Last week I was 7-7 in my Yahoo! Pick 'em League. Sorry for not sharing, but when you factor in 'juice', you would have been a loser anyways.
I am back, though, this week, and ready to rebound with some solid picks.
Like we always do about this time...
Tennessee +3 over TAMPA BAY. Normally, I'd take Tampa at home, but with their depleted backfield, I just can't justify it. The Titans' coach Jeff Fisher remains grossly underrated, and...AND...Vince Young just wins football games. I heard Fisher on ESPN 710 radio this morning in an interview with Colin Cowherd saying just that.
Minnesota +5 over CHICAGO. Minnesota will completely shut down Cedric Benson, and the Bears will limit Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor. It'll be close, but I expect the Bears to do a little more in the passing game. Also, I just picked up Greg Olsen in my keeper league as a potential rookie keeper. I think he could be worth it since I couldn't get to Peterson or Marshawn Lynch.
JACKSONVILLE -6.5 over Houston. The Jags should dominate at home. They are great against the run, and Houston is still hurting without Andre Johnson to stretch the field. I expect Fred Taylor and MoJo to get back to their old ways of pounding the ball for 150+ yards.
CLEVELAND -4.5 over Miami. Cleveland is a surprise this year, and I like them to put up some points on the aging Miami defense. Ronnie Brown should have another great outing, as should Braylon Edwards, who is emerging as the best '3rd year' wideout in the league. Last week, I traded him to Davecat for Ben Watson and Ben Roethlisberger, who combined for three touchdowns in my victory over him. It just never gets old mentioning that.
BALTIMORE -9.5 over St. Louis. I don't think the Rams are going to get their first win on the road in Baltimore, and I can only hope that the Ravens 9 points last week against the 9ers will refocus Billick to get something going. I like "Thrill us" Willis McGahee to get it together and find some paydirt for once.
GREEN BAY -3 over Washington. Hey, 'Skins? Green Bay is going to throw the ball a lot on you. Like, 45 times a lot. Occasionally, once they've thrown it at least 10 times, they'll run a draw, but only after Favre fakes a quick hitch pass. No one else has been able to stop it, and you want be able to stop it in Lambeau either.
KANSAS CITY +3 over Cincinnati. I hate this game. But home dogs have been dominant this year and KC can keep that trend alive in Arrowhead. Larry Johnson should (finally) have his day, as everyone seems to light up the Bengals on the ground. Carson and Co. should also do just fine, so if you're really feeling lucky, take the over at 42.
Philadelphia -3 over NY JETS. Andy Reid is 8-0 after the bye week. That's good enough for me.
ARIZONA -4 over Carolina. The Carolina Panthers are opting not to start their rookie quarterback, Matt Moore, electing to sign and start 43 year old Vinny Testerverde instead. Vinny Testicles will blow this game. That's a guarantee.
SAN DIEGO -9.5 over Oakland. The Chargers finally resembled the Chargers last week, on the road, against Denver. The week before, they sucked it up at home against Chiefs. This is their 3rd divisional game in a row, and they need it. They're confident off their victory, and will handily take it to Raider Nation. (you like how I speculate on their confidence level, after a victory? Reality is they whole team probably hates AJ Smith for canning Marty, and hates Norv Turner even more for not being Marty. They're going to get crushed in the playoffs again, but this time it'll be in New England)
New England -5.5 over DALLAS. Obviously, the game of the week. Two 5-0 teams, one AFC, the other NFC. It's being hyped as the Super Bowl. Dallas is fortunate to have Terrance Newman back to cover Randy Moss. New England is fortunate to have years of coaches' signals and game tapes in some vault in a remote location that is the sole reason for all their victories since Bill Belichick became coach. Joking. Don't believe that for a minute. But the whole Cameragate/Spygate controversy is fueling the Pats. They want the Super Bowl so badly this year, just to spite all the recent naysayers. I was watching SportsCenter last night with my girlfriend, a Cowboys' fan (for some reason). In all the locker room interviews, she couldn't understand why all the Patriots were hyping up Tony Romo like he was Joe Montana. She didn't get why they were being so complimentary of him. I told her that that is just what the Patriots do. They mind-fuck you, then they pummel you. Also, I don't think it helps the Cowboys' cause for articles and rumors like this to come out. The Patriots could win by 35 and I wouldn't be surprised; all I know is that they'll win, and I promised myself not to pick against them until they lost. In addition to all those things, I just picked up an interesting tidbit for this game: Randy Moss, in 6 career games against Dallas, has 29 receptions for 675 yards and 10 touchdowns. And he's never once lost to the Cowboys...
SEATTLE -6.5 over New Orleans. The Saints are not the team they were last year. Without Deuce to carry the workload, Reggie Bush becomes less valuable. Drew Brees is not playing anywhere to the level he's capable, and I'm supposed to think the offense will sort it out in the raucous environment of Qwest Field? I don't think so.
ATLANTA +3.5 over NY Giants. I like the home dog on Monday Night. Buffalo covered, why can't the Falcons?
