Tennessee at Buffalo
Chris Johnson had a pretty good game for the third time this season. The man is still playing very unpredictably, and has been incredibly inconsistent. Matt Hasselbeck has been having a pretty good last few games, nothing too amazing but still enough to keep the Titans hanging around if not winning. I thought when Britt went out early this team was going to rely entirely on C.J but it looks like Hasselbeck is comfortable with the reigns. Buffalo is unpredictable as an entire team. They’ve been so volatile this season, winning games that I didn’t think they would stand a chance in, and then blowing games where I thought it would be an easy win. This week is going to be tough, but I think the Bills step it up with their rush d and shut down Johnson early resulting in Hasselbeck needing to air it out. The Bills corners are due for a big day, and I think they have some clutch interceptions in this game.
Buffalo wins at home 27-17
Kansas City at Chicago
Kansas City is as beaten and battered as ever. I’ve said it nearly every week but without Jamaal Charles this team is so much worse than they were expected to be during the preseason. There are a lot of teams that have been defined by one player and I think that Charles has really been the key in Kansas City over the last couple of years, with him they were awesome, without they are nothing. Sure Dwayne Bowe can still make some big plays, but all it takes is one great corner and the best of wide receivers can be shut down. The Bears are still without Cutler who was blowing my mind this year. Going into the season I didn’t think Cutler was going to be anything, but depending on Forte was the smartest thing he could do. Almost any quarterback can be great with a man like Forte standing in the backfield with them, and this Sunday I think Forte does what he always does and has a great game.
Forte rushes for big yards as the Bears beat the Chiefs 31-16
Atlanta at Houston
Atlanta has one of the better offenses in the league with Matt Ryan under center. When Ryan has needed to hoist the ball up he’s had guys like Roddy White, Julio Jones, and Tony Gonzalez on the other side to reel them in. Now Michael Turner is questionable for this week, and he’s been a force throughout the majority of the season. If Turner doesn’t play it doesn’t mean Atlanta is out of this one, they’ve still got a great group of receivers going against a Houston secondary that isn’t the best. Houston on the other side is on to their third string rookie quarterback. A lot of people were ready for Leinart to really make his move and show if he had the stuff to be a starter in the NFL, myself included, but that ended really quickly with his injury. The game is going to come down to Arian Foster again. Arian has been possibly my favorite consistent throughout the season. When he’s healthy I can all but guarantee big things. I love Foster, but I don’t know if he’s enough to make up for the rookie quarterback, and a secondary that gives up some big plays.
Matt Ryan outguns Arian Foster in a 34-31 win
Oakland at Miami
Oakland is without McFadden again this week, and despite Michael Bush being really good in his absence he still isn’t as good as McFadden. Carson Palmer is still learning the Raiders system, and building chemistry with his young wide receiver core. I do like the Raiders though, I think they have a great system in place with a lot of young players who are going to end up doing great things in their careers either in the Black and Silver or somewhere else. Sunday will be a good test for the Raiders as they face a Dolphins team on the upswing. For years now the Fins have been looking for a quarterback to name their go to guy, and it looks like he finally may have shown up in Matt Moore. Moore has been great in Miami, doing way better than I think anyone could have predicted. Reggie Bush is playing the game like he’s having fun again, and burning some turf along the way. If Brandon Marshall can keep the ball in his hands instead of on the ground then this could actually be a pretty dangerous offense for the remainder of the season. The Fins are good, but this is scarily a must win for the Raiders as the Broncos are closing in. I think Oakland shows up in Miami fired up and ready to play.
Raider Nation enjoys their victory 28-23
Denver at Minnesota
Tim Tebow. What is it in this guy that just doesn’t let him lose? I know, I know. It’s not all Tebow, it isn’t him winning all of these games, it is a lot of his team rallying around him. The Broncos defense has been great since Tebow has been starting, and they haven’t faced the greatest of opponents either. Incredibly though, the Broncos are in position to make a push for the AFC West, and it shouldn’t be too difficult going up against a Vikings team that is missing their best player. With Peterson out again there isn’t too much to look forward to if you’re a Vikings fan. Ponder might make a big play through the air or on his feet, but the running game isn’t nearly as dangerous, and the wide outs aren’t really there for someone like Ponder to really start to make a name for himself. Sure the Purple People Eaters still have Allen on the line, and he’ll probably make a big hit or two as he hunts down Tebow, but the Vikings are wounded right now, and the Broncos are on a roll.
Tebow Time continues as the Broncos win on the road 17-14
Indianapolis at New England
Do I need to write about this game? Being from New England I know how hard the Pats go into these games against the Colts. For years people have called Peyton names, and yelled at the TV as he threw touchdown after touchdown. The Pats have gotten the best of Indy more times than I can recall during my stint of football fandom, and I don’t think there’s a single way that this game could fall the other way. Freeney and Mathis on defense, and Reggie Wayne and a slew of receivers on offense are consistencies that the Pats have gotten used to, and guys like Orlovsky shouldn’t pose too much of a threat. Brady is going to do what Brady does best, and go wild over the top against an ailing Colts secondary. Gronk, Welker, and Branch are going to be their usual selves and have a well balance game between them. The Law Firm will probably show up and break through some big holes in the middle. I see the Pats going crazy on this one, and not slowing down. Bill doesn’t mind running up the score, and I think he does it on Sunday.
Patriots dominate the Colts in a lopsided 42-10 victory.
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh
The Bengals are in a tough spot. They set themselves up in a decent position through the first half of the season, but going into these last few games their facing some pretty tough opponents. Dalton and Green have been able to figure a lot of things out early together, and it’s going to be fun to watch for years, but with a Steelers team that is going to be angry after narrowly beating the lowly Chiefs I think that this game is going to be very difficult from the get go. Big Ben and Mendenhall are facing a tough defense, but I predict that they are both going to have pretty substantial games. I’m sure the Steelers have been watching Cincy film for a while now, and learning some ways to pick them apart. Pittsburgh is a great team, and I think they aren’t going to give one up to a great rival at home.
Pitt wins this one 24-20
Carolina at Tampa Bay
Cam Newton is consistently a topic to be brought up whenever one talks about the Panthers. He’s exceeding expectations on a weekly basis, and is delivering far more than anyone could have expected from a first year player. DeAngelo Williams finally decided that he was going to play for his money last week, and it made a big impact on the game. Sure it was against the Colts, but yards are yards, and it could have been the spark that Williams needed. Tampa Bay has some great young players themselves. I like what Freeman can do, and I love what Blount does on a weekly basis. Blount is one of the toughest runners in the league, lowering his shoulder and running through many would be tacklers in what seems to be a weekly occurrence. I like Tampa, and going up against a division rival at home this late in the season is usually something that the tend to handle very well. With a young team like Carolina coming in at just 3-8 I don’t think Tampa is going to have an incredibly difficult time showing their home team that they aren’t the worst in the NFC South for at least one more year.
Tampa Bay wins this one 31-27
New York Jets at Washington
The Jets barely beat the Bills last week, as they were lucky enough to avoid a few possible touchdown passes late. But the Jets are the Jets and they are team that knows what it takes to win. Rex Ryan can’t be happy with how they have been playing lately and is going to use this game to take out some anger. I think Greene is due to finally have some big yards, and guys like Plax and Santonio are going to be very consistent despite having and underperforming Sanchez throwing the ball. Washington is a team that I would love to see do well, but it’s just not going to happen. The injuries that they are dealing with are too astronomical for anyone to deal with, and this week it is going to be the same old story. The injury situation is one that is defining the Redskins season, and with the Jets coming to town its not going to get any better.
Jets win on the road 24-17
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