It's hard to believe that we're already halfway through the football season, isn't it? It's also hard to believe that we can't figure out who's the second-best team behind the Packers. Is it the Steelers? Is it the 49ers? Is it the Lions? Is it the Ravens? Is it the Patriots? We'll obviously start finding some of this stuff out as the season goes on, starting with this week, which boasts a couple of intriguing matchups.
Jets (4-3) at Bills (5-2): Buffalo-This game feels like it's almost a must-win for the Jets, who sit behind both the Bills and Patriots in the AFC East. However, the Jets play both teams in the next two weeks, so they can definitely jump back in the race. They're coming off their bye week, which was preceded by an important win over the Chargers. However, the Jets are 0-3 on the road this season. The Bills, meanwhile, look like a serious contender for the first time in years. They've already beaten the Patriots, and a victory over the Jets will firmly establish them as a legitimate force to be reckoned with. Circle the wagons. The Bills are coming.
Seahawks (2-5) at Cowboys (3-4): Dallas-Dallas continued its usual M.O. of looking good one week then terrible the next in last Sunday night's loss to the Eagles. The Seahawks, meanwhile, have scored 15 points in two games since beating the Giants. The Cowboys get back to .500.
Falcons (4-3) at Colts (0-8): Atlanta-I seriously think Peyton Manning should be in the MVP discussion. Yes, he hasn't played a game, but would the Colts be 0-8 if he was playing? No. They'd be the Colts. But alas, they still haven't won. Following my self-imposed rules, I'll continue picking against them until they do.
Dolphins (0-7) at Chiefs (4-3): Kansas City-The also-winless Dolphins might be the only team in football worse than the Colts right now. Indy can at least blame injuries. Miami is clueless. Don't worry Dolphins fans, Andrew Luck is coming. The Chiefs, meanwhile, barely resemble the team that got slaughtered by the Bills and Lions to start the season. After that win over San Diego on Monday night, they're in a three-way tie for first in the AFC West. This one's an easy pick.
Buccaneers (4-3) at Saints (5-3): New Orleans-These two played just three weeks ago in Tampa and the Bucs picked up a statement win. New Orleans has a half-game lead in the NFC South standings and needs to win this one. If the Bucs win, that'll give them a sweep of the season series, and, assuming the Lions get the first wild card, that tiebreaker could potentially cost the Saints come January. New Orleans won't let that happen. Especially at the Superdome.
49ers (6-1) at Redskins (3-4): San Francisco-After a fast start that saw them actually somehow sitting in first place in the NFC East, reality has begun to set in for the Redskins. Last week in Toronto, a Mike Shanahan-coached team was shutout for the first time ever. The 49ers haven't officially won the NFC West yet, but, let's face it, San Francisco's already playing for a first-round bye. Whether or not they're for real is a question that will continue to persist (for the record, I think they ARE for real), but the Niners should move to 7-1 with another road win.
Browns (3-4) at Texans (5-3): Houston-First-place Houston continues to prove it's the team to beat in the AFC South. The Browns, meanwhile, are the only team out of the race in the AFC North. Cleveland doesn't have a favorable matchup this week, and the road's only going to get tougher for the Browns. The Texans win at home ahead of their tough road game in Tampa next week.
Bengals (5-2) at Titans (4-3): Cincinnati-I was wrong about the Cincinnati Bengals. Evidently they do know what they're doing. This game is a definite toss-up that could go either way. My gut tells me Cincinnati, so that's what I'm going with.
Broncos (2-5) at Raiders (4-3): Oakland-This battle in the AFC West is going to come down to the wire. That means all three teams need to take care of business against Denver. The Raiders have had two weeks to think about their 28-0 loss to Kansas City, but the bye week also gave Carson Palmer extra time to get familiar with Oakland's system. The addition of T.J. Houshmandzadeh, one of his favorite receivers in Cincinnati, should help, too. The Raiders win.
Giants (5-2) at Patriots (5-2): New England-The last time these two teams met, it was "One Giant Upset" over the undefeated Pats in Super Bowl XLII. This year's Patriots are definitely flawed, especially on defense, as the Steelers exposed last week. Meanwhile, the Giants barely escaped against a bad Dolphins team. But, they're in first place and they've played better on the road this season. However, I think I'm leaning in New England's direction. There's a reason the Patriots haven't lost back-to-back games in a long time. I also doubt Belichick's forgotten the Super Bowl. Revenge could definitely come into play here.
Rams (1-6) at Cardinals (1-6): St. Louis-St. Louis somehow beat New Orleans last week. Arizona somehow almost beat Baltimore last week. Now these two bad teams get to play each other, meaning one has to win. The NFC West at its finest.
Packers (7-0) at Chargers (4-3): San Diego-Once the Packers and Lions were the only two undefeated teams left, I started looking down both teams' schedules to see if it was possible for them to both be undefeated when they play on Thanksgiving. That obviously won't happen, but while combing through Green Bay's schedule, I thought to myself that Week 9 at San Diego could be their first loss. I don't know why, but I'm sticking with that feeling and taking the Chargers. I think San Diego's the best team in the AFC West, and they certainly need to rebound after road losses to the Jets and Chiefs. I'd also be willing to bet that to a certain extent FOX wishes Giants-Patriots was another weekend. Going against that matchup is the only thing that prevented this one from being a yummy national game.
Ravens (5-2) at Steelers (6-2): Pittsburgh-Speaking of yummy national games, we get what's currently the best rivalry in the NFL on Sunday night. The Steelers made a statement by beating the Patriots last week. In fact, I think Pittsburgh is the second-best team in the NFL. They take a half-game lead in the AFC North into their second meeting of the season with the archrival Ravens. Don't think Pittsburgh's forgotten that drubbing they took in Baltimore in Week 1. Since beating the Texans in Week 6, the Ravens laid an egg against the Jaguars before needing a huge comeback to barely survive against Arizona. Maybe the Ravens were playing down to their competition and playing a good team will be good for them. But the Steelers know that they need to win this one to avoid Baltimore automatically having the tiebreaker if they finish tied. Plus, Pittsburgh's playing much better football now and is at home. In typical Steelers-Ravens fashion, there'll be a lot of hard hits and a lot of penalties in a defensive struggle that someone wins by a field goal. That team will be the Steelers, 17-14.
Bears (4-3) at Eagles (3-4): Philadelphia-Has a 3-4 record ever looked so good? After starting 1-4, Philadelphia is finally starting to look like the team we all thought they would be. Look out for the Eagles in the second half! Chicago hasn't lost since the last time it played on Monday night, winning two straight before its bye week. If the Bears have any shot at the playoffs, they need to collect as many non-division wins as they can. But getting one in Philadelphia against an Eagles team that's finally clicking might be a tough task.
Last Week: 10-3
Season: 73-42
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