Week eleven? Yikes! That's scary! The season is moving fast. Last week was a week without many interesting games. This week we've got lots of very interesting games.
We start out this week with the Bills at the Dolphins. This is pretty much a must win game for both teams with the Patriots already two games up on both of them. A win keeps them alive for a wildcard spot. A lost and they're likely to miss the playoffs. There are a lot of good teams in the AFC this year with pretty good records. Making the wildcard slot in the AFC will be a challenge and you're likely to need a 10-6 record (maybe more) to get a wildcard spot. Whichever team loses here will be 5-5 with six games to play. Winning five out of six is never easy. Miami's currently a six point favorite which I think is a bit generous. There are lots of rumors out of Miami about offensive players being unhappy with Bill Lazor (their offensive coordinator and Chip Kelly's QB coach last year.) His attempts to mimic what Chip Kelly does started out good, but the players don't seem to be fully buying in. I'm taking a big leap here and taking the Bills in an upset.
Atlanta goes to Carolina. Ugh! Pick a team, any team. The Panthers looked horrible last week. I'll take Atlanta, but I'm not sure where Atlanta's heart is any more. When you look at where they were two years ago and where they are now, it's hard to believe it's the same team. Expect to see a coaching change in Atlanta this off-season.
Minnesota goes to Chicago. I'll take Chicago simply because they're playing on whatever that thing they call a field is in Chicago. (Rumor has it, the field is more painted dirt than grass at this time of the season.) I'll take Chicago, but nothing would surprise me.
Houston goes to Cleveland. I like Hoyer and the Browns in this one. That AFC North is looking pretty competitive. The last month when those teams play each other week after week will be very telling.
Seattle goes to KC. It's not much of a trip but Seattle doesn't play as well on the road as they do at home. KC has their own home field advantage, not quite as robust as Seattle's, but it's close. I'm going with KC in this one. Expect it to be a good game though.
The Bengals go the New Orleans. New Orleans at home is hard to bet against. Someone in the NFC South has to start winning games and my money's on the Saints. I'll take the Saints in this game.
The Niners go to the Giants. The Giants have lots of problems. I've got to give this one to the Niners. West Coast teams traveling East have issues, but the Giants are a bit of a mess.
Denver goes to Saint Louis. I've got to take the Broncos. It's hard to pick against Peyton Manning and in a dome it's nearly impossible to find a reason to pick against him. Peyton tends to have issues in bad weather, but there won't be bad weather in the Rams' dome. There are lots of reports of the owner of the Rams buying up real estate in LA, so the Rams may be heading back West in the very near future.
Tampa Bay goes to Washington. This should be a win for the Redskins. If they lose this one then they might as well pack it up for the year. The Redskins aren't that good, but the Bucs are pretty horrible right now.
Oakland goes to San Diego. San Diego should win. The Raiders are surprisingly competitive for a while, but then melt away. If they ever play a complete game they could eke out a win or two, but things don't look good in Oakland.
Detroit goes to Arizona in one of those games that's likely to have playoff significance down the road. Arizona's favored by two but I'm going with the upset here and picking Detroit. Megatron's back and he's pretty much impossible to defend.
Philadelphia goes to Green Bay. This is a measuring stick game for both teams. I suspect the Packers will win at home, but I'm picking the Eagles. The defense and special teams units of the Eagles are dominating games right now. Darren Sproles is back healthy again and he's a game breaker unlike anyone else in the league. Chip's been using him a bit sparingly since his injury, but I suspect Chip will take the reins off and let Sproles run wild. This should be a fun game to watch.
The Patriots go to the Colts on the Sunday night game. The Colts are a three point favorite, but I almost never bet against Tom Brady on a nationally televised, prime time game. I'll take the Patriots on the road in this one.
And the Monday night game is the Steelers at the Titans. This is a good game for the Steelers to get back on track. It's a bit of a clunker for viewers, but good for the Steelers. I'll take the Steelers big in this one.
Fly!!! Eagles!!! Fly!!!
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