NFL Picks, Week 14

Another ho-hum week of picks. I suppose I didn't do badly, but I'm lacking the a truly good sense of the NFL this year, it seems. I was very impressed with the Steelers and, begrudgingly, Big Ben especially. Is this the win that Pittsburgh needed to get their D back to dominance, and their offense back to getting all the scores they need? The only truly big surprise to me was the Chargers getting rolled by the Raiders again. I'm not sure where San Diego stands at this point, now. Amazingly, every single divisional race is still up for grabs at this point, especially the NFC East (Eagles-Giants), NFC West (Seahawks-Rams) and AFC South (Jags-Colts); but no leader has more than 2 games over the second place team. On to the picks:

Indianapolis at Tennessee: Indy, x-x
I wasn't sure what the score would be, but sure enough, the Titans made just enough plays to lose the game.

Cleveland at Buffalo: Cleveland, 20-13
After hanging close in a bunch of games, the Bills finally got shellacked again last week. The Browns keep playing hard, and should win in an ugly one.

Cincinnati at Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh, 27-13
If the Steelers get a lead early, look out. But turnovers could keep this one tight, so Pitt can't take this one for granted.

Green Bay at Detroit: Green Bay, 31-17
Rodgers is on fire, and the Packers won't mind playing a game in a cozy little dome as the cold sets in in the NFC North.

NY Giants at Minnesota: Minnesota, 28-27
Both teams are coming off blow-out wins, but both have been (wildly?) inconsistent this year. I'll take the home team.

Tampa Bay at Washington: Tampa Bay, 17-13
Some point to a let down game for the Bucs, who basically lost a chance at the playoffs by losing to Atlanta last week. But Washington is just bad.

Atlanta at Carolina: Atlanta, 21-10
I tried to give the Panthers a little credit last week, and they lost by 17 to the Seahawks. Thus, they have little chance against the mighty Falcons.

Oakland at Jacksonville: Jacksonville, 28-17
It's hard to deny it now: the Jags are in the hunt, even if I'm not ready to call them "good" yet. The Raiders play their division foes well, but then fold against others.

Seattle at San Francisco: San Francisco, x-x
Who cares?

St. Louis at New Orleans: St. Louis, 31-30
Here's my upset of the week. The Rams are on the road, but they'll still be playing in their favored conditions: a dome. Plus, I want them to win the NFC West.

Miami at NY Jets: NY Jets, 14-9
Boy did the Jets look silly last Monday night. But Miami doesn't have the tools to beat them, even if it can prevent it from being a blow-out.

Denver at Arizona: Denver, 24-13
Coaching change may give the Broncos a brief boost. At the very least, they have a competent QB, something Arizona lacks.

Kansas City at San Diego: San Diego, 27-24
HUGE game. The Chiefs' running attack is great, but they'll be one-dimensional without Matt Cassel. And the Chargers will want to forget last week's embarrassment.

TTSNBN at Chicago: TTSNBN, x-x
I'll keep trying.

Philadelphia at Dallas: Philadelphia, 31-17
Dallas won't be able to contain Vick, and the Cowboys offense won't be able to score enough to keep up. I think it's as simple as that.

Baltimore at Houston: Houston, 28-20
Here's a second upset pick for you. It's mostly because I think the Ravens will be deflated from their loss to the Steelers last week, and the Texans are a dangerous team.

2010 Picks: 116-76