Thursday
Game: Chicago at Detroit
Pick: Detroit - Detroit has gone two whole games without scoring a touchdown, being outscored by their opponents 48-15 in that span. What's the best recipe for a struggling offense? Playing at home against the Chicago Bears defense in a shortened week. I look for the Lions to win at home on Thanksgiving by 4.
Result: Detroit 34 Chicago 17
Record: 1-0
Game: Philadelphia at Dallas
Pick: Philadelphia - This was an extremely difficult game for me to pick. While Philadelphia doesn't have the greatest defense in the league, I think I give the Eagles the slight edge in this game because I feel their offense is much more difficult to prepare for in a shortened week than the Cowboys offense. While I remain tentative, I'll go with the Eagles by a field goal.
Result: Philadelphia 33 Dallas 10
Record: 2-0
Game: Seattle at San Francisco
Pick: Seattle - If either team wants to have a legitimate shot at the NFC West title, they'll likely have to win this game. With Seattle getting some key players back on defense and the 49ers offense struggling to put points up on the likes of the New York Giants and Washington the past couple of weeks, I'll give the slight edge to the Seahawks. I'm going with Seattle by 3.
Result: Seattle 19 San Francisco 3
Record: 3-0
Sunday
Game: Tennessee at Houston
Pick: Houston - Houston is fighting for their playoff lives and need this win to have any shot at playing in the post-season. With the game at home and J.J. Watt loving to knock Zach Mettenberger around, I'm going to go with the Texans by a touchdown.
Result: Houston 45 Tennessee 21
Record: 4-0
Game: Oakland at St. Louis
Pick: St. Louis - It's crazy enough Oakland won their first game last week at home against then 7-3 Kansas City. It'd be a little too crazy to see them win in back-to-back weeks, this time on the road against the pesky St. Louis Rams. I'll take the Rams by 10.
Result: St. Louis 52 Oakland 0
Record: 5-0
Game: San Diego at Baltimore
Pick: Baltimore - This is a big game for both teams, as it seems like half of the AFC is either 7-4 or 6-5 right now. With the game at home, however, and the history of West Coast teams not faring well when playing on the East Coast, I'm going to give the slight edge to the Ravens. I'm taking Baltimore by 4.
Result: San Diego 34 Baltimore 33
Record: 5-1
Game: Cleveland at Buffalo
Pick: Buffalo - Buffalo features one of the better defense in the AFC and should be able to frustrate Brian Hoyer and limit the Browns ground attack. So long as Kyle Orton isn't careless with the football, I think he and the rest of Bills offense should be able to generate enough points to win this game. I'll take Buffalo by 3.
Result: Buffalo 26 Cleveland 10
Record: 6-1
Game: Cincinnati at Tampa Bay
Pick: Cincinnati - I'm not fully on board with Cincinnati yet, but their tough road win against Houston this past week makes me think they might finally be getting on track to being a more consistent football team. With that in mind, they should be able to beat a 2-9 Tampa Bay team on the road. I'll take the Bengals by 10.
Result: Cincinnati 14 Tampa Bay 13
Record: 7-1
Game: Washington at Indianapolis
Pick: Indianapolis - The Washington Redskins seem to have little faith in their offense, especially since Robert Griffin III returned from injury, and while their defense is improved from a year ago, it's not nearly good enough for the team to expect to win on the road against a solid Indianapolis Colts team. I'll take the Colts by two touchdowns.
Result: Indianapolis 49 Washington 27
Record: 8-1
Game: NY Giants at Jacksonville
Pick: NY Giants - For as bad as they are, not even Tom Coughlin's Giants should lose on the road against Jacksonville. Expect Odell Beckham to have another great game for the G-Men. I'm going with the Giants by 10.
Result: Jacksonville 25 NY Giants 24
Record: 8-2
Game: Carolina at Minnesota
Pick: Minnesota - Carolina is coming off a bye week, which was sadly their best week in a long time. The Panthers offensive line has been awful, and playing on the road against a good and aggressive Minnesota Vikings defense won't be a good recipe for the team. I'm going to take Minnesota at home by 4.
