Last Week: 9-5
Season: 52-25
I’ll start things off with a few odds and ends before I get to the picks:
1) Watching the Seahawks-Bengals game last week, I noticed this interesting score from another game:
I figured it was just a mistake by the FoxSports techies, until I flipped to the Rams-Packers game on a commercial and saw this:
How does the same mistake appear on two different networks? Doesn’t anyone check this stuff before it gets aired? Of course maybe it was just foreshadowing; the Chiefs would go on to lose that game by a single point. I wonder if Andy Reid saw the mistaken score and messed up the math.
2) A couple of weeks back, in a column praising the Bengals, I mentioned that the Bengals hadn’t gotten much respect in season predictions. I specifically mentioned that one “nitwit” had picked them to finish last in their division (I picked them to win). Just this past week, that same nitwit published an article titled, “Bengals prove again they're one of NFL's best teams in win over Seattle;” the article contains no mention of his egregious preseason pick.
3) Following are two quotes about the decline of Detroit’s Calvin Johnson; the first appeared in an article by a major football writer just this week:
“Stafford has always been the sort of quarterback comfortable throwing his receivers into big hits; it’s scary to wonder whether Johnson, who turned 30 several weeks ago, has been permanently slowed by them.”
If you believe that, then here’s what I wrote in my season preview column back at the beginning of September:
“On offence, Lions fans can expect another season of decline from Calvin Johnson, as years of making Matthew Stafford’s off-target passes look good have taken their toll on the once invincible-seeming Megatron.”
All right, enough of that. Here’s what you came here for:
Sunday
Jets (Home)
The Jets’ defence, one of the best in the league thus far, gets DE Sheldon Richardson back in action this week after his 4-game suspension. Expect a low-scoring game. Winner: Jets
Cardinals at Steelers
Arizona roared back to life last week, dropping 42 on the Lions. Now, the Steelers are not the Lions, but without Big Ben, I can’t see them keeping pace with the Cards’ potent offence. Winner: Cardinals
Chiefs at Vikings
Since leading against the Broncos late in their Week 2 game, nothing has gone right for KC; they blew that game, then got hammered by Green Bay and Cincinnati on consecutive weeks to the tune of 74 combined points. Last week, the Chiefs watched Jamaal Charles go down with a season-ending injury, Jay Cutler lead two TD drives in the fourth quarter to beat them by one point, and their playoff hopes evaporate. The Vikings, coming off a close loss to the Broncos followed by their bye week, are looking good thanks to a solid defence and a steady diet of Adrian Peterson on offence. Winner: Vikings
Bengals at Bills
The Bills’ defence should provide a tough test for the Bengals, who are coming off a spectacular come-from-behind win against Seattle. In the end, though, Buffalo’s offence won’t be able to keep pace. Winner: Bengals
Bears at Lions
Detroit’s a mess. They can’t muster much offence, they’re riddled with injuries, and even their head coach says they can’t execute. Chicago showed a bit of life last week in their comeback win, with Jay Cutler looking particularly clutch in the 4th quarter. Winner: Bears
Broncos at Browns
The Broncos are doing it with their defence, and even without DeMarcus Ware, who might not play, they still should be able to shut down the Browns. Winner: Broncos
Texans at Jaguars
Bill O’Brien made the right call before the season started when he chose Brian Hoyer to be the Texans’ starting QB. However, after that he:
- Pulled Hoyer in his first start for Ryan Mallett
- Stuck with the terrible Mallet through 2 full starts
- Pulled Mallett in his third start
- Gave Mallett yet another start, only to pull him for Hoyer, who almost pulled off a comeback
- Went back to Hoyer for the team’s Week 6 game against the Jags
So, he wasted five weeks, only to end up back where he started. O’Brien might be the worst coach in the league. His total lack of leadership is reflected in the team’s unfocused play, in things such as the talented defence looking lost at times, and the team’s numerous penalties (13 for 125 yards just last week against the Colts). Now, here’s the shocker: I’m picking the Texans this week. Hoyer will be the steadying influence the team needs at QB. And also, with a win this week, the Texans should find themselves, at 2-4, only one game behind the division-leading Colts after they lose to the Pats on Sunday night. Properly motivated, Houston should prevail. Winner: Texans
"Why'd you do that? Oh, right, I'm a terrible coach."
Dolphins at Titans
One of these teams has one of the league’s most effective pass rushes, and it’s not the one with the gazillion-dollar free agent psycho at DT. Through four games each, Miami has but a single sack, while Tennessee has totalled 13. The Dolphins may have moved on from comatose Joe Philbin, but a coaching change won’t give the team depth on offence or defence, nor will it make Ndamukong Suh care. Winner: Titans
Panthers at Seahawks
Carolina is 4-0, Seattle 2-3, but the Panthers have faced a significantly softer schedule. The Panthers’ defence is good enough to keep this game close, but their offence, playing in noisy Seattle, won’t be able to hold up its end of the deal. Winner: Seahawks
Chargers at Packers
It’s the Packers, and it’s in Lambeau. Sure, Aaron Rodgers got picked twice last week, but at last now he can stop hearing about that stupid streak. The only streak that gets you rings is a winning streak. Winner: Packers
Ravens at 49ers
Baltimore is razor-thin at WR, and their defence isn’t as formidable as in seasons past. The 49ers’ defence has played better than expected. This should be a low-scoring affair. Winner: 49ers
Patriots at Colts
Try really hard to ignore all the stupid hype leading up to this game. All you really need to remember is that the Patriots are really good, and the Colts aren’t very good at all. Winner: Patriots
Monday Night
Giants at Eagles
In this game between two very evenly-matched teams, it’s one very important missing piece that swings the balance for me. The Eagles’ defence has played pretty well this season, and without Odell Beckham Jr. going full speed (or perhaps at all), the Giants won’t have that special player on the field to demand enough of the defence’s attention to open things up for the other players to shine. I expect a close contest, but the Eagles should squeak this one out. Winner: Eagles