NFL Picks Week 14: Patriots and Bears Meet To Determine Conference Supremacy
Week 14 is here, and pro football has no competition this week for the first time all season.
With the college football regular season coming to a close last weekend, it's officially the NFL's time to shine.
And I'm here to offer my picks for all 16 games.
Hopefully, I have as much success as I did last week when I went 11-5 with my selections.
Hey, I'm not tooting my own horn. I'm just happy I got more games right for once.
OK, now that all the nonsense is out of the way, let's get to it.
Here are my NFL Picks for Week 14.
Indianapolis Colts at Tennessee Titans
1 of 16
Why Indianapolis Will Win: In Tennessee's last four games—all losses by the way—the Titans have scored 39 points. That's it! If the Colts can score one touchdown and kick a field goal, they'll be in pretty good shape.
Why Tennessee Will Win: Peyton Manning has thrown 11 interceptions in his last three games, which is like a season's worth of picks for him. If the Titans can force Manning into more untimely turnovers, it'll be much easier on the team's anemic offense to stay on pace with Indianapolis.
Prediction: Colts 31, Titans 13
Cleveland Browns at Buffalo Bills
2 of 16
Why Cleveland Will Win: Did you watch Buffalo play against the Minnesota Vikings last week? God, they looked awful in that game. Plus, any time Peyton Hillis is your running back and you're playing against the league's worst run defense, your chances of winning are very good.
Why Buffalo Will Win: It's still unclear whether the Browns will be starting Colt McCoy or Jake Delhomme at quarterback this week. If it's the latter, the Bills should be pretty optimistic. Delhomme inches himself to the edge of unemployment every time he steps on the field.
Prediction: Bills 27, Browns 21
Atlanta Falcons at Carolina Panthers
3 of 16
Why Atlanta Will Win: The Falcons can run the ball, throw the ball and even kick the ball with Matt Bryant. Seriously though, Atlanta's offense is just too good for Carolina to put enough points up on the board and outscore the Falcons.
Why Carolina Will Win: Atlanta is coming off an emotionally-draining win over Tampa Bay last week, and Carolina's running game has shown steady improvement in recent weeks. If Mike Goodson and Jonathan Stewart can keep that up, there's a chance the home crowd gets into it and helps them pull out a monstrous upset.
Prediction: Falcons 34, Panthers 14
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Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers
4 of 16
Why Cincinnati Will Win: As much as Carson Palmer has made Bengals fans want to start drinking, Cincinnati still has a plethora of weapons in the passing game. Coincidentally, the one obvious flaw for the Steelers is their inability to stop the pass. So if Terrell Owens and company can make a few plays, the potential for an upset is there.
Why Pittsburgh Will Win: Cedric Benson won't be able to run the ball, Rashard Mendenhall will be able to run the ball, and the Bengals give up 26.8 points per game. Cincinnati won't be able to control the clock, and Pittsburgh will be able to get it done through the air and on the ground.
Prediction: Steelers 31, Bengals 14
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Washington Redskins
5 of 16
Why Tampa Bay Will Win: Tampa Bay's young offensive corps of Josh Freeman, Mike Williams and LeGarrette Blount has really developed as the season has progressed. The Buccaneers shouldn't have any problems moving the ball against a Redskins defense that hasn't stopped many teams all season.
Why Washington Will Win: The biggest team obliterator since T.O., Albert Haynesworth, has been suspended from the team. With him gone, it's possible that the Redskins defense actually performs as a cohesive unit while the offense steps up in the process.
Prediction: Buccaneers 24, Redskins 20
Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions
6 of 16
Why Green Bay Will Win: Aaron Rodgers plus Greg Jennings equals unstoppable. If Earl Bennett and Jay Cutler can hook up for seven receptions and more than 100 yards, then Rodgers and Jennings will probably rewrite the record books this week.
Why Detroit Will Win: Green Bay still hasn't found a consistent running game, and the Lions have hung tough with more talented teams all season, including Chicago (twice) and the Packers at Lambeau Field. I've learned to never count out Detroit.
Prediction: Packers 31, Lions 24
New York Giants at Minnesota Vikings
7 of 16
Why New York Will Win: When Brandon Jacobs tops 100 yards and runs for two touchdowns like he did last week, all is well in New York. Plus, the Giants could be facing Tarvaris Jackson, who looked good at times last week but also threw a pick six.
Why Minnesota Will Win: The quarterback situation doesn't seem to have any effect on Sidney Rice--he looked damn near unstoppable last week. Oh yeah, that Adrian Peterson guy also got into the end zone three times. That's a very good sign for Minnesota.
Prediction: Vikings 27, Giants 24
Oakland Raiders at Jacksonville Jaguars
8 of 16
Why Oakland Will Win: If you watched the Raiders play the Chargers last week, you had to be impressed. That was the most dominant defensive performance I've seen by Oakland in years, and it came against one of the league's best offenses.
