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 10 NFL Picks-The Season Begins For Cincinnati

After what I thought was one of the best Sundays of football in the NFL's long illustrious history the saying, "That is a tough act to follow," is apropos. Teams like Baltimore, NY Giants, and Arizona proved "It ain't over till it's over." San Diego fell short of putting their game into overtime against Green Bay, but it was entertaining. The Chargers stand at a crossroads in their division. Cincinnati continues to surprise, but will be tested when they faceoff with Pittsburgh. Chicago exstinguished the fires of Philadelphia on Monday Night Football, but will be jumping into the frying pan against Detroit this Sunday. The line up looks good.

The Bengals success this year covers the huge mistake they made last year, and that was putting Noshow-Cinco and TOed-Owens in the same lineup. Enough said about that. Two rookies have taken center stage in Cincinnati, Andy Dalton and A.J. Green. They have been the catalyst for the offense, but have been supported by a good defense. It has been said their schedule for the first half of the season might have something to do with it, but their first 8 games may have given them the time to prepare for what's coming.

The Pittsburgh game will test whether they can cut the mustard. Pittsburgh had victory snatched away from them by Baltimore and will be looking for redemption or someone to hit. It will be a good game, but in order for Pittsburgh to lose this one, they will have to seriously stumble.

San Diego is in a three way tie in their division. Philip Rivers doesn't like to lose. No suprising revelation in that statement. He puts his heart and soul into every game and when he does lose, you see the disappointment written all over his face. Mistakes have plagued his game play. He has been trying to force the ball into passing situations that backfire. San Diego takes on Oakland Thusday night. Injuries have been disruptive, but good teams overcome. Well, maybe if your not Indianapolis. What may help the Chargers cause, Ryan Matthews is expected to play.

San Diego's injuries will be offsetting because Oakland has injuries of its own in key positions, like running back Darren McFadden, who was having a great year. Michael Bush has been filling in very nicely. Carson Palmer is now calling the plays and is listed as probable. Despite San Diego's woes, the only way I see Oakland winning this one is by their defense stepping up and creating mistakes.

Detroit destroyed Denver before their bye, but Denver is not Chicago. The Lions are a dominate passing team with Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson. Chicago's defense just shut down Michael Vick and company on Monday. So, Stafford and company will have their hands full, hopefully footballs. If their defense plagues Jay Cutler like they did Tim tebow, half the battle will be won.

Chicago's challenge will be to shut down Stafford and cover Johnson. The easier of the two would be to strike at the point of attack, Stafford. Chicago has the defense that can harrass and disrupt the quarterback via Julius Peppers, and Brian Urlacher dropping back into coverage. Jay Cutler has a rifle arm and if he is in rythmn with his receivers, Detroit will be looking from behind. All in all, if both teams live up to their expectations, it will be a good game. Maybe, one of those down to last minute thrillers.

I don't know what to say about the cleveland Browns. Luckily, they are playing St. Louis in Cleveland. At least they won't be in a hostile environment, but that could change. The Browns defense will have to control Steven Jackson, the Rams main offensive weapon. Unfortunately, they couldn't stop Arian Foster and Ben Tate last Sunday. Both Houston backs had a hundred yard plus day. Jackson will be like a fired up thoroughbred race horse waiting for the gates to open. The Browns coaching staff has finally wised up to using Joshua Cribbs at wide receiver. It's about time. This week the Browns are even giving consideration to using him at the running position.

THU, NOV 10                      TIME (ET)   TV     LOCATION
Oakland at San Diego             8:20 PM     NFL    Qualcomm Stadium

SUN, NOV 13                      TIME (ET)   TV     LOCATION
Arizona at Philadelphia          1:00 PM    FOX    Lincoln Financial Field
Tennessee at Carolina            1:00 PM     CBS    Bank of America Stadium
Houston at Tampa Bay           1:00 PM    CBS    Raymond James Stadium
Washington at Miami             1:00 PM    FOX    Sun Life Stadium
Jacksonville at Indianapolis   1:00 PM     CBS    Lucas Oil Stadium
Denver at Kansas City            1:00 PM    CBS    Arrowhead Stadium
Buffalo at Dallas                     1:00 PM    CBS    Cowboys Stadium
New Orleans at Atlanta          1:00 PM    FOX    Georgia Dome
St. Louis at Cleveland            1:00 PM    FOX    Cleveland Browns Stadium
Pittsburgh at Cincinnati          1:00 PM    CBS    Paul Brown Stadium
Baltimore at Seattle                4:05 PM    CBS    CenturyLink Field
NY Giants at San Francisco   4:15 PM    FOX    Candlestick Park
Detroit at Chicago                  4:15 PM    FOX    Soldier Field
New England at NY Jets        8:20 PM    NBC    MetLife Stadium

MON, NOV 14                    TIME (ET)   TV    LOCATION
Minnesota at Green Bay         8:30 PM    ESPN   Lambeau Field

Week Nine NFL Picks-The Upstarts Are Making Their Presense Known

The NFL season is headed into the back stretch. It is good to see some new upstarts leading the pack going towards the playoffs. Will these new presumptuous contenders be able to keep up their winning ways and if and when they finally reach that playoff pinnacle, be able to dislodge deeply entrenched playoff greats like Green Bay, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, and New England, assuming they will acheive it? Detroit is on a bye this week. Buffalo faces defensively tough New York Jets. Cincinnati will be hosted by Tennessee.

