Week 12 Preview:

In honor of this week’s Cowboys-‘Niners tilt, we remember “The Catch” from the 1981 NFC Championship, when Dwight Clark’s grab in the back of the end zone sent the 49’ers on to the first of their many Super Bowl victories, created a dynasty and made Hall of Famers out of Walsh, Montana and (later on) Rice. It remains one of the greatest games in NFL history. This week, there aren’t a lot of great matchups as a lot of the also-rans will be slogging it out amongst themselves and anything goes.

At Cleveland -2.5 Houston 50.5

Seeing as the Texans are a brutal road team the Browns have a really good opportunity to grab another “W” for their embattled coach, thanks to another “Norwood Moment” on Monday night. Quinn suffered a fractured index finger on his throwing hand in last week’s win, so his effectiveness may be limited.

Projected Final Score: Cleveland 24, Houston 20


Buffalo -2.5 At Kansas City 43.5*

A season that started off so promisingly for the Bills has now faded after another heartbreaking loss. At this point Coach Jauron ought to consider giving Trent Edwards some time off to unscramble his brains since he hasn’t been the same player since suffering a concussion. Four turnovers…that’s way too many for one game. The defensive backfield is very bad shape with two starters out, so Thigpen will be wingin’ it all day. The Chiefs are coming off a disheartening home loss and are playing for next year. There are some encouraging signs for the future but not this year.

Projected Final Score: Kansas City 24, Buffalo 21

At Tennessee -5.5 NY Jets 40.5

The surging Jets come to Nashville looking to knock off the 10-0 Titans. Chances are that Favre won’t have the kind of success that he enjoyed in New England, where every time he needed to make a big play he connected. Still, their defensive play left much to be desired as they allowed a wounded opponent to put up over 500 yards of offense. After playing flat in the first half the Titans got their act together and put three touchdowns on the board in Jacksonville, but they haven’t had a “dominating” win in at least a month, so maybe it’s time for them to take a tumble.

Projected Final Score: NY Jets 23, Tennessee 21

At Miami -1.5 New England 42

This is it for the Patriots: a loss here and they can start preparing for 2009. Belichick’s track record has always been very good seeing an opponent the second time around in a season (last year’s Super Bowl notwithstanding). The Dolphins blew away the Patriots last time using the “Wildcat”, but in recent weeks the old school approach has turned stale. Still, they have Pennington, who’s had some success against the Patriots in the past and the Dolphins are simply in far better physical shape than the Patriots. But New England has three extra days of preparation and maybe (just maybe) they pull this one out of the fire.

Projected Final Score: New England 24, Miami 23

At Dallas -10.5 San Francisco 48

This match up won’t be a mirror image of the ’81 NFC Championship, as Dallas has been a disappointment and the 49’ers are taking baby steps back to respectability. The Cowboys saved their season with their victory in Washington last week and are looking to pick up some steam heading into the stretch. “Three-Finger” Romo had a pretty good day …Coach Singletary’s team had a breakout game last week, and while they’re not in the running this year, there is a dramatic paradigm shift evolving in ‘Niner Land. The Cowboys ought to win but the 10 ½ is a bit much to swallow.

Projected Final Score: Dallas 27, San Francisco 20

Tampa Bay -8.5 At Detroit 41

The Bucs have to carry on without Earnest Jackson, who suffered a terrible ankle injury last week and was placed on IR. But Chucky’s Crew remains in the hunt for a postseason and he will motivate the team to bring their best game to Ford Field. Other than Coach Marinelli, who has been a noble leader, there’s really nothing to say about the Lions anymore…

Projected Final Score: Tampa Bay 23, Detroit 14

At Ravens -1.5 Philadelphia 38.5

Both teams are coming off tough out of conference games. McNabb and the Eagles are going to learn quickly that the Ravens’ defense will present a difficult challenge. Unless the Eagles right the ship in the next week or two we may be looking at the twilight of the McNabb/Reid Era in Philly. In recent weeks the media has turned against the Coach and McNabb (though healthy) has played poorly. This was a team with great expectations, but they’ve floundered. The Ravens were flattened like a pancake last week, but they’re still in the thick of things in the AFC North.
Flacco had a rough day with a top notch defense last week and he’s staring down the barrel at yet another. The Ravens have issues in the secondary that McNabb will try to exploit but their front seven is as tough as they come.

