Saturday, October 29, 2011

NFL 2011 Week 8 Picks

2011 Week 8 Picks

Last Week's Record (8-5)
Overall Record (66-36)


     If you live anywhere around Houston, chances are that you had a great week supporting your NFL team last week.  I say that because if you live around Houston, you are most likely a fan of the Texans, Cowboys, or Saints.  Well, those three teams won their games with a combined score of 138-21.  Texans beat the Titans 41-7.  Cowboys beat the Rams 34-7.  Saints beat the Colts 62-7.   With the victory over the Titans, the Texans now own first place in the AFC South all on their own!!  
     Last week, I had one great pick and one embarrassing pick.  It is officially "Tebow Time" in Denver after the former Gator led an amazing comeback in the final three minutes of the game last week against the Dolphins.  However, in Oakland, Carson Palmer did not end up starting, and I'm not sure it would have mattered if he did.  The Chiefs secondary came up big and intercepted Raider quarterbacks six times in a 28-0 punishing victory.  

Arizona Cardinals @ Baltimore Ravens
Ravens - W

Minnesota Vikings @ Carolina Panthers
Panthers - L

Miami Dolphins @ New York Giants
Giants - W

New Orleans Saints @ St. Louis Rams
Saints - L

Indianapolis Colts @ Tennessee Titans
Titans - W

Detroit Lions @ Denver Broncos
Lions - W

Washington Redskins @ Buffalo Bills
Bills - W

Cincinnati Bengals @ Seattle Seahawks
Bengals - W

Cleveland Browns @ San Francisco 49ers
49ers - W

Dallas Cowboys @ Philadelphia Eagles
Cowboys - L

San Diego Chargers @ Kansas City Chiefs
Chargers - L

Game of the Week:

New England Patriots @ Pittsburgh Steelers
Patriots - L

     The Patriots are too good to be stopped right now, no matter where they play!

Local Game of the Week:
Jacksonville Jaguars @ Houston Texans
Texans - W


     Always an exciting game when the Texans wear their "Battle Red" uniforms!  The Jaguars proved two things in a 12-7 Monday night victory against the Ravens.  1) Their defense really is pretty good. And 2) Their offense really is very bad.  I look forward to getting to watch this butt-kicking in person!!!  I've got tickets to the game, and I can't wait to hang out with 70,000 of my best friends!!



Forgive me for being brief this week.  I procrastinated in putting this together, and then Carter got sick last night. and I'm not feeling well tonight, but I had to at least publish my picks!!  Enjoy!!


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This week's record: (8-5)



Saturday, October 22, 2011

NFL 2011 Week 7 Picks


2011 Week 7 Picks

Last Week's Record (9-4)
Overall Record (58-31)


     There were several surprises last week.  I lost a few games that I thought were definite wins, and I won some that I was not real confident in my picks, and to be honest, that is what has kept me very interested in making my picks every week!  The weeks just keep getting more and more interesting.  Last week, I truly thought that the Colts would put another win together against the Bengals, but it just didn't happen.  Then, the Buccaneers proved that they are a better team than I gave them credit for and upset the Saints.   And lastly, Tom Brady and the Patriots showed once again why they are always the team to beat in the AFC, and no matter how "lucky" some people thought the Cowboys may be last week, Tom Brady showed that you need much more than "luck" on your side to beat the Patriots at home.  (You're welcome Matt!)
     Looking at week 7, there is not a marquee matchup that just jumps out to me as a Game of the Week, but there are several matchups that I can definitely be interested in for several various reasons.   This week, I am excited to see if the Detroit Lions can bounce back from an emotional loss last week to the 49ers.  The Broncos have handed their starting quarterback position to Tim Tebow, as they travel to Miami this week.  At that game, the Dolphins will be honoring the University of Florida national championship team from a couple of years ago.  Convenient timing.   I am picking an upset this week in the Panthers vs Redskins game.   I think this will be the game that Cam Newton really comes up big.  And for what it is worth, you've got the football version of the World Series happening this week.  This Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, the St. Louis Cardinals are in Dallas facing the Texas Rangers in the World Series, and on Sunday, the the St. Louis Rams are in Dallas to face the Dallas Cowboys.  Not an overly exciting football matchup, but just something I found interesting on this week's schedule.  Well, here's is how I've picked 'em:



Atlanta Falcons @ Detroit Lions
Lions - L

Seattle Seahawks @ Cleveland Browns
Browns - W

Denver Broncos @ Miami Dolphins
Broncos - W

San Diego Chargers @ New York Jets
Chargers - L

Chicago Bears @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Buccaneers - L

