Week 8 NFL Picks-Game Of The Week Patriots vs Steelers

The onetime "Kardiac Kids" are looking like the "Kouch Potato Kids." No touchdowns scored in their last game. Four quarters of zero, zip, zilch, and pass me the popcorn, nothing else is happening, and what other games are on. I have to admit, they did win. Only one other game looked worse and that was Jacksonville against Baltimore, and that was a Monday Nighter. Even embarrassed-off-the-charts Indianapolis scored a touchdown. New Orleans showed them no mercy. Green Bay found themselves in a bit of a tussle with Minnesota, but figured things out to win. Kansas City shut out a McFaddenless Oakland. Denver's whoop-tee-do Tebow led the Broncos to victory and Cam-not win a game finally won for Carolina. That's pretty much a wrap for last week in the NFL. My picks looked as bad as the Colts, 6-7. The worst I have ever done. Time to use the throw the dart at the schedule system.

Cleveland will be going to San Fran this Sunday at 4:15. I have said it over and over, the Browns need to get Joshua Cribbs involved in the offense and use him like Pittsburgh uses Wallace. They are waisting a wide receiver in a position where kickoffs have been taken out of the equation because of the new rule. Shurmur or whomever needs to get off the couch on this one. Defense will not be enough to win against a prolific 49er offense led by Frank Gore. Jim Harbaugh won't be getting too excited about beating Cleveland like he did Detroit.

New England will be facing the Steelers in Pittsburgh. This will be a good game to watch. Tom Brady will have to be at his best and he usually is against the Steelers. You can be sure the Steelers defense will be going after him in a big way. The Brady Bunch will score despite the Steelers efforts. Look for the Pittsburgh offense to make an attempt at establishing a running game from the start to keep the Brady Bunch off the field. If that should fail, Ben Roethlisberger has been on fire as of recent with a deep threat in Wallace, so the running game is of no consequence. Will Roethlisberger and Company be able to match the Patriots point for point? This question will be answered Sunday.

Arizona will be at Baltimore. Baltimore can't afford to lose another one like they did against Jacksonville. The Ravens are looking to rectify the embarrassment they suffered at the hands of the Jaguars. The Cardinals are the unfortunate ones to be next in line on their schedule. The Ravens defense is breathing fire and the Cardinal offense is going to get burned. Kevin Kolb won't have anywhere to hide and he better have his dancing shoes on. Joe Flacco and Ray Rice will definately have a better day in comparison to last week, and that is not saying much.

New Orleans will be at St Louis. Could be another 60+ outing for the Saints. Cincinnati faces Seattle. You never know what Seahawk team will show up, but you do know what Bengal team will be there. Denver will host Detroit. Detroit has to get back on track. Tim whoop-tee-do Tebow will be facing a Lion defense stronger against the pass, so he will have to think about running and that would be no surprise. Minnesota gave the Packers a scare last week and seeing it is Halloween, Carolina should be also, scared that is. That's a wrap for now. I held off using the darts. I anticipate doing better in my picks this week.

SUN, OCT 30                       TIME (ET) TV       LOCATION
Arizona at Baltimore W            1:00 PM  FOX      M&T Bank Stadium
Minnesota at Carolina W          1:00 PM  FOX      Bank of America Stadium
Jacksonville at Houston W       1:00 PM  CBS      Reliant Stadium
Miami at NY Giants W             1:00 PM  CBS      MetLife Stadium
New Orleans at St. Louis L       1:00 PM  FOX      Edward Jones Dome
Indianapolis at Tennessee W     1:00 PM  CBS      LP Field
Detroit at Denver W                  4:05 PM  FOX      Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Washington at Buffalo W         4:05 PM  FOX      Rogers Centre
Cincinnati at Seattle W             4:15 PM  CBS      CenturyLink Field
Cleveland at San Francisco W  4:15 PM  CBS      Candlestick Park
New England at Pittsburgh L   4:15 PM  CBS      Heinz Field
Dallas at Philadelphia L           8:20 PM  NBC      Lincoln Financial Field
MON, OCT 31                    TIME (ET)  TV      LOCATION
San Diego at Kansas City L    8:30 PM  ESPN     Arrowhead Stadium

