Week 16 predictions
Last week was a crazy one in the NFL, with records going, teams stepping up and teams falling down; let’s hope the Christmas weekend is as eventful… Merry Christmas everyone!
Friday 1:20am
Houston Texans 27-17 Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis finally won last week, and in a game that I definitely didn’t expect Tennessee to lose, so maybe the Colts will pose the Texans more problems than you would think. In what is most likely the last game in Indianapolis for veteran stalwarts Reggie Wayne, Jeff Saturday and Robert Mathis, the Colts will want to give them a good send off. Having said all of that, the Texans will be a little embarrassed with their defeat to Cam Newton’s Panthers last week, and will look to bounce back as quickly as they can.
Saturday 6:00pm
Cleveland Browns 10-30 Baltimore Ravens
What is it with the Ravens? They just can’t seem to keep winning, they have to lose once in a while to make sure they keep their feet on the ground. San Diego played very well last week, but you would still expect Baltimore to do better. They should be able to atone for that loss here at home against the Browns.
Denver Broncos 24-17 Buffalo Bills
Tebow is not better than Brady, that much we can now confirm, but I can’t see Ryan Fitzpatrick beating Denver, even at home. The defense will want to bounce back from being exposed by Brady and Hernandez last week, and will most likely put up some points, while Tebow will do what he does, and win again.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-31 Carolina Panthers
The Bucs are a team already looking to next season, while the Panthers are getting steadily better on both sides of the ball. No playoff ambitions for either of these teams, so this will probably be a high scoring one.
Arizona Cardinals 16-23 Cincinnati Bengals
The Cardinals are actually not bad. That’s shock number one. Shock number two is that I actually wouldn’t be surprised if they made this their latest scalp of a good team. The Bengals are not out of the race for a playoff spot, and will want to win this, but they haven’t been as impressive in the last few weeks, and this could be tight. But the home side’s defense is still a very good unit, so I’ll side with them.
Oakland Raiders 20-23 Kansas City Chiefs
Of all the teams to end the Packers’ unbeaten run, hands up if you thought it would be the Chiefs… that’d be no-one then. Romeo Crennell and the defense did an incredible job, but this week they’ll have to deal with a run game as well. It would be typical of football if after their heroics last week the Chiefs lost this weekend, but with Kyle Orton at QB, they have a hundred percent better chance of winning than with Tyler Palko, and they will revel in their ‘spoiler’ role as they beat the Raiders, putting a nail into their hopes of Playoff football
Miami Dolphins 27-38 New England Patriots
The Patriots have found their formula: scoring more points than the opposition. And this could turn into a shootout as well. Losing Andre Carter is a big blow for the Pats defense, but Bill Belichick will look for Mark Anderson to step up off the edge and take his place, something that has happened throughout the defense all season, with players stepping up after injuries to starters. Reggie Bush is a machine at the moment, and the Pats will have to defend the run better than they did the first quarter at Mile High, or they’ll get gashed. Can’t see anything other than a high scoring Pats win here though.
New York Giants 32-24 New York Jets
What a game in the Meadowlands, two teams whose Playoff statuses are hanging by a thread. The loser won’t get in, it’s as simple as that. And after witnessing the destruction that Mike Vick wrought on the once impregnable Jets defense, it’s hard to think that Eli Manning will have as bad a day as he did last week against the Redskins.
St Louis Rams 13-33 Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers got handled Monday Night, and it’s not often you can say that. The Rams will feel the full force of the response to that handling, whether Big Ben plays or not.
Jacksonville Jaguars 16-26 Tennessee Titans
Tennessee’s playoff hopes took a huge hit last week, and to stand any chance at all of getting there, they will have to win out. That starts here, and hopefully they will do it with Jake Locker, who is the best all round QB prospect in the league. You heard it here first.
Minnesota Vikings 21-20 Washington Redskins
The Redskins look good one week, and the next look distinctly average, who knows what Rex Grossman will turn up from week to week. The Vikings have had some tough games recently, and this is the first real opportunity for a win they have had in a few weeks, and with Adrian Peterson expected to play, I think they could get it.
Saturday 9:05pm
San Diego Chargers 35-38 Detroit Lions
Philip Rivers has finally woken up this season, and just in time to keep San Diego’s playoff hopes alive. The Lions are in a similar position, needing to win out to make sure of a post season spot. This could be anything, with the Chargers on fire, and with Matt Stafford rediscovering Megatron in a big way last week. I’m going to go with the home side in a thriller.
Saturday 9:15pm
Philadelphia Eagles 28-30 Dallas Cowboys
Another Christmas cracker in the NFL, and this one is a divisional rivalry that is huge for both teams. Somehow, the Eagles are not out of the Playoff race, and a win in Dallas would give them a great shot at making it. Tony Romo’s infamous December slump has happened again, but can he pick up his game as the month comes to an end? Philly’s defense is getting to the level that many expected it to be at earlier in the season, especially at corner, so Romo will look for Jason Witten a lot, with linebacker being the Eagles’ position of weakness. Felix Jones will also be a big threat out of the backfield. If the Cowboys can stop the run, then I can see Jerry Jones’ men taking an important lead in the NFC East.
San Francisco 49’ers 20-17 Seattle Seahawks
The 49’ers showed against the Steelers that they were for real in the Superbowl stakes, they handled a Pittsburgh team that is certainly not used to it. Seattle are a different proposition, a young team on the up, who haven’t looked like losing in the past few weeks at any point. Having said that, they haven’t come up against a defense like San Francisco’s yet.
Monday 1:20am
Chicago Bears 17-33 Green Bay Packers
So the unbeaten record has gone, but Green Bay are still going to the Playoffs with no trouble as the number one seed, meaning everyone will have to come through Lambeau Field to get to the Superbowl. The Bears are completely disintegrating, and it looks as if Caleb Hanie has been dropped as well now. Should be another simple game for the Pack, and a very happy Christmas Day.
Tuesday 1:30am
Atlanta Falcons 28-35 New Orleans Saints
What a superb game for Boxing day, a divisional game between two NFC heavyweights, the Saints with the on fire Drew Brees versus Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and Roddy White, one of the best QB/WR tandems in the league. The Falcons will have to find a way of limiting the passing game of the Saints, or New Orleans will make this another game where they can throw the ball all over the place and win comfortably in the Superdome.
