I had a pretty decent week last week, going 9-7. That brings my season record up to 99-93, good for a winning percentage of 51.6%. Plus, I’m already 1-0 this week after prediction the San Diego Chargers to romp the Oakland Raiders. This week could be tricky, because there’s a lot of big spreads to worry about.
Anyways, on to the picks, with a few reasonings below:
| NFL Week 14: tommco’s Picks | ||
| Game | Spread | Pick |
| Oakland at San Diego | Line: Chargers by 9 1/2 | Chargers |
| Jacksonville at Chicago | Line: Bears by 6 1/2 | Bears |
| Houston at Green Bay | Line: Packers by 5 1/2 | Packers |
| Cincinnati at Indianapolis | Line: Colts by 13 1/2 | Colts |
| Minnesota at Detroit | Line: Vikings by 9 1/2 | Vikings |
| Atlanta at New Orleans | Line: Saints by 2 1/2 | Saints |
| Cleveland at Tennessee | Line: Titans by 13 1/2 | Titans |
| Philadelphia at New York | Line: Giants by 7 1/2 | Giants |
| Miami at Buffalo | Line: Bills by 1 1/2 | Dolphins |
| New England at Seattle | Line: Patriots by 4 1/2 | Patriots |
| Kansas City at Denver | Line: Broncos by 8 1/2 | Broncos |
| New York at San Francisco | Line: Jets by 3 1/2 | Jets |
| St.Louis at Arizona | Line: Cardinals by 13 1/2 | Cardinals |
| Dallas at Pittsburgh | Line: Steelers by 2 1/2 | Cowboys |
| Washington at Baltimore | Line: Ravens by 5 1/2 | Redskins |
| Tampa Bay at Carolina | Line: Panthers by 2 1/2 | Buccaneers |
Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions, Vikings by 9 1/2: My woeful Lions are pretty brutal. So much so that I’m pleased they’ve stopped showing the games on TV. Minnesota is going through a rough patch with two of their starters being suspended. Still, I can’t see Detroit winning, or covering the spread. Minnesota to win.
Cleveland Browns at Tennessee Titans, Titans by 13 1/2: Another big spread. There was a lot of back and forth deliberation on this one. Tennessee didn’t look great before their Thanksgiving massacre over the Lions, so I don’t know if they’re getting the spread because of that game or because the Browns are another brutal team. I think the Browns keep it close for a while, until the third quarter or so when Tennessee starts to take a big lead, and Cleveland is forced to throw. Tennessee to win.
Phildelphia Eagles against the New York Giants, Giants by 7 1/2: I can almost repeat what I said last week about Donovan McNabb, but here’s the Cole’s Notes version: They can’t beat top teams late in the season. The Giants are the best team in the league, playing at home. McNabb and the rest of the team looked great last week against a good Arizona team that plays brutal for some reason when they fly to the east coast. And the Giants have been in the situation with off-field distractions like Plaxico Burress before, and they keep winning. And they’ll win again this week. Giants to win.
Dallas Cowboys at Pittsburgh Steelers, Steelers by 2 1/2: The Cowboys have had it together recently. Although they’ve been playing bottom-feeder teams like San Fransico and Seattle, they have looked good. They should be seen as tune-up games for their rough schedule coming up (Steelers, Giants and Ravens for the next three weeks). The team seems to be cohesive again now that Tony Romo is back. Of course, winning will do that for you. Cowboys to win.
Upset of the week
Washington Redskins at Baltimore Ravens, Ravens by 5 1/2: Washington has only one win in their last four games (against the Seahawks), but they’ve had a tough schedule (those three losses have been to the Steelers, Cowboys and Giants). Baltimore’s record of six wins in their last seven games could be attributed to a softer schedule, with games against the Dolphins, Raiders, Browns, Texans, Eagles and Bengals. Every time they play a tougher team this season, they lose. So I like the Redskins to prove something on national television with it being the Sunday night game. Redskins to cover at least, and probably win outright.
