A long forgotten feature from over a year ago. While it's been a while, I've been meaning to do these for the last couple of weeks. Since I have a severe case of writer's block today, and have for the past two weeks or so, I thought it'd be interesting to do some picks the final week of this NFL Season!
Detroit at Green Bay
- Green Bay wrapped up everything last week, and Detroit is playing for positioning. While the Packers need to heal their wounds a bit, I expect Aaron Rodgers to play at least a quarter to maintain his composure. The Lions will probably win this one going away to build their confidence against the Packers 2nd team for the 5th seed.
San Francisco at St. Louis
- San Francisco is in the driver's seat for the 2nd seed in the NFC, looking for a 1st round bye. A win here over a team that really doesn't want to win and hasn't wanted to win since the early stages of the season makes this an easy pick.
NY Jets at Miami
- The Dolphins are playing tough, but the Jets need a Playoff spot. I expect the Jets Defense to hold back the Miami Defense just enough so the Jets win and hope for a miracle involving Cincinnati, Oakland and/or Denver.
Chicago at Minnesota
- Minnesota lost Adrian Peterson last week, and he'll probably be gone for next season as well. I expect the Bears Defense to be the difference maker here since both teams will have sub-par Quarterbacks starting for them and neither have a running back worthy of merit playing.
Buffalo at New England
- This one's simple: The Patriots want revenge for their late collapse against the Bills earlier this season when they were the bell of the ball. By winning, they'll get the #1 seed in the AFC again. I think the Patriots want this one just a bit more than the Bills.
Carolina at New Orleans
- This one's a toss-up. The Saints want a #2 seed and a bye in the NFC Playoffs, but the 49ers have the inside track and no opponent. It's possible the Saints will play everyone for a half and rest them at half since they'll be scoreboard watching. I still expect them to win though since the Panthers aren't a second half team, except against third stringers like Jacksonville and Tampa Bay.
Washington at Philadelphia
- The Eagles have had a wild ride. A win will clinch a .500 record and the second seed in the NFC East if it's Dallas. They want to finish strong this season to hope they'll be ready for a run next year, although losing would mean facing Carolina, Chicago and Arizona instead of Atlanta, Detroit and Seattle.
Indianapolis at Jacksonville
- The Colts are playing hard for their Quarterback. Jacksonville isn't playing at all. I expect another close game here, but I think the Colts have stepped their game up while the Jaguars have lost 3 or 4 steps since they last met.
Tennessee at Houston
- The Texans are looking for a 1st round bye right now, but they're a game behind Baltimore and Pittsburgh. While it's possible for both of them to lose, it's not likely. Expect the Texans to play light against the Titans since they're looking for a long shot playoff birth involving Oakland, Cincinnati, the Jets, and Denver losing. Yikes.
Tampa Bay at Atlanta
- Tampa Bay hasn't played a game since early October. Atlanta is going to the Playoffs and wants to face either Dallas or the Giants and not New Orleans again. They'll blow out the Buccaneers here.
Baltimore at Cincinnati
- While the Bengals will have a sold out crowd, the Ravens are looking for a first round bye and home field advantage in the Playoffs. The Bengals, with a win, will get the 6 seed in the Playoffs guaranteed, meaning a likely trip to Houston. I expect the Ravens to win though since they like to prove themselves when they are down on their luck.
Pittsburgh at Cleveland
- The Steelers limped to victory against Cleveland earlier, but now the Steelers are looking for that AFC North crown and a win is necessary. I expect it to be close, but I believe the Pittsburgh defense will lead them to victory here.
Kansas City at Denver
- This is a classic 'you took my job, now I'm back for revenge' game. The only problem is that it's Tim Tebow. The Defense for Denver needs to prove themselves in this game since they've been the reason the Broncos have lost the last two weeks. I think they will, and Tebow will do the rest.
San Diego at Oakland
- Last week San Diego looked like a lost team that had given up. While the Raiders are truly a wild card team, i.e. you never know what you'll get, I expect them to make a statement against the Chargers at home in order to get the AFC's final playoff spot over Cincinnati.
Seattle at Arizona
- This is a meaningless game. It means more to Seattle to finish strong than it does for Arizona who looks to draft a good rookie QB in the upcoming draft.
Dallas at NY Giants
- The Giants barely won the first meeting. The Cowboys lost handily last week. Both teams are very inconsistent. However, I think this is Dallas' time to shine. No one believes in them, and Romo has a habit for doing great things while ill/injured. I expect a tiny route here and another Giants late-season collapse.
That's it for this week, so let's see how things turn out.
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