Post
by Hostrauser » Tue Dec 16, 2008 4:45 pm
Thursday, December 18
1. Indianapolis Colts @ Jacksonville Jaguars
Peyton Manning must have a leprechaun tied up in his locker. The Colts have had one of the easier schedules in the NFL (having faced only three teams likely to be in the playoffs), but still have just barely scraped by. Give the Colts' opponents one more TD per game and Indy goes from 10-4 to 3-11. Now, they aren't 3-11 bad, but they aren't 10-4 good, either. Somewhere in the middle (7-7) is probably where this team deserves to be. They shouldn't have much trouble with the Jaguars, but I expect the Colts to have a mighty tough go of it in the playoffs.
Saturday, December 20
2. Baltimore Ravens @ Dallas Cowboys
Toughest pick of the week for me. On one hand, I can't see the Cowboys losing the final game at Texas Stadium (then again, the Yankees lost the final game at Yankee Stadium). On the other hand, Tony Romo has shown an unfortunate penchant for crippling mistakes in big games and I think the Ravens defense will force him into some more.
Sunday, December 21
3. San Francisco 49ers @ St. Louis Rams
I think Mike Singletary is the perfect coach for the Niners right now. I also think with the state of the NFC West, a healthy Frank Gore and Shaun Hill, and another season under Singletary, the Niners stand a shot at the playoffs next year.
4. Cincinnati Bengals @ Cleveland Browns
I just think the Browns have more potential to be the better team. They've shown a few flashes this season (beat-down of the Giants, anyone?) and have lost several close games against a killer schedule (the Browns' ten losses are against teams with a combined record of 86-44-1).
5. San Diego Chargers @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Unfortunately for the Chargers, the Bucs defense does NOT have a season-long history of completely collapsing in the fourth quarter. And since the Bolts' defense has twice made Tyler Thigpen look like the second-coming of Johnny U...
6. Miami Dolphins @ Kansas City Chiefs
Now that the intra-division rivalry energy boost won't be in effect, watch the Chiefs come out flatter than a Denny's pancake. They certainly won't get any help from their fans: how many people were at the Chiefs/Chargers game? 500? I've never seen a regular-season NFL game with so few people in the stands.
7. New Orleans Saints @ Detroit Lions
Wait, I'm picking the Lions... again? The Lions, and their atrocious pass defense, over Drew Brees and the Saints offense? Yeah, I'm insane with lame. More hunches: the Lions offense has been downright respectable the past couple of games; this is Detroit's last home game, and I expect them to come out with a little fire (like Miami did against the Ravens last season); the Saints have been eliminated from the playoffs, and the team is already looking towards next year (their offense coordinator just took the head coaching job at Syracuse); the Saints are 1-6 on the road... just little things.
8. Pittsburgh Steelers @ Tennessee Titans
It's pretty simple: if Albert Haynesworth is done for the year, so are the Titans. And, not to be crass, but the Steelers as a team probably have more of the proverbial "sack" than an team in football.
9. Arizona Cardinals @ New England Patriots
There are three AFC East teams at 9-5 and I'll bet you that only one of them makes the playoffs. While I don't like a banged-up Patriots defense going against Kurt Warner, the Pats will be Desperate with a capital "D" and Belichick will have some magic trick or another up his sleeve.
10. New York Jets @ Seattle Seahawks
The Bills gave the Jets an early Christmas present, but the Jets have looked not at all like a legitimate playoff threat this month.
11. Houston Texans @ Oakland Raiders
Funny quote I heard this week: "No matter what, Raider fans will always be able to take comfort in knowing that their team has more Super Bowl wins than the Broncos, Chargers or Chiefs do... and that's all that really matters in the grand scheme." Yeah, and the last one was, what? 25 years ago? "Man, those Raiders sure were great 400 Al Davis liver-spots ago." It's like listening to Reds fans talk about how awesome they were back when Pete Rose and Johnny Bench were still playing. I don't know of any other group of fans in pro sports that trots out the tattered flag of past glory quite like the Raider Nation. Fans as clueless as the owner. It never stops being funny.
12. Buffalo Bills @ Denver Broncos
A long-shot, I know, but if the Bills beat the Broncos and the Chargers upset the Bucs, it will be Broncos at Chargers next weekend for all the marbles. And really, that's the only scenario that would make an AFC West game worth watching. Plus, the Bills are 3-0 against the AFC West and Denver already has two bad home losses (Jaguars, Raiders), so who knows?
13. Atlanta Falcons @ Minnesota Vikings
I liked the Vikings' chances until I heard DT Pat Williams is out 2-6 weeks with a fractured shoulder. He's their #1 run-stopper and I don't think Michael Turner will be easily contained without him. And let's slow down on anointing Tavaris Jackson QB of the minute: dude still has NO pocket presence, he's been sacked nine times in three and a half games.
14. Philadelphia Eagles @ Washington Redskins
This Redskins' team has flat-out quit on this season. Clinton Portis talked reams of smack last week, then came out and sludged to only 77 yards on 25 carries against a horrible Bengals defense. You couldn't put up, Clinton, so now it's time for you to shut up.
15. Carolina Panthers @ New York Giants
Can't blame Plaxico Burress for the "ole!" defensive effort against the Cowboys' run game. Nothing I've seen from the Giants this month leads me to believe they'll be able to stop Carolina's rushing offense. For a team that look unstoppable just a month ago, the Giants suddenly look very, very shaky. Ah, football, such a fickle mistress.
Monday, December 22
16. Green Bay Packers @ Chicago Bears
The Packers have done a complete El Foldo on this season, going 1-6 since the start of November. The one win was a beatdown of the Bears at Lambeau. So not only will the Bears come out fired up trying to stay in the playoff hunt, they'll have a bit of personal payback on their minds, too.
Bonus Question 1: What will be the Point Spread of Game# 15 (Carolina Panthers vs New York Giants)? 10
Bonus Question 2: What will be the Final Total Points of Game# 16 (Green Bay Packers vs Chicago Bears)? 40