Fantasy Football Week 13: NFL Eliminator Picks to Keep You in the Game

At this point, most people have at least one loss in the eliminator, but if you've made it this far without a defeat, congratulations. My entry, WTF, is sitting at 11-1 heading into Week 13 after the Atlanta Falcons handled the Vikings at home, 24-14. Matt Ryan threw three TDs for the Falcons.

The rest of my Week 12 analysis proved accurate as well. The Carolina Panthers had little trouble with the winless Colts and Miami put up quite a fight against the Dallas Cowboys before falling on a last-second field goal.

The week was pretty uneventful for entries as each of the five most popular selections won their contests.

Hoping to get through the season with just the one loss, here are my picks through Week 12:

Week 1: San Diego Chargers

Week 2: New York Giants

Week 3: Dallas Cowboys

Week 4: Green Bay Packers

Week 5: New Orleans Saints

Week 6: Cincinnati Bengals

Week 7: Carolina Panthers

Week 8: Tennessee Titans

Week 9: Houston Texans

Week 10: Baltimore Ravens (loss)

Week 11: San Francisco 49ers

Week 12: Atlanta Falcons

Similar to Week 12, there is a pretty even spread of picks in Week 13. Each of the the top five selected teams are on between 11 and 15 percent of entries.

The most popular pick in Week 13 is the Philadelphia Eagles as 15 percent of entries are trying to get the early win in the Thursday night game. The Eagles are on the road facing the Seattle Seahawks.

The teams have identical 4-7 records, but there is a generally recognized talent gap in favor of the "Dream Team." There are a few key injuries affecting this game as well. Michael Vick may sit out for the Eagles and Sidney Rice might be out for the Seahawks.

The Eagles should win this game. But they should also have a better record than 4-7. This pick isn't for me.

Tampa Bay is getting about 15 percent of selections as well in a real head-scratcher. The Bucs have lost five straight games and have bottom-five pass and rush defenses. The Bucs are hosting the Carolina Panthers.

Cam Newton will exploit the Tampa Bay deficiencies and I expect he'll put up a top-three fantasy performance this week in leading Carolina to a victory.

Alex Smith and the San Francisco 49ers will look to regroup after just their second loss of the season to the Baltimore Ravens. They did get a bit of extra rest as they played the final Thanksgiving day game in Week 12.

This week the Niners host the Rams and will likely control the game with their run offense and run defense.

The Bears are hosting the sliding Chiefs in a battle of backup quarterbacks. I don't expect Caleb Hanie or Tyler Palko to be much of a factor.

The Bears will win with a better supporting cast led by do-it-all running back Matt Forte.

The Bears would be a good pick, but it's not the lock of the week.

The New England Patriots are hosting the Indianapolis Colts in what will likely be one of the highest scoring contests of the weekend. Tom Brady won't let the Pats look past the lowly Colts though, and even though new starter Dan Orlovsky may find some success against the porous Pats pass defense, the Patriots will win handily.

I'm predicting New England doubles up the Colts, 42-21.

Week 13 Selection: New England Patriots