R.I.P. Houston Antwine

Week 16 Review/Week 17 Preview
For the Week/Season:vs. W/L: (10-6)/158-82
vs. ATS: (6-10)/121-119
vs. Aggregate:  (10-6)/129-111

vs. ATS:
CBS Judge 128-112-0
CBS Brinson 126-114-0
Postcards 121-119-0CBS Freeman 118-122-0
CBS Richard 117-123-0
ESPN Simmons 116-117-1
Walter Football 114-117-11
CBS Prisco 106-118-0
USAT Saraceno 115-119-6

vs. W/L:
ESPN Accuscore 161-79
ESPN Pick 'em 161-79
USAT Nate Davis 160-80
USAT Pete O'Brien 160-80
PFT Rosenthal 159-81
Postcards 158-82USAT Gary Mihoces 158-82
USAT Jarrett Bell 158-82
USAT Tom Pedulla 158-82
ESPN Wickersham 157-83
USAT Jim Corbett 157-83
ESPN Schlereth 157-83
ESPN Golic 154-86
ESPN Allen 153-85
USAT Jon Saraceno 154-86
USAT Robert Klemko 154-86
PFT Florio 152-88
ESPN Hoge 152-87
ESPN Schefter 150-90
ESPN Mortensen 148-92

Week 17 opens on a sad note as former Patriots’ great Houston Antwine passed away earlier this week at the age of 72. For those of us who have followed the Boston Patriots since their days at Fenway Park, Antwine was a great defensive lineman who was one of the terrors of the AFL.

For most of these teams, Week 17 is the final bell in what was a long and grueling schedule. For players on these teams it’s the last chance for the coaches to get a look prior to the off season and free agency period.

At Philadelphia

-9.5

Washington

46.5

The Eagles simply peaked at the wrong time. Had they played this well in the early going, they would’ve lived up to the preseason hype. Now the only place they’re going is home. It was another lost year in the DC as the ‘Skins fell to a weak Vikings’ team last week. Talk about a team in desperate need of a quarterback, Washington is at the top of the list.

Projected Final Score: Philadelphia 28, Washington 20

At Atlanta

-12.5

Tampa Bay

46.5

It’s hard to see Coach Morris retaining his job after the manner in which his team laid down like dogs over the second half of the season. Atlanta’s pretty much locked into their Wild Card slot, so there’s not much to play for and Coach Smith may rest a lot of the regulars.

Projected Final Score: Atlanta 27, Tampa Bay 10

San Francisco

-11.5

At St. Louis

35.5

Speaking of coaches on the hot seat, things must be quite uncomfortable for Coach Spagnuolo. This has been yet another interminably long season for the Rams and what remains of their fan base. The ‘Niners have nothing to play for as they’re locked in with the two-seed. It’ll be interesting to see how long Coach Harbaugh will play the regulars.

Projected Final Score: San Francisco 23, St. Louis 13

Chicago

-1.5

At Minnesota

41

Josh McCown proved to be a slight improvement over Caleb Hanie, still it wasn’t enough to prevent the Bears from getting smoked on Sunday night at Lambeau. The Vikings may have won in Washington but it was a pyrrhic victory as AP suffered a horrific knee injury and Christian Ponder left the game with a concussion. This may or may not be the Vikings’ final game in Minnesota as their lease with the Baggie Dome expires at the end of the year. The legislature has treated the funding and location of a new venue like a political football, and if they continue playing games the Vikings will follow the Lakers in a permanent trip to L.A. Let’s hope the Vikes get a new outdoor stadium as their great teams of the ‘60’s and ‘70’s always seemed to play their best football in inclement conditions.

Projected Final Score: Minnesota 21, Chicago 17

Detroit

-1.5

At Green Bay

46.5

Both teams are headed for January Football and there’s nothing to play for but pride on Sunday. Coach McCarthy has been circumspect regarding the availability of his starters this week, and the Packers have earned the right to play it in whatever manner they choose. The Lions are in place as the six-seed and we’ll have to see whether Coach Schwartz will play it full tilt or rest his starters.

Projected Final Score: Detroit 27, Green Bay 24

At NY Giants

-3.5

Dallas

46

Finally, we arrive at a game that actually means something. It’s a zero-sum game at the Meadowlands as the winner will be moving on to the tournament and the losers will be watching from their couches. Romo suffered a hand injury early in last week’s home loss to Philly. Coach Garrett has indicated that Romo will be “fine”. Maybe his throwing hand will be but Romo has a notorious reputation of choking when the stakes are high.

