 points) |
Touchdowns | LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego (31 TDs) |
Most field goals made | Robbie Gould, Chicago and Jeff Wilkins, St. Louis (32 FGs) |
Rushing | LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego (1,815 yards) |
Passer rating | Peyton Manning, Indianapolis (101.0 rating) |
Passing touchdowns | Peyton Manning, Indianapolis (31 TDs) |
Passing yards | Drew Brees, New Orleans (4,418 yards) |
Pass receptions | Andre Johnson, Houston (103 catches) |
Pass receiving yards | Chad Johnson, Cincinnati (1,369 yards) |
Punt returns | Adam "Pacman" Jones, Tennessee (12.9 average yards) |
Kickoff returns | Justin Miller, New York Jets (28.3 average yards) |
Interceptions | Asante Samuel, New England and Champ Bailey, Denver (10) |
Punting | Mat McBriar, Dallas (48.2 average yards) |
Sacks | Shawne Merriman, San Diego (17) |
Awards
Most Valuable Player | LaDainian Tomlinson, Running Back, San Diego Chargers |
Coach of the Year | Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints |
Offensive Player of the Year | LaDainian Tomlinson, Running Back, San Diego Chargers |
Defensive Player of the Year | Jason Taylor, Defensive End, Miami Dolphins |
Offensive Rookie of the Year | Vince Young, Quarterback, Tennessee Titans |
Defensive Rookie of the Year | DeMeco Ryans, Linebacker, Houston Texans |
NFL Comeback Player of the Year | Chad Pennington, Quarterback, New York Jets |
Offense | |
---|---|
Quarterback | Drew Brees, New Orleans |
Running back | LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Larry Johnson, Kansas City |
Fullback | Lorenzo Neal, San Diego |
Wide receiver | Marvin Harrison, Indianapolis Chad Johnson, Cincinnati |
Tight end | Antonio Gates, San Diego |
Offensive tackle | Willie Anderson, Cincinnati Jammal Brown, New Orleans |
Offensive guard | Alan Faneca, Pittsburgh Shawn Andrews, Philadelphia |
Center | Olin Kreutz, Chicago |
Defense | |
---|---|
Defensive end | Jason Taylor, Miami Julius Peppers, Carolina |
Defensive tackle | Jamal Williams, San Diego Kevin Williams, Minnesota |
Outside linebacker | Shawne Merriman, San Diego Adalius Thomas, Baltimore |
Inside linebacker | Brian Urlacher, Chicago Zach Thomas, Miami |
Cornerback | Champ Bailey, Denver Rashean Mathis, Jacksonville |
Safety | Brian Dawkins, Philadelphia Ed Reed, Baltimore |
Special teams | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kicker | Robbie Gould, Chicago | ||||
Punter | Brian Moorman, Buffalo | ||||
Kick returner | Devin Hester, Chicago |
Officials
References
- ^ a b "NFL announces new prime-time TV packages". NFL.com. Retrieved 2005-12-13.
- ^ "NFL to remain on broadcast TV". NFL.com. Retrieved 2005-12-13.
- ^ "NFL Playoff Procedures and Tiebreakers". Yahoo! Sports. December 31, 2006. Archived from the original on January 1, 2010.
- ^ Expert: Simple celebration rule - stay on your feet - NFL - MSNBC.com
- ^ Michael Eisen - Story - 3.27 "The Duke" is Back - Giants.com
- ^ "In depth: Frustration in Buffalo shows how NFL's television policies irking fan base". USA Today. 2006-11-26. Retrieved 2006-11-27.
- ^ http://www.nfl.com/news/story/9655817
- ^ "NFL.com - NFL Record and Fact Book". Retrieved 2007-12-18.
- 2006 NFL Schedule (Last accessed April 6, 2006)
- NFL curtails end-zone celebrations from NFL.com, March 29, 2006 (Last accessed March 29, 2006)
- Process of game-time decisions will eliminate TV duds, create chaos by Michael Hiestand, USA Today, April 5, 2006 (Last accessed November 6, 2006)