NFL Predictions for Week 12
Packers at Lions - There was a day when this used to be a pretty fun match up on Thanksgiving Day, but as of late, the Lions haven’t been much competition on Thanksgiving Day. Their last win was against the Packers back in 2003. Sure you might say that it’s their time to win, but; they are facing a Packers team that is standing at 6-4 in their division.
The Lions have been struggling all season and now will be facing the Packers without their young quarterback Matthew Stafford. Not only will they be short their future franchise quarterback, but they will be facing the number one defense in the NFL. It’s unlikely that the 2-8 Lions will muster up enough offense to fight off the Packers this Thanksgiving.
Prediction - Packers 38 Lions 17
Raiders at Dallas - The Cowboys are coming into this game a little banged up with a roughed up Tony Romo and their key receiver, Jason Witten, won’t even be on the field. Although they stand at 7-3 in their division, the Cowboys have been struggling. They haven’t been able to muster up any points through the first three quarters of their last two games. This could be a key factor in this game.
The Raiders may only be 3-7 but they are coming off of a very good win for them last week and are rallying behind their new quarterback Bruce Gradowski. He was able to lead them to victory against the Browns in his first start since December of 2008. This could be an upset for the banged up Cowboys.
Prediction - Raiders 24 Cowboys 21
Giants at Broncos - The Broncos started off the season with a 6-0 record and now are scratching their heads and trying to figure out what has caused them to lose the last four in a row. Last week the Broncos had to go with Chris Simms while Kyle Orton was nursing a minor ankle sprain, he is expected to play in this game against Eli Manning and the Giants. This gives the Broncos some home to stop their losing streak.
The Giants who are experiencing some of the same problems as the Broncos have with a lot of ups and downs to get to their 6-4 record. Although the Giants have had their own fair share of problems, the Giants don’t seem to be losing their confidence like the Broncos appear to be.
Prediction - Giants 28 Broncos 21
Seahawks at Rams - Neither team is going anywhere this year, but it’s the Rams that has shown more improvement overall as a team. No one can argue that they have not tried to win, especially the past few weeks. The past couple of weeks are games that they should have won, including the game against the Saints. There is a fire burning in the Rams players that Seattle can not match. The Seahawks are being accused by critics that they aren’t showing enough effort.
The Rams may be without Marc Bulger, and probably for the rest of the season. But unlike being a major blow for most teams to lose their QB, it’s not the big of a blow to the Rams since Bulger has had a very sub-par year so far. Kyle Boller will be behind center and the game will probably be centered about 90% around Steven Jackson, this will probably be what will kill the Seahawks.
Prediction - Rams 17 Seahawks 14
Redskins at Eagles - The Eagles have both a solid offense and defense coming into this game and have found a player to take over for Westbrook while he’s been out. The defense on the Eagles is very hard to get many points once in the red zone.
Although the Redskins have a defense that can stop the opponents, they also have been forced to think outside of their scope of responsibilities since Jason Campbell and the rest of the offense can’t seem to muster up much more than 10 points at a time. With such an anemic offense, the Eagles shouldn’t have a very tough time of pulling this win off.
Prediction - Eagles 27 Redskins 10
Panthers at Jets - After a pretty good season last year, the Panthers felt they’d be able to return to the playoffs this year, but with the combination of injuries and some pretty bad play, it’s more than likely, with a record of 4-6, that there won’t be any post season play for them.
And as for the Jets they’ve had their problems at quarterback. Relying on a rookie to guide them through this season has had it’s ups and downs and now they find themselves standing at 4-6. With both teams struggling and neither one being very successful this season will probably lead to a game that is pretty close and the team with the least mistakes will come out the victor.
Prediction - Panthers 13 Jets 10
Colts at Texans - OK, sure the Texans are an improved team and stand at 5-5, far cry from previous years for this relatively young team. They have been struggling especially the past couple of weeks losing games that they probably should have won. Now they have to face once again, the undefeated Colts who have proven that even in close games they can find a way to win.
Prediction - Colts 35 Texans 23
Browns at Bengals - The Browns are simply not cutting this year. There is nothing that seems to work for them, with just one win under their belts they will be facing a pretty good Bengals team that stands surprisingly at 7-3 and are1st in the AFC North and the Browns 4th in the same division.
There is no doubt that the Bengals and Cedric Benson who has been their shinning star will probably run all over the hapless Browns.