Buffalo is riding high in the hotly contended AFC Division. They have been winning games with their offense. The Bills ace-in-the-hole is Fred Jackson. Jackson has been doing it all, running, catching, and scoring. I hope he continues putting up huge numbers because he is one of my fantasy players. Ryan Fitzpatrick has been steady with 14 passing touchdowns thus far this year. It is somewhat humorous he has five interceptions in the games he has won and only two in those he has lost. Go figure. He will be facing a Jets defense that goes after quarterbacks, so he will have to be on his toes and rely on the toes of Jackson. Keep you eye on the bouncing ball.

The Jets cannot afford to lose another game. The obvious key to preventing that from happening, their defense will have to control Jackson. Recently, a tire on my car has been annoyingly losing air and every morning it would be half flat. The only way to remove that annoyance was to plug the hole up.
When it comes to the run, the Jets defensive line have been like that leaky tire and the only way to stop Jackson is to plug the hole. Good luck with that one.

Shonn Greene will have to match Jackson yard for yard, score for score. Accomplish that, and then it will come down to Fitzpatrick verses Sanchez, Yosemite Sam verses Elmer Fudd. Which one is better at hitting their target?

Tennessee is neck and neck with Houston. Matt Hasselbeck has been carrying the Titans while Chris Johnson has not been playing up to potential. When Hasselbeck has a bad game, the Titans lose. That pretty much is an obvious conclusion. Johnson faces a tough front four of the Bengals defense. If he has a breakout game, it will be a surprise.

Andy Dalton and A.J. Green are building into a deadly combination. Green will be matched against a physical cornerback in Cortland Finnegan. Dalton may have to find an alternative target, but I am sure he will be looking for that one opportunity for the big play to Green. Like Tennessee, Cincinnati's running game has been a tade weak. Cincinnati's true test will come when they play divisional rivals Pittsburgh and Baltimore.

Two games to watch this weekend are Baltimore at Pittsburgh on Sunday vevening and Chicago at Philadelphia on Monday night. The Baltimore at Pittsburgh game will be defensively brutal. There will be alot of head banging in this one with Lewis and Polamalu. Roethlisberger and Wallace have become a formidable tandem. They seem to hook up at least one time each game for the big yard buster and touchdown.

Philadelphia is coming off a decisive win over Dallas. The Eagles offensive line opened up holes for LeSean McCoy and gave Vick the time to do his work of inflicting damage on the opponent's secondary. On the other side, Matt Forte has been putting up large numbers and Cutler has been avoiding the costly mistake. The Eagles surmounting task, take Forte out of the equation. Its anybody's guess.

Sunday November 6
Time (ET)	Visiting Team	Home Team	TV	Weather	Tickets
1:00 pm	New York Jets	Buffalo Bills	CBS		Buy Now
1:00 pm	Seattle Seahawks	Dallas Cowboys	FOX		Buy Now
1:00 pm	Cleveland Browns	Houston Texans	CBS		Buy Now
1:00 pm	Atlanta Falcons	Indianapolis Colts	FOX		Buy Now
1:00 pm	Miami Dolphins	Kansas City Chiefs	CBS		Buy Now
1:00 pm	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	New Orleans Saints	FOX		Buy Now
1:00 pm	San Francisco 49ers	Washington Redskins	FOX		Buy Now
4:05 pm	Denver Broncos	Oakland Raiders	CBS		Buy Now
4:05 pm	Cincinnati Bengals	Tennessee Titans	CBS		Buy Now
4:15 pm	St. Louis Rams	Arizona Cardinals	FOX		Buy Now
4:15 pm	New York Giants	New England Patriots	FOX
4:15 pm	Green Bay Packers	San Diego Chargers	FOX		Buy Now
8:20 pm	Baltimore Ravens	Pittsburgh Steelers	NBC		Buy Now

Monday November 7
Time (ET)	Visiting Team	Home Team	TV	Weather	Tickets
8:30 pm	Chicago Bears	Philadelphia Eagles	ESPN		Buy Now

Week 8 In The NFL Highlights Some Surprises And Follies

Denver got t-boned by Detroit. Pittsburgh stole the show from New England. Buffalo buffaloed Washington. Cincinnati clawed their way to victory over Seattle. Philadelphia soared over Dallas. Whoopsy San Diego made a late game mistake that cost them a victory. But, the shocker of all shockers was St Louis ramming New Orleans into the wall of shame.

