Well it’s been 17 weeks (although it only seems like 7). And needless to say there have been many teams who have earned a nice warm spot in the Dawg Pound. Lets first take a look at the teams that were placed in the Dawg Pound throughout the season, and see how they finished:

9/26- The Kansas City Chiefs

At this point in the season the Kansas City Chiefs were 0-3 and continued to struggle defensively as they did the year before. However, no one expected the offense to be as anemic as it was the first month of the season, even with a healthy Priest Holmes. However the Chiefs managed to finish the season strong, winning four of their last five games while averaging just under 35 points per game.

10/7- The Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers began their season with a 0-4 start and never really recovered. They would only manage to win five games over the course of the season. Losing the likes of Joey Galloway and Charlie Garner at the start of the season did not help. Not to mention their best receiver Keenan McCardell holding out until he was eventually traded. The Buccaneer offense could not find a rhythm all season. No matter who was playing quarterback. First it was Brad Johnson, then he was benched for Chris Simms, then Simms got injured and then it was Brian Griese, then it was Simms again, and then Griese again. Who’s coaching this team? Jon Gruden or Steve Spurrier? Ironically, the Bucs finished the season the same way they began, 0-4.

10/26- Seattle Seahawks

If you look up the word inconsistency in the dictionary, you'll see a Seattle Seahawks logo. At the point in time this edition of the Dawg Pound was published, the Seattle Seahawks were in a midst of a three game losing streak after beginning the season 3-0. For a team that had such high hopes at the beginning of the season, they sure made it hard on themselves, however they were able to sneak into the playoffs coming out of that awful NFC West division.

11/13- Miami Dolphins

At the time this column was posted, the Dolphins had just 2 wins with no need for optimism. What is there to say? No matter what they try to say, one guy does not make a whole team, and the Dolphins proved that over the last month of the season. It is ashame that they did not begin to believe in themselves and start playing well until the end of the season. One thing I can say is that the team did have heart; you have to have heart if you come back from 11 points down to the Superbowl champions who are likely on their way to another title.

12/15- Oakland Raiders

At the time this edition was written the Oakland Raiders were all but done. The Raiders had won 4 games and were on their way to another disappointing 4-12 campaign. The Tennessee Titans felt sorry for them and decided to hand them a consolation 5th victory late in the season. The Raiders suffered a winless October, which is pretty much what ended their season two months early.

So there were the teams that were placed in the Dawg Pound during the regular season. Now that the playoffs are just days away, don't think I've forgotten. Cleveland Browns fans, don’t think I've forgotten you. 49er fans, don't think I've forgotten you. Here are the teams that have earned themselves a nice cozy spot in the Dawg Pound:

Cleveland Browns

There weren’t many people who expected the Browns to do extremely well. However no one expected the entire season to be an aberration. The Browns were a respectable 3-4 at mid-season. However following their bye week, they would go on to lose 8 games in a row. Injuries to their best quarterback and their entire offensive backfield for that matter certainly didn’t help. I think it would be a pretty safe assumption to say that Butch Davis was an NFL bust.

San Francisco 49ers

There really is not much say about the San Francisco 49ers. I would like to bash and blame the team, but it’s hard for me to do that. It is not their fault that they are not very talented, not to mention both of their starting corners were out since the pre-season. However the blame for this very forgettable season rests on the shoulders on one John York, the owner of the team. It was York who decided that he wanted to let Steve Mariucci leave the team. It was York who released Jeff Garcia and traded Terrell Owens from the team when each had more than one year left on their respective contracts. The San Francisco 49ers will remain in the Dawg Pound until the team is taken from under the wing of John York.

Washington Redskins

The return of Joe Gibbs, who is arguably one of the best coaches in the history of the National Football League, was anything but triumphant. Gibbs’ offense struggled almost the entire season. It wasn’t until the end of the season when Patrick Ramsey replaced Mark Brunell as the starter, that the offense began to come to life. The defense under Greg Williams was lights out all season long. However the Redskins inability to put together any kind of winning streak (They did not win 2 in a row at all and won 3 out of 5 only once) is what places them in the Dawg Pound.