Prediction - Bengals 38 Browns 10
Dolphins at Bills - When the Dolphins visit the Bills this week, they really need for Ricky Williams to feed off of his last weeks performance. Their defense should be able to contain their quarterback who has been sacked 51 times this year and has been intercepted 23 times. If the defense can key on this deficiency then they should not have much problem getting past the Bills offense in Buffalo.
The Bills may have Terrell Owens but he’s been pretty much of a non-factor for the Bills so the Dolphins probably shouldn’t have to worry about him being much of a threat. There shouldn’t be any home field advantage here.
Prediction - Dolphins 28 Bills 14
Buccaneers at Falcons - Both of these teams are coming off of losses from last week, but that shouldn’t hinder the Falcons much. Matt Ryan, the Falcons quarterback has had a pretty good year so far and they shouldn’t have to worry about his ability this week against the Buccaneers who have done nothing but struggle all season.
Although the Falcons have a very week defense against the pass, will not ensure that the Buccaneers rookie quarterback to be able to flourish during this game. The Falcons will be able to establish a good foothold on offense where they won’t have to worry about whether or not their defense can pass rush.
Prediction - Falcons 24 Buccaneers 10
Jaguars at 49ers -As bad as the Jaguars have played this year, they’ve been able to win their last three games and have given them hope for the possibility of earning a wild card birth. So this game against the 49ers are extremely important for the Jaguars and their post season hopes.
With the inability of Alex Smith to help his team score early is one of the reasons why they have been struggling this year. As of late though, the 49ers have been having some big success with TE Vernon Davis and Frank Gore has yet to have a breakout game. This will probably be a close game, and a struggle because both teams need this win.
Prediction - Jaguars 23 49ers 20
Chiefs at Chargers - The Chiefs will be going into San Diego more pumped up than they have been all season. Coming off the upset of last week by defeating the Super Bowl Champion Steelers could make them very dangerous to the Chargers.
The Chargers though, have won five games in a row and once again sit at the top of the AFC West. A key to their success has been their running game has really opened up for them and had over 200 yards rushing last year. The Chiefs on the other hand allowed, even in their win about 500 yards of offense. As much as I would like to pick this as an upset, it’s probably not going to happen.
Prediction - Chargers 35 Chiefs 17
Cardinals at Titans - Kurt Warner will be entering this game with his 42nd straight start with the Cardinals and generally when Warner starts, there’s success. Sure the Titans have improved since they started the season so slowly. The Cardinals have yet to lose while on the road.
Many feel that Vince Young will have no problems against the visiting Cardinals but that could be a tall order for such a young QB against a team that has a potent of an offense as Kurt Warner and the Cardinals.
Prediction - Cardinals 35 Titans 28
Bears at Vikings - The Favre led Vikings continues to take the NFL by storm with a 9-1 record and Favre is actually having one of his best seasons of his illustrious career. He’s so good that he’s only been intercepted a whopping three times.
The Bears on the other hand have been struggling all season and really have a problem with the passing game and when they face someone like Favre it pretty much spells doom. The defense that once seemed fierce has lost some of their fire. The offense that they thought just might be extremely improved with Cutler has been an utmost disappointment. This shouldn’t be much of a contest for the Vikings.
Prediction - Vikings 40 Bears 21
Steelers at Ravens - The Steelers were stunned last week when they lost to the Chiefs and they are now on a two game losing streak. Even though they are the defending champs they have not had as good of a season they might have thought they would have. Part of the reason is that they have been playing some pretty sloppy football.
The Ravens who stand at 5-5 just one game behind the Super Bowl Champs really need this game and they understand just how important it would be to move past the champs and continue to fight for the division title. I pick this one for the upset of the week.
Prediction - Ravens 23 Steelers 20
Patriots at Saints - Gone are the days when the Saints were once called the “Aints”, are now staring down at an undefeated season as the Patriots come into New Orleans, it’s doubtful if they feel too threatened by Tom Brady and his boys who stand at 7-3. This is not to say that the Saints are cocky, it is more like they are comfortable at where they are.
The Patriots are a team that will have another shot at stopping an undefeated team. They tried with the Colts but in the end Manning and the Colts were able to come out the victors. Both Brady and Brees are elite quarterbacks and both have the ability to beat each other. But it’s all going to come down to who in the end has the best overall talent and so far, it appears that the Saints are more of the complete package.
Prediction - Saints 40 Patriots 38