The Rams going into their contest with the Saints were 0-6. The previous Sunday they were pummeled by inconsistent Dallas. Meanwhile. the Saints thoroughly embarrassed Manningless Indianapolis, scoring 62 points. So, what the heck happened to the Saints, who I would not have picked to lose in a million years against the Rams? The answer is quite obvious, Steve Jackson and a relentless defense. The Ram defense took Drew Brees out of his usual rhythm. While on the otherside of the ball, Jackson ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns. The rest of the NFL teams, take note.

Detroit rebounded in a big way. They needed to reaffirm their legitimacy. Sure, it was just Denver, but a win is a win. Matthew Stafford had a career day. He threw three touchdowns on a total of 267 yards with a rating of 130.8. Tim Whoop-tee-do Tebow didn't have a bad day, running for 63 yards and throwing for 172 yards and one touchdown. His one huge blunder was a pick that went for a hundred yards and a touchdown. Tebow runs out of necessity because he gets easily flustered and can't find the open man. Running quarterbacks just don't go to the Super Bowl.

Buffalo is one of the surprises of the year. They are staying on pace with New England. One of the reasons, Fred Jackson is having a great year. He didn't score a touchdown in this one, but he accumulated a total of 194 yards of offense. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw two touchdowns to Scott Chandler. Buffalo faces a tough, opportunistic Jet defense that raise havoc a a quarterback. Jackson will be their ticket to victory.

Their were alot of borderline penalty calls that went against the hard luck Chargers in the Monday Night Follies. It was raining yellow flags from the beginning to the end. Game altering official calls that took scores away from the Chargers. That been said, San Diego shot themselves in the foot on numerous occassions. They could only get the ball across the goal line once. All the other times they entered the red zone, penalties and mistakes forced them back. Kansas City didn't fair much better, but came away with the win on an overtime field goal. The Chargers are looking eerily like the Browns of old.

Pittsburgh handled the Brady Bunch quite nicely. New England fought right down to the final seconds of the game when their final possession ended up sailing in the wrong direction and out the back of the end zone, courtesy Polamalu, after a Brady fumble. The result was a safety. The offense can't advance the ball on a fumble, but there is nothing ruling against the ball going backwards 25 yards after being slapped. Roethlisberger and Company controlled the ball twice as long as the Brady Bunch. Ouch. Now Pittsburgh faces a gauntlet of AFC North teams in the back stretch. Though, I don't think they need to worry too much about the touchdownless Browns. Unless, the Browns coaching staff gets their heads out of their keisters about the wide receiver dilemma. And that's another story.

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

Browns Run Short On Time And Lose To Bengals 19-17

Colt McCoy took the snaps, but the results were the same, another disappointing loss. Peyton Hillis was pretty much a non-factor running and totally missing from the passing game, which was a change from previous outings. The Bobbling Bengals, who looked terrible on defense, pelted the Browns with field goals. Cedric Benson went on a rampage while Carson Palmer sputtered. There were no turnovers by either team. The difference was the Browns total inability to convert 3rd down attempts and maintain possession. The Bengals controlled the clock with over 38 minutes of possession time.

Colt McCoy ended the game with a rating of 132.6. He completed 19 out of 25 passes and threw two touchdowns. The first touchdown started with one of the strangest looking line formations ever seen, which was probably why the Bengals defense was so baffled, they didn't know what to make of it. It would have been an opportune time to blitz McCoy with only three line men to protect him, but they didn't. The Bengals spread themselves out and McCoy put in the air to Robert Royal, who made a great catch in the end zone. The second was to Brian Robiskie late in the game, but too little too late. Phil Dawson added the other 5 points with only one field goal. Ben Watson was the go-to-guy with 7 receptions for 92 yards.

The big scorer for Cincinnati was Clint Stitser. He completed four field goals. Cedric Benson compiled 150 yards on the ground and scored the Bengals only touchdown. Palmer was so-so with 209 yards on 14 completions out of 23 attempts. No-Show-Cinco didn't have an impact and No-show-Wens left the game limping. Despite all of this, the Bengals controlled the clock and the game for the win.

The Browns were showing so much promise after beating the Saints and the Patriots. The hometown fans finally had something to cheer about. There was even talk of a possible playoff spot. The Browns then lost two tough games against the Jets and the Jaguars, won two more against the Panthers and the Dophins. Well, you know the history, no sense in repeating it. Through all of this, Joshua Cribbs remains a mystery. Is it his injury that has limited him or is it Mangini? The long ball had been missing and finally emerged in today's game a couple of times, if you can call the Royal and Robiskie catchs a long pass. The final games against the Ravens and the Steelers will be the toughest games of the year. Browns, make us believers again.

Week Four NFL Picks-Will This Be The Week Browns?

I for one can't wait until Jake Delhomme is back out on the field calling the shots. Seneca Wallace has not impressed me. Although he had 18 completions in the Baltimore game, 7 of them were to Hillis, which means he is throwing short. Unless the Browns threaten the secondary of their opponents with shots down the field the outcome is going to be the same every week. They are not like the Steelers who can win on just running. Hillis had a good game running with 144 yards, but face it, that will not happen consistently.

