Division Races
Starting in 1970, and until 2002, there were three divisions (Eastern, Central and Western) in each conference. The winners of each division, and a fourth "wild card" team based on the best non-division winner, qualified for the playoffs. The tiebreaker rules were changed to start with head-to-head competition, followed by division records, common opponents records, and conference play.
The New York Giants lost their last regular-season game. Had they won that game, they would have tied for first place in the NFC East division and taken the division championship on a tie-breaker; then, the tie-breakers would have led to a coin toss between Dallas and Detroit for the NFC wild card. Because of this close call regarding possible use of coin toss, future tie-breakers would be expanded to have more competitive aspects.
National Football Conference
| Week | Eastern | Central | Western | Wild Card | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DALLAS | 1–0–0 | 3 teams | 1–0–0 | 3 teams | 1–0–0 | 4 teams | 1–0–0 |
| 2 | DALLAS | 2–0–0 | 3 teams | 2–0–0 | 2 teams | 2–0–0 | 3 teams | 2–0–0 |
| 3 | ST. LOUIS* | 2–1–0 | DETROIT | 3–0–0 | LOS ANGELES | 3–0–0 | 6 teams | 2–1–0 |
| 4 | ST. LOUIS* | 3–1–0 | DETROIT* | 3–1–0 | SAN FRANCISCO* | 3–1–0 | 4 teams | 3–1–0 |
| 5 | ST. LOUIS | 4–1–0 | DETROIT* | 4–1–0 | LOS ANGELES | 4–1–0 | MINNESOTA | 4–1–0 |
| 6 | ST. LOUIS* | 4–2–0 | DETROIT* | 5–1–0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 4–1–1 | MINNESOTA | 5–1–0 |
| 7 | ST. LOUIS* | 5–2–0 | MINNESOTA | 6–1–0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 5–1–1 | 3 teams | 5–2–0 |
| 8 | ST. LOUIS | 6–2–0 | MINNESOTA | 7–1–0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 6–1–1 | LOS ANGELES | 5–2–1 |
| 9 | ST. LOUIS | 7–2–0 | MINNESOTA | 8–1–0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 7–1–1 | N.Y. GIANTS | 6–3–0 |
| 10 | ST. LOUIS | 7–2–1 | MINNESOTA | 9–1–0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 7–2–1 | LOS ANGELES | 6–3–1 |
| 11 | ST. LOUIS | 8–2–1 | MINNESOTA | 9–2–0 | LOS ANGELES* | 7–3–1 | SAN FRANCISCO | 7–3–1 |
| 12 | ST. LOUIS | 8–3–1 | MINNESOTA | 10–2–0 | LOS ANGELES* | 8–3–1 | SAN FRANCISCO | 8–3–1 |
| 13 | N.Y. GIANTS* | 9–4–0 | MINNESOTA | 11–2–0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 9–3–1 | DALLAS* | 9–4–0 |
| 14 | DALLAS | 10–4–0 | MINNESOTA | 12–2–0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 10–3–1 | DETROIT | 10–4–0 |
American Football Conference
| Week | Eastern | Central | Western | Wild Card | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 teams | 1–0–0 | 3 teams | 1–0–0 | DENVER | 1–0–0 | 3 teams | 1–0–0 |
| 2 | 4 teams | 1–1–0 | 3 teams | 1–1–0 | DENVER | 2–0–0 | 6 teams | 1–1–0 |
| 3 | BALTIMORE* | 2–1–0 | 2 teams | 2–1–0 | DENVER | 3–0–0 | 2 teams | 2–1–0 |
| 4 | BALTIMORE* | 3–1–0 | CLEVELAND | 3–1–0 | DENVER | 3–1–0 | MIAMI | 3–1–0 |
| 5 | BALTIMORE* | 4–1–0 | CLEVELAND | 3–2–0 | DENVER | 4–1–0 | MIAMI | 4–1–0 |
| 6 | BALTIMORE | 5–1–0 | CLEVELAND | 4–2–0 | DENVER | 4–2–0 | MIAMI | 4–2–0 |
| 7 | BALTIMORE | 6–1–0 | CLEVELAND | 4–3–0 | OAKLAND | 3–2–2 | DENVER | 4–3–0 |
| 8 | BALTIMORE | 7–1–0 | CLEVELAND* | 4–4–0 | OAKLAND | 4–2–2 | KANSAS CITY | 4–3–1 |
| 9 | BALTIMORE | 7–1–1 | CLEVELAND* | 4–5–0 | OAKLAND | 5–2–2 | KANSAS CITY | 5–3–1 |
| 10 | BALTIMORE | 7–2–1 | CLEVELAND | 5–5–0 | OAKLAND | 6–2–2 | KANSAS CITY | 5–3–2 |
| 11 | BALTIMORE | 8–2–1 | CLEVELAND* | 5–6–0 | OAKLAND* | 6–3–2 | KANSAS CITY | 6–3–2 |
| 12 | BALTIMORE | 9–2–1 | CLEVELAND* | 6–6–0 | OAKLAND* | 7–3–2 | KANSAS CITY | 7–3–2 |
| 13 | BALTIMORE | 10–2–1 | CINCINNATI | 7–6–0 | OAKLAND | 6–3–2 | MIAMI | 9–4–0 |
| 14 | BALTIMORE | 11–2–1 | CINCINNATI | 8–6–0 | OAKLAND | 8–4–2 | MIAMI | 10–4–0 |
Read more about this topic: 1970 NFL Season
Famous quotes containing the words division and/or races:
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—Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (1870–1924)
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—Jean Anouilh (1910–1987)