Week 17 NFL Picks-This Is It

Ok, its that time again. Time to make predictions as to who you think is going to make the playoffs and where each team stands in the playoff bracket. The AFC is a tougher nut to crack than the NFC because it is still up for grabs. Here is my bracket predictions going into the final games of the season and a little summary of what has happened so far on a season that has gone by quickly. (I am picking Oakland and New York Giants to sneak in with Denver and Dallas dropping out.)

After starting the season strong, the Buffalo Bills haven't just faded away, they've disappeared. Well, injuries in key positions can do that to a team. Still, like a light bulb before it burns out completely, the Bills flashed brightly last Sunday against the Broncos and Tim Tebow. The Teblown Express wasn't just derailed, it was blown up, but no surprise, I knew that was going to happen. Denver came out of nowhere and that's how they will end up, nowhere. The Detroit Lions put an exclamation point on their playoff intentions with the pounding they gave San Diego. The Chargers found themselves up the Rivers without a paddle. The New York Giants seem to be the Johny-come-lately of football. At the start of the season they were winning or losing games in the last minute. Now in the last minute of regular season they are making their bid for the playoffs. Watch out Dallas.

The big matchups this Sunday are Detroit at Green Bay and Carolina at New Orleans. Win or lose it won't impact the playoff picture, much. It will be interesting to see how Cam Newton will stack up in comparison to the Saints high powered offense led by Drew Brees.

Detroit can improve their position by beating Green Bay. Win, they come in as the 5th Seed and wouldn't have to face New Orleans in the Wild Card. Lose, they would then be the 6th Seed and the path to the championships would go through New Orleans.

The Buffalo at New England game could have implications of the dire sort. If New England and Baltimore both lose and Pittsburgh with an obvious win over Cleveland, then Pittsburgh would be the 1st Seed. If New England loses and Baltimore wins it doesn't matter what Pittsburgh does, Baltimore would be the 1st Seed and New England would be the 2nd Seed. I don't even want to know what would happen if by some remote chance Cleveland should beat Pittsburgh. End of the world scenario.

SUN, JAN 1                      TIME (ET)       TV       LOCATION
Carolina at New Orleans       1:00 PM        FOX      Mercedes-Benz Superdome
Buffalo at New England        1:00 PM        CBS      Gillette Stadium
Chicago at Minnesota            1:00 PM        FOX      Mall of America Field
NY Jets at Miami                   1:00 PM        CBS      Sun Life Stadium
San Francisco at St. Louis     1:00 PM        FOX      Edward Jones Dome
Detroit at Green Bay              1:00 PM        FOX      Lambeau Field
Washington at Philadelphia   1:00 PM        FOX      Lincoln Financial Field
Indianapolis at Jacksonville   1:00 PM        CBS      EverBank Field
Tennessee at Houston            1:00 PM        CBS      Reliant Stadium
Seattle at Arizona                  4:15 PM        FOX      U of Phoenix Stadium
Kansas City at Denver           4:15 PM        CBS      Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Tampa Bay at Atlanta            4:15 PM        FOX      Georgia Dome
Baltimore at Cincinnati         4:15 PM        CBS      Paul Brown Stadium
Pittsburgh at Cleveland         4:15 PM        CBS      Cleveland Browns Stadium
San Diego at Oakland           4:15 PM        CBS      Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Dallas at NY Giants              8:20 PM        NBC      MetLife Stadium

Week 13 NFL PIcks-The Playoff Picture Is Getting Clearer

It's not going to get any easier for the Detroit Lions, who are hanging on tentatively to their playoff hopes. Buffalo is fading fast. San Diego is nowhere to be found. The New York Giants can't score enough points. Baltimore and Pittsburgh are neck and neck. Green Bay is packing for the Super Bowl and New Orleans is Breesing along. And Cleveland, they just seem to be content with living in the cellar of the AFC North.

