Week 14 NFL Picks: Playoff Hopefuls That Will Get a Victory This Week

With just four games remaining, a few teams are in an excellent position to make the postseason, while others are feeling the pressure and cannot afford to lose this week. 

In the AFC, the New England Patriots, Houston Texans and Denver Broncos are already in the playoffs, while the Baltimore Ravens are not far away from extending their season.

In the NFC, only the Atlanta Falcons are guaranteed a spot in the postseason, but the San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears seem like safe bets to be playing in January.

The races for the wild-card spots in each conference are heating up, and here are the teams who will continue hitting their stride this Sunday.

Cincinnati Bengals (7-5) over Dallas Cowboys (6-6)

The Cowboys will be pleased with their comeback victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, but will also be disturbed that they trailed their struggling NFC East rivals into the fourth quarter.

The Sunday night game showed there is not much difference between the 6-6 Cowboys and the 3-9 Eagles, and that thought will not bring a smile to Jerry Jones’ face.

The Bengals, however, have plenty to be happy about. Cincinnati is in the midst of a four-game winning streak and will be playing at home in this contest.

A.J. Green has had at least 80 receiving yards in the past five games, and he will help the Bengals move comfortably past the Cowboys this weekend.

  

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-6) over Philadelphia Eagles (3-9) 

The Buccaneers are coming off consecutive losses in two difficult matchups. The team was narrowly defeated by the Falcons and was unable to overcome a disastrous third quarter against the Denver Broncos.

But against the lowly Eagles, Tampa Bay will get back to its winning ways.

The Bucs are .500 and have road games against Atlanta and the New Orleans Saints still on their schedule. They cannot afford to lose this game if they hopes to stay alive in the hunt for a wild-card spot.

Desperation will prove to be a powerful motivating factor for Greg Schiano’s team and Tampa Bay will take down the Eagles.

  

Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6) over San Diego Chargers (4-8)

With an inspiring victory over the Ravens this past weekend, Charlie Batch and the Steelers are doing enough to stay in position to get into the playoffs until Ben Roethlisberger returns from injury.

The Indianapolis Colts are in excellent position to win one of the wild cards at 8-4, leaving the Bengals and Steelers to battle for the final spot in the AFC playoff picture.

These two AFC North teams will face off in Week 16, and like the Bengals, Pittsburgh will continue winning up until that meeting.

San Diego is struggling this season, and this campaign may end up being Norv Turner’s last in Southern California. The Chargers will not be able to compete with Pittsburgh on the road.

  

Seattle Seahawks (7-5) over Arizona Cardinals (4-8) 

The Seahawks are coming off an incredible victory while the Cardinals are dealing with a demoralizing defeat.

Russell Wilson continued to impress and led Seattle to an overtime victory over the Bears. The team is now in a favorable position to beat out the Cowboys and Buccaneers for a playoff berth.

The Cardinals, in contrast, put up just six points and 137 total yards in a 7-6 loss to the Jets. Arizona’s last win came in Week 4.

These two teams are heading in wildly different directions, and that will continue as Seattle gets another victory.