Well, last week sure was rough, wasn't it? As I try to recover from my miserable 5-9 performance, I take solace in two things: 1. Everybody else had a terrible week, too; and 2. Like the Cleveland Browns, my fantasy team recovered from an 0-5 start to pick up its first victory of the season. Of course, that likely wouldn't have been possible had Peyton not been Peyton on Monday night, but whatever works.
And, since I don't utilize the spread in my picks, Jim Harbaugh deciding not to take the safety on Thursday night had no bearing on the bearing of the game. So, I'm off to a 1-0 start in the shortest week of the year. With six byes, there are only 13 games this week. One down, 12 to go.
Titans (2-4) at Bills (3-3): Tennessee-I lost with both of these teams last week. I saw about 30 seconds of the Titans-Steelers game last week. Which was enough, since it was the last 30 seconds. And I totally didn't see the Bills winning in Arizona coming at all. Not after they got thoroughly dismantled by the Patriots and 49ers. This week, Buffalo's favored at home. For some reason, I see Tennessee winning, though.
Browns (1-5) at Colts (2-3): Indianapolis-There are only 13 games this week, and we're stuck with this one? Cleveland finally got its first win last week, while the Andrew Lucks were the recipients of a beatdown by the Jets. Neither team is good, but one has to win. Indianapolis? Who cares?
Packers (3-3) at Rams (3-3): Green Bay-I'll give the Packers a lot of credit. Last week's game was really a must-win, and they delivered their best performance of the year against what was the last remaining undefeated team in the AFC. Green Bay may have finally recovered from its shaky start, but the Packers have done the whole loss-win-loss-win-loss-win thing, which means they're in line for a loss if that trend continues. I think they've righted the ship, though. In St. Louis this game will be closer than it probably should be, but the Packers should win.
Cardinals (4-2) at Vikings (4-2): Minnesota-Who would've thought that both of these teams would have winning records at the time of this meeting? They're both coming off losses, though. And they both need a win this week to keep place with the first-place Bears and 49ers. The Cardinals don't always play well when they travel east. Even though Minnesota's in the Central Time Zone, I still think Arizona will be somewhat slowed by the 1:00 start. As a result, I'm going with the Vikings.
Redskins (3-3) at Giants (4-2): Giants-The Redskins won five games last year, two of which were against the Super Bowl Champions. I'm still not really sure how that happened. Both of the Giants' losses this season have come in division games, but there's no way they forget those two matchups with Washington last year. That, combined with last week's incredibly impressive showing in San Francisco, make me pretty confident in a Giants pick.
Saints (1-4) at Buccaneers (2-3): Tampa Bay-As the Saints players continue to refuse to let Bountygate go, we get the added pleasure of Jonathan Vilma, the Ringleader himself, being allowed to play one game before Paul Tagliabue (hopefully) reinstates his season-long suspension. This is also the last game that Interim Head Coach Joe Vitt will miss as a result of his suspension. I already didn't like the Saints, but the fact that Vilma's going to play makes me want Tampa Bay to win so much more.
Cowboys (2-3) at Panthers (1-4): Dallas-Since this is Denver's bye week and, as a result, my fantasy team doesn't have Peyton, I need Cam Newton to have a big game against the Cowboys defense. Even if he does, I'm not sure Carolina can pull off a victory. The last-place Cowboys are one of the biggest enigmas in football, but they looked great last week, when they probably should've beaten a Ravens team that's one of the best in the AFC. I think Dallas pulls this one out.
Ravens (5-1) at Texans (5-1): Houston-There are two teams in the AFC that are above .500, so of course they're playing against each other this week. This playoff rematch could easily be a playoff preview, as well. The Ravens might've beaten the Cowboys last week, but they sure paid the price with not one, but two season-ending injuries on defense. The good news is that Joe Flacco and Ray Rice now have a chance to prove they're elite players. The Texans, meanwhile, suffered their first loss of the season last week after running into that buzzsaw of a desperate Packers team. These are the two best teams in the AFC, and this should be a hell of a matchup. I'll have to see the Ravens play before I can make any decisions about their new-look defense, but Houston's not the team to debut it against. Especially in Houston.
Jaguars (1-4) at Raiders (1-4): Oakland-...And then there's this. We not only have the two best teams in the AFC playing each other this week, we've also got two of the worst teams in the AFC playing each other. (Jaguars-Raiders and Browns-Colts in the same week! Thank You NFL!) In a recent Sports Illustrated poll, Maurice Jones-Drew was rated the second-most underrated player in the NFL. Really? I think Jones-Drew is incredibly overrated. Whatever. I don't care about this game at all, and it will have absolutely no bearing on the rest of the season. The Raiders are slightly less bad.
Jets (3-3) at Patriots (3-3): New England-The three-way tie atop the AFC East is definitely going to get broken! The Jets are technically in first place since they're 2-0 in the division, and they actually showed up for a non-division game against former division team Indianapolis last week. The Patriots haven't been their usual selves this season. They've already lost to Arizona and Seattle, and they're doing that same alternating wins and losses thing the Packers have done this season. Since they lost last week, that would mean New England's in line for a win this week. I'm taking the Patriots for two other reasons, though. They own their division games, especially against the Jets. And the Jets apparently plan on using Tebow at running back this week. As a result, I refuse to take the Jets seriously.
Steelers (2-3) at Bengals (3-3): Pittsburgh-Whodathunk that Pittsburgh would be below .500 after five games? After that shocking loss in Nashville last week, the Steelers face a must-win in Cincinnati if they have any hope of keeping pace with the Ravens. The Steelers have been killed by injuries this season, and they looked spent at the end of the Titans game. The long break that follows the short week should serve them well. A motivated Packers team played its best game of the year on Sunday night last week. I expect to see the same from a motivated Steelers team this Sunday night.
Lions (2-3) at Bears (4-1): Chicago-The Tigers are in the World Series. Detroit fans at least have that to celebrate. Because the Lions' 2012 season hasn't exactly gone according to plan. Playing the division-rival Bears on Monday night won't do much to cure what ails them, either. The Bears just played on Monday night three weeks ago, when they spanked the Cowboys from Arlington to Dallas and back again. Then they went to Jacksonville and did what you'd expect a good team to do to the Jaguars. Then they had a bye. I've been impressed with the Chicago Bears all season, and I don't see them losing to the Lions at home.
Last Week: 5-9
This Week: 1-0
Season: 60-32
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