Washington Redskins @ Carolina Panthers
Panthers - W

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Arizona Cardinals
Steelers - W

St. Louis Rams @ Dallas Cowboys
Cowboys - W

Green Bay Packers @ Minnesota Vikings
Packers - W

Indianapolis Colts @ New Orleans Saints
Saints - W

Baltimore Ravens @ Jacksonville Jaguars
Ravens - L


Game of the Week:
Kansas City Chiefs @ Oakland Raiders
Raiders - L


     With Jason Campbell suffering a season ending injury last week, the Raiders went out and traded two draft picks to acquire former Bengals quarterback, Carson Palmer.   Palmer had seen the end of his time in Cincinnati, but the owner there had refused to trade him, even after drafting Andy Dalton from TCU.  But, when the Raiders were put in a desperate situation, they offered a first round draft pick from this year, and a conditional pick from next year that will likely be another first round pick.  From what I understand, the Raiders now only have two or three draft picks left for this year's draft, and no pick earlier than the third round.  This shows how desperate this team is to win now rather than later.  
       There was a report earlier this week that said the Raiders wanted Palmer to step directly into the starting position this week.  In my opinion, he should, and even with the little practice time that he will have to learn a new system, I think he will be an immediate upgrade from Campbell.  I don't think there will be too much pressure on Palmer since the Raiders have clearly been more of a running team than a passing team this year.  They've got the 2nd ranked rushing offense in the NFL, and the 24th ranked passing offense, although this is eerily similar to the Chiefs who rank 6th in rushing offense and 29th in passing offense.  But, the Raiders have a slightly better defense according to the rankings, and I just think that with all of these things combined, and the game being played in Oakland, the Raiders will come through with the win.  And watching Carson Palmer shake the rust off, could be interesting and worth watching!



Local Game of the Week:
Houston Texans @ Tennessee Titans
Texans - W


     A rivalry game for sole possession of first place in the AFC South! Pretty exciting, and especially considering all the tension that has built up between these two teams over the last couple of seasons.  There have been several fights, and there always seems to be a little bit of extra tension between these guys.  This ought to be an interesting meeting this year.  The Titans are still struggling to get their rushing offense going with Chris Johnson, but Matt Hasselbeck really has surprised many people with how productive he has been.  The Texans, on the other hand, are not living up to most people's high expectations.  In my opinion, it has been a strange season so far, but really they are right on pace for what I expected.  Looking at the beginning of the season, I anticipated the Texans to be (4-3) after 7 games one way or another.  With a win this Sunday, they'll be right there.  Granted, I anticipated that they'd beat the Raiders, and lose against the Steelers, but either way, they're right there.  But, the Texans are always so frustrating, because of the ways they manage to lose.  Last week was so frustrating, because they could have come out with a win, but again, when it came time to make a big play on either side of the football, it just didn't happen.  Just like the New Orleans game.  
     I think the Texans will live up to the challenge tomorrow and come back to Houston with a win, and as I looked at the schedule in August, I thought this game would be a big game and represent a huge turning point in the season.  I haven't been too frustrated yet, but if they lose, I think things could possibly snow ball out of control for these guys.  And if Matt Schaub continues to look as bad as he has in crunch time, I think it is about time to start looking at a new quarterback.  
     Just for good measure, and to wet your appetite, here's why I am so excited!!  I know Andre Johnson is still out with an injury, but if were up to me, I'd just put him in for one play and let him do this again!





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This Week's Record (8-5)



Saturday, October 15, 2011

NFL 2011 Week 6 Picks

2011 Week 6 Picks

Last Week's Record (8-5)
Overall Record (49-27)

  












Game of the Week:
San Francisco 49ers @ Detroit Lions
Lions - L

     At the beginning of the season, there is no way I would have predicted that this game would've been worth watching.  These two teams have a combined record of (9-1) and that is just insane to me.  The Lions have be lucky (or maybe UNlucky) enough to have extremely high draft picks over the last several years, and those picks are finally paying HUGE dividends.  The Lions offense has been explosive, and the combination of Matt Stafford and Calvin Johnson is becoming one of the elite quarterback/receiver combos in the NFL.  Although the 49ers have the fourth ranked rush defense in the NFL, they have the 23rd ranked pass defense.  That doesn't bode well for them as they face the Lions offense.  The 49ers are also coming off of a 48-3 thrashing of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, while the Lions had big victory on Monday Night Football against the Chicago Bears.  
     I like the Lions to come away in this game.  I just don't think the San Francisco defense can contain the high flying Lions offense.   