Green Bay is playing the frustrated Eli Manning Giants. Eli Manning just can't catch a break. He threw for more yards than Brees and still lost. Maybe, this Sunday, going up against a Packer secondary that gives up yardage, will be his day. He will need to have a good day because Aaron Rodgers just has too many options, and the Giant defense can only double cover so many recievers a down. It is inevitable Rodgers will score and not just score, but continue to score. The key to beating Green Bay is disrupting the source, Aaron Rodgers. Blitz, blitz, blitz, and after you blitz, blitz some more.

Cam-not win a game finally won a against the everybody-beats'em Colts. Everyone makes a fuss over Cam Newton and I just don't see it. Yah, he is big and can run the ball. Whoopty doo. Box him in and he will throw the mistake. If Tampa Bay accomplishes that, victory will follow. If they don't, Cam-not win a game Cam-win another one against a weaker defense in the Buccaneers. Carolina's defense has been shredded by opposing offenses, so it will come down to who puts out the better offense with the least turnovers.

Andy Does-win is facing the tough-on-offenses Steelers. Who would have thought the Bengals would be contenders this year. Cincinnati has a good solid defense and a balanced offensive attack with Dalton guiding the way. The Steelers will be focusing on A. J. Green for obvious reasons. Pittsburgh likewise has a balanced attack on offense with Mendenhall running and Roethlisberger passing, but Roethlisberger has more consistent receivers to throw to and the uncanny ability to get out of tight situations when the opposing team brings the blitz. Steelers will come out throwing with the hopes of scoring quickly to take the Bengals out of their game plan.

If Cleveland beats Baltimore, they will win the rest of their games. Ha Ha. That is a mighty big if. As a comparison, that would be like getting a hole in one on the 18th of Pebble Beaches Spyglass Hill Golf Course. As far as winning the rest of their games, they play Baltimore one more time and Pittsburgh twice. That would be like getting a hole in one on the 13th of Spyglass Hill. I think you get the picture.

The Cleveland coaching staff just doesn't want to play Joshua Cribbs on offense and that is getting down right offensive. I remember an announcer once said, "If you don't air it out at least three times a game, you are doing your team an injustice." Cleveland, make something happen or at least look like you are trying to. Send Cribbs long and throw it to him.

THU, DEC 1                         TIME (ET)  TV      LOCATION
Philadelphia at Seattle             8:20 PM   NFL      CenturyLink Field
SUN, DEC 4                         TIME (ET)  TV      LOCATION
Carolina at Tampa Bay            1:00 PM   FOX      Raymond James Stadium
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh           1:00 PM   CBS      Heinz Field
Atlanta at Houston                  1:00 PM   FOX      Reliant Stadium
NY Jets at Washington            1:00 PM   CBS      FedEx Field
Indianapolis at New England  1:00 PM   CBS      Gillette Stadium
Oakland at Miami                   1:00 PM   CBS      Sun Life Stadium
Denver at Minnesota               1:00 PM   FOX      Mall of America Field
Tennessee at Buffalo              1:00 PM   CBS      Ralph Wilson Stadium
Kansas City at Chicago          1:00 PM   CBS      Soldier Field
Baltimore at Cleveland          4:05 PM   CBS      Cleveland Browns Stadium
Dallas at Arizona                   4:15 PM   FOX      U of Phoenix Stadium
Green Bay at NY Giants        4:15 PM   FOX      MetLife Stadium
St. Louis at San Francisco     4:15 PM   FOX      Candlestick Park
Detroit at New Orleans          8:20 PM   NBC      Mercedes-Benz Superdome
MON, DEC 5                      TIME (ET)  TV      LOCATION
San Diego at Jacksonville      8:30 PM   ESPN     EverBank Field

Week 3 In The NFL-Rivals Weekend

Indy Colts just can't get cut a break, but who really cares. They face the Steelers on Sunday. So, the hometown fans won't have much to cheer about unless Manning, due to frustration from watching the massacre, runs out onto the field and grabs the ball from Kerry to take the snaps. It's a good thing there isn't any snow to make snowballs, if you get my drift. The rest of the games are not as obvious when it comes to picking the winner. I was 14-2 in Week Two.