The Bengals are coming to town and this Sunday is a must win or it's going to be a long and frustrating season for the Dawgs and the fans. Mohamed Massaquoi says in reference to the passing game 'it's early', but the dark clouds are amassing on the horizon quickly and everybody knows what that means in Northeast Ohio, a long and cold winter.

I was 7-9 in Week Three of my picks. I am going to have to think out of the box more if I am going to improve on my picks. The Saints lost in a shocker. Although, as I said last week New Orleans has not been impressive and Atlanta could surprise them and guess what, they did. Minnesota and Dallas finally got their first wins, Cowboys against the redhot Texans and the Vikings against the not so redhot Lions. They both have a bye this Sunday.

St. Louis and Seattle both got first wins and they did on the road against teams you thought they would have lost to. This week they play each other. Rams' Jackson is improving from an injury but still out of practice and iffy. Seattle beat San Diego despite Rivers throwing for 455 yards and Tobet running for 73. What happen? The Seahawks were ball hawking and forced 5 turnovers. St Louis doesn't stand a chance against Seattle. Neither does Detroit against Green Bay with the Packers breathing fire from their loss to Chicago.

Three games to watch are Baltimore at Pittsburgh, Washington at Philadelphia, and Chicago at NY Giants. Flacco is coming off an impressive showing with his three touchdown passses against hapless Cleveland. He will be facing a much more staunch defense in the ever aggressive Steeler secondary with Polamalu roaming wild. Got to give the edge to the Steelers. Vick is back in form for the Eagles and will prove to be to much for Washington. Chicago is flying high after stunning the Packers in the final seconds of a hotly contested game. True, the Packers shot themselves in the foot with all those penalties and losing a fumble in the final minutes courtesy of Urlacher. That's what it is all about and that's what wins games. Watch out New York, the Bears are coming to town with an attitude.

That's my take this week and these are my picks. Thinking out of the box. Oh, Cincinnati coming to Cleveland. What does the box say? Mangini, get Joshua Cribbs to go long a few times and let's see what happens, or Massaquoi, or somebody. Take a chance, you may be surprised at what happens. You couldn't do any worse.

 

SUN, OCT 3 TIME (ET)

San Francisco 18 at Atlanta 24 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W
Georgia Dome
Cincinnati 23 at Cleveland 24 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W
Cleveland Browns Stadium
NY Jets 30 at Buffalo 20 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W
Ralph Wilson Stadium
Seattle 20 at St. Louis 17 1:00 PM FOX Tickets L
Edward Jones Dome
Denver 21 at Tennessee 28 1:00 PM CBS Tickets L
LP Field
Detroit 15 at Green Bay 34 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W
Lambeau Field
Baltimore 23 at Pittsburgh 27 1:00 PM CBS Tickets L
Heinz Field
Carolina 17 at New Orleans 37 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W
Superdome
Indianapolis 34 at Jacksonville 13 4:05 PM CBS Tickets L
EverBank Field
Houston 25 at Oakland 20 4:05 PM CBS Tickets W
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Washington 18 at Philadelphia 27 4:15 PM FOX Tickets L
Lincoln Financial Field

Arizona 17 at San Diego 28 4:15 PM FOX Tickets W

Qualcomm Stadium

Chicago 24 at NY Giants 27 8:20 PM NBC Tickets W

New Meadowlands Stadium

MON, OCT 4 TIME (ET)

New England 32 at Miami 20 8:30 PM Tickets

Sun Life Stadium

The Bengals Debacle And The Browns Disappoint

Ocho was a no-sho and T.O. was a no-go in the final play of the first half in the Bengals game against the Patriots. You would think the Bengals top two wide receivers would have considered it necessary to be there for that crucial play with their team down 24-3, but the soon-to-be reality TV stars had left the field. Ocho and T.O. are seriously in need of a reality check, or maybe the reality of it is the Bengals are unsuspecting participants in a new reality show called "The New Candid Camera Show" starring Ocho and T.O. and the joke is on them. Okay, maybe we should cut them a little slack, after all Ocho was thirsty and needed a drink of water and T.O. was having a problem with his new shoes. No way. They could have toughed it out just like the rest of the team. This is only the beginning, the Bengals are in for alot of drama this season, but they already knew that, after all, it was part of the package deal. Smile, your on Candid Camera.

Disappointment, disappointment, disappointment. The Browns lost to the Buccaneers in their opener 17-14. I thought for sure the Browns were going to continue where they left off last season, but they were plagued by a continuing preseason problem. Fumbles and interceptions are drive stoppers and the Browns had three that were costly. Jake Delhomme had an okay day, but the two interceptions he threw did not help his cause or the Browns. I think Mangini needs to return to the offensive scheme that started the winning streak last season with the victory over the Steelers, the wildcat offense, or in the case of the Browns, the "wilddog offense". I'm not saying the Browns should rely on the wildcat offence, but use it at opportune times. In doing so Mangini will be using the versatility of Joshua Cribbs to the maximum. The Browns are going to have to get imaginative if they want to beat Kansas City in the home opener, the same Kansas City that shocked San Diego on Monday Night Football.

