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There's still a "control your own destiny" feeling this season.
The Cincinnati Bengals head into Kansas City with a mediocre 4-5 record, one game away from achieving .500 following a postseason-crushing four-game losing streak to close out the first half of the 2012 regular season. A win on Sunday puts Cincinnati at 5-5, the first team out of the playoff picture when this weekend comes to an end.
A Colts loss to the nearly double-digit favorite New England Patriots puts the Bengals one-game behind Indianapolis for a Wild Card. If the Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Baltimore Ravens in a division rivalry game on Sunday Night Football, the Bengals are two games off the AFC North lead with one game remaining against each team. The Miami Dolphins (4-6), another team fighting for a postseason berth to the Buffalo Bills (4-6), lost on Thursday Night and the 4-5 San Diego Chargers face a hot Denver Broncos team. Tennessee (4-6) is off this weekend.
If the Bengals lose this Sunday, no matter who their opponent is, we've essentially hit the miracle stage of postseason forecasting; meaning everything has to perfectly align, but that's the optimistic of optimistic outlook. In other words, it's just about over.