The Houston at New Orleans game features two strong offenses. Houston's number one rated defense against the pass will be put to the test by Brees, but he has the uncanny knack of finding the open man. To prevent that from happening, the Texans will have to keep Brees from leaving the pocket and gaining extra time. In the Dome, at New Orleans, I give the edge to the Saints.

The New York at Philadelphia matchup is a division rival game with no real clear winner. Michael Vick is scheduled to start, but whether he will finish this one will be up to the Giants defense, who will be looking to take him out. The Eagles will be looking to establish a running attack, but that is the Giants defensive strength. The Giants receiving core is battered, so they will be relying on Jacobs and Bradshaw to set the tempo. If that fails, Eli Manning will be hard pressed to establish any kind of passing attack making him an easier victim to the turnover.

The New England at Buffalo matchup is a good one to watch. The Bills have a strong run game with Jackson, so if they can keep Brady off the field, their chances of surviving definately increases. That being said, Brady doesn't need alot of time because he can strike quickly with the deep on talent receiving core he has to work with. Both teams can put up the points, but the Patriots will put up more.

Another rival game is Green Bay at Chicago. Jake Cutler will have to avoid the turnover if the Bears want any kind of chance to win this one. The Packers will be putting the heat on Cutler, so the Bear offense will have to get Forte involved more to prevent that from happening. As seen in the Saints game, the Packers secondary can be picked apart by a capable quarterback. Aaron Rodgers will be facing a tougher defense in the Bears than he has faced in the first two games.

Finally, the Washington at Dallas game. The question at hand, will Tony Romo survive, if he plays? The Dallas line will have to protect him alot better than they have in prior games. If they do, Dallas will come off the victor. The Redskins have a balanced offensive attack, so the Dallas defense will have their hands full. Rex Grossman has been getting the job done, but will have to avoid making that crucial mistake, which he has conmmitted three times in the past two games.

Its going to be a good weekend of NFL football. There are alot of evenly matched teams where it could go either way, and that includes the Baltimore at St Louis game, considering what happened to the Ravens last Sunday. It is also good to see the Detroit Lions finally giving their fans a legitimate reason to cheer. Jacksonville's new slogan, "You're darn tootin', we gotta blitz Cam Newton. One game to keep a close eye on is the Miami at Cleveland. Will the Browns make in two in a row? It's Henne-one's guess, so to speak.

SUN, SEP 25	TIME (ET)	TV	RESOURCES	LOCATION
Houston at New Orleans W	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Superdome
NY Giants at Philadelphia W	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Lincoln Financial Field
Jacksonville at Carolina L	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Bank of America Stadium
New England at Buffalo L	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Ralph Wilson Stadium
Miami at Cleveland W	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Cleveland Browns Stadium
San Francisco at Cincinnati L	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Paul Brown Stadium
Denver at Tennessee W	1:00 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	LP Field
Detroit at Minnesota W	1:00 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Mall of America Field
Baltimore at St. Louis W	4:05 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Edward Jones Dome
NY Jets at Oakland W	4:05 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Kansas City at San Diego W	4:05 PM	CBS	Tickets | Travel	Qualcomm Stadium
Arizona at Seattle W	4:15 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	CenturyLink Field
Atlanta at Tampa Bay L	4:15 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Raymond James Stadium
Green Bay at Chicago W	4:15 PM	FOX	Tickets | Travel	Soldier Field
Pittsburgh at Indianapolis W	8:20 PM	NBC	Tickets | Travel	Lucas Oil Stadium
MON, SEP 26	TIME (ET)	TV	RESOURCES	LOCATION
Washington at Dallas W	8:30 PM		Tickets | Travel	Cowboys Stadium