San Francisco at Miami
Line: Dolphins by 6.5
The Dolphins win and they win ugly--that's been their MO all year, so expect nothing different this week.
The 49ers should give Miami good competition; ever since Shaun Hill took over the starting job, the Niners have had a competent passing game. Hill doesn't take sacks or throw interceptions, two things Martz wonderboy JT O'Sullivan was doing routinely as the Niners' QB. As a result, SF looks respectable on offense.
The way San Francisco has played in the second half of the season, it'd be an injustice not to give Mike Singletary a full-time coaching gig. Dolphins 20, 49ers 17
Seattle at St. Louis
Line: Seahawks by 2.5
It's another RF-MO (resistable force-moveable object) matchup. The Rams' defense has been a sieve all year, allowing all comers to improve their stats, fantasy value and offenses in general. Even an offense as anemic as Seattle's has treated their D like the "Welcome" Doormat that they are, as their running game had its only real success of the season in a Week 3 victory.
If I waste another cliche on this topic, then I probably have way too much time on my hands. Seahawks 17, Rams 10
Buffalo at New York Jets
Line: Jets by 7.5
The story for the Jets is the same as it's always been: they have to run the football to win games.
New York had the formula down pat when they exploded to an 8-3 start, but back-to-back losses have put them back into a first place tie with the Pats and Dolphins. They still hold the tiebreaker edge and essentially control their own destiny; playing a Bills team that's banged up on defense with JP "Lost, Man" at QB couldn't be better timing.
The Jets should get back on track as long as they remember the bread and butter that got them to 8-3: running the football and stopping the run. Jets 27, Bills 17
San Diego at Kansas City
Line: Chargers by 6
Amazingly, the Chargers still have a bleak chance at winning the division despite the massive amounts of talent Norv Turner has squandered.
I don't know if LaDanian Tomlinson is finished, but he's looking more and more like Emmitt Smith post-1996, where he gets two yards behind a crater-sized hole and falls down to avoid further damage to his body. This has put more pressure on the Chargers' passing attack--this team wasn't really built to beat teams that way. Chargers 28, Chiefs 25
Tennessee at Houston
Line: Titans by 3
Could the Texans be next year's Arizona Cardinals?
Houston's biggest problem all year was at QB, but Matt Schaub answered that with a strong performance in his comeback at Green Bay, throwing for over 400 yards. The Texans are clicking on all cylinders, with Steve Slaton playing out of his mind in the past few weeks and Andre Johnson making his mark as the NFL's best receiver. Johnson is a one-man wrecking machine--running over defensive backs and drawing double coverage on almost every possession, making Kevin Walter and Owen Daniels viable weapons in the passing game.
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