NY Jets Outplayed Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengal's Bernard Scott took the opening kickoff from Jay Feely 56 yards to the Jets 36 yard line. It looked like it was going to be the Bengal's game. Three plays later Carson Palmer passed to Laveranues Coles for 4 yards who then fumbled the ball and Shaun Ellis recovered the fumble for the Jets. It was all down hill from there. The Jets defeated the Bengals 24-14.

The Bengals could not recover from the numerous mistakes that plagued their game. Cedric Benson was the only Bengal who had a good game. Benson had 169 yds on 21 carries and one touchdown. Carson Palmer on the other hand had a horrendous day. In the beginning of the game all his passes sailed too high for his receivers to haul in. Palmer was harassed by the Jet's defense in key situations and just wouldn't let him get into a rythmn. Palmer had 18 completions out 36 attempts and one touchdown. Chad Ochocinco was dogged by cornerback Darrelle Revis and ended the game with only 28 yds. Near the end Ochocinco had a chance to make it a game when he came close to hauling in a pass in the corner of the end zone, but lost it when he hit the ground. Shayne Graham missed two field goals, which really hurt their cause.

The Jets played a well rounded game on both sides of the ball. Mark Sanchez quarterbacked an excellent game. He made clutch passes in key situations. Sanchez had 12 completions out of 15 attempts for 182 yds and was mistake free. Dustin Keller had two big pass plays and scored one touchdown on a 39 yd catch and run. Shonn Green pounded out 135 yds on 21 carries and one touchdown. The Jet's defense showed why it is number one in the NFL taking it to the Bengal's offense with their blitzing shemes. It was a complete team effort.

The Jets move on to the next level. Their full of confidence and seem to be peaking at the right time. They now have to wait for the outcome of tomorrow's game between Baltimore and New England to see who their next opponent will be. A good start to the Playoffs. Just a side note: The Cowboys took it to the Eagles big time by the score of 34-14 and will be moving on in the Playoffs. My picks this week have already been shattered.

Wildcard Weekend Starts The Playoffs

The final week of regular season I was 9-7 because of a few shockers or was it a matter of concealing game plans so you don't tip your hand stradegy by a few teams who knew they would meet in the Wildcard Playoffs. Whatever the case, this week looks like repeat weekend except for one and that is the Baltimore at New England game. Philadelphia and Cincinnati were both man handled, that is shutout, zippoed, nada points in their losses and New England was out done by Houston. Baltimore was the only winner out of the bunch. This week is going to be a different story.

Philadelphia will be taking the gloves off this Wildcard Weekend against the Cowboys. Tony Romo is going to be harrassed mercilessly from begining to end. Dallas will not be able to contain Desean Jackson and Philadelphia will be relying more heavily on establishing the running game to set up the passing. On the other hand, Dallas has moved up the rankings to number five. The Cowboys have a run game of their own and a strong receiving squad for Romo to choose from, especially with Witten. The key will be protection, if it isn't there game over, this will go for both sides of the field. This contest will be entertaining.

NY Jets at Cincinnati will be another contentious game. The Bengals are vulnerable and have't been producing the points in any great bunches. Cincinnati will attempt to pound it out with Cedric Benson, who was missing in the last game. The old Carson Palmer will emerge and the number one defense will get stung. The Jets faired better this season than what was expected by getting to the playoffs. The Jets run game is tops with Thomas Jones and will be key to their success in this game. If the Bengals stuff the Jets run game and the burden falls on Mark Sanchez they will get some picks, end of story and the season for the Jets.

Green Bay dominated Arizona in their final outing. The Packers are a solid team with all kinds of weapons offensively. Aaron Rodgers manages the offense well and utilizes their strong points. You can't go wrong with targets like Jennings and Driver and Ryan Grant can find the first down marker to keep drives going. The Cardinals defense will have to find a way to disrupt Green bay's rythmn because if they don't, they are in for a frustrating experience. Arizona can produce alot of points themselves with Kurt Warner, but pressure is his Achilles Heal. The Cardinals offensive line will have the major task of protecting Warner.

Now we come to Baltimore at New England. The Patriots will be without a pivatol player in Wes Welker. You cannot replace a key player like Welker. Tom Brady will have to rely on his other receivers to get open. They are going up against a tough Baltimore defense that can be stingy, but has shown vulnerability in past games. The weather in New England will be a major factor and a strong running game in cold weather and a frozen field is a must. Baltimore has Ray Rice for this job. If Lawrence Maroney runs like a mad dog for New England, Brady will get the upper hand.

It is going to be a an exciting start to the playoffs, two games on Saturday and two on Sunday. Purchase all you snacks and drinks ahead of time and get ready to hunker down for some NFL football.

