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 16 NFL Picks-The Field Is Narrowing Down

Poor execution at critical moments was the predominant theme in Week 15. The Giants squandered a substantial lead by letting Michael Vick out of his cage and with 14 seconds left watched the game literally slip through their fingers. DeSean Jackson took an errant Dodge punt 65 yards straight up the middle of the Giants special teams for a touchdown. Tom Coughlin went bananas on the field. Too bad because Eli Manning had such a good game. Jacksonville had another "what the heck happened" game. The contest still winnable despite being behind late in the fourth, Jacksonville's Scobee attemted an onside kick with 1:54 that went straight to Hagler of the Colts who scooped up the ball and blew past everyone 41 yards for a touchdown. Finally, we come to the Patriots-Packers game. How do you let an offensive lineman take a kickoff 71 yards? The Packers coaches were probably asking that very question after their loss to the Patriots. Dan Connolly's blazing speed caught the Packers off guard. It's that simple, or is it?

Some Divisions are still up for grabs and Week 16 may clarify who may come out on top. The AFC North is still undecided. Pittsburgh plays Carolina and Baltimore plays Cleveland. The Steelers should have no problem with the Panthers, if they confine Jonathan Stewart. The Browns could put a wooden stake into the hearts of the Ravens and possess the capability, which would put Pittsburgh back in the driver's seat. That's a huge maybe. Where's Joshua Cribbs? Tennessee pulled off a shocker against Houston. The Titan defense plagued Schuab and both Chris Johnson and Kerry Collins had good games. If the Titans repeat, Kansas City will be in a fight for their life. Favre is in, Favre is out. Philadelphia is going to put the hammer to Minnesota. Seattle and St. Louis are neck and neck. Between the two, St. Louis has the better odds of winning this week. San Diego is playing Cicinnati and is in a must win situation. Should be no problem for the Chargers, you would think. The Chargers have played us for fools before.

The games of the week are Indianapolis at Oakland, NY Giants at Green Bay, New Orleans at Atlanta, NY Jets at Chicago. Peyton Manning is still a beat off with making big throws. If he gets back in sinc this week, look out Oakland. Unfortunately, Manning will have to do it without Austin Collie, but he has other weapons. One thing Oakland has that Indy doesn't is a running game, and Indy's defense is weak against the run. Oakland's defense is 5th against the pass, but 26th against the run. Maybe Peyton should fool everyone and run a few times. The Giants are coming off a heart breaker as well as the Packers. Aaron Rodgers is back, which is bad news for the Giants. For the Giants to win, Eli Manning is going to have to hold his own against a good pass defense. The Giants defense is up to the challenge, if they don't fall asleep again.

Atlanta has won eight in a row and is scoring touchdowns. They are solid at every position. New Orleans only hope for a playoff is a wildcard spot because Atlanta has already wrapped up the division. Atlanta has a chance to take the Saints out for good. Drew Brees will have to put out his best to survive. The NY Jets against Chicago is huge. The Jets have spent their nine lives. They have won in dramatic fashion games that could have easily went to the loss column. Sanchez to Holmes has been a winning combination at pivotal moments and against the Bear's defense nothing short of spectacular will do. They are playing in Cold-Chago, windy Cold-Chago, Bear country. Chicago exerted their domination in Week 15 against collasped Vikings. If Cutler continues to avoid the costly mistake, it will be an easy win.

Can a team win their division with a losing record? St. Louis and Seattle just might. Either team will have to win their next two games to avoid that honorable distinction. It has happened before. The Browns and Lions both entered the 1982 playoffs with 4-5 records because of a strike shortened season. Too bad the Browns weren't in the NFC West this year.

 

THU, DEC 23 TIME (ET)

Carolina 15 at Pittsburgh 27 8:20 PM NFL W

Heinz Field

SAT, DEC 25 TIME (ET)

Dallas 23 at Arizona 18 7:30 PM NFL L 

U of Phoenix Stadium

SUN, DEC 26 TIME (ET)

Washington 20 at Jacksonville 24 1:00 PM FOX L 

EverBank Field

Detroit 23 at Miami 24 1:00 PM FOX L

Sun Life Stadium

San Francisco 18 at St. Louis 25 1:00 PM FOX W

Edward Jones Dome

Tennessee 24 at Kansas City 21 1:00 PM CBS L 

Arrowhead Stadium

NY Jets 20 at Chicago 26 1:00 PM CBS W

Soldier Field

New England 30 at Buffalo 20 1:00 PM CBS W 

Ralph Wilson Stadium

Baltimore 24 at Cleveland 23 1:00 PM CBS W

Cleveland Browns Stadium

Houston 24 at Denver 18 4:05 PM CBS L 

Invesco Field at Mile High

San Diego 28 at Cincinnati 21 4:05 PM CBS L 

Paul Brown Stadium

Indianapolis 34 at Oakland 24 4:05 PM CBS W 

Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum

NY Giants 20 at Green Bay 27 4:15 PM FOX W 

Lambeau Field

Seattle 23 at Tampa Bay 27 4:15 PM FOX W

Raymond James Stadium

Minnesota 18 at Philadelphia 32 8:20 PM NBC L 

Lincoln Financial Field

MON, DEC 27 TIME (ET)

