Week (lucky) 13 Picks

If you didn’t get your full helping of stuffing and turkey last week don’t worry because there are plenty of fun games to watch this weekend. Plenty of division games, including two primetime match ups that can decide the division’s leader. Last week was still a good week, going 10-6, boosting my overall record to 80-59. It’s above five hundred so what more could I ask for, besides a perfect record. Without further adoo… addue… addai… ehhhh, here’s my picks:

HOU @ PHI – N/A. I wish I could have made my pick for this game, because I would have said that somehow, someway, Houston would find a way to lose this game. Sure enough, fourteen points later, it happened. PHI wins and I miss out on my first win of the week.

JAC @ TEN – JAC. Tennessee was just shut out by Houston, a team that hasn’t been able to defend a win the entire season. Meanwhile Jacksonville is on the top of the AFC South and doing quite well offensively. Sure they don’t have a Arian Foster or Matt Schaub behind center, but they do have Garrard who has found a way to throw 17 TD’s this season so far, as well as running three in. Sorry Tennessee but there’s just no win for you.

WAS @ NYG – NYG. Division game but nonetheless, a win for the better record team. The Giants are finding ways to win even without a star wide receiver. No Nicks and Plaxico is still in jail. However, Eli has been able to spread the ball around to almost everyone. He still has Smith, Manningham, and Boss to throw at, and the running game is still improving. As for the Redskins, they’re personnel are already finding new jobs. Their tight end coach just accepted a job out in Colorado. It tells you something about the future of a team when the coaches are finding jobs with a few weeks left in the season.

CHI @ DET – CHI. The almighty Bears took down the Eagles last week; A team that nobody gave a chance to excel, including myself. Maybe Chicago is legit. I mean they lead GB in the standings, a potential SuperBowl Contender. I’ll take a team like Chicago against a young Detroit team.

BUF @ MIN – MIN. Sorry Buffalo, you haven’t convinced me yet. Good almost win against PIT, but not good enough. Never thought I’d be rooting for Favre. Come on old man you can do it!

NO @ CIN – NO. Do I really have to explain myself on this one? The Bengals don’t have any more lives left. WHO DEY? WHO DEY? WHO DEY GONNA BEAT THEM BENGALS? Who Dat Nation, that’s who!

SF @ GB – GB. With Gore placed on the IR, Brian Westbrook will have to step up against a defense that gives up just over 100 yards a game. Talk about jumping right in. I still feel that GB has the defense and over powering offense to beat out SF, especially in the cold weather of Green Bay.

DEN @ KC – KC. Another division game and another disappointment for the losing record team. Denver is sitting sadly at 3-8 while KC tops the division. The Kansas City Patriots win again!

CLE @ MIA – CLE. Hmmm? This is a thinker. Miami is coming off a huge win against Oakland, but they did get shut out a couple weeks ago and with the other two teams, Jets and Patriots, running away with the division, it’s unlikely they have a chance to advance any further than week 17. Sadly it’s the same case for Cleveland that’s just trying to make it to a 500 record. However there is one thing Cleveland has that Miami doesn’t. Say it with me now, PEYTON HILLIS. This guy is single handedly scoring for this offense. I’m just glad he’s on my fantasy team.

OAK @ SD – SD. I picked SD to win against Oakland the first time these two teams met up, and sadly I’m doing it again. I need Oakland to keep losing, and if the past has taught us anything, Philip Rivers should have a great game against Oakland in this one. He threw for 431 yards last time but only managed to throw two touchdowns. Time to find your receivers once you hit the red zone.

CAR @ SEA – SEA. Carolina has one win this season. Nuff Said?

ATL @ TB – ATL. I could give an in depth analysis on this game but it’s simply summed up in two capitalized words: MATTY HEISMAN!!!!

STL @ ARI – STL. As much as I’d love to pick Arizona to win this game, I can’t find myself doing it; simply because I put my heart and soul into this blog every single week. It’s not funny. Nothing’s funny. I’m not laughing about it. STL is my pick, and that’s fine, it’s fine, fine, fine.

DAL @ IND – IND. Last week’s loss proved that Dallas is still Dallas, even if it was only by 3 points. Meanwhile, Indy is coming off an embarrassing loss to the Chargers. Indy is trying to fight for a playoff spot and they’re doing it with injured players. Peyton is playing more like Favre than like Manning. He’s had 7 interceptions in the last 2 games. We all know he wants the touchdown record but does he really need the interception one too? Time to hand the ball off a bit more, or at least make it look like they are. With a below average secondary, throwing the ball is something Peyton should continue doing as long as it’s not every play.

PIT @ BAL – BAL. This is just one of two great division games this week that will result in a division leader. Coming off a scary win against Buffalo, PIT has some work to do against another top five team. Both teams let up about 17 points a game which should make for a close game. Roethlisberger just wasn’t himself last week. He has zero touchdowns and interceptions and was better off taking the week off to prepare for this game. At least they know their new kicker is ready to go, kicking his way to 13 points. The only advantage I think Baltimore has at this point is they are playing at home. Like many of the other quarterbacks this week, the Ravens will need to throw more often, especially with Pittsburgh holding opponents to 64 yards a game on the ground. (NFL #1 Ranked Defense)

NYJ @ NE – NE. This is a game I’ve been waiting for not only since week 2, but for the last 10 years. Finally an in division rivalry that I can sink my teeth into. Let’s face it, the Patriots have been so dominant in the AFC East over the years, that we’ve had to go to a different division to find a rival, aka Pittsburg and Indy. This year’s Jets/Patriots rivalry is just sooooo much fun to watch. The coaches butt heads, the players talk smack, and the games are always a thrill to watch. This week I think both teams have an equal chance to win the game, from the recent success of the Jets’ offense to the Patriots improvements on the defensive side. I’m simply picking the Patriots this week as a fan, because I don’t want to be the only New England fan watching the game if the Jets win saying, “Great the Pats lost, which means I was right.”