NFL Week 11 Picks: Can Raiders Prove They're Legit Against Steelers?
NFL Week 11 picks are up and ready for your web reading consumption. As always, the wise brass of the NFL have supplied us with a great list of games to watch this weekend. We even get an early stocking stuffer in the form of a Thursday night game.
Looking at the schedule, I can't help but prognosticate on what will go down on the gridiron this weekend. I have taken out my crystal ball and am ready to peer into the future. Here are the results of this week's matches. There is no reason to even flip on the TV now.
Chicago Bears at Miami Dolphins (Thursday Night)
1 of 16
Why the Bears will win:
The Bears have been playing inspired ball as of late. They have taken two in a row and now share the top spot in their division. The best thing about the last two weeks is that Jay Cutler has been on his feet a lot more. Chicago may be finding out that it is much more beneficial for your team when your QB is not getting slammed to the ground every other play.
Why the Dolphins will win:
The Dolphins have had a tough schedule. It seems like they lose to elite teams and then take the ones from the lesser and more mediocre of the NFL. The question is, what kind of team are the Bears? The Dolphins may have just enough defense to stop Cutler and company, but I worry about their quarterback situation.
Prediction: Bear 24, Dolphins 17
The Dolphins may have been able to finish off the game with Tyler Thigpen last week, but 60 minutes with their third stringer will equal a loss.
Buffalo Bills at Cincinnati Bengals
2 of 16
Why the Bills will win:
There is no doubt that the Bills have a prolific offense. They can put up points on any team. What has hampered them is their lack of defense. The last two weeks they have done a much better job at limiting their opponent's production.
Why the Bengals will win:
The Bengals may be underachieving but it will take a miracle for them to drop this one at home. The Bills are mired in injuries as they will be without C.J. Spiller and Shawne Merriman this Sunday. I forgot to mention that the Bengals are a better team.
Prediction: Bills 24, Bengals 30
The Bengals can't lose their seventh game in a row. Can they?
Detroit Lions at Dallas Cowboys
3 of 16
Why the Lions will win:
There is not much hope for the Lions this Sunday. They are again without their star quarterback. The thing is, there is no telling what Cowboys team they will be getting, the inspired or the lowly.
Why the Cowboys will win:
It seems as though Jason Garrett woke the Boys up for their game last weekend. The Cowboys played inspired ball and looked like a lively bunch. Bear in mind though, it was one game. I will reserve saying that Dallas is back until they put together a string of wins. At the very least, they need to kill the Lions.
Prediction: Lions 10, Cowboys 24
Killing the Lions at home is completely doable. That is unless the old Cowboys show up.
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Washington Redskins at Tennessee Titans
4 of 16
Why the Redskins will win:
There are times in a man's life when he needs to drag himself from the trenches and make a stand. That time has come for the Redskins. Washington was completely embarrassed on national television by the Eagles on Monday Night. At some point the team quit. This week they need to show that they are still a tough NFL team. Their reputations are at stake.
Why the Titans will win:
The Titans are coming off a tough loss as well. It is a good thing they have Vince Young to fall back on. While Young is no where near as good as Michael Vick, he can be elusive. It is clear that the Redskins will have issues with Vick Jr. Just as they did with the real thing on Monday night.
Prediction: Redskins 17, Titans 35
The Redskins will sink further down their hole. There is no telling how good Young or Chris Johnson can be against this poor defense.
Arizona Cardinals at Kansas City Chiefs
5 of 16
Why the Cardinals will win:
The Chiefs have been on a slide lately. They just dropped their last game to the Broncos, and I thought Denver didn't stand a chance. It seems the Chiefs are in the business of making bad teams look fairly decent. The Cards may be getting them at the right time.
Why the Chiefs will win:
The Chiefs absolutely cannot lose this game. If they do, they very well may give up possession of the AFC West, a spot they have had all year. The Chiefs have one of the easiest schedules in all of football. Yet, they have stopped taking advantage of this fact.
Prediction: Cardinals 12, Chiefs 24
The Chiefs will get back to their winning way this Sunday. The Cardinals have shown no signs of figuring out their opponents. This should be a rout.
Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings
6 of 16
Why the Packers will win:
These two teams met back in week seven. The Packers finally got the victory over the former quarterback, Brett Favre. Since that gritty win, the Packers have notched two more impressive wins. The Packers have been overlooked by many pundits as a serious contender. The Packers can further their argument in the second leg of their seasonal rivalry.
Why the Vikings will win:
It seemed as though Brett Favre gave up last week, that, or he really is getting old. One thing I can take as a certainty is that Favre gets up for the Packers games. The loss they received in week seven demoralized him. He will look to send a message at home this week.
Prediction: Packers 28, Vikings 17
Favre may want to send a message but his body will not let him. I can see another three interceptions in his future.
Houston Texans at New York Jets
7 of 16
Why the Texans will win:
The Texans are a tough team. It took a miracle for the Jaguars to nab a win from them last weekend. as long as Arian Foster is running for the Texans, they have a shot. This will be a tough game but the Texans have enough weapons to throw at the Jets to make it interesting.
Why the Jets will win:
The Jets may have trouble limiting Arian Foster but will control anything else the Texans have up their sleeve. After two overtime victories in a row, the Jets are ready to get a comfortable win this Sunday.
Prediction: Texans 15, Jets 24
There shouldn't be any nail biting towards the end of this one. The Jets defense is that good and the Texans could be falling apart.
Oakland Raiders at Pittsburgh Steelers
8 of 16
Why the Raiders will win:
After starting the season the way we all thought they would, the Raiders have unexpectedly turned into a good team. Jason Campbell is having his best season as the Raiders continue to put points on the board. In Week 11, I have finally learned not to underestimate the Raiders.
