Who's the NFL's hottest team? How about the coldest team?
And, one more question: Do the answers to those first two questions mean a doggone thing as the playoffs kick off with this weekend's four wild-card games?
Answer: Not always.
Let's go back 10 years for one of the best recent examples to show that momentum, while invaluable some years, isn't always necessary.
In 2009, the Chargers had won a league-high 11 in a row. They went one-and-done.
Meanwhile, in the NFC, the Cowboys had won a conference-high three straight, including back-to-back shutouts to close the regular season. In their playoff opener, they got smoked 34-3 by a Vikings team that had lost three of its last five games.
That year's Super Bowl featured the Saints over the Colts. The Colts lost two straight after a 14-0 start. And the Saints lost three straight after a 13-0 start.
"I think everybody would like to have momentum," Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said. "But, really, at the end of the day it's about how did you play this particular week? I hear all the [arguments about needing momentum], but at one point during the season we were 2-2. And I don't know what we ran off, [four] in a row. If we do that, we're going to be in pretty good shape."