SAT, JAN 9 TIME (ET)
NY Jets 18 at Cincinnati  26 4:30 PM NBC Tickets L
Paul Brown Stadium
Philadelphia 28 at Dallas 27 8:00 PM NBC Tickets L
Cowboys Stadium
SUN, JAN 10 TIME (ET)
Baltimore 20 at New England 24 1:00 PM CBS Tickets L
Gillette Stadium
Green Bay 28 at Arizona  21 4:40 PM FOX Tickets L
U of Phoenix Stadium

Week 15 NFL Picks

Hooray, hooray, I broke the 4 loss barrier. Last week I thought the picks were tough and I come away with a 14-2 record. The Cardinals and the Giants let me down or else it would have been perfect. Arizona should have an easy game with Detroit, if they don't turn the ball over 7 times. The Giants won't have it so easy with the Redskins at home on Monday Night Football. This will be a tough one to call, turnovers will be key, but aren't they always. Indianapolis will have to play heads up with Jacksonville. You never know what the Jaguars will do week to week. Dallas at New Orleans, "whodat" is all you have to say. Games that could go either way are Miami at Tennessee, Atlanta at NY Jets, Cincinnati at San Diego, Green Bay at Pittsburgh, and Tampa Bay at Seattle. Easy wins should be Houston over St Louis, Baltimore over Chicago, and Minnesota over Carolina. What does that leave us? San Francisco at Philadelphia, New England at Buffalo, and Cleveland at Kansas City. Philadelphia has it going with its different formations and quarterback sets, but if the 49ers ball hawk like they did against the Cardinals, Eagles watch out. New England weather and Buffalo weather are similiar, so no advantage there. New England should win. The Browns got a big thrill out of beating the Steelers and are flying high, hopefully they won't come crashing down. I am taking the Browns. That's all, play ball.

THU, DEC 17 TIME (ET)
Indianapolis 26 at Jacksonville 21 8:20 PM NFL Tickets W
Jacksonville Stadium
SAT, DEC 19 TIME (ET)
Dallas 14 at New Orleans 30 8:20 PM NFL Tickets L
Superdome
SUN, DEC 20 TIME (ET)
New England 24 at Buffalo 21 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W
Ralph Wilson Stadium
Arizona 34 at Detroit 10 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W
Ford Field
Miami 27 at Tennessee 24 1:00 PM CBS Tickets L
LP Field
Cleveland 23 at Kansas City 18 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W
Arrowhead Stadium
Houston 30 at St. Louis 18 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W
Edward Jones Dome
Atlanta 20 at NY Jets 24 1:00 PM FOX Tickets L
Giants Stadium
San Francisco 20 at Philadelphia 30 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W
Lincoln Financial Field
Chicago 15 at Baltimore 28 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W
M&T Bank Stadium
Cincinnati 21 at San Diego 27 4:05 PM CBS Tickets W
Qualcomm Stadium
Oakland 20 at Denver 30 4:05 PM CBS Tickets L
Invesco Field at Mile High
Green Bay 24 at Pittsburgh 27 4:15 PM FOX Tickets W
Heinz Field
Tampa Bay 17 at Seattle 20 4:15 PM FOX Tickets L
Qwest Field
Minnesota 32 at Carolina 20 8:20 PM NBC Tickets L
Bank of America Stadium
MON, DEC 21 TIME (ET)
NY Giants 24 at Washington 23 8:30 PM Tickets W
FedEx Field

Browns Lose To Chargers With A Decent Showing

The game started out decent, but by the end of the third quarter it looked like another blowout in the making in Brown's Town. Then, the fourth quarter and a sudden surge by the Brown's offense fell short of a route, ending with a missed on-side kick attempt, game over. The Brown's walked off the field this week with some respectability losing 30-23 to the Chargers.

Brady Quinn had some decent numbers and ended the game with a rating of 95.7. Quinn had 3 TD's, the first TD coming on their opening possession, something that hadn't been done for a span of 35 games. Quinn was 25 for 45 with a total of 271 yards. This week Quinn distributed the ball between 9 different players with Evan Moore his primary target. Philip Rivers unfortunately was near flawless with a rating of 140.8. Rivers had 18 completions out of 25 attempts with a total of 373 yards with 2 TD's.

The Brown's running game was minus Jamal Lewis and the carries were spread between Jerome Harrison, Chris Jennings, and Joshua Cribbs, Harrison getting the bulk of the carries. Harrison had 2 touchdowns and interestingly they were both 8 yard passes from Quinn in the mighty fourth quarter.

Neither team dominated defensively. There were no interceptions and sacks on the quarterbacks nearly unmentionable, except the hit to Quinn on the Charger's 8 yard line that caused a crucial fumble, stalling a potential Brown's score. Joshua Cribbs had a good kick return day with a total of 148 yards, the longest being 42 yards.

