NFL Picks Week 11: Analyzing Expert Predictions from Around the Web

If you need advice for picking NFL games this weekend, it makes sense to look at what the experts are thinking.

Sure, it makes sense to trust a hot hand sometimes or to look toward one successful person choosing the games. However, the more opinions you can see, the better off you are.

Thanks to NFL Pickwatch, you can see how every expert predicts the week with confidence levels of each game. The analysts are even ranked on success from Ron Jaworski of ESPN all the way down to a coin flip. 

Here is a look at how the biggest names in sports media think Week 11 is going to turn out.

Away	Home	Consensus Pick	Confidence %
Indianapolis Colts	Tennessee Titans	Colts	88
Atlanta Falcons	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Split	50
New York Jets	Buffalo Bills	Jets	79
Baltimore Ravens	Chicago Bears	Bears	59
Cleveland Browns	Cincinnati Bengals	Bengals	82
Detroit Lions	Pittsburgh Steelers	Lions	80
Oakland Raiders	Houston Texans	Texans	93
Washington Redskins	Philadelphia Eagles	Eagles	83
Arizona Cardinals	Jacksonville Jaguars	Cardinals	98
San Diego Chargers	Miami Dolphins	Chargers	84
Green Bay Packers	New York Giants	Giants	83
Minnesota Vikings	Seattle Seahawks	Seahawks	100
San Francisco 49ers	New Orleans Saints	Saints	91
Kansas City Chiefs	Denver Broncos	Broncos	83
New England Patriots	Carolina Panthers	Split	50

Analysis

This week should feature some really close games, as two different matchups are split exactly 50-50. 

Of course, close does not necessarily mean good, especially in the case of the Atlanta Falcons against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. These two squads have struggled all year long, making the battle extremely unpredictable.

If you have a choice about which games you are allowed to pick, this would certainly be one to stay away from.

On the other hand, the experts are completely split one the Monday Night Football game featuring the New England Patriots traveling to face the Carolina Panthers. In reality, this will be one of the best prime-time games of the season.

The Panthers are one of the hottest teams in football, riding a five-game winning streak thanks to impressive defensive play. While the Patriots have struggled at times this year, they are still 7-2 and are coming off a bye after their biggest win of the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

A strong case could be made for each side, which is why the predictions are so close. If you need a tiebreaker for either contest, though, just note that I'm picking the Buccaneers and Panthers.

Besides these two battles, the only truly tough decision appeared to come from the Baltimore Ravens' matchup against the Chicago Bears. 

Many people are back on the Ravens bandwagon after their overtime victory against the Cincinnati Bengals. However, they are 1-4 on the road this season and have been inconsistent all year. 

Even if Jay Cutler does not play for the Bears, it would be a risky move selecting Baltimore away from home.

While these battles remain close, the experts are pretty confident in the rest of the games. Everyone is on board with the Seattle Seahawks, while only Yahoo!'s Les Carpenter thinks the Jacksonville Jaguars will beat the Arizona Cardinals.

Additionally, a pair of really good matchups are relatively one-sided when it comes to the picks. While the Kansas City Chiefs are 9-0, only 17 percent of analysts think they will beat the Denver Broncos. The New Orleans Saints also have a 91 percent confidence mark against the San Francisco 49ers.

Only time will tell if these predictions turn out to be correct, and even the most confident picks do not end well (see: St. Louis Rams at Indianapolis Colts). However, this list of projections should provide you with a good starting point to make your own picks for the week ahead.

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