Why Jacksonville Will Win: David Garrard has flown under the radar, but he's had a very impressive season. As has Maurice Jones-Drew, who probably deserves some MVP consideration after topping 100 yards in five straight games to help give the Jaguars the AFC South lead.
Prediction: Jaguars 24, Raiders 17
St. Louis Rams at New Orleans Saints
9 of 16
Why St. Louis Will Win: The Rams will only go as far as Sam Bradford takes them, and if his play as a rookie is any indication, that can be pretty be far. He's looked good all season, and the Rams have an underrated defense that can help Bradford out when he does struggle.
Why New Orleans Will Win: Drew Brees and the Saints offense are beginning to click, but it's that New Orleans defense that will take them into the playoffs. Though the D has given up a lot of points in recent weeks, it still ranks fifth in the NFL, allowing just 18.9 points per game.
Prediction: Saints 34, Rams 20
Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers
10 of 16
Why Seattle Will Win: Troy Smith has led the 49ers to three wins in five games this season, but Alex Smith was named the team's starting quarterback for this game by head coach Mike Singletary. He might as well just hand the Seahawks the victory. Seriously, what is that guy thinking?
Why San Francisco Will Win: Seattle gives up a ton of yards and a ton of points, so I suppose it might not matter who's playing quarterback. As long as Smith can get the ball in the hands of Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis, he should be OK.
Prediction: Seahawks 27, 49ers 20
New England Patriots at Chicago Bears
11 of 16
Why New England Will Win: Anyone who watched the Patriots play the Jets on Monday Night Football knows why New England will win this game. The Patriots have been getting it done through the air and on the ground, and their young defense is slowly but steadily improving.
Why Chicago Will Win: Jay Cutler hasn't been making mistakes, which is all the Bears really need out of their quarterback because the defense will do the rest of the work. Chicago's defense ranks second in rushing yards allowed and third in points allowed.
Prediction: Patriots 24, Bears 21
Miami Dolphins at New York Jets
12 of 16
Why Miami Will Win: The Jets are coming off an incredibly embarrassing 45-3 loss against the Patriots last week in which Mark Sanchez was brought back to Earth. If the Jets play anywhere close to as bad as they played in that game, the Dolphins can chalk up a "W" in this one.
Why New York Will Win: The Dolphins scored 10 points against the Browns last week, which is pretty awful. It's hard to picture the Jets laying an egg in two straight games, and they probably won't need a great offensive performance to do it because Miami's drives stall for field goals far too often.
Prediction: Jets 31, Dolphins 13
Denver Broncos at Arizona Cardinals
13 of 16
Why Denver Will Win: Has any team looked worse in recent weeks than the Cardinals? I mean, they've scored a total of 25 points over their last three games, and now the team's quarterback situation is even more of a mess than it already was.
Why Arizona Will Win: The Broncos just fired Josh McDaniels, so you never really know what you're gonna get out of them this week. Denver's defense has been pretty bad for most of the season, and I suppose anything can happen...even for teams who have played as bad as Arizona has.
Prediction: Broncos 31, Cardinals 10
Kansas City Chiefs at San Diego Chargers
14 of 16
Why Kansas City Will Win: As a Chiefs fan, you have to be impressed with the emergence of Dwayne Bowe, Matt Cassel and the team's passing game. It has really opened up the running lanes for Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones. Add that to a defense that limited Kyle Orton last week, and you have a recipe for success.
Why San Diego Will Win: Despite their disappointing loss last week, the Chargers are still a much better home team and are statistically one of the top teams in the leagues. With Philip Rivers and a boatload of offensive weapons, you can't count out the Chargers no matter who their opponent is.
Prediction: Chargers 31, Chiefs 27
Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys
15 of 16
Why Philadelphia Will Win: We all know that the Eagles succeed when their offense plays well. Philadelphia's offense ranks first in total yards, second in points scored, and in the top seven in passing and rushing yards. It's hard for any team to gameplan to stop Michael Vick, DeSean Jackson and the rest of the team's offensive weapons.
Why Dallas Will Win: The Cowboys aren't the same team now that Jason Garrett has taken over as head coach. Lo and behold, Dallas has actually started running the ball. Last week against Indianapolis Tashard Choice rushed for 100 yards and Felix Jones ran for 83 yards, which will certainly benefit the team's passing game.
Prediction: Eagles 34, Cowboys 28
Baltimore Ravens at Houston Texans
16 of 16
Why Baltimore Will Win: Baltimore's passing attack hasn't thrived quite like most people thought it would be, but there's a remedy for that: a game against Houston. The Texans give up a league-worst 287.4 passing yards per game and 26.8 points per game. Joe Flacco is salivating.
Why Houston Will Win: If Houston isn't already out of the playoff race, it will be with a loss here. The Texans know they have to win this one, and they have the talent to do so. Matt Schuab, Andre Johnson and Arian Foster make up one of the league's best offensive trios, and when the Texans get it all together, it usually doesn't bode well for the other team.
Prediction: Texans 31, Ravens 24
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