NFL Week 16 Picks: Predicting Winners and Fantasy Studs
You better be ready for some football. The NFL is about to take center stage for four of the next five days in America.
Beginning on Thursday night with a dreadful battle between teams in the running for the top selection in the 2015 NFL draft, and winding up with a dandy Monday Night Football finale, football rules.
Thursday's clash sees the 2-12 Tennessee Titans on the road against the 2-12 Jacksonville Jaguars. Yay us!
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On Monday night, the Denver Broncos try to do their part in a quest to win the top seed in the AFC. The Cincinnati Bengals provide the home standing opposition as they try to move toward an AFC North title.
Mix in a little Dallas Cowboys-Indianapolis Colts and a smidgeon of Seattle Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals, and there's enough gridiron goodness to keep the most diehard fan occupied.
Here's a look at predictions for every game on the schedule, as well as my pick for fantasy stud in each contest.
Just below the table is a closer look at the biggest games on the schedule and three players who could really explode for those who play one-week fantasy football.
| Tennessee at Jacksonville | Jacksonville | Toby Gerhart |
| Philadelphia at Washington | Philadelphia | LeSean McCoy |
| San Diego at San Francisco | San Diego | Philip Rivers |
| Minnesota at Miami | Miami | Ryan Tannehill |
| Baltimore at Houston | Baltimore | Joe Flacco |
| Detroit at Chicago | Chicago | Alshon Jeffery |
| Cleveland at Carolina | Carolina | Derek Anderson |
| Atlanta at New Orleans | New Orleans | Drew Brees |
| Green Bay at Tampa Bay | Green Bay | Aaron Rodgers |
| Kansas City at Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh | Le'Veon Bell |
| New England at NY Jets | New England | Patriots Defense |
| NY Giants at St. Louis | St. Louis | Tre Mason |
| Buffalo at Oakland | Buffalo | Kyle Orton |
| Seattle at Arizona | Seattle | Seattle Defense |
| Indianapolis at Dallas | Dallas | Jason Witten |
| Denver at Cincinnati | Denver | Peyton Manning |
Indianapolis Colts at Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys' DeMarco Murray had surgery to repair a broken left hand, but per Todd Archer of ESPN.com, the NFL's leading rusher practiced on Thursday and there's "growing expectation" that he'll play against the Colts on Sunday.
Dallas will need his presence to grab a vital win in its quest to qualify for the playoffs and capture the NFC East crown.
Indy has won four games in a row, but every win has come over a non-playoff team. Business is about to pick up on Sunday.
Playing on the road against a hungry and motivated Cowboys team will prove to be too tough of a test for Andrew Luck and Co. to pass. The Cowboys have been better on the road (7-0) than at home (3-4); however, as they attempt to outfight the Philadelphia Eagles for the division crown, the team will respond for a crucial win.
The Colts are only rated in the middle of the pack in both rushing (16th) and passing yards (19th) allowed per game. Dallas is averaging 39.5 points per game in its last two contest and simply has more to play for.
More than likely, the Colts are stuck at the No. 3 spot in the AFC because both the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos own the tiebreaker over them. In a close game that will likely be decided late, Dallas will want it more and win at home.
Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals
No team looks scarier than the defending champions right now. Seattle is on a four-game win streak and has held opponents to 6.75 points per contest during its current run.
The Cardinals were Seattle's first victim in the streak. After being beaten 19-3 in Week 12, the Cardinals have to be concerned about turning back the Seahawks. Arizona is already in the playoffs, but this team needs to prove it can beat Seattle and win the division.
Ryan Lindley will get the start under center for Arizona. That should also be a point of concern, though per Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times, Arizona head coach Bruce Arians implies it isn't.
“We’re not going to change what we do,” Arians said during a conference call with Seattle media on Wednesday. “I really like Ryan. I love how he prepares. He played in a game last week i thought very efficient. He was thrown into a situation where he didn’t get any snaps in practice but he obviously he had prepared himself very well. Knew the game plan. I’m very comfortable with him.”
That's a great vote of confidence, but in reality, the Legion of Boom is going to give Lindley fits. The third-year, 25-year-old QB out of San Diego State didn't take snaps last season, and the only time he has played this year was in Week 15 when he relieved the injured Drew Stanton.
As a rookie in 2012, Lindley was dreadful in six games. He completed just 52 percent of his passes with no touchdowns and seven interceptions.
This isn't a defense—and more specifically a secondary—you want an inexperienced and unproven quarterback facing in a must-win game.
Arizona will struggle to move the ball, and the Seahawks offense will make enough plays to win a low-scoring affair.
Denver Broncos at Cincinnati Bengals
The Broncos had some road woes earlier in the season. They lost to Seattle, New England and the St. Louis Rams away from home. Now the team has won two straight on the road over the Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers, and that success is crucial for the team's confidence heading into Cincy.
Peyton Manning wasn't 100 percent in the team's Week 15 win over the Chargers, and per Lindsay Jones of USA Today, he doesn't appear to be at full strength yet.
It helps that the game isn't until Monday night, and that should give Manning time to get closer to full speed—if the "s" word can ever be used in reference to Manning.
With Manning potentially feeling better and with Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton's prime-time track record, the Broncos are the pick.
Dalton is just 2-6 in prime time, and it seems like he's about to be 2-7 after Monday night. The pressure will be on Dalton to produce, as the Bengals need to win their division to feel secure about making the playoffs.
In that situation, and going up against an all-time great quarterback, it's hard to bet on Dalton. Apparently, I'm not the only one who thinks this way.
Here's what former Pittsburgh Steelers great Hines Ward said, per NBCSN's Pro Football Talk:
Tre Mason
The Rams rookie hasn't played well in the last two games. He has rushed for just 99 yards on 33 carries in that span with no touchdowns.
Leave it to the New York Giants to provide relief. Mason should have plenty of opportunities to pound the Giants' 30th-ranked run defense. If you can grab Mason this week, he'll pay big dividends.
Drew Brees and Matt Ryan
The future Hall of Famer is usually good for a solid fantasy performance any week, but considering Brees and the Saints are set to take on the Atlanta Falcons' 32nd-ranked pass defense, he should definitely be your quarterback in a one-week set up.
When the two teams met in Week 1, Brees threw for 333 yards and a touchdown in the Saints' 37-34 OT loss.
Brees isn't the only quarterback who could go off in this game. I can't leave Matt Ryan out of this section. He exploded on the Saints in the same game for 448 yards and three touchdowns. It should be another shootout, and you can't go wrong with either guy.
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