Week 10 Previews:

Jacksonville -6.5 At Detroit 45

The Jags may be the NFL’s biggest disappointment so far. Predicted to contend in the AFC South, they’ve wallowed between mediocrity and terrible. There appears to be some dissension within the ranks as Mike Peterson was sent home and the coach played “musical lockers” to shake things up in the locker room. With that as a backdrop, they go to Detroit to face the winless Lions, who will now feature the well-traveled Daunte Culpepper at quarterback. Before a terrible knee injury Culpepper was a force with which to be reckoned. Now (after a half-season in “retirement”) that he’s grabbed another payday he’s looking to relaunch what was at one time a promising career. It’s a no-lose proposition for the player and a team that’s desperately looking to generate something—anything positive.

Projected Final Score: Detroit 24, Jacksonville 23

Tennessee -2.5 At Chicago 38.5

Those undefeated Titans (having escaped defeat by the most narrow of margins last week) now travel to Chicago for a date with Da Bears who will probably be without Kyle Orton for this one. The Bears spotted Detroit a pretty good lead before coming back big last week. If the Bears have to rely on King Rex and find themselves in the same desperate straits as last week, they’ll quickly discover that the Titans’ D will not be as charitable as Detroit’s. This will be a very tough challenge for the Titans as their running game will be hard-pressed to register big gains against Chicago’s run stuffers.

Projected Final Score: Tennessee 23, Chicago 20.

At New England -4.5 Buffalo 43

After a tough loss at home, the Bills come to Foxboro in a three-way tie atop the AFC East. After Brady went down in Week 1, most Patriots’ fans believed that either the Jets or Buffalo would have run away with the division lead. It is encouraging that the Patriots have hung in there while their divisional rivals have yet to step up. Buffalo has injury problems on defense and the offense has been sputtering of late. The Patriots played one of their better games of the year last week despite losing. One dropped pass and an uncharacteristically stupid penalty decided the game. Cassel appears to be improving week by week and one or more of his injured running backs are due to return.

Projected Final Score: New England 23, Buffalo 17

At Atlanta -1 New Orleans 49

A year ago, no one could’ve predicted that the Falcons’ turnaround would come about so quickly, The Saints were expected to contend in the NFC South, but they’ve been inconsistent. If only they could play as they did in London perhaps the picture would be less cloudy. Coming off a bye, Bush is still out of the lineup but Brees has a number of options. Matt Ryan and the Falcons are having a wonderful season, coming off of a totally dominating win in Oakland but the Saints will pose a tough test for a young team. So far, they’ve played very well at home and their confidence will be sky high.

Projected Final Score: Atlanta 24, New Orleans 20.


At NY Jets -7.5 St. Louis 44.5

The Jets took advantage of Buffalo’s poor play last week to post a big road win last week, it belonged more to the defense than Favre and the offense. After playing a quality opponent last week, the Jets revert to the usual cupcakes on the schedule. The question is which Jets team will show up on Sunday? The Rams’ momentum after the coaching change now appears to have evaporated, as Kurt Warner torched his former team last week. Still, they played quite well in Foxboro a few weeks back even though they were on the short end. If the Jets smoked Arizona and Arizona smoked St. Louis, does it logically follow that the Jets smoke St. Louis? Hmmm…

Projected Final Score: NY Jets 24, St. Louis 16

At Miami -8.5 Seattle 43.5

Two teams rapidly moving in opposite directions collide at the intersection relevance and next year. It’s remarkable to see how quickly Miami has risen from the depths and conversely, how Seattle has plummeted into the abyss. No team can sustain the degree of injuries that Seattle has suffered and hope to remain competitive. The Dolphins punched their ticket out of the hole last week with a convincing win in Denver and it’s astounding to see a team that won only once last year heavily favored against a team for whom big things were predicted. If the Dolphins play with the consistency they showed last week on the road, it’s going to be a long flight home for the visitors.

Projected Final Score: Miami 23, Seattle 13.

