Thursday
Game: Green Bay at Detroit
Prediction: Green Bay - This game makes me more nervous than I would have expected just 3 weeks ago. After starting the year 6-0, the Packers have lost 4 of 5. Meanwhile, after starting the season 1-7, the Lions have won three straight, including a game at Lambeau (for the first time in 25 years). Green Bay's almost in desperation mode at the moment, though. They're now looking up at Minnesota in the NFC North, just a game ahead of 6th and 7th seeds Seattle and Atlanta, respectively. If they don't start winning soon, they could find themselves on the outside looking in on the postseason. I'll take Aaron Rodgers to lead his team to a victory in this one. The Packers by a field goal.
Result: Green Bay 27 Detroit 23
Record: 1-0
Sunday
Game: NY Jets at NY Giants
Prediction: NY Jets - These two teams are fighting for their playoff lives right now. While the Giants can be explosive offensively at times, I think the Jets are the better, more balanced football team. Their defense has been more consistent this season, as has their running attack, led by Chris Ivory. Due to that, I'll take the Jets by 4.
Result: NY Jets 23 NY Giants 20 OT
Record: 2-0
Game: Arizona at St. Louis
Prediction: Arizona - Where has the St. Louis Rams offense gone? After Todd Gurley returned from injury, the Rams offense seemed to finally take off. However, defenses have since adjusted, forced Nick Foles to throw the football, which hasn't led to good results for the Rams. Expect the aggressive Cardinals offense to come after Foles early and often, and force turnovers in the process. I'll go with the Cardinals on the road by a touchdown.
Result: Arizona 27 St. Louis 3
Record: 3-0
Game: Atlanta at Tampa Bay
Prediction: Atlanta - These two teams appear to be going in opposite directions. After starting the year 5-0, the Atlanta Falcons have lost 5 of 6. Tampa, on the other hand, has won 2 of 3, and is in contention for a Wild Card spot, which didn't appear to be likely when the season started. Given that, I should really go for the home town Buccaneers, but for at least one more week, am going to place some faith in the talented Atlanta Falcons offense. So long as Matt Ryan doesn't continue turning the ball over in the red zone, I'd like to think the Falcons will score enough points to be victorious. I'll take Atlanta by 3.
Result: Tampa Bay 23 Atlanta 19
Record: 3-1
Game: Seattle at Minnesota
Prediction: Seattle - I like what Minnesota is doing as an organization, but didn't last week's win by Seattle against the Pittsburgh Steelers feel like the start of another Seahawks late-season run? So long as Seattle contains Adrian Peterson just enough, I think they should be able to sneak out of this one with a huge road victory. I'll take the Seahawks by a field goal.
Result: Seattle 38 Minnesota 7
Record: 4-1
Game: Houston at Buffalo
Prediction: Buffalo - Where in the world did the Houston Texans all of a sudden come from? The once seemingly hapless Texans (on both sides of the ball) have found themselves, especially on the defensive side of the ball, and are currently tied with Indianapolis atop the AFC South at 6-5. Buffalo, at 5-6, is also in the playoff picture. I like how Houston is playing right now, but with this game in the always unpredictable Buffalo (especially in December), I like the Bills by 6.
Result: Buffalo 30 Houston 21
Record: 5-1
Game: Baltimore at Miami
Prediction: Miami - To put it simply, Baltimore is more banged up than Miami at the moment, and that in conjunction with this game being in Miami, I'll take the Dolphins by a touchdown.
Result: Miami 15 Baltimore 13
Record: 6-1
Game: Cincinnati at Cleveland
Prediction: Cincinnati - With New England falling to Denver on Sunday night, Cincinnati is one game back of the Patriots and is battling for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs in the AFC. Cleveland, meanwhile, is wondering who they're going to take with one of the top picks in next year's draft. I think I'll go with the Bengals, on the road, by a couple of touchdowns.
Result: Cincinnati 37 Cleveland 3
Record: 7-1
Game: Jacksonville at Tennessee
Prediction: Tennessee - The game was back and forth on a Thursday night in Jacksonville not long ago, before the Jaguars came out with the victory. The two teams appeared to be pretty evenly matched, so I think I'll go with the Titans to finally snap their long home losing streak with a 4-point win in this one.
Result: Tennessee 42 Jacksonville 39
Record: 8-1
Game: San Francisco at Chicago
Prediction: Chicago - Chicago has not looked all too impressive on either side of the ball this year, yet they find themselves at 5-6 and in the playoff picture. San Francisco has been horrible on the road and I look for that to continue in this one. I'll go with Da Bears by 10.