Projected Final Score: Ravens 21, Philadelphia 17

Chicago -7.5 At St. Louis 43

The Bears were embarrassed at Lambeau last week, but have the good fortune of visiting the Rams on Sunday, where a victory is highly probable. The issue is whether they’ll cover. All they really have to do is execute with consistency. The Rams have injury problems on the O-Line, but the larger issue is a team that appears to have quit. Right now, it’s a horribly run operation from top to bottom, and it’s not helped by knuckleheads like Incognito popping off in the media. At the end of the day we’re a little skittish about the 8 ½.

Projected Final Score: Chicago 23, St. Louis 20

At Jacksonville -2.5 Minnesota 40

It’s hard to choose between two mediocre teams that appear to be going sideways in a hurry. The Vikings’ coach is incompetent and it appears as if the Jags’ coach has lost the locker room (maybe he ought to bring out the axe again). The only thing the Vikes have going for them is the Magnificent AP, while Jacksonville played a good 30 minutes last week before handing away the game to Tennessee. The Vikings (despite their lukewarm play) are in the fight in the NFC North though quite soon their deficiencies as a team will be exploited. Maybe time has run out for the Jags’ postseason hopes but there should be enough professionalism and pride in the veterans to get the job done at home.

Projected Final Score: Jacksonville 24, Minnesota 21

At Atlanta -1.5 Carolina 42

Of all the games this week, this may be the most pivotal. The Falcons are hot and hungry while the Panthers are looking at this game to put a stamp on the divisional race. If Atlanta wins, they have to be regarded as legitimate contenders in the division rather than just a remarkable turnaround team who plays with nothing to lose. Last week, they suffered a tough loss at home and will be looking to rebound against a better team. This is a game that Carolina simply needs to win, and play with far greater passion than they did in Detroit. If they don’t, the Panthers will be reduced to pretender status.

Projected Final Score: Carolina 27, Atlanta 23

At Denver -9.5 Oakland 43

The Broncos return home after a nice road win and are in the driver’s seat in the AFC West. Team Dysfunction comes to Mile High without having scored an offensive touchdown in eons and are whopping underdogs. Their defense played tough in Miami and they are capable of putting forth a creditable effort every now and then. Besides, this is an old AFL West rivalry that still matters. Shanahan still takes delight in sticking it to Team Davis every chance he can. Champ Bailey may not play on Sunday, but the Raiders really don’t have much of a passing game of which to speak.

Projected Final Score: Denver 27, Oakland 14

Washington -3.5 At Seattle 41.5

The Redskins had another not-so hot outing and were burned by the Cowboys. If they come out on the short end in Seattle, they’ll be playing out the string. The Seahawks lost again last week, but gave Arizona a tough go. There will be no storybook ending for Holmgren this year, but a lot of the key pieces have returned to the lineup after injuries and the players that he assembled do not appear to be the kind who will quit on their coach in the final weeks. With the 12th Man at their backs (a genuine home field advantage), they pull this one out of the fire.

Projected Final Score: Seattle 24, Washington 21

NY Giants -3.5 At Arizona 48.5

The Titans may be undefeated but the G-Men are the best team in football. They’d do well to give Jacobs a rest on Sunday as there are two other battering rams that Coach Coughlin employs with great effectiveness. Last week, the Giants’ offense ripped through the vaunted Ravens D as if they were toilet paper. But the Giants’ defense ought to be the primary concern as Warner will be looking to connect with his stable of receivers all afternoon. The Cardinals came out flat at home against San Francisco in Week 11 and their performances have been mercurial to say the least. Right now, Big Blue has the momentum.

Projected Final Score: NY Giants 28, Arizona 24

At San Diego -2.5 Indianapolis 50

Before the season this game seemed like it’d be a clash between two AFC powers with implications for the post season. Injuries and poor play by both teams have dramatically changed things, but at least Indy is finally healthy and playing well. The Chargers haven’t hit on all cylinders all year. Sure, there have been a few weeks where things have clicked but more often than not, they’ve played out of sync. One thing’s for certain, San Diego will go blitz crazy, but Manning appears to have his mojo back and are gearing up for January. It will be fun watching him pick apart the seams.

Projected Final Score: Indianapolis 31, San Diego 27