Week 12 in the NFL....

Last week 8-6 and season total now 95-65. My Beat the Insiders picks for Thanksgiving have me at 2-1 for this weekend. Let's see if we can improve on that. Bengals at home against the Browns. Bengals win. My upset special has the Jacksonville Jaguars at home against the ailing Texans. Look for the Jag defense to take advantage of Matt Lienert who has yet to prove he can play with the big boys. Jags win. The Rams are at home again this time against the lowly Cardinals. If  Spagnola can't win this one, he may be out before the teams exit the field. Rams win. Jets vs Buffalo....Must win for both...Jets get the advantage at home. Jets win. Tampa Bay at Tennessee also an interesting match up as the Bucs with a lot of promise have disappointed in the last several weeks. They are better than the Titans and should win. Bucs win a close one. As much as I would like to see the Colts win, they just haven't shown the ability to overcome adversity. Panthers win in Indy. Colts remain winless. Atlanta is at home again against the Vikings. With Adrian Peterson a possible last minute scratch, the Falcons are getting a break. Falcons need this one more. Falcons win. Raiders at home against Chicago. Bears will try to run the ball with Forte. That will be their only hope. Raiders win this one. What happened to the Redskins? The Seahawks are at home and the Redskins must travel cross country. Seattle wins. Broncos at San Diego....Broncos win another behind the running of Tebow plus a few good passes. Patriots at Philly. Pats too much and will win this one. Steelers at Kansas City...Chiefs with their newly acquired QB Kyle Orton. Can Orton play today? Maybe, but it still won't be enough to beat the Steeler "D". Pittsburgh wins. Finally, Monday Night has the home town Saints entertaining the Giants. Saints should have another repeat of 2009. This is the final stretch for the Saints and they know if they want that second seed they can't afford another loss. Saints win. That's where I stand...How about you? Have a great weekend.

Week 11 in the NFL......

As I had a long day yesterday, I will again be brief. Last week I was a dismal 8-8 and my total for the season is 87-59. Let's get to it........Bengals over the Ravens my upset pick. Ravens are hurting and Ray Lewis is out. Cowboys over the Redskins as Romo has finally found a rhythm. Buffalo will get back on track in Miami. Bills find a way to win. Raiders behind Carson Palmer win over the Vikings. Jaguars at Cleveland just a better team. Jags win. Lions win at home against the Panthers. Green Bay at home against Tampa Bay. As much as I would like to see the Packers lose it will not be today. Pack wins. Rams slightly better than Seattle will win at home behind the running of Steven Jackson. The Forty-Niners keep the one loss record going today against the Cardinals who have really gone downhill since Curt Warner retired. Falcons at home against Tennessee are in a must win situation. Atlanta wins. Chargers at Chicago. Two words "DA BEARS"!!! San Diego doesn't stand a chance. Giants are at home against the Dream Team minus a few of the Dream Players. Giants win. Kansas City at New England. The Chiefs are without their starting QB and Tom Brady is at home. Pats win.  Thanks Fred this felt great! See you next week!!!

Week 10 in the NFL....

Last week I went 8-6 not so good. For the season 79-51. In case you were not aware the week of football started Thursday night and like a fool I went against my own instincts and picked the Chargers. They of course lost again. So a I started this weekend 0-1. I really need to make these next picks count. The big game of the day is the NFC South battle between the Saints and Falcons in Atlanta. Injuries aside and both teams have them, look for Atlanta to exploit the Saints run defense which has been absent thus far. It pains me to say this but until the Saints can show a little consistency, they do not appear to be headed deep into the post season. Falcons win part one of this 2-game a year rivalry. Chicago has the Lions at Soldier Field. This will be very difficult for Detroit partly because of the weather but mostly because the Bears are playing better football. Bears win. Jacksonville at Indy. Indy working on the Number One Pick in the draft. Jags win. Broncos at Kansas City. Neither team has been able to put together any kind of streak other than a losing one. Broncos edge the Chiefs on the play of Tebow. In a key AFC North contest the Bengals are at home against the Steelers. Cincy is quietly putting together a good season off the radar. At 6-2 they control their own destiny. Bengals win this round. Dallas at home against Buffalo. Cowboys on a roll win this one. The Eagles at home versus the Arizona Cardinals should win despite being without the services of Desean Jackson who apparently is trying to make a statement by missing a team meeting. Andy Reid made his statement by making Jackson inactive today. When will these players learn....there is a time for everything and the middle of the season when your team needs you is not that time. Eagles win anyway. Ravens at the Seahawks. Ravens are the superior bird. Baltimore wins keeps pace with Cincy & Pittsburgh. 49ers at home entertain the red hot Giants. Niners at home are really tough so I am going with the home team. San Fran wins again. Jets at home against the Patriots. I wish I knew what teams were going to show. Flip a coin. Mine says Pats steal a win. Coaching may be the difference here.
Finally, Monday Night in Lambeau. What do you think? Vikings are not that good and Aaron Rodgers is rock solid in Prime Time. Packers stay undefeated. Have a great football weekend!

Week 9 in the NFL.............

Last week proved to be another good one as I finished 9-4 and that brings my season total to 71-45; not bad for a regular football fan. Well, my friend Fred says I am too long winded with my picks at times. Since time is not a luxury this morning I will be unusually brief. Bills will win at home against the Jets...too much defense for Mark Sanchez. The Saints will rebound at home today against the Bucs and will provide the Who Dat faithful with a much needed win. As much as I would love the Falcons to falter, it will not happen this week against the lowly Colts. Falcons win an easy one at Indy. Seahawks are flying to Dallas and jet lag is the least of their problems. Jerry World will be rocking with a Cowboys win.The Chiefs are at home against the Reggie Bush led Dolphins. Bush will not have another 100 yard day as he did a week ago for two reasons: one he is playing on the road at Arrowhead and two he is inconsistent, an unfortunate trait that has marked his career. Chiefs win. My upset special this week...take the Redskins and the points at home against the 49ers. Look for Mike Shanahan to have a few surprises up his sleeve for the Niners. Always hard to play in D.C. Just ask Bill Clinton. Texans at home entertaining the Browns. Texans take another step towards a Division Championship. Carson Palmer gets his first start today with the Raiders. I am not sure he has rid himself of all of the rust just yet that's why I am picking the underdog Broncos to win. Look for Tim Tebow to have the better day. Bengals at the Titans. Chris Johnson has not had a 100 yard rushing game yet this season. What's up with that? Bengals win. Rams at the Cardinals....Who cares? Okay, Okay the home team only because they are at home. Cards win it. Patriots at home against the Giants. Both teams playing well so I'll give the nod to the Pats being in the friendly environment. Pats win. Green Bay at San Diego. Again as much as I would like to see the Packers lose for selfish reasons, it will not happen this week against the self destructing Chargers. The Pack stay undefeated. The rematch of the season happens tonight with the Steelers on their turf this time against the Ravens. The key question here is what Ravens team will shop up? Steelers at home in primetime are too tough to beat. Pittsburgh wins. Finally, Monday Night Football has the Eagles at home against the Bears. This is a must win for Andy Reid's team and the fact they get this game at home will be the difference. Nothing like the Philly fans pumped up on a cold Monday night for a great football game. It should be pretty loud and we know what happens to Jay Cutler when he can' hear....He loses focus and that will be enough for the Eagles defense to pounce on him. Eagles win.
This is probably one of my shorter columns all thanks to my friend Fred.....and the constraints of time. Anyway it felt good this week. Maybe, I should have listened to Fred a long time ago. Have a great football weekend. See ya next week!