Why the Steelers will win:
The Steelers are Super Bowl contenders. They don't drop games easily. It will be very tough for the Raiders to compete with them at Heinz Field. They will be that much more motivated to get a win after dropping one against the Patriots last week.
Prediction: Raiders 17, Steelers 20
This will be a close one. With Campbell getting the nod over Bruce Gradkowski, he will try to reward his coach for the confidence.
Baltimore Ravens at Carolina Panthers
9 of 16
Why the Ravens will win:
Let's see. The Ravens are better on both sides of the ball, on special teams, at quarterback and are much healthier. Is that enough?
Why the Panthers will win:
Really? Who do they expect to score? They will be without both Matt Moore and DeAngelo Williams. Home field goes right out the window.
Prediction: Ravens 35, Panthers 17
The Panthers are missing their starting quarterback and running back due to injury. I felt sorry and gave them 17 points for sympathy.
Cleveland Browns at Jacksonville Jaguars
10 of 16
Why the Browns will win:
The Browns came out of nowhere three weeks ago. They had two of the biggest wins of the year on consecutive weeks. They beat the Saints, then shocked the Patriots. The Jets barely escaped last week unscathed with an overtime win. The Browns are proving that good defense and a rookie QB who is too young to realize he is inexperienced is a great combination.
Why the Jaguars will win:
It seems that in light of their miracle victory last week, God may be on their side. Who am I to argue? David Garrard and Maurice Jones-Drew are turning into quite the duo. The Browns will have their hands full.
Prediction: Browns 24, Jaguars 27
This is going to be a tight one. If the Colts and Patriots were not playing this would easily be the game of the week.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at San Francisco 49ers
11 of 16
Why the Buccaneers will win:
Josh Freeman and LaGarrette Blount have been on fire as of late. Freeman drives them down the field and Blount punches the rock into the end zone. There will be more of the same this week in Candlestick.
Why the 49ers will win:
The 49ers seemed to be lost and unable to be salvaged. But after two straight wins, they could still win the division. That isn't saying much as they play in the NFC West. Frank Gore has had two straight productive games. San Francisco's fate is largely determined by Frank Gore and if he decides to show up or not.
Prediction: Bucs 17, 49ers 10
The 49ers will go back into the funk they started the season with. Tampa Bay is too solid and cohesive of a group to falter to the 49ers.
Seattle Seahawks at New Orleans Saints
12 of 16
Why the Seahawks will win:
I really can't see a way for Seattle to take this game other than the Saints propensity this year to drop easy games. They have losses against the Cardinals and Browns. The Seahawks have to do better running the ball. Their dynamic duo of Marshawn Lynch and Justin Forsett has been quiet of late. They need a big game for the Seahawks to have a chance.
Why the Saints will win:
The Saints already boasted a plethora of weapons. Now, they get back Reggie Bush who has missed the last seven games due to injury. The Saints just got back their most versatile player.
Prediction: Seahawks 10, Saints 24
The Saints should find their comfort zone again with Bush in the lineup. The defending champs will buckle down for the final leg of the season.
Atlanta Falcons at St. Louis Rams
13 of 16
Why the Falcons will win:
The Falcons join the Patriots and Jets as the NFL's only two loss teams. The Falcons should remain at two after the weekend. Atlanta proved against the Ravens that they run and play defense just as well as anyone in the league. With the Rams high risk defense, the Falcons should put up a lot of points this weekend.
Why the Rams will win:
The Rams should just find comfort in the fact that they are no longer the laughing stock of the NFL. They are a decent team, unless they are at home, where they are a great one. The Rams are extremely efficient at scoring on their home turf.
Prediction: Falcons 27, Rams17
This should be a high scoring event, but the better team will win.
Indianapolis Colts at New England Patriots
14 of 16
Why the Colts will win:
Getting one at Foxborough is a tall order. But if there is one man that can pull off such a feat, it is Peyton Manning. Mr. Clutch will be sure to forge some pivotal drives to keep the Colts in contention.
Why the Patriots will win:
The Patriots have the best QB in the game and the best head coach in Bill Belichick. Not only that, but they have not yet lost at home this season.
Prediction: Colts 20, Patriots 24
The game of the week will be a memorable one. I hope you have already reserved a seat on the couch for this one.
New York Giants at Phialdelphia Eagles
15 of 16
Why the Giants will win:
The Giants will look to rebound from their embarrassing loss against the Cowboys. It wasn't embarrassing because they looked that bad: Simply, losing to the Cowboys this season is cause for alarm. The Giants are a formidable opponent, regardless of who shows up across the field.
Why the Eagles will win:
It just so happens that the best player in the NFL is showing up in green again this week. Mike Vick has come back from suspension a new man. He can run, throw and lead better than anyone in the NFL. There is no telling what he will do to astonish this week.
Prediction: Giants 24, Eagles 28
It will once again be the Michael Vick show. This time he gets to impress the home crowd in Philadelphia.
Denver Broncos at San Diego
16 of 16
Why the Broncos will win:
The Broncos broke out of their shell last week. They beat up the Chiefs and showed the versatility of Tim Tebow while they were at it. I hope they have more tricks up their sleeves to take down the Chargers.
Why the Chargers will win:
The Chargers have been a good team all season. They just failed to overcome their deficiencies on special teams. Those issues could pop up at any time, but they look to be in the past for now. The Chargers come into Monday Night's game on the heels of two impressive victories. If they have indeed learned to play solid football, the Broncos don't stand a chance.
Prediction: Broncos 14, Chargers 24
In the battle of AFC West bottom feeders, the Chargers will come out on top.
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