New Orleans 27 at Atlanta 28 8:30 PM L

Georgia Dome

Week 13 NFL Picks-The Best Is Yet To Come

What a week in NFL football. One player should have kept on running into the stadium tunnel and out the gates and one official should have lost himself in the crowd. The player was Buffalo Bills wide receiver Steve Johnson verses the Steelers. A perfectly executed pass in overtime landed right into his hands in the end zone and he dropped it. One of those defining moments when a thin line separates you from being a  hero or a goat. As quickly as the ball slipped through his hands so to the game for the Bills. An official missed an obvious pass interference on Reggie Wayne that ended up with Wayne on the ground and Eric Weddle of the Chargers running 41 yards with a pick into the end zone. Mistakes like that by officials definately impact the final outcome of a game. Alright, you could argue Indy was being manhandled by the Chargers, but at that juncture in the game it was still only 19-14 and who knows what could have happened with the proper call and the Colts having a fresh set of downs at midfield.

Week 12 is now in the books and I was 9-7. New Orleans is at Cincinnati and an easy call, unless the Bengals finally play to the potential that was expected of them. Roll on Big O's, Cincinnati's stars of Follywood. Chicago is firing on all cylinders. Detroits spark plugs are a bit fouled causing them to stall out at crucial moments. Still, the Bears can't allow themselves to get caught napping at the wheel because the Lions could suddenly surge unexpectedly. Buffalo is visiting Minnesota. The Bills are the hard luck team of the season. The dropped pass in the end against the Steelers in overtime epitomized that foregone conclusion. I give the edge to the Vikings only because it is a home game.

There are quite a few games of interest this week. Washington is at NY Giants. The Giants need a win to stay in contention with Philadelphia. The Giants defense is up to the challenge, but their offense needs to avoid making the game altering mistakes it has been prone to commit. Dallas is at Indianapolis. Dallas has vastly improved themselves and Indianapolis has been trying to overcome critical injuries in their running and passing attack. The frustration is written all over Manning's face. It's a must win for the Colts. Pittsburgh is at Baltimore. The Steelers showed their vulnerability against Buffalo. This game will be a fierce battle for the number one spot in the AFC North. The NY Jets at New England game will be a fight for dominance in the AFC East. The Jets have been fortunate for a good part of the season. They will need a heavy dose of fortunate against the Patriots because they are outmatched by the Brady machine. The Patriots defense will need to keep Ladanian Tomlinson in check and cover Santonio Holmes like a blanket in the final minutes.

Finally, Cleveland travels to Miami. Jake Delhomme will start for the Browns. Delhomme looked steady in the first half against the Panthers last week and then briefly lost it at the start of the second. Jake does not have a pass with alot of zip. He needs to stay away from trying to slip passes into close coverage or lofting it towards the sidelines. Peyton Hillis should get the ball often giving Cleveland a balanced attack and opening up opportunities for Jake to take advantage of. Miami is not the Panthers and are a formidable foe. The Jets strong spot, pass defense, will be matched against the Browns weak spot, pass offense. The Jets key to victory will be controlling Hillis. Good luck with that one Miami and hope to see more of Joshua Cribbs.

 

THU, DEC 2 TIME (ET)

Houston 20 at Philadelphia 28 8:20 PM NFL W 

Lincoln Financial Field

SUN, DEC 5 TIME (ET)

New Orleans 27 at Cincinnati 18 1:00 PM FOX W

Paul Brown Stadium

Chicago 24 at Detroit 23 1:00 PM FOX W 

Ford Field

San Francisco 17 at Green Bay 24 1:00 PM FOX W 

Travel Lambeau Field

Jacksonville 23 at Tennessee 15 1:00 PM CBS W

LP Field

Denver 20 at Kansas City 23 1:00 PM CBS W

Arrowhead Stadium

Cleveland 27 at Miami 24 1:00 PM CBS W 

Sun Life Stadium

Buffalo 20 at Minnesota 21 1:00 PM CBS W

Travel Mall of America Field

Washington 24 at NY Giants 27 1:00 PM FOX W

New Meadowlands Stadium

Oakland 21 at San Diego 28 4:05 PM CBS L 

Qualcomm Stadium

Carolina 18 at Seattle 24 4:15 PM FOX W 

Qwest Field

Atlanta 24 at Tampa Bay 20 4:15 PM FOX W 

Raymond James Stadium

St. Louis 20 at Arizona 23 4:15 PM FOX L

U of Phoenix Stadium

Dallas 20 at Indianapolis 34 4:15 PM FOX L

Lucas Oil Stadium

Pittsburgh 23 at Baltimore 24 8:20 PM NBC L 

M&T Bank Stadium

MON, DEC 6 TIME (ET)

NY Jets 20 at New England 33 8:30 PM W 

Gillette Stadium

Browns Lose In Stunning Fashion To The Jets In OT-Final Score 26-20

After dismantling two of the top contending teams, the Browns lose in a heartbreaker. A mental error and a lapse in agressive tackling turned a great effort into a loss. Santonio Holmes took a pass from Sanchez and proceeded to weave around the frozen in their tracks Browns coverage for the winning score in OT. The mental error was rookie cornerback Joe Haden intercepting a ball he should have knocked down to force the Jets to punt with just over a minute left in OT. Who knows what the result of that punt would have been, but in all fairness to Haden, when you are in the heat of the moment and the adrenaline is pumping the obvious isn't so clear and defining. He did what a cornerback is supposed to do when the opportunity presents itself, intercept the ball. Any other time in the game it would have been an oustanding defensive play, just not in overtime when one play can mean your demise.

