"Same As It Ever Was..."

Week 13 Preview

Well, it’s on to Week 13 after another decent week of forecasting. Not great, but we’ll take it.

At Chicago  -3.5    Seattle          37.5

On to the Sunday games, where the Bears kick things off with a home date against the “pumped and jacked” Seahawks.  Both of Seattle’s twin-tower cornerbacks have been caught violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, so it’s not known whether they’ll be taking an early four-week vacation or they’ll appeal the finding. Seattle lost in Miami on a last second field goal after having the Dolphins on the ropes for much of the game. The Bears had a great afternoon with Cutler feeling healthy as they easily overwhelmed the Vikings. This week, they ought to look at Seattle as easy pickin’s but Russell Wilson can be dangerous. If neither of the ‘Hawks cornerbacks are available, this could be another cakewalk in Chicago.

Projected Final Score: Chicago 24, Seattle 20

 

At Green Bay         -8.5    Minnesota   46.5

Somebody’s going to have to pay for that disgraceful outing on Sunday night against the Giants and it might as well be the Vikings. After having been flattened by the Bears last week, any hopes for a Wild Card shot for the Vikes are slim to none. Even at 6-5, they’d pretty much have to run the table to get in and that’s not happening. The Pack is now 7-4 and just a game ahead of Minnesota. And the Pack has injury problems with which to contend. The Packers most likely have to settle for a Wild Card shot, barring a meltdown by Chicago. You’d have to think that there is sufficient motivation in the locker room to deal forcefully with a divisional opponent and get the ship moving back in the right direction. 

Projected Final Score: Green Bay 27, Minnesota 20

San Francisco       -7        At St. Louis    40.5

After a dominant win in New Orleans, the ‘Niners travel up the Mighty Mississip’ for a divisional showdown with the Rams. These teams played to a tie a couple of weeks ago and it’s reasonable to consider that the Rams will give San Francisco a run for their money. Back in the days when the Rams played in LA, this used to be a big rivalry game. These days, it’s not so much in part because the Rams are doing a full rebuild on the fly with Coach Fisher. The Rams are coming off of a very satisfying win over Arizona. Combining that with their performance at Candlestick, the Rams have to be really excited at the chance to knock off the NFC West leaders.

Projected Final Score: San Francisco 23, St. Louis 20

At NY Jets   -4.5    Arizona        37

Yes, it can get worse than Monday night’s Eagles-Panthers game. The Jets disgraced themselves before a national audience on Thanksgiving night. Even Fireman Ed has thrown in the towel. We actually picked the Jets to win (WHAT WERE WE THINKING???). It was expected that the Jets would ground and pound with a mixture of short passes by Sanchez to keep the game competitive. It turns out that they turned over the ball repeatedly, allowing the Pats to score three touchdowns in less than 30 seconds. They played to the best of their ability, hit hard (as Edelman can attest) but were simply overwhelmed by New England. They will continue to play hard for Coach Rex and this week play an opponent that’s more at their level. The Cardinals lost at home last Sunday to a relatively weak Rams’ squad and now sit in dead last in the AFC West at 4-7. What’s left of the offense is in tatters and really can’t be counted on to move the ball effectively. They have to hope that the Jets continue to shoot themselves in the foot and that’s a recipe for disaster.

Projected Final Score: NY Jets 23, Arizona 10

 

Carolina      -3        At Kansas City       40.5

There’s finally a winnable game on the Chiefs’ schedule, hoo-ah! The Chiefs gave it their all last week against the Broncos and could only muster three field goals. There’s a reason why they’re 1-10: THEY HAVE NO QUARTERBACK. The defense stepped up and played a full 60, limiting Peyton Manning to two touchdowns and a field goal but KC’s offense is incapable of moving the football in the positive.  After Monday night’s convincing win over Philly, the Panthers find themselves on the cusp of a little roll. It may not be enough to get into the playoffs, but it will certainly help the collective psyche of the offense to play with greater consistency. For the Chiefs, the abomination of a season can’t get over soon enough.