Week 7 NFL Picks-Some Good Matchups And Some It's Over Before It Starts

Week Six Monday Night Football saw a game that was pretty much even across the board when it was over. Darrelle Revis and Brandon Marshall battled all night in the end zone. Marshall had several scoring opportunities foiled as well as dropped. Matt Moore was pummeled by the Jets rush, forcing him to come up short on some of his passes. Revis picked off one of those passes and returned it 100 yards for a touchdown. Its those little things that make a difference in winning and losing and it was the Jets who ended on top. The Week 7 lineup is probably split between obvious wins and it's anybody's guess.

Detroit's game against Atlanta this Sunday will be a crucial one since they are coming off a loss. It will be a test of their resilience and ability to overcome a setback. Playing at home is one on the plus side for them, although they are 3-0 on the road. The Lions had a problem stopping Frank Gore and will be facing another tough runner in Michael Turner. It is a glaring statistic that when Turner has a 100+ game and scores, Atlanta wins. Detroit's defense must stop Turner and put the ball into Matt Ryan's hands, which if Detroit is not careful could be tricky. Matthew Stafford has proven his ability to put it the endzone with Calvin Johnson. It didn't happen in the San Fran game because the 49er's did a good job checking Johnson in the endzone. Atlanta isn't San Fran defensively, so Stafford will be looking that way.

The Jets are playing for their playoff life. One thing in their favor is they have a defense that can tear the opposing team apart and create crucial mistakes, as they did in the Miami game. San Diego is not Miami when it comes to offense. Philip Rivers has only 6 passing touchdowns for the season, but the Chargers find a way to win despite, usually with the help of Nick Novak. The Chargers can move the ball offensively, but without Antonio Gates they are missing an important part of their scoring attack. There is a possibilty Gates will play, so watch out Jets. Revis will have to step it up again and the defensive line will have to apply the pressure. For the Jets offensively, Sanchez will have to avoid the critical mistake and Shonn Greene must have a good running game, San Diego's weak spot. If Santonio Holmes has a touchdown, the Jets will be competitive.

Seattle Seahawks shocked the Giants this past week. The Cleveland Browns are on the bottom in their division again after being bested by Oakland. This is an anybody's guess. The Browns will no doubt be missing Hillis, maybe, and continue to play silly games with the wide receiver position. Joshua Cribbs is still used sparingly in the passing attack, which baffles me. The Browns just need to let it all hang out and use Cribbs like the Steelers use Wallace. Colt McCoy can win if he is given the green light and a go to guy. The Seahawks will be without Tarvaris Jackson, weakening their offense even more. This is an opportunity for the Browns to get on the winning road. Whether they stay on it depends on their willingness to go for broke and do the obvious, out of the ordinary, move to Cribbs at wide receiver permanently.

Baltimore needs to take Jacksonville seriously even though it may look like a cake walk. Can Cam-do or Cam-not, that is the question? Stay tuned Sunday. Green Bay at Minnesota, not like it used to be with Farve, Minnesota that is, not Green Bay. The battle of the Titans against the Texans, a possible shoot out. I'm looking for a 100 percent pick this week with no surprises.

SUN, OCT 23                           TIME (ET) TV       LOCATION
San Diego at NY Jets L               1:00 PM  CBS    MetLife Stadium
Chicago at Tampa Bay L             1:00 PM  FOX    Wembley Stadium
Washington at Carolina W           1:00 PM  FOX    Bank of America Stadium
Atlanta at Detroit L                      1:00 PM  FOX    Ford Field
Seattle at Cleveland W                 1:00 PM  FOX    Cleveland Browns Stadium
Denver at Miami L                       1:00 PM  CBS    Sun Life Stadium
Houston at Tennessee L               1:00 PM  CBS    LP Field
Kansas City at Oakland L            4:05 PM  CBS    Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Pittsburgh at Arizona W              4:05 PM  CBS    U of Phoenix Stadium
Green Bay at Minnesota W         4:15 PM  FOX    Mall of America Field
St. Louis at Dallas W                  4:15 PM  FOX    Cowboys Stadium
Indianapolis at New Orleans W  8:20 PM  NBC    Superdome