Result: San Francisco 26 Chicago 20 OT
Record: 8-2
Game: Denver at San Diego
Prediction: Denver - This game makes me nervous. San Diego finally snapped their losing streak last week and are appearing slightly more healthy than they've been in a while. Denver, coming off a huge home win against New England on Sunday night, caught a few breaks and it's possible they could suffer a letdown, especially when being led by the young Brock Osweiler. I'm tentatively go with the Broncos, though, have faith their defense won't suffer a letdown any and they'll be able to continue running the ball more effectively than they had earlier in the season. I'll go with Denver by a field goal.
Result: Denver 17 San Diego 3
Record: 9-2
Game: Kansas City at Oakland
Prediction: Kansas City - Oakland is young, exciting, but not playing nearly as well as they did earlier in the season, on either side of the ball. Kansas City, meanwhile, after starting the year a very disappointing 1-5, have won five straight, and shown significant improvement on both sides of the ball in the process. I look for those trends to continue as Kansas City improves to 7-5 with a 7-point win in this one.
Result: Kansas City 34 Oakland 20
Record: 10-2
Game: Carolina at New Orleans
Prediction: Carolina - To put it bluntly, New Orleans sucks right now, and I can't see the lone unbeaten team left in the NFL, the Carolina Panthers, falling to the (S)Aints. I'll take Carolina by 10.
Result: Carolina 41 New Orleans 38
Record: 11-2
Game: Philadelphia at New England
Prediction: New England - I don't care how battered and bruised the New England Patriots are, there's no way in hell I'm picking the Eagles to win at Foxboro. I'll go with Patriots by at least a couple touchdowns.
Result: Philadelphia 35 New England 28
Record: 11-3
Game: Indianapolis at Pittsburgh
Prediction: Pittsburgh - How do the Colts keep on winning with 40-year-old Matt Hasselbeck behind center? I have no idea either, but so long as Ben Roethlisberger is cleared to play, I have an incredibly difficult time seeing the Hasselbeck-led Colts offense outscoring Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown, Martavis Bryant, DeAngelo Williams, Markus Wheaton, and company. I'll go with the Steelers by 10.
Result: Pittsburgh 45 Indianapolis 10
Record: 12-3
Monday
Game: Dallas at Washington
Prediction: Washington - It's a sad situation in Dallas with Tony Romo getting hurt again, but given what their situation is and how well Washington has played at home this year, I'd be hard-pressed to go against the 'Skins in this one. I'll take Washington at home by 10.
Result: Dallas 19 Washington 16
Record: 12-4
Week 13 Record: 12-4 (.750)
Overall Record: 110-82 (.573)
Game: Green Bay at Detroit
Prediction: Green Bay - This game makes me more nervous than I would have expected just 3 weeks ago. After starting the year 6-0, the Packers have lost 4 of 5. Meanwhile, after starting the season 1-7, the Lions have won three straight, including a game at Lambeau (for the first time in 25 years). Green Bay's almost in desperation mode at the moment, though. They're now looking up at Minnesota in the NFC North, just a game ahead of 6th and 7th seeds Seattle and Atlanta, respectively. If they don't start winning soon, they could find themselves on the outside looking in on the postseason. I'll take Aaron Rodgers to lead his team to a victory in this one. The Packers by a field goal.
Result: Green Bay 27 Detroit 23
Record: 1-0
Sunday
Game: NY Jets at NY Giants
Prediction: NY Jets - These two teams are fighting for their playoff lives right now. While the Giants can be explosive offensively at times, I think the Jets are the better, more balanced football team. Their defense has been more consistent this season, as has their running attack, led by Chris Ivory. Due to that, I'll take the Jets by 4.
Result: NY Jets 23 NY Giants 20 OT
Record: 2-0
Game: Arizona at St. Louis
Prediction: Arizona - Where has the St. Louis Rams offense gone? After Todd Gurley returned from injury, the Rams offense seemed to finally take off. However, defenses have since adjusted, forced Nick Foles to throw the football, which hasn't led to good results for the Rams. Expect the aggressive Cardinals offense to come after Foles early and often, and force turnovers in the process. I'll go with the Cardinals on the road by a touchdown.
Result: Arizona 27 St. Louis 3
Record: 3-0
Game: Atlanta at Tampa Bay
Prediction: Atlanta - These two teams appear to be going in opposite directions. After starting the year 5-0, the Atlanta Falcons have lost 5 of 6. Tampa, on the other hand, has won 2 of 3, and is in contention for a Wild Card spot, which didn't appear to be likely when the season started. Given that, I should really go for the home town Buccaneers, but for at least one more week, am going to place some faith in the talented Atlanta Falcons offense. So long as Matt Ryan doesn't continue turning the ball over in the red zone, I'd like to think the Falcons will score enough points to be victorious. I'll take Atlanta by 3.
