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Taylor's death weighs heavily on Gibbs

Redskins coach must ensure that situation doesn’t wear him down

GibbsAP
Washington Redskins football coach Joe Gibbs is coping with the death of one of his players, Pro Bowl safety Sean Taylor.

What’s A.P.’s impact?
The Minnesota Vikings have a legitimate chance to go to the NFC playoffs. They are 6-6 and playing well heading into the final quarter of the season.

Expect that run to continue if Adrian Peterson stays healthy. Peterson is clearly the best player on the Vikings and has been one of the best players in the NFL this season as a rookie. The star running back Oklahoma is the single player to watch down the stretch.

No other single player will have as big of impact on whether his team makes the playoffs as Peterson.

We’re not saying Peterson has a chance to win the league’s MVP award. That award is staying in New England this year. But Peterson is the runaway choice for Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Awards aside, Peterson is vital. If he gets hurt again, the Vikings may not make the playoffs. But if he can stay healthy, there’s no reason why the Vikings can’t enter the postseason as a wild card. And with Peterson running the rock, the Vikings would be a dangerous January date for anyone.

So keep an eye on Peterson, he might be running the Vikings right into the playoffs

Are the Browns done?
No, this team still has a chance to make the AFC playoffs as a wild card. At 7-5, the Browns playoffs designs did take a hit with a loss to Arizona on Sunday.

But this team can still take care of business. The Browns are a strong offensive team that can take over games.

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A kayaker flips out, a racehorse eyes the Triple Crown and more.

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But again, it wouldn’t be a killer for this team not to advance to the postseason. Really, is there any way anyone could ever say it’d be a disappointment if the Browns fail to make the playoffs this season?

Clevelnad is the surprise team of 2007 regardless how the rest of December shakes out. Remember, there were rumors in September that Romeo Crennel wouldn’t make it past the bye week. This is a young tem that is maturing and one that has a chance to be good for a long time.

Whatever happens now is a bonus.

Bill Williamson writes regularly for msnbc.com and covers the Broncos and the NFL for The Denver Post.


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  'No one had more heart'
Dec. 3: Roger Goodell, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Joe Gibbs and Clinton Portis spoke at Sean Taylor's funeral today.