Projected Final Score: Carolina 24, Kansas City 17

At Detroit    -4.5    Indianapolis         51

The Lions have to feel that they were jobbed by that call that gave the Texans a touchdown in the second half of Thanksgiving Day’s game. Actually, if Coach Schwartz hadn’t thrown the challenge flag, the touchdown would’ve been automatically reviewed and the call overturned. But in the emotion of the moment (the runner’s knee was clearly on the turf), Schwartz cost his team seven points that would prove crucial as the Texans came back to win in overtime. The sour tastes in their mouths has to remain after losing in such disheartening fashion. This week, 7-4 Indy comes to town looking to continue with their playoff push with Andrew Luck at the controls. Indy defeated Buffalo by a touchdown and the team is on an emotional high, having rallied ‘round Coach Pagano’s illness and recovery. This will be yet another tough test for Luck, as he faces a defense with its back up against the wall. 

Projected Final Score: Detroit 27, Indianapolis 21

At Buffalo   -6        Jacksonville          45

The Bills are trying to rebound from a disappointing loss against Indy and this week have a fighting chance against the Jaguars, who defeated Tennessee at home last week. There’s no doubt that the Jags have played considerably better on offense since Chad Henne took over for the injured Blaine Gabbert. The question is whether they can continue this trend against a speedy and aggressive defense. Stevie Johnson wants the Bills’ offense to open up more but with weapons like Spiller coming out of the backfield it’s hard to see Coach Gailey changing course. The Bills are what they are: a middling team with brief moments of explosiveness. All they need on Sunday is for Fitzpatrick to get on a roll and they’ll be off to the races.

Projected Final Score: Buffalo 24, Jacksonville 23

New England         -7.5     At Miami     51.5

Although the Patriots put 49 points up on the board on Thanksgiving night, most folks concluded that Brady was not all that sharp with his passes. New England benefitted from several Jet blunders and turned those mistakes into points, otherwise, who knows how the game might’ve turned out. The Patriots were gift-wrapped a boatload of opportunities and capitalized on every one. That’s not going to happen every week, though the Pats do lead the league in takeaway/giveaway ratio. This week, they travel to a venue that’s always been tough. At least the broiling heat is gone, though Miami has always been a bit of an Achilles heel for the Patriots. This week, they get their first look at Ryan Tannehill, who just beat out Dan Marino for most passing yardage by a Dolphins’ rookie. If somehow Tannehill’s name can stay in the same sentence with Marino’s over time then the Dolphins will once more become perennial contenders as they were under Marino and Shula. Last week, the Dolphins came back late at home against Seattle to post a last-second win courtesy of Carpenter’s field goal. That has to have them feeling optimistic about their chances this week against New England.

Projected Final Score: New England 28, Miami 24

Houston      -6        At Tennessee         47

The Texans may be 10-1 but they haven’t been winning in impressive fashion of late. Maybe it’s a case of some of the injuries on defense finally catching up but they seem to be flat over the last month or so. This week, they travel to Nashville for an AFC South rivalry with the Titans. They lucked out a win in Detroit on Thanksgiving when one of their runners scored a touchdown after having been taking down. If only Detroit’s coach didn’t throw the challenge flag then the play would’ve been reviewed and the call on the field overturned. Sometimes luck is the residue of design, but not on that call. Sometimes it’s just plain dumb luck but the Texans will take it.  Forget about the fact that the Titans are only 4-7. Divisional rivalries still mean something irrespective of records. A win over Houston would basically make their season and they’d love nothing more than taking down Houston a peg. Last week, they lost a toughie in Jacksonville and don’t want to fall any lower in the standings.

Projected Final Score: Houston 31, Tennessee 14

At Denver    -7        Tampa Bay 50.5

After getting skunked at the last second by Atlanta, the Bucs travel Mile High and a date with Peyton Manning and the Broncos. The Bucs played well enough to win last week while the Broncos’ offense was stymied by the worst team in the League, yet still found a way to put enough points on the board to win. Both teams will need to bring their ‘A’ games to the field to win. The Bucs’ secondary is quite thin and the defense is ranked 29^th in pass defense. The Broncos are certainly more than capable of playing better this week while it was just a momentary setback for the Bucs. Tampa Bay had an early bye and have played like serious contenders under Coach Schiano ever since. But this week is a different story, going from Florida to a high altitude in which Manning may be able to pick them apart. It’s one of the Bucs’ toughest tests of the season.