Result: Tampa Bay 23 Atlanta 19
Record: 3-1
Game: Seattle at Minnesota
Prediction: Seattle - I like what Minnesota is doing as an organization, but didn't last week's win by Seattle against the Pittsburgh Steelers feel like the start of another Seahawks late-season run? So long as Seattle contains Adrian Peterson just enough, I think they should be able to sneak out of this one with a huge road victory. I'll take the Seahawks by a field goal.
Result: Seattle 38 Minnesota 7
Record: 4-1
Game: Houston at Buffalo
Prediction: Buffalo - Where in the world did the Houston Texans all of a sudden come from? The once seemingly hapless Texans (on both sides of the ball) have found themselves, especially on the defensive side of the ball, and are currently tied with Indianapolis atop the AFC South at 6-5. Buffalo, at 5-6, is also in the playoff picture. I like how Houston is playing right now, but with this game in the always unpredictable Buffalo (especially in December), I like the Bills by 6.
Result: Buffalo 30 Houston 21
Record: 5-1
Game: Baltimore at Miami
Prediction: Miami - To put it simply, Baltimore is more banged up than Miami at the moment, and that in conjunction with this game being in Miami, I'll take the Dolphins by a touchdown.
Result: Miami 15 Baltimore 13
Record: 6-1
Game: Cincinnati at Cleveland
Prediction: Cincinnati - With New England falling to Denver on Sunday night, Cincinnati is one game back of the Patriots and is battling for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs in the AFC. Cleveland, meanwhile, is wondering who they're going to take with one of the top picks in next year's draft. I think I'll go with the Bengals, on the road, by a couple of touchdowns.
Result: Cincinnati 37 Cleveland 3
Record: 7-1
Game: Jacksonville at Tennessee
Prediction: Tennessee - The game was back and forth on a Thursday night in Jacksonville not long ago, before the Jaguars came out with the victory. The two teams appeared to be pretty evenly matched, so I think I'll go with the Titans to finally snap their long home losing streak with a 4-point win in this one.
Result: Tennessee 42 Jacksonville 39
Record: 8-1
Game: San Francisco at Chicago
Prediction: Chicago - Chicago has not looked all too impressive on either side of the ball this year, yet they find themselves at 5-6 and in the playoff picture. San Francisco has been horrible on the road and I look for that to continue in this one. I'll go with Da Bears by 10.
Result: San Francisco 26 Chicago 20 OT
Record: 8-2
Game: Denver at San Diego
Prediction: Denver - This game makes me nervous. San Diego finally snapped their losing streak last week and are appearing slightly more healthy than they've been in a while. Denver, coming off a huge home win against New England on Sunday night, caught a few breaks and it's possible they could suffer a letdown, especially when being led by the young Brock Osweiler. I'm tentatively go with the Broncos, though, have faith their defense won't suffer a letdown any and they'll be able to continue running the ball more effectively than they had earlier in the season. I'll go with Denver by a field goal.
Result: Denver 17 San Diego 3
Record: 9-2
Game: Kansas City at Oakland
Prediction: Kansas City - Oakland is young, exciting, but not playing nearly as well as they did earlier in the season, on either side of the ball. Kansas City, meanwhile, after starting the year a very disappointing 1-5, have won five straight, and shown significant improvement on both sides of the ball in the process. I look for those trends to continue as Kansas City improves to 7-5 with a 7-point win in this one.
Result: Kansas City 34 Oakland 20
Record: 10-2
Game: Carolina at New Orleans
Prediction: Carolina - To put it bluntly, New Orleans sucks right now, and I can't see the lone unbeaten team left in the NFL, the Carolina Panthers, falling to the (S)Aints. I'll take Carolina by 10.
Result: Carolina 41 New Orleans 38
Record: 11-2
Game: Philadelphia at New England
Prediction: New England - I don't care how battered and bruised the New England Patriots are, there's no way in hell I'm picking the Eagles to win at Foxboro. I'll go with Patriots by at least a couple touchdowns.
Result: Philadelphia 35 New England 28
Record: 11-3
Game: Indianapolis at Pittsburgh
Prediction: Pittsburgh - How do the Colts keep on winning with 40-year-old Matt Hasselbeck behind center? I have no idea either, but so long as Ben Roethlisberger is cleared to play, I have an incredibly difficult time seeing the Hasselbeck-led Colts offense outscoring Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown, Martavis Bryant, DeAngelo Williams, Markus Wheaton, and company. I'll go with the Steelers by 10.
Result: Pittsburgh 45 Indianapolis 10
Record: 12-3
Monday
Game: Dallas at Washington
Prediction: Washington - It's a sad situation in Dallas with Tony Romo getting hurt again, but given what their situation is and how well Washington has played at home this year, I'd be hard-pressed to go against the 'Skins in this one. I'll take Washington at home by 10.
Result: Dallas 19 Washington 16
Record: 12-4
Week 13 Record: 12-4 (.750)
Overall Record: 110-82 (.573)
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