Projected Final Score: NY Giants 24, Dallas 20

At New Orleans

-8.5

Carolina

55

Would it shock anyone if the Saints basically took the day off and let Cam Newton run wild? The Saints are locked into the three-seed and are looking to fry bigger fish than the Panthers. Newton and the Panthers would love nothing better than to end their season with a bang. They have nothing to lose while this game is no more than an exhibition for the Saints.

Projected Final Score:  New Orleans 27, Carolina 24

Tennessee

-3.5

At Houston

40

Despite being locked into the three-seed, the Texans face a tough test at home with that team that formerly played in Houston as the Oilers. The Texans lost to Indianapolis last Thursday night as it appears as if T.J. Yates’ bubble has burst. The Titans are coming off of a workmanlike win over woeful Jacksonville and would like to finish 2011 on a high note.

Projected Final Score: Houston 23, Tennessee 21

Ravens

-2.5

At Cincinnati

38

The Ravens continue to eye-ball that top seed in the AFC. With a win and a New England loss they can accomplish that feat. Standing in their way are the playoff-bound Bengals, who would love nothing better than to polish off their old foe at home.

Projected Final Score: Ravens 24, Cincinnati 20

Pittsburgh

7.5

At Cleveland

36

The momentary loss of Roethlisberger proved to be no problem for the Steelers last week as Charlie Batch led the offense to a big shutout win over the hapless Rams. Whether Big Ben sits or plays this week is still up in the air. Better to have him at full strength heading into the tournament than risking a needless injury. The Browns wrap up the season at home and certainly have nothing to lose playing full bore, so as to give their beleaguered fans a happy memory heading into next year.

Projected Final Score: Pittsburgh 24, Cleveland 10

At Jacksonville

-4.5

Indianapolis

37

 Does it get any worse than this? Seriously, the only fans that should be forced to pay anything to sit in the stands are those who refuse to wear a bag over their heads. What’s at stake here? Nothing.

Projected Final Score:  Jacksonville 20, Indianapolis 16

At Miami

-1.5

NY Jets

41.5

The Dolphins played a great first half in Foxboro last week, going out to a 17-0 lead. It was too bad that the NFL didn’t call off the rest of the game, because the Patriots (as is their wont) roared back to post a 27-24 victory. The Jets folded up like a house of cards in their big crosstown rivalry game against the G-Men last week. Some hard words were directed at the Loudmouth after the game ended and the Jets now have to depend on other teams’ misfortunes if they hope to back into the playoffs.

Projected Final Score: NY Jets 24, Miami 21

At New England

-12.5

Buffalo

51

The Patriots have this annoying habit of starting off slowly/poorly before getting their act in gear and overpowering the opposition. Sooner or later, they’re bound to get burned playing catch-up. Last week, they spotted Miami a 17-0 lead at half time. This week they face a different conundrum: do they play full tilt for 60 minutes to get that #1 seed in the AFC or do they rest their starters? The Bills have already beaten New England earlier in the year before going into a tailspin. They’ll be ready to play a full 60 on Sunday. It remains to be seen how the Patriots will play things.

Projected Final Score:  New England 27, Buffalo 23

At Oakland

-3.5

San Diego

49

The Raiders’ slim playoff hopes rest on a win here and a Broncos’ loss in KC. The Raiders prevailed in OT over the Chiefs last week so anything can happen in the old AFL Wild West. This game should be no different. The Chargers were humbled in Detroit last week and would like to cap off Norv Turner’s tenure with a victory. That’ll be a tough go as the Black Hole ought to be in rare form for this game.

Projected Final Score: Oakland 24, San Diego 20

At Denver

-3.5

Kansas City

37

The Broncos have to win and they’re in. They need to rebound from last week’s utter humiliation by the Bills and need to put that game in the rear view mirror as quickly as possible. The jury’s still out on Tebow. Was he finally exposed in the New England game or were the past two weeks an anomaly. This week, the Broncs will face a tough, well-disciplined Chiefs’ defense that will use the playbooks used by the Pats and Bills to shutdown Tebow. It ought to be one of the better games on this week’s slate.

Projected Final Score: Denver 23, Kansas City 17

At Arizona

-3.5

Seattle

41

The Seahawks and Cards wrap up the regular season in Glendale. Both teams are coming off losses but it was the ‘Hawks that were nipped by two points at the end. Neither of these teams has anything to play for but pride, so it’ll be interesting to see which team actually cares.

Projected Final Score: Seattle 23, Arizona 20