This week is the big Thursday night game with the Steelers. Steelers, by the way, were beaten by the lowly Raiders 27-24. It's crying time again in the Steel Town and the Terrible Towels are getting quite saturated by the many tears being shed week after week. Cleveland Brown's Stadium should be rocking, if it doesn't start out with a half empty stadium like today's game. There will probably be alot of Steeler fans there. The Dawg Pound will have to carry the load of boosting the Brown's psyche.

No Surprise-Browns Lose to Bengals 16-7

The Browns couldn't get much of anything going considering they had a mistake free game. Was Cincinnati's defense dominating or a matter of no offense on the Browns part again, which? I would have to resevedly select both if it were multiple choice and add to it the Browns were just dominated, but then again, when it comes to the Brown's it doesn't take much to dominate, unless your Detroit. Cincinnati continued its control of the AFC North sweeping the divisional confrontations with this victory.


Brady Quinn could only manage 100 yards on 15 completions out of 34 attempts, which would calculate to an average yards per completion at 6.6. Quinn targeted 10 different receivers to no avail and caught a pass from Joshua Cribbs that netted 18 yards. He scored the lone touchdown. Quinn was sacked only once and hit 3 other times. So, what was the problem? Massaquoi, Quinn's favored receiver, caught only one pass out of 8 attempts. There is the sum of it and the pattern through the game, a failure to connect. Palmer didn't impress either with comparable statistics.

The running attack for Cincinnati is what got the job done. Larry Johnson, Cincinnati's newest aquisition, ran for 107 yards and Bernard Scott scampered for 87 yards. Cincinnati's running backs ran a total of 40 times. Ball control adds up to a lopsided time of possession, which favored the Bengals. Jamal Lewis only had 40 yards, but he ran with the ball half the amount of times Johnson carried the ball.

The Browns next two games will be at home with the Chargers and Steelers coming to town. The Chargers will be merciless and the Steelers will be desparate to get ahead of the Ravens in the standings after losing to them last night in a tear jerker. Steeler fans, get out your Terrible Towels and wipe your watering eyes. The meeting with the Steelers will be a Thursday night game. After those two games the only possible chance at one more victory will be against the Oakland Raiders and that will be a slim chance at best. Brown's fans, Super Bowl in 2020, if the world doesn't end before then.

Week 12 NFL Picks

Week 11 I was 11-5. Still looking to break the four or more loss syndrome. This may be the week, although anything can happen in the NFL with any given team. Detroit scored 38 points last Sunday. Not going to happen this week. Green Bay will dominate in all aspects of the contest in Detroit. It will not be a cake walk for Dallas against Oakland, this is the anything can happen example. The Giants at Denver will be a close one with the Giants edging out the Broncos. Carolina at the NY Jets will be an interesting one to watch. Carolina can surprise if the running game is on. Another interesting game will be Cleveland at Cincinnati. If the Browns offense can carry over the momentum from last Sunday it could be an upset. Defense will be the key for either team. Tennessee has been winning as of late and I am picking them to win at home against Arizona. Indianapolis, Minnesota and Miami are hot and will win. Pittsburgh at Baltimore will be a hard hitting contest, but Pittsburgh's offense should edge them out depending on what happens with Roethlisberger. The big game is Monday Night Football with the Patriots visiting the Saint's Superdome. It will be an explosive atmosphere and the Dome will be rocking. You can expect alot of scoring with a heavy blitzing attack from New England. It is going to be a fun week in the NFL.

THU, NOV 26 TIME (ET)

Green Bay 34 at Detroit 10 12:30 PM FOX Tickets W

Ford Field

Oakland 17 at Dallas 20 4:15 PM CBS Tickets W

Cowboys Stadium

NY Giants 28 at Denver 24 8:20 PM NFL Tickets L WOW!

Invesco Field at Mile High
SUN, NOV 29 TIME (ET)

Tampa Bay 15 at Atlanta 23 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W

Georgia Dome

Miami 24 at Buffalo 14 1:00 PM CBS Tickets L WOW!

Ralph Wilson Stadium

Cleveland 20 at Cincinnati 21 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W

Paul Brown Stadium

Seattle 27 at St. Louis 10 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W

Edward Jones Dome

Carolina 24 at NY Jets 21 1:00 PM FOX Tickets L

Giants Stadium

Washington 13 at Philadelphia 20 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W

Lincoln Financial Field

Indianapolis 34 at Houston 17 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W

Reliant Stadium

Kansas City 20 at San Diego 30 4:05 PM CBS Tickets W

Qualcomm Stadium

Jacksonville 23 at San Francisco 18 4:05 PM CBS Tickets L

Candlestick Park

Chicago 20 at Minnesota 30 4:15 PM FOX Tickets W

Metrodome

Arizona 20 at Tennessee 23 4:15 PM FOX Tickets W

LP Field

Pittsburgh 24 at Baltimore 21 8:20 PM NBC Tickets L

M&T Bank Stadium

MON, NOV 30 TIME (ET)

New England 30 at New Orleans 28 8:30 PM Tickets L OOPS!

