NFL Week 15 Picks

First off, how about the Broncos losing to the Chargers on Thursday night. At this point, I'd be surprised if the Broncos made it to the Super Bowl. I know they are 11-3 and will probably end out with a bye week for the playoffs, I just have zero faith in Peyton Manning getting the job done in the cold. Thursday night games are tough to prepare for so that may have had something to do with the Broncos loss. But I just have a bad feeling a team like the Ravens last year will walk into Denver and score a ton of points and put pressure Peyton forcing a few turnovers. Maybe, I'm overreacting to one loss but I've lost a lot of confidence in the Broncos.

Anyways, not a great week of picks for me. 1-3 for spreads and only 10-6 overall. I picked some boneheaded upsets. Didn't work out too well. Hopefully I get hot again because I'm exactly at .500 for spreads this year. Onto the picks...

Overall: 127-77 Spread: 28-28-2

Redskins 24, Falcons 21 --- No idea why I'm picking the Redskins to win outright again after last weeks performance. I just think Kirk Cousins playing today might actually give the Redskins a spark. I could be dead wrong and the special teams could decide not to tackle anybody again but I'll give the Skins another chance. Plus the Falcons just lost to Matt Flynn in the Packers so they aren't exactly playing great football at the moment.

Bears 31, Browns 24 --- CHI -1 If Jay Cutler is 100% healthy I don't think the Bears offense will miss a beat. Alshon Jeffery has been awesome in the past few weeks, plus they still have Brandon Marshall. The Bears offense should be fine. As for the Brownies, last week was a crushing defeat. They had the Patriots beaten and they blew it. They have lost seven of eight so I'm not too sure they are going to be up for this game. Plus the Bears major flaw is run defense but the Browns are ranked 28th in rushing and the highest rushing total a Browns running back as had all year is Willis McGahee with 72 yards in week four.

Colts 27, Texans 20 --- The Colts have become the Jets in the past six weeks. Win, Lose, Win, Lose, Win, Lose. They beat the Titans twice and the Texans once during that stretch. The Texans just fired Gary Kubiak and have lost 11 in a row. I'm not too sure if the Texans will play with a lot of emotion today but either I don't see their losing streak ending today in Indy. Colts get the win.

Patriots 21, Dolphins 20 --- With the Broncos losing to the Chargers the path to the number one seed in the AFC is clear for the Patriots. If they win out, it's theirs. It will be interesting to see how they adjust to life without Gronk (hopefully a lot of Shane Vereen for fantasy football purposes). The Pats beat the Dolphins 27-17 in week eight, but the Dolphins did have a 17-3 lead at halftime. The Dolphins need to win just as bad because they are in the race for the final wild card spot. It's just too hard to pick against the Patriots when they have a chance to clinch the AFC East.

Eagles 24, Vikings 17 --- The Vikings are going to be without both Adrian Peterson and Toby Gerhart, so I'm not too sure who is going to be running the ball for the Vikings. That could also mean Matt Cassel will be forced to throw the ball a lot more than normal. That's a scary thought, although Cordarrelle Patterson looks like he could become a good receiver one day. Anyways, the Eagles have won five in a row and are 5-1 away from the Linc this year. Plus they know they need to win their last three games in order to win the NFC East, so I think they avoid slipping up in Minnesota today.

Seahawks 24, Giants 20 --- I think this game will be a close one. Mainly because the Seahawks are traveling all the way from Seattle to play a 1 PM Eastern time game a week after an emotional and physical game against the 49ers. The Giants are eliminated from the playoffs so they could just lay an egg like they did last week against the Chargers. But I think they will show up and Seahawks might get off to a rough start. At the end of the day though the Seahawks should get their 12th win.

49ers 28, Bucs 24 --- TB +5.5 This game is similar to how I feel about the Seahawks game. Possibly more because the Niners just had the biggest win of their season. They are also traveling all the way to Tampa for a 1 PM Eastern time game. Also teams who just played the Seahawks are 3-8-1 in the following week. The Niners are apart of that stat when they lost to the Colts in week three after playing in Seattle. The Bucs have won four of five and just forced EJ Manuel to throw four interceptions. If the Niners start slow the Bucs will hang around in this one.

Jaguars 23, Bills 19 --- JAX +2.5 --- I'm not too sure why the Jaguars are home underdogs in this one. They have won four of five, I'll admit not against the toughest competition but the Bills aren't exactly the '85 Bears. The Bills are 1-5 on the road this year and just lost in Tampa 27-6. Maurice Jones-Drew is doubtful but even without him the Jags run game might be fine with former UConn running back Jordan Todman. I think the Jags get their fifth win today.

Chiefs 21, Raiders 14 --- I think the Chiefs 45-10 win last week had more to do with the Redskins being terrible than the Chiefs being good. However, that type of victory and defensive performance could give the Chiefs some momentum. The Raiders have lost three straight and didn't look good against the Jets last week. These two teams met in week six and the Chiefs won 24-7, so I think they are the better team and will complete the season sweep today.

Panthers 30, Jets 6 --- CAR -10 The Jets have been outscored 105-15 in their past three road games. Their 15 points have all come via Nick Folk field goals. I don't like their chances offensively today against the arguably the best defense in the NFL. The Panthers are probably going to try to prove that last weeks game against the Saints was a fluke. It could get ugly in Carolina today...but then again everything I've said about the Jets this season has been followed up by the Jets doing the complete opposite.

Cowboys 31, Packers 21 --- The Cowboys are lucky they don't have to face Aaron Rodgers today because they way their defense looked on Monday night this game could have been ugly. They get to face Matt Flynn instead who isn't exactly lighting it up. Both teams need the win but I think the Cowboys will be able to force a turnover or two which should give them the victory.

Cardinals 24, Titans 14 --- The Titans have lost four of five. The Cardinals have won five of six. One team is fighting for their playoff lives, while the other might be fighting to save their head coaches job. I'll take the Cardinals in this one. They are the better team right now.

Saints 34, Rams 24 --- This could be a trap game for the Saints. Last week they had a huge win against the Panthers and they may overlook the Rams today because they face the Panthers again next week. With that being said Drew BREEEEESSSSSS is too good indoors. This year he has 25 TDs to only 3 interceptions when he plays inside. The Saints will score enough points to win.

Steelers 20, Bengals 17 --- Two things about this game. First off, this is a biased pick. I'll admit that. I just don't want to believe that the Steelers are going to get swept by the Bengals. Secondly, I'm actually getting a little nervous that the Bengals might have a chance to get to the Super Bowl. Right now they are clearly in the top three of the AFC. The just crushed the Colts, they have already beaten a Gronk-less Patriots team in week five, and we all know how Peyton Manning does in the playoffs. Andy Dalton is their big question mark at the moment but wasn't Joe Flacco the Ravens question mark last year? Hopefully the Bengals become the Bungals in the playoffs like normal and the Steelers win tonight.

P.S. I miss James Harrison.

Lions 27, Ravens 24 --- Huge game for both teams. The Ravens need to keep winning if they want to get the sixth seed and the Lions need to win to stay on top of the NFC North. The Ravens are only 1-5 on the road this year, while the Lions are 4-2 in Ford Field. Also, Matt Elam decided to call Calvin Johnson old this week. Calvin is 28. How is that old? I expect Mr. Johnson to have a huge night in a winning effort.

Enjoy the game people.