The Browns had a chance of winning their third straight, but a Chansi Stuckey fumble at New York's 32 yanked that chance away. Aside from that fumble, the Browns offense put in a decent day. Colt McCoy was error free and threw a touchdown in a pivotal moment of the game. Peyton Hillis ran for 82 yards and one touchdown. Joshua Cribbs looked good until an injury removed him from the game. The other offensive player that helped the Browns cause was Nick Folk of the Jets. His three missed field goals made it possible for the Browns to stay alive in regulation time.

The Browns may not make it into the playoffs, though it is still a remote possibility. But they are making a show of it. They have been handling a tough schedule remarkably, which at the beginning of the year you could have very easily been looking at an merciless string of losses these few past weeks. Hopefully, this loss didn't take the air out of the balloon. Cleveland next goes to Jacksonville. The Jaguars are bursting at the seams with hot air after pulling off a well conceived desparation pass against Houston for a win. The Jets game is history, Jacksonville is the next first step towards the playoffs.

Week Five NFL Picks-Who Will It Be Week

The biggest shocker of Week Four was the Colts loss to the Jaguars and the fashion in which it was accomplished. A one desparation shot at the crossbars with the game clock almost spent succeeded and Josh Scobee was running around like a crazed madman. The 59 yard field goal left the Colts with their jaws on the ground and handed them their second loss. Crucial mistakes by the Colts assisted in their downfall. The best game of the week in my opinion was the Steeler and Ravens matchup. It was head to head all the way to the end. With a few ticks left on the clock Joe Flacco found T.J. Houshmandzadeh wide open in the end zone for the winning score. The most lopsided victory of the week goes to the Patriots on Monday Night Football against Miami by the score of 41-14. This one was all defense and special teams for the Patriots. Miami looked solid until after halftime when it all unraveled.

I was 9-5 in Week Four. Decent, but still have to improve. Trying for that perfect week. This weeks game to watch is the Atlanta-Cleveland game. Can the Browns make it two in a row? Atlanta is hot and the Browns will need to be on their toes, especially Dawson, since Atlanta likes it close having played two overtime games thus far this season. I'm picking the Browns at home. The question this week involves the Detroit Lions. Can they get their first win? You can't fault them for trying because trying is what they have been doing week to week. What can go wrong does go wrong in the Lions case. This week against the Rams the Lions will have their opportunity, if some odd thing doesn't mess it up.

 

Most of the other match-ups this week are your pretty standard, run of the mill games. The only exception will be the game between the Vikings and the Jets. Randy Moss is back and Brett Favre has a big piece of the offensive puzzle completed. The Jets are on a winning streak and will be getting a piece of their offensive puzzle in place with Santonio Holmes returning. Who will have the biggest impact: Moss or Holmes? Stay tuned to Monday Night Football. It will be a good one. Oh, almost forgot the Giants and Texans game.  Run Foster run. Nothing more needs to be said.

 

SUN, OCT 10 TIME (ET)

Jacksonville 21 at Buffalo 18 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W

Ralph Wilson Stadium

Tampa Bay 15 at Cincinnati 24 1:00 PM FOX Tickets L

Paul Brown Stadium

Atlanta 20 at Cleveland 23 1:00 PM FOX Tickets L

Cleveland Browns Stadium

St. Louis 14 at Detroit 18 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W

Ford Field

Kansas City 17 at Indianapolis 34 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W

Lucas Oil Stadium

Green Bay 30 at Washington 23 1:00 PM FOX Tickets L

FedEx Field

Chicago 25 at Carolina 21 1:00 PM FOX Tickets W

Bank of America Stadium

Denver 17 at Baltimore 24 1:00 PM CBS Tickets W

M&T Bank Stadium

NY Giants 27 at Houston 30 1:00 PM FOX Tickets L

Reliant Stadium

New Orleans 23 at Arizona 12 4:05 PM FOX Tickets L

U of Phoenix Stadium

San Diego 28 at Oakland 20 4:15 PM CBS Tickets L

Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum

Tennessee 18 at Dallas 17 4:15 PM CBS Tickets W

Cowboys Stadium

Philadelphia 24 at San Francisco 20 8:20 PM NBC Tickets W

Candlestick Park

MON, OCT 11 TIME (ET)

Minnesota 27 at NY Jets 24 8:30 PM Tickets L

New Meadowlands Stadium