MON, OCT 24                         TIME (ET)  TV     LOCATION
Baltimore at Jacksonville L        8:30 PM  ESPN   EverBank Field

Some Stunners On Sunday And A Monday Night Game To Go

The question whether Detroit would remain undefeated was answered with an strong affirmitive. The Steelers game was fury unleashed and the poor Titans were the recipients of that fury. Maybe, Rothlisberger should play with a special shoe all the time. But the big difference for the Steeler offense was the protection of Rothlisberger, giving him an opportunity to pick his targets and pick his targets he did. San Fran pummeled Tampa Bay. New Orleans and Green Bay continued their winning ways. New York Giants were viciously stung by Seattle. I was 8-5 in a topsy-turvy weekend of football.

Will Baltimore remain on top of the AFC North? The Ravens will be taking on a tough opponent from the Lone Star State, Houston Texans, who was bested by Oakland in their past outing. The drought has appeared to have affected the Texans, who look good one week and mistake proned the next. Against a tough Baltimore defense, mistakes can prove to be costly.

This is how I would have begun my picks for Week 6, but an important circumstance arose this past week and I had to make a trip to Ohio, so I didn't get the opportunity to finish my article. Detroit no longer stands on top with Green Bay as the only undefeated teams. They lost to a revived San Fran team, who is making a run for the playoffs. New Orleans was stunned by one of San Fran's previous victims, Tampa Bay. Baltimore remains on top of the AFC North and the Cleveland Browns sunk lower into the abyss. The Brady Bunch mounted an end of the game drive and handed the Cowboys a heart breaking loss. Carolina Panthers still Cam not win a game. The Bills got skinned by the Giants and Chicago, Pittsburgh, and Atlanta all won.

There is one game left I can make a pick on. It looks to be a fairly easy pick, considering one of the opponents hasn't won a game yet this year, Miami. Their opposition is the New York Jets, who Miami seems to find a way to beat. Not likely this time, not even remotely likely. Miami will have Matt Moore tacking snaps in place of Chad Henne, and Reggie Bush and Daniel Thomas just haven't been doing it for the Dolphins. The Jets can be mistake prone at times, but that won't be the case against a weak-on-the-pass Miami defense. Look for Santonio Holmes to have a good game.

MON, OCT 17	TIME (ET)	TV	RESOURCES	LOCATION
Miami at NY Jets	8:30 PM		Tickets	MetLife Stadium

Week 5 NFL Picks-Will Detroit Lions Remain Undefeated

The Steelers got drubbed in a game where the final score should have been worse than it was if it wasn't for Houston mistakes. The Lions overcame a deficit in the fourth quarter against the Cowboys to remain undefeated. Trying-to-figure-out Cincinnati handed Buffalo its first loss. Baltimore defense manhandled the Jets and Sanchez. Green Bay, New england, New Orleans, and New York Giants all won their games. Last but not least, surprise Tennessee easily took the Browns down. I was 10-6 in Week Four. This is a bye week for some teams, which includes the Browns. There are only 10 games scheduled.

Tennessee at Pittsburgh will be interesting. First, Ben Roethlisberger is going to play despite the foot injury and Mendenhall is out, but that is of no consequence. The big problem with the Steelers last week, Wallace, their go to guy, did not figure into the passing attack. It seemed Roethlisberger favored Brown throughout the game. Now, whether that mistake was by design or Wallace was flat out covered, in order to win against the Titans, the Steelers will have to find a way to get the ball to Wallace. Tennessee's defense is tough and they will be going after Roethlisberger, who is lacking protection. Matt Hasselbeck will be tested in this game by a Steeler blitz attack, and if he overcomes it, I will be a believer.

Cincinnati will be at Jacksonville. Jacksonville is a one dimentional offense and the Bengals have a steady defense. Cincinnati's defense needs only to control Maurice Jones-Drew and the rest will be up to their offense. Blaine Gabbert will have to avoid the big mistake when the game comes to rest on his arm if they should fall behind in the score, which probably will be the case. Andy Dalton has proven he can win, Gabbert has yet to notch number one.