At Minnesota -2.5 Green Bay 45.5

This ought to be the Game of the Week, and the very idea that it’s not being played in the November elements is an affront to the sport. The Vikes are on a roll, having pulled back to .500 and are looking to hand the Pack their second straight defeat. Green Bay showed their mettle last week, bowing out to the Titans in overtime. However, this week they have to contend with AP and Frerotte, who has discovered the ol’ Midas Touch of late.
Green Bay’s secondary is top notch and that may be the difference maker in a game that will be as hard fought as any all season.

Projected Final Score: Green Bay 24, Minnesota 23.

Carolina -8.5 At Oakland 38.5

Last week, the Oakland Raiders put forth a historically bad performance. DeAngelo Hall was torched so often and so badly last week that he was fired before this week’s game. What about that 7-year, $70MM contract? After eight games Hall was unceremoniously cut loose. Davis has shelled out more bad money and draft picks on toxic free agents than have the crooks on Wall Street, who were handing out mortgages like Christmas candy before the piper came calling. Things will continue to deteriorate in Oakland as long as the mad genius remains in control, which is a truly pathetic state of affairs for a team that was at one time considered to be one which rivals greatly feared and respected. The Panthers go west with the purpose of solidifying their spot in the NFC South. It’s a great opportunity for a team that’s going someplace to put the pedal to the metal against a pack of losers and ramp up that playoff push into overdrive.

Projected Final Score: Carolina 23, Oakland 7

At San Diego -14.5 Kansas City 47

These sorts of spreads ought to give anyone pause to consider just how often favorites cover such odds. Not very often, the statistics indicate. The Chiefs had a great start last week against the Bucs before the talent imbalance tipped in favor of the visitors. After a week of R&R, the Chargers return to the battle with a new defensive coordinator and hopefully, a new attitude. Ted Cottrell was deposed in favor of former Bear Ron Rivera, who is expected to go blitz happy. Taylor Thigpen had his best day as a pro last week against a pretty tough defense, and some of KC’s weapons on offense are beginning to blossom. Despite their wildly inconsistent play, the Chargers are capable of putting together a run in the second half and blowing away their divisional rivals. (Granted, the AFC West is a pretty sorry bunch). The Chargers could just as easily have a dominating win as much as a mediocre performance. The Chargers will win, but the 14 ½? What have they done this year to justify such exuberance?

Projected Final Score: San Diego 27, Kansas City 14.

At Pittsburgh -2.5 Indianapolis 39.5

The Steelers had a very impressive road win last week and are looking forward to smacking around Manning & Co. come Sunday afternoon. Big Ben went out with an injury and Leftwich stepped right in seamlessly maintained Pittsburgh’s attack. Rothlisberger’s a question mark for Sunday, and the best thing is to allow him to properly heal for the stretch drive and playoffs. Even though they won last week, Indy doesn’t seem to be the same team this year, and it seems like the balance of power in the AFC has shifted to Pittsburgh. The only way that Indy comes out of this victorious is for Manning to have success in the air. To do that he needs the proper “ground support”. Seeing as there’s not much of a running attack and the O-Line has been a patchwork crew all year, that’s a tall order against a team that’s hungry and mean.

Projected Final Score: Pittsburgh 24, Indianapolis 21


At Philadelphia -2.5 NY Giants 43

The G-Men take the short hop down to Philly for a Sunday Night tilt with the Eagles, who are desperately trying to keep pace in the NFC East. How is it that the best team in the NFL comes into this game as an underdog? The Giants had a pretty convincing win against a depleted Dallas squad last week while the Eagles came back from a slow start to win in Seattle.

Projected Final Score: NY Giants 24, Philadelphia 23

At Houston -2 Ravens 43/strong>

Give the Texans credit, as they hung in tough with Minnesota last week, but this is consecutive weeks against a tough defense, and players can only take so much of a beating. Schaub is injured and Rosenfels is starting. Sage is a capable 1-A quarterback, so it won’t be a dramatic dropoff in performance. Joe Flacco led the Ravens to a big comeback win in the second half at Cleveland and appears ahead of schedule in his development. It will be interesting to see how he competes against Mad Mario. The Ravens’ D (while getting a bit long in the tooth) remains a very tough nut to crack.

Projected Final Score: Ravens 19, Houston 17