Result: Minnesota 31 Carolina 13
Record: 9-2
Game: New Orleans at Pittsburgh
Pick: Pittsburgh - The Saints and Steelers have something in common - both tend to be great at home and mediocre on the road (being kind there). Given that, I'm going to give the edge to the home team, Pittsburgh. I'll take the Steelers by a touchdown.
Result: New Orleans 35 Pittsburgh 32
Record: 9-3
Game; Arizona at Atlanta
Pick: Arizona - What's the Atlanta Falcons worst enemy? A good and aggressive defense. That's exactly what Arizona features, and the Cardinals should give Matt Ryan fits. Arizona's offense has struggled in recent weeks, but then again, they played two of the best defenses in football, in Detroit and Seattle. Atlanta's defense is nowhere near as good as those two teams'. I'm going with the Cardinals by a touchdown.
Result: Atlanta 29 Arizona 18
Record: 9-4
Game: New England at Green Bay
Pick: New England - While one can't help but admire how well Aaron Rodgers has played for the Green Bay Packers, I've been more impressed by the Patriots as a team in recent weeks. Also, given Bill Belichick's history of taking away opponents' top weapon, I look for Jordy Nelson to be limited in this game, enough so for the Patriots to continue their winning ways and win at Lambeau by a field goal.
Result: Green Bay 26 New England 21
Record: 9-5
Game: Denver at Kansas City
Pick: Kansas City - After playing so well through Week 10 of the season, both the Broncos and Chiefs have been struggling over the past couple weeks, with Denver losing to St. Louis 22-7 and beating Miami 39-36. Kansas City, meanwhile, was the first team to lose to Oakland, falling to the Raiders on Thursday night last week. With the game at Arrowhead and the Broncos defense struggling so much, I think I'm going to go with the Chiefs at home by a field goal.
Result: Denver 29 Kansas City 16
Record: 9-6
Monday
Game: Miami at NY Jets
Pick: Miami - Ryan Tannehill is playing great football right now, and going against the New York Jets horrendous secondary should be a good match-up for he and the Miami Dolphins offense. I'll take the Dolphins on the road by 10.
Result: Miami 16 NY Jets 13
Record: 10-6
Week 13 Record: 10-6 (.625)
Overall Record: 118-73-1 (.618)
Game: Chicago at Detroit
Pick: Detroit - Detroit has gone two whole games without scoring a touchdown, being outscored by their opponents 48-15 in that span. What's the best recipe for a struggling offense? Playing at home against the Chicago Bears defense in a shortened week. I look for the Lions to win at home on Thanksgiving by 4.
Result: Detroit 34 Chicago 17
Record: 1-0
Game: Philadelphia at Dallas
Pick: Philadelphia - This was an extremely difficult game for me to pick. While Philadelphia doesn't have the greatest defense in the league, I think I give the Eagles the slight edge in this game because I feel their offense is much more difficult to prepare for in a shortened week than the Cowboys offense. While I remain tentative, I'll go with the Eagles by a field goal.
Result: Philadelphia 33 Dallas 10
Record: 2-0
Game: Seattle at San Francisco
Pick: Seattle - If either team wants to have a legitimate shot at the NFC West title, they'll likely have to win this game. With Seattle getting some key players back on defense and the 49ers offense struggling to put points up on the likes of the New York Giants and Washington the past couple of weeks, I'll give the slight edge to the Seahawks. I'm going with Seattle by 3.
Result: Seattle 19 San Francisco 3
Record: 3-0
Sunday
Game: Tennessee at Houston
Pick: Houston - Houston is fighting for their playoff lives and need this win to have any shot at playing in the post-season. With the game at home and J.J. Watt loving to knock Zach Mettenberger around, I'm going to go with the Texans by a touchdown.
Result: Houston 45 Tennessee 21
Record: 4-0
Game: Oakland at St. Louis
Pick: St. Louis - It's crazy enough Oakland won their first game last week at home against then 7-3 Kansas City. It'd be a little too crazy to see them win in back-to-back weeks, this time on the road against the pesky St. Louis Rams. I'll take the Rams by 10.
Result: St. Louis 52 Oakland 0
Record: 5-0
Game: San Diego at Baltimore
Pick: Baltimore - This is a big game for both teams, as it seems like half of the AFC is either 7-4 or 6-5 right now. With the game at home, however, and the history of West Coast teams not faring well when playing on the East Coast, I'm going to give the slight edge to the Ravens. I'm taking Baltimore by 4.