Green Bay has been cruising along and will be hosted by Atlanta. Green Bay just has too many weapons with a quarterback and receiving core that run like a well oiled turbo charged engine. Atlanta's defense will need to step it up a notch by putting pressure on Aaron Rodgers and hope their offense can match whatever Rodgers puts up. The Packers defensive secondary is vulnerable and if the offensive line gives Matt Ryan the time, that could be a possibility. The Falcons will have the home crowd behind them, which should help out alittle, hopefully.

The big game will be Chicago at Detroit. Detroit has proven their legitimacy as a contender and their win against Dallas substantiated that. After years of losing, this is a welcomed change for the steady Detroit fan. Monday night, Detroit and its fans will be in the spotlight. Stafford and Johnson are a deadly combo. Eight of Stafford's 11 touchdowns have been to Calvin Johnson. Chicago's task will be to break that combo up. It is their only hope. They are in a division with two undefeated teams and a must win stuation. Matt Forte and Devon Hester are Chicago's impact players, but if Detroit stuffs the run Jay Cutler, who has only 5 touchdown passes for the season, will have to win it, unless the defense scores some touchdowns.

The playoff picture is beginning to take some shape. There are a few teams who need to win this weekend or they will fall seriously behind with little hope of recovery. The only division that is still wide open is the AFC North. Baltimore and Cleveland are on a bye week.

SUN, OCT 9                          TIME (ET) TV  LOCATION
Tennessee at Pittsburgh L          1:00 PM CBS  Heinz Field
Seattle at NY Giants L               1:00 PM FOX  MetLife Stadium
Cincinnati at Jacksonville W     1:00 PM CBS  EverBank Field
New Orleans at Carolina W       1:00 PM FOX  Bank of America Stadium
Oakland at Houston L                1:00 PM CBS  Reliant Stadium
Philadelphia at Buffalo W          1:00 PM FOX  Ralph Wilson Stadium
Kansas City at Indianapolis L    1:00 PM CBS  Lucas Oil Stadium
Arizona at Minnesota W            1:00 PM FOX  Mall of America Field
Tampa Bay at San Francisco L  4:05 PM FOX  Candlestick Park
NY Jets at New England W       4:15 PM CBS  Gillette Stadium
San Diego at Denver W             4:15 PM CBS  Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Green Bay at Atlanta W             8:20 PM NBC  Georgia Dome

MON, OCT 10                      TIME (ET) TV  LOCATION
Chicago at Detroit W                 8:30 PM ESPN Ford Field

Cleveland Browns Had Plenty Of Wasted Offense and Lose To The Titans

If you throw 61 times in a game and only connect for one touchdown, something ain't right. On top of that, if you achieve 25 first downs to your opponenets 13 and lose 31-13, something definitely ain't right. Add to that, time of possession for the Browns was over 36 minutes to the Titans 23 minutes and they could only manage two field goals and one touchdown out of all that offense. It just catagorically ain't right. Unless they come up with a solution, Cleveland is headed into an offensive sinkhole of their own making.

Colt McCoy was chased around all afternoon and managed 350 yards on 40 completions. His longest pass play was 27 yards. Nine of his completions amounted to gains of between 10 to 27 yards. The rest, 31 passes, amounted to gains on an average of 6 total yards. That will not get the job done. McCoy threw passes to just about everybody on the bench. Hillis didn't help the cause either with only 46 yards of rushing. Needless to say, the line definately didn't help the cause either, or maybe, the Titan defense was that good. I'll let you decide that one for yourself.

Matt Hasselbeck, on the other hand, only needed half a game to beat the Browns. Hasselbeck managed three touchdowns out of a total of 10 completions. The Titans did get a good running game out of Chris Johnson. He ran for 101 yards. The Titans only touchdown in the second half was on an 97 yard interception by Jordan Babineaux. The Titan defense was on the field a good portion of the game, but were steady as a rock through it all. They only allowed the Browns to score their one and only touchdown in the fourth quarter.