Projected Final Score: Denver 28, Tampa Bay 20

At Ravens    -8        Pittsburgh   39.5

As of Monday, there was no line for this game because it was unknown whether Roethlisberger would play. He said that watching the action from the bench was “killing him”. The rest of his teammates probably felt the same way. Without Big Ben and Leftwich, the Steelers got a taste of what life was like with Charlie Batch at the controls and it wasn’t a pretty scene in Cleveland. Pittsburgh turned over the ball numerous times and the Browns pounced on every mistake en route to a 20-14 win. This week, the Steelers travel to M&T where their bitter rivals will be waiting. Maybe the Ravens are not the most opportune opponent for Roethlisberger to face coming off of a shoulder injury. But his team is in the thick of the Wild Card chase and the Steelers badly need him to return and play well. Big Ben is tougher than dirt and if there’s a way for him to play without exposing his throwing shoulder to further damage, he’ll be out there.

Projected Final Score: Ravens 24, Pittsburgh 13

Cleveland    PK      At Oakland 45

Carson Palmer didn’t exactly receive a hero’s welcome on his return to the Queen City last week. Nor did his teammates for that matter, as the Bengals routed Oakland without breaking a sweat. You have to feel for guys like Richard Seymour, who always played with pride and professionalism. Sometimes when you go for the big dough, circumstances don’t always unfold as hoped. Right now, the Raiders are a joke and Palmer (for whom Oakland surrendered several high draft picks) just hasn’t worked out. The Raiders return to the Black Hole to face a Cleveland team that’s looking to go on a little roll after having bested Pittsburgh and the Steelers’ third-string quarterback. We can state with certainty that Palmer is a much better quarterback than Batch. At least the Raiders have that much going for themselves. For Weeden and the Browns, this ought to be a pretty good test to see just where they are in the development process as the Raiders are at or near their level.

Projected Final Score: Cleveland 20, Oakland 17

 

Cincinnati  -1.5     At San Diego          46

This is typically the sort of game in which the Bengals turn into Bungles: a winnable game against a team that has quit on their coach. The Chargers turn peoples’ stomachs with their lackadaisical play. They had the Ravens on the ropes before giving up the ghost in the final minute of regulation only to lose in overtime. The team is simply going through the motions while the wait for Coach Norv to get fired and this season to come to its inexorable end. Given the Bengals’ inconsistencies, anything can happen and perhaps the Chargers have just enough professional pride to commit for 60 minutes. It could happen. This should be a bigger challenge for Cincinnati because (a) it’s on the road; and (b) the Chargers are theoretically a tough opponent than Oakland.

Projected Final Score: Cincinnati 24, San Diego 21

At Dallas     -10      Philadelphia         43

This is not exactly the pride of the NFC East showing off their wares. The Cowboys have been utterly decimated by injuries while the Eagles are in the final days of the Andy Reid Era. RGIII came to Big D on Thanksgiving and gave the Cowboys what for as the Redskins put 38 points on the board to win by a touchdown. The Cowboys are so banged up that the second liners on defense are going down as well. After Monday night’s loss in which they displayed no heart whatsoever, the Eagles are simply playing out the string and will play the role of cannon fodder to the Cowboys’ perilous playoff hopes. At least one team can keep their hopes barely alive.

Projected Final Score: Dallas 27, Philadelphia 14

Week 13 Monday Night Preview:

NY Giants   -2.5    At Washington      51

On Monday night, the Redskins come home to face the G-Men, who are fresh off a dominant win over Green Bay. It ought to be exciting to see the Giants’ unleashed front seven up against RGIII. Even with all of the hoopla associated with Griffin, the Redskins are still a young and very mediocre team. That may change in the years to come but for now, Coach Coughlin is going to throw so many looks at Griffin on defense that the kid’s head is going to be spinning. Cracking the Giants’ defense is simply too tough a challenge for any rookie, regardless of talent. Besides, this is the time of year when the G-Men kick into high gear for their playoff push. The Giants’ offense is no great shakes but Eli has just enough weaponry to get the job done at FedEx Field.

Projected Final Score: NY Giants 24, Washington 21