Superdome

The Browns Have An Offense-Score 37 Points

Who would have thought. The Browns have an offense afterall. The Brown's offense scored a total of 37 points against the Detroit Lions. The problem, the Browns still lost and the way they lost is the story. Dubbed the team with no offense the week before, the Browns came to Detroit shooting. So what if it was just the Lions, they gave their fans something to cheer about. Too bad it wasn't before the home crowd. The question in this game, where was the defense this week?

Brady Quinn had 4 TD's on 304 yards and a rating of 133.1. Not a bad days work. Unfortunately, Stafford outgunned Quinn with 5 TD's on 422 yards with a rating of 112.7. The Browns running game was decent. Jamal Lewis ran for 75 yards. It looks as though Massaquoi is becoming Quinn's favorite target. Massaquoi had 5 receptions with 115 yards. Stuckey had 76 yards on 5 receptions. Joshua Cribbs had a reception TD and factored strongly in the offensive effort.

The Brown's defense could only manage one sack and one hit on the QB. The big mistake by the defense was when there was zero time left on the clock. You would think the game had ended, but the little yellow flag laying on the ground in the endzone denoted otherwise. In a last desparation throw by Stafford, Brown's safety, Hank Poteat, was called for interference. Talk about officials effecting the outcome of a game, that was a big call. Still, the Lions had to put it in and they did with Stafford's fifth passing touchdown.

The Browns play in Cincinnati next Sunday. Can the Browns put together the total package and get a legitimate win against a contender? A victory over the Bengals will go along way in boosting the spirits of their fans and rev up the Dawg Pound for the next home game. Finally, what happened to the Pittsburgh Steelers in their game with Kansas City? The "Terrible Towel" is becoming the "Tearible Towel".

Cleveland Browns "Offensive" Showing on Monday Night Football

Three words for the Browns performance on Monday Night Football against the Baltimore Ravens, it was offensive. The flag was thrown all night on the Browns for "offensive ineptness". One announcer categorized it this way, "The worst offense in football." My brother-in-law, who was at the game in the Dawg Pound, texted me this breakdown, "It was awful". Brown's fans were hanging their heads low on the biggest stage of NFL Football and probably will never be seen on Monday Night Football again. Well, maybe that is an exaggeration, and only because forever is a long time.

It looked to me as if Brady Quinn was running scared from the first moment he touched the ball to the last, as if he was saying, "Here you take it I don't want it." He hurried his set up even when he didn't need to. Two of his last three passes didn't even stay on the playing field. It looked like he was throwing the ball away or could I be mistaken, was there a big gust of wind? Quinn was 13-31 on 99 yards and a rating of only 23.5. The Browns total "offensive" production was 160 yards and zero touchdowns. The Ravens offense was held to no points in the first half and then in the early moments of the second half, things fell apart for the Browns. The Ravens offense only managed 10 points.

The Browns fans can take some pride out of the game from the performance of the defense. The defense hung in there through the whole game. They kept the Ravens scoreless through the first half and their passing attack threw Flacco off balance most of the time. The Ravens only offensive touchdown came on a Rice scamper to the end zone.

The worst part of the whole game came on the last worthless attempt to score. Joshua Cribbs took a pass and in the process of trying to manufacture a senseless score took a hit while handing off the ball and was injured. It was sad to see the Browns best yardage producer carried off the field on a stretcher.

Some questions to ask. Why would you start throwing down field at the end of the game when the defense knows you are desparate for a score and is ready for it? Why not throw the long ball when it would be a surprise, like early in the game or when they least expect it? I understand you need pass protection and a good running attack to set it up, but at least try. Another question. Will the Browns score a touchdown before the season ends? Stay tuned next sunday when the Browns neet the Lions in Detroit.

The Bengals Defeat The Steelers 18-12

The verdict is in, the Bengals are sole owners of the top spot in the AFC North having defeated the Steelers before a home crowd. It seems the Cincinnati Bengals are for real. Their defense takes top honors in today's victory.

The defense of the Bengals had Ben Roethlisberger on his toes the whole game. Roethlisberger was sacked 4 times and hit 4 times and was 20-40 with a rating of only 51.4, including no scores. The only turn over was an interception by Rucker of the Bengals.

There isn't much to say about either offense. Chris Palmer only faired slightly better. Palmer was 18-30 with a rating of 76.8, including no scores. The running game for either team did not have much of an impact. Benson left the game with an injury, so that certainly had an impact on the Bengals running attack.

The only touchdown was scored on a 96 yard kick return by Bernard Scott. Scott's touchdown was the difference in the game with both teams scoring 4 field goals each. The kick return game accumilated the most yardage because of all the field goals in the game. The Bengals dominated this aspect of the game also. The Bengals punted 4 times and the Steelers punted 5 times.

The Bengals play the Raiders next week in Oakland and the Steelers play the Chiefs in Kansa city. The game to watch next is the Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns on Monday Night football. This is the opportunity for the Browns to give their fans something to cheer about, hopefully.