Especially since the top four spots won't go to the top four ranked teams, and just because a team is ranked in the top 12, doesn't mean it will get a playoff spot. Yes, there are still plenty of games remaining that can alter the playoff race – and there's no precedent for how this new playoff alters things – but the first set of rankings sets the path teams need to go down in order to secure one of the 12 coveted spots.