Local Game of the Week:
Houston Texans @ Baltimore Ravens
Ravens - W

     Oh, no.   I don't think I can take watching this game!!  The Texans come in to this game without Mario Williams and Andre Johnson.  On paper the Texans actually have better stats for Passing Offense, Rushing Offense, and Passing Defense.  But, actually watching some of the recent games, the Ravens are just on an entirely different level than the Texans.  The Ravens have an attitude that they will win every game.  The Texans still seem to have an attitude of simply hoping not to lose.  Without Andre Johnson, the NFL's 2nd toughest rush offense will be able to tee off on Arian Foster who struggled last week against the Raiders.  I am actually excited to watch the Ravens defense because you've got three future Hall of Famers lining up on that side of the ball:  Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs, and Ed Reed.  
     I simply don't think that the Texans have it in them to pull off the upset in Baltimore. I heard a stat yesterday on ESPN that said that the Texans under coach Gary Kubiak have a record of (1-18) in road games against teams that made the playoffs at the end of the season.  That doesn't sound good for the Texans as the travel to Baltimore to face a team that many analysts are picking to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl this year.  Texans will struggle to do anything offensively.  Maybe it's a low scoring game, but I just don't think the Texans have a chance at winning this game.  And yes, that still fits into my prediction of an 11-5 record for boys on Kirby this year!!

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This Week's Record (9-4)

Saturday, October 8, 2011

NFL 2011 Week 5 Picks


2011 Week 5 Picks

Last Week's Record (12-4)
Overall Record (41-22)

     That's right, twelve wins and four losses!!  Although, if you checked my blog after I updated it after the early games on Sunday, you'd never guess that I'd end week 4 only losing four games.  I correctly picked all the Sunday afternoon games, the Sunday night game, and the Monday night game!!  Thanks to the Lions for embarrassing the Cowboys in the 2nd half of their game to allow me to get that win.  On the other hand, I can't believe that the Eagles blew another big lead, and against the 49ers of all teams.  I think the Eagles have started this season thinking that they'll win just because they have a better team on paper than anyone else.  Well, like they say, "That's why they play the games!"  
     Watching the Texans beat up on the Steelers last week was a lot of fun!  I have never been so happy to type a "L" in my first four weeks of making picks.  Being a Texans fan, I just figured that they would find some way to blow that game.  Instead, the Texans showed up ready to play and put a ton of pressure on Big Ben.  The frustrating part of the game was all the penalties!  The Texans had two touchdowns taken off the scoreboard because of penalties, and also a fumble that was recovered by the Texans on a sack was taken back by an "illegal use of hands" penalty.  So, although the final score was 17-10, the score actually should have been 31-10.  
     This week ought to be just as much fun with several great matchups.  The Titans go to Pittsburgh to face a depleted Steelers team that just seems to be losing their magic.  The Panthers hosting the Saints ought to be a fun matchup watching rookie QB Cam Newton go toe-to-toe with the future Hall-of-Famer QB Drew Brees.  And my Game of the Week is a key AFC matchup: The trash talking Jets face off against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.  Here's how I've picked 'em:


Tennessee Titans @ Pittsburgh Steelers
Titans - L



Saints - W




49ers - W




Game of the Week:
New York Jets @ New England Patriots
Patriots - W

Local Game of the Week:
Oakland Raiders @ Houston Texans
Texans - L


     Ought to be an interesting with a lot of rushing yards.  The Raiders aren't much of a passing team, and the Texans lost their best wide receiver last week, Andre Johnson, because of a hamstring injury last week.  All the reports say that Johnson is likely out 3 weeks, which is much better than what it could have been.  Given the fact that he went down on a play that he wasn't even touched on, I think everybody feared the worst.  But, by the end of the game, he was walking around on the sidelines on his own power without crutches or anything!  The Raiders owner, Al Davis, passed away this morning, so you figure that the Raiders could either come out with more motivation than ever in this game, or they could come out with heavy hearts and find it hard to focus.  I'm excited to see this game.  Darren McFadden is having a great year, and is currently the NFL's leading rusher.  That's scary because they Texans defense seems to be fairly week against the run. as they showed in week 3 against the Saints.  I think the Texans will be able to score a lot of points with even with out Johnson.  Last year, the Texans had no problems running against the Raiders in Oakland. Foster, Ward, and Slaton all averaged over 7 yards per carry in that game that the Texans also were without Johnson.  Foster actually managed to run for 133 yards in only one half of play.  Foster sat the bench for the entire first half for disciplinary reasons.   I like the Texans to win a high scoring game!

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This Week's Record (8-5)