NFL Picks Week 11: Road Teams That Will Shock the World

The stretch run of the season is upon us and there will be some road teams during Week 11 in the NFL that will get a much-needed win en route to shocking the world.

The Kansas City Chiefs will have their biggest test of the 2013-14 campaign when they travel to the Mile High City to take on the Denver Broncos. 

Following their bye week, the Cleveland Browns should be energized and ready to hit the road to take on the Cincinnati Bengals with the AFC North still up for grabs.

The San Francisco 49ers got a harsh reality check when they were totally shut down by the Carolina Panthers in Week 10, but things should be a bit easier on offense this week against the New Orleans Saints.

Let's break down each of these games and find out why the road teams will win.

Away	Score	Home
Colts	24-17	Titans
Jets	17-10	Bills
Packers	14-21	Giants
Ravens	17-28	Bears
Browns	17-13	Bengals
Redskins	31-34	Eagles
Lions	31-20	Steelers
Falcons	20-17	Bucs
Cardinals	21-18	Jaguars
Raiders	21-27	Texans
Chargers	27-24	Dolphins
Niners	27-21	Saints
Vikings	3-30	Seahawks
Chiefs	20-19	Broncos
Patriots	16-23	Panthers

Kansas City Chiefs (at Denver Broncos)

It wouldn't be a total shock to see the Chiefs win this matchup with the Broncos on the road, but it would be a bit surprising considering how great Denver has looked all season. A win for the Chiefs would likely mean they did the unthinkable and shut down the Broncos offense.

The biggest plus in this game for the Chiefs is SI.com's Chris Burke reporting that Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning may not be 100 percent after aggravating an ankle injury last week against the San Diego Chargers.

To make matters worse for Manning, the Chiefs get to the quarterback better than any team in football with a league-leading 36 sacks. Should Kansas City get to Manning early and often, not only will his success be seriously impeded, but the 37-year-old could conceivably get knocked out of the game altogether.

Even if he doesn't get taken out early, the Chiefs own the No. 6 pass defense in the NFL and won't allow Manning to go off and score a ton of points for his team.

A low-scoring affair is exactly what the Chiefs and their elite defense want. After all, Kansas City isn't exactly great offensively, scoring the 14th-most points per game this season.

However, the Chiefs make up for that by not turning the ball over (fewest giveaways in NFL) and giving a potent offense like Denver's extra chances, while their defense is No. 1 in takeaways in the AFC and the Broncos are tied for No. 2 in giveaways in the same conference.

KC's defense will give the offense plenty of chances to put points on the board.

Star running back Jamaal Charles will be the catalyst, as he looks to break through a Broncos defense that ranks No. 4 against the run in order to open things up for quarterback Alex Smith versus the third-worst pass defense in football.

Final Score: Chiefs 20, Broncos 19

Cleveland Browns (at Cincinnati Bengals)

The Bengals were supposed to be running away with the AFC North as the supposed class of the division, but now they own a slim one-game lead in the loss column over the Browns and Baltimore Ravens.

Therefore, this matchup is huge in regard to the division.

Cincy did not fare well last week against the Ravens and needed a miracle Hail Mary completion just to force overtime. Meanwhile, the Browns had a bye week and will be a fresh team coming into a game against a Bengals squad that played an extra quarter last week.

Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton has struggled mightily of late, having thrown six interceptions in his last two games. It comes as no surprise that Cincinnati lost both of those games.

Overall, the Bengals have turned the ball over more times than any team in the AFC this season, so the Browns will have plenty of chances to capitalize on turnovers.

Should Dalton and company take care of the ball, it won't guarantee victory. Cleveland owns a top-10 defense against both the pass and run and is No. 11 in points allowed per contest.

In the pair's first meeting this season, the Browns did a great job of keeping the Bengals in check, as they prevented their division rival from scoring a touchdown and allowed fewer than 300 yards of total offense.

Quarterback Brian Hoyer did a great job by compiling 269 yards and two touchdowns through the air, which is something new quarterback Jason Campbell can aspire to, as every quarterback other than Brandon Weeden is having success within the Browns offense.

Cincinnati has only won one game in which it scored fewer than 20 points (Week 5 versus the New England Patriots) and Cleveland has the goods to hold the Bengals to fewer than that magical mark in Week 11.

Prediction: Browns 17, Bengals 13

San Francisco 49ers (at New Orleans Saints)

After an abysmal showing against the Panthers last week, there won't be many people picking San Francisco to win this game.

The Saints are a misleading 7-2 in some regards, as all of their wins have come against teams with a combined record of 25-40. In their two losses, the Saints have dropped games to the New York Jets and New England Patriots, who are a combined 12-6.

Their Week 11 opponent, the 49ers, are one of the very best teams the Saints have seen this season with a 6-3 record. Not only are the 49ers a tough squad, but they also have the kind of defense that can stifle the Saints' top-flight offense (No. 2 in points per game), having allowed 17.2 points per game (No. 4 in NFL).

Furthermore, the Niners are ranked No. 9 against the pass, which is the Saints' strength (No. 2).

Offensively, the Niners can move the ball on the ground with the best of them. Their No. 4-ranked ground game will be a nightmare for New Orleans' defense, which is the No. 23 unit in football against the run.

Forget the fact that the Saints are excellent at defending the pass (No. 3) because the Niners haven't needed their air attack all season long. They are still a top team in the NFC despite a league-worst mark through the air.

Granted, the Saints will still put points on the board in this game, but it remains to be seen if they can stop the Niners enough to put them over the top.

As was the case in their game against the Jets and in the first half versus the Dallas Cowboys last week, the Saints will have plenty of problems stopping the Niners from pounding the rock consistently for positive yardage.

This will allow San Francisco to hold on to the ball and control time of possession to keep superstar quarterback Drew Brees off the field.

Final Score: 49ers 27, Saints 21