The Browns seriously need a vertical threat. I don't know who is the problem when it comes to this missing feature, Mccoy, the line, the wide receivers, or the coaching staff. Probably alittle of everything, but I am going with the coaching staff. They have to unleash Colt McCoy and take shots down field. They need to make up their minds on Joshua Cribbs and utilize his speed as a wide receiver. If you want a go to guy, you got to throw to that guy. The opposing defenses are showing no fear of the Browns passing attack. Pin the opposing secondary's ears back and strike some terror into them. Do that, and maybe you will be surprised at what may happen. At least the fans will be, surprised that is.

Week 4 NFL Picks-Will The Former Losers Continue To Be Winners

A change of scenery is good. It's refreshing. It's engaging. It gives the eyes a different perspective and challenges the senses. The scene of the NFL maybe under going a change. Although Green Bay, New Orleans, New England, and Pittsburgh are familiar landmarks, it is good to see former downcasts like Buffalo, Detroit, Cleveland, and Oakland entering as possibles in the playoff scene of NFL football. And, one thing this young season has shown us is the top choices are all very vulnerable. So, with this welcomed change the picks should get more difficult. I was 12-4 in Week Three.

Buffalo's offense has been a running and passing juggernaut and going up against Cincinnati should not change that. It's a good thing because the Bills are seriously lacking a defense. If their offense should faulter, the door may open for the Bengals, who must strike quickly to take advantage. In order for Cincinnati to have even a remote chance of making it a competition, their running game with Benson must be relied upon or hope their better defense can force a mistake deep in Buffalo territory. Buffalo has been playing smart ball. Just look at how they kept Brady from getting back on the field in the last minutes of play.

Detroit will be tested this week in confused, don't know what I am supposed to do Dallas. Maybe, the Dallas offense should all wear detailed diagrams on their wrists, showing exactly where they are supposed to be on any given play. Or better yet, on each down Tony Romo should do it the old fashioned way in the huddle and draw on their jerseys where he wants each one of them to go. If Dallas achieves some resemblance of order on their offense, the Lions will have their hands full. It could be the battle of the tightends or the slaughter of the quarterbacks.

Cleveland was fortunate in their meeting with the Dolphins. Two great catches was all they needed and realistically was all they had all game long. Peyton Hillis will be back on the field and should have an impact on what the Browns will do. Protecting Colt McCoy from the blitz will be crucial or it will be a long day for the Browns in the negative, but the presense of Hillis should keep the Titans off balance. And what can you say about a team who loses to the Jaguars one week and beats the Ravens the next. The Titans have been a surprise and are dangerous, even without the dominant running game of Chris Johnson. Tennessee has been defensively good. All in all, the Browns and Titans look eerily similiar. Cleveland, get Joshua Cribbs involved, he is the trump card in this game.

Darren McFadden has been shredding opponents defenses and New England's defense doesn't look to be an exception. New England will go to the run more against an Oakland defense that has been giving up yardage on the ground, which will also take some of the heat off of Brady. It is highly unlikely Brady would have two weeks in a row where his picks equal his touchdowns. Ball control and time of possession will be key for Oakland, keep McFadden on the field and Brady off.

SUN, OCT 2	TIME (ET)	TV	RESOURCES	LOCATION
Detroit at Dallas L	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Cowboys Stadium
Carolina at Chicago W	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Soldier Field
Buffalo at Cincinnati L	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Paul Brown Stadium
Tennessee at Cleveland L	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Cleveland Browns Stadium
Minnesota at Kansas City L	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Arrowhead Stadium
Washington at St. Louis W	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Edward Jones Dome
New Orleans at Jacksonville W	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	EverBank Field
Pittsburgh at Houston W	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Reliant Stadium
San Francisco at Philadelphia L	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Lincoln Financial Field
NY Giants at Arizona W	4:05 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	U of Phoenix Stadium
Atlanta at Seattle W	4:05 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	CenturyLink Field
Miami at San Diego W	4:15 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Qualcomm Stadium
New England at Oakland W	4:15 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Denver at Green Bay W	4:15 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Lambeau Field
NY Jets at Baltimore W	8:20 PM	NBC	Tickets | Travel	M&T Bank Stadium
MON, OCT 3	TIME (ET)	TV	RESOURCES	LOCATION
Indianapolis at Tampa Bay L	8:30 PM		Tickets | Travel	Raymond James Stadium