NFL Week 12: Updated Draft Order and Chargers Targets

Another week, another (bad) Chargers loss, although at this point losing is actually winning because if the season were to end today your San Diego Chargers would be on the clock! Yes that's right, with a strength of schedule of only .490 the Chargers have the tie breaker over the other 2-8 teams Cleveland and Tennessee to pick 1st overall.

Here is the full list:

1. San Diego Chargers: 2-8 (.490 strength of schedule)
2. Tennessee Titans: 2-8 (.500 SOS)
3. Cleveland Browns: 2-8 (.500 SOS)
4. Baltimore Ravens: 3-7 (.490 SOS)
5. Dallas Cowboys: 3-7 (.520 SOS)
6. San Francisco 49ers: 3-7 (.560 SOS)
7. Detroit Lions: 3-7 (.570 SOS)
8. Miami Dolphins: 4-6 (.470 SOS)
9. Oakland Raiders: 4-6 (.480 SOS)
10. Philadelphia Eagles: 4-6 (.490 SOS)
11. St. Louis Rams: 4-6 (.490 SOS)
12. New Orleans Saints: 4-6 (.520 SOS)
13. Chicago Bears: 4-6 (.530 SOS)
14. Jacksonville Jaguars: 4-6 (.540 SOS)
15. Washington Redskins: 4-6 (.570 SOS)
16. New York Jets: 5-5 (.470 SOS) **
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 5-5 (.470 SOS) **
18. Seattle Seahawks: 5-5 (.530 SOS)
19. Houston Texans: 5-5 (.540 SOS)
20. Kansas City Chiefs: 5-5 (.580 SOS)

Projected to make the playoffs:

21. New York Giants: 5-5 (.470 SOS)
22. Buffalo Bills: 5-5 (.570 SOS)
23. Indianapolis Colts: 5-4 (.590 SOS)
24. Atlanta Falcons: 6-4 (.400 SOS)
25. Pittsburgh Steelers: 6-4 (.490 SOS)
26. Minnesota Vikings: 7-3 (.430 SOS)
27. Green Bay Packers: 7-3 (.510 SOS)
28. Denver Broncos: 8-2 (.450 SOS)
29. Arizona Cardinals: 8-2 (.420 SOS)
30. Cincinnati Bengals: 8-2 (.450 SOS)
31. New England Patriots: 10-0 (.450 SOS) - PICK FORFEITED
32. Carolina Panthers: 10-0 (.460 SOS)

** denotes a coin flip tie breaker

There you have it. The Chargers are now in the drivers seat for the first overall pick in the draft. Both the Titans and Browns have easier schedules for the rest of the year which means the Chargers will have to lose MORE games than both of them going forward to stay in the #1 spot.

If San Diego manages to pull off "the tank," and by the way things look now they likely will, there will be many fun possibilities. They could pick any player they want, maybe some team falls head over heels for one of the quarterbacks in the draft and makes the Chargers an offer they can't refuse so they can jump ahead of the Browns who'll likely be drafting a QB. One option that would not be available, to the joy of many of us fans and likely to the chagrin of Tom Telesco, they cannot trade up in the 1st!

The targets at this spot would be the same as I mentioned last week, however if  the Chargers picking 1st in each round and the Patriots forfeiting their pick, the Chargers would technically be getting 2 "1st round" picks this year as both picks would be in the first 32 players selected.