Result: San Diego 34 Baltimore 33
Record: 5-1
Game: Cleveland at Buffalo
Pick: Buffalo - Buffalo features one of the better defense in the AFC and should be able to frustrate Brian Hoyer and limit the Browns ground attack. So long as Kyle Orton isn't careless with the football, I think he and the rest of Bills offense should be able to generate enough points to win this game. I'll take Buffalo by 3.
Result: Buffalo 26 Cleveland 10
Record: 6-1
Game: Cincinnati at Tampa Bay
Pick: Cincinnati - I'm not fully on board with Cincinnati yet, but their tough road win against Houston this past week makes me think they might finally be getting on track to being a more consistent football team. With that in mind, they should be able to beat a 2-9 Tampa Bay team on the road. I'll take the Bengals by 10.
Result: Cincinnati 14 Tampa Bay 13
Record: 7-1
Game: Washington at Indianapolis
Pick: Indianapolis - The Washington Redskins seem to have little faith in their offense, especially since Robert Griffin III returned from injury, and while their defense is improved from a year ago, it's not nearly good enough for the team to expect to win on the road against a solid Indianapolis Colts team. I'll take the Colts by two touchdowns.
Result: Indianapolis 49 Washington 27
Record: 8-1
Game: NY Giants at Jacksonville
Pick: NY Giants - For as bad as they are, not even Tom Coughlin's Giants should lose on the road against Jacksonville. Expect Odell Beckham to have another great game for the G-Men. I'm going with the Giants by 10.
Result: Jacksonville 25 NY Giants 24
Record: 8-2
Game: Carolina at Minnesota
Pick: Minnesota - Carolina is coming off a bye week, which was sadly their best week in a long time. The Panthers offensive line has been awful, and playing on the road against a good and aggressive Minnesota Vikings defense won't be a good recipe for the team. I'm going to take Minnesota at home by 4.
Result: Minnesota 31 Carolina 13
Record: 9-2
Game: New Orleans at Pittsburgh
Pick: Pittsburgh - The Saints and Steelers have something in common - both tend to be great at home and mediocre on the road (being kind there). Given that, I'm going to give the edge to the home team, Pittsburgh. I'll take the Steelers by a touchdown.
Result: New Orleans 35 Pittsburgh 32
Record: 9-3
Game; Arizona at Atlanta
Pick: Arizona - What's the Atlanta Falcons worst enemy? A good and aggressive defense. That's exactly what Arizona features, and the Cardinals should give Matt Ryan fits. Arizona's offense has struggled in recent weeks, but then again, they played two of the best defenses in football, in Detroit and Seattle. Atlanta's defense is nowhere near as good as those two teams'. I'm going with the Cardinals by a touchdown.
Result: Atlanta 29 Arizona 18
Record: 9-4
Game: New England at Green Bay
Pick: New England - While one can't help but admire how well Aaron Rodgers has played for the Green Bay Packers, I've been more impressed by the Patriots as a team in recent weeks. Also, given Bill Belichick's history of taking away opponents' top weapon, I look for Jordy Nelson to be limited in this game, enough so for the Patriots to continue their winning ways and win at Lambeau by a field goal.
Result: Green Bay 26 New England 21
Record: 9-5
Game: Denver at Kansas City
Pick: Kansas City - After playing so well through Week 10 of the season, both the Broncos and Chiefs have been struggling over the past couple weeks, with Denver losing to St. Louis 22-7 and beating Miami 39-36. Kansas City, meanwhile, was the first team to lose to Oakland, falling to the Raiders on Thursday night last week. With the game at Arrowhead and the Broncos defense struggling so much, I think I'm going to go with the Chiefs at home by a field goal.
Result: Denver 29 Kansas City 16
Record: 9-6
Monday
Game: Miami at NY Jets
Pick: Miami - Ryan Tannehill is playing great football right now, and going against the New York Jets horrendous secondary should be a good match-up for he and the Miami Dolphins offense. I'll take the Dolphins on the road by 10.
Result: Miami 16 NY Jets 13
Record: 10-6
Week 13 Record: 10-6 (.625)
Overall Record: 118-73-1 (.618)
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