Once upon a time, in a land a long time ago, there was a league devoid of any playoff system. A fleeting look might have called this entity barbaric, but upon further review it was revealed to be a professional football league. The name was familiar, although most of the teams, equipment, rules and players are deemed somewhat foreign.
Yes, this league in a distant olden time was indeed strange, for it exhibited outlandish customs which are certainly unconventional to modern times. This league, this alliance, this rogue group of small market teams in a faraway era is known as the National Football League (NFL).