GAME OF THE WEEK – New England Patriots (10-3) at Pittsburgh Steelers (11-2), NE by 3 – In a game that will likely decide the #1 seed in the AFC, we’ve got a matchup of two potent offenses against a pair of inconsistent defenses. The Steelers have homefield advantage, but they’ve been historically bad against the Brady-led Patriots. Plus, you never want to play Brady and Belichick coming off a loss. Give me New England in what’s sure to be a fun game to watch.
Patriots 30, Steelers 27THURSDAY NIGHT – Denver Broncos (4-9) at Indianapolis Colts (3-10), DEN by 2.5 – Boy, talk about a disappointing late-season matchup. Both of these teams have been contenders for a lot of the last five years, but this year they’re both duds. The Broncos should be able to snag this meaningless dud.
Broncos 23, Colts 10SATURDAY – Chicago Bears (4-9) at Detroit Lions (7-6), DET by 5.5 – The Lions need to win out and get a whole lot of help to be able to make the playoffs, and while divisional matchups are always unpredictable to an extent, I feel like they’ve got what it takes to shut down Chicago.
Lions 31, Bears 20Los Angeles Chargers (7-6) at Kansas City Chiefs (7-6), LAC by 1 – Another huge matchup that will have major playoff ramifications. The Chargers have quietly become one of the hottest teams in football, while the Chiefs have been on an epic slide since starting 5-0. The Chiefs may have gotten a big win against Oakland last week, but Los Angeles is playing some inspired ball right now, and I like their momentum to will them to a tough road divisional victory.
Chargers 24, Chiefs 20Philadelphia Eagles (11-2) at New York Giants (2-11), PHI by 7.5 – The loss of Carson Wentz will surely hurt the Eagles’ Super Bowl chances, but Nick Foles is a good enough fill-in that they should have no problem dispatching the Giants.
Eagles 27, Giants 13Green Bay Packers (7-6) at Carolina Panthers (9-4), CAR by 3 – Another massive game for the playoff picture… and it features the return of the one and only Aaron Rodgers. If the Packers win out, they have almost a 90 percent chance of a playoff berth. That’s much easier said than done, giving their upcoming schedule, and a game against the Panthers is never an easy proposition for these Packers. But I like the return of Aaron Rodgers to inspire these packers to at least one big win… setting up a massive showdown with Minnesota next week.
UPSET! – Packers 30, Panthers 24[Cincinnati Bengals (5-8) at Minnesota Vikings (10-3), MIN by 10.5 – The Vikings had a tough loss against a playoff-caliber team last week. This week they get to regroup against a disappointing Bengals squad going nowhere.
Vikings 26, Bengals 10Miami Dolphins (6-7) at Buffalo Bills (7-6), BUF by 3.5 – The Bills still have a remote shot at getting to the playoffs. Were this game being played in Miami, I’d probably take the Dolphins, but at home against a divisional foe playing for their playoff lives, I’ll take Buffalo in the win, despite their QB woes.
Bills 20, Dolphins 17Houston Texans (4-9) at Jacksonville Jaguars (9-4), JAX by 11 – Jacksonville is still in the running for a first-round bye, but more important is making sure they wrap up the division. They should be able to put away this banged up Houston team.
Jaguars 27, Texans 12New York Jets (5-8) at New Orleans Saints (9-4) NO by 15.5 – Surprised at this line. I’ll take the Saints to win, but the Jets to cover.
Saints 30, Jets 23Arizona Cardinals (6-7) at Washington (5-8), WAS by 4.5 – Washington is just too banged up to win many more games, honestly.
UPSET! – Cardinals 27, Washington 17Baltimore Ravens (7-6) at Cleveland Browns (0-13), BAL by 7 – Boy, the Browns were THIS CLOSE to picking up a win last week, then they Brownsed it away about as hard as they possibly could. The Ravens were also THIS CLOSE to beating the Steelers, and choked it away in the final seconds. Divisional games are always tough, but I’ve got the Browns finishing winless.
Ravens 20, Browns 10Los Angeles Rams (9-4) at Seattle Seahawks (8-5), SEA by 2.5 – The Rams clinch the west with a victory here, making this an extremely important game for both teams. Playing in Seattle is always a tough task, but the Rams have had the Seahawks’ number over the last several years, and they’re also much healthier and more well-rounded right now than Seattle. It’s going to be a bruising game with probably a lot of chippiness, but give me Los Angeles in the upset.
UPSET! – Rams 27, Seahawks 24Tennessee Titans (8-5) at San Francisco 49ers (3-10), SF by 2 – Amazing what Jimmy Garoppolo has done for this 49ers team already. The future is really looking bright for San Francisco, once they can put some more pieces in place around him. A tough matchup for the Niners, but the Titans haven’t particularly traveled well this year and Marcus Mariota is playing some brutal football right now. The Titans are still in the playoff hunt, but I think they stumble again on a trip out west.
49ers 23, Titans 20Dallas Cowboys (7-6) at Oakland Raiders (6-7), DAL by 3 – Disappointing years for both of these teams. But I’ll take Oakland at home to deliver essentially the final blow to Dallas’s playoff hopes.
UPEST! – Raiders 24, Cowboys 16Atlanta Falcons (8-5) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-9), ATL by 6 – The Falcons just need to keep winning, whatever they do, if they hope to get into the playoffs. The Bucs have been pretty soft even in divisional play this year, so it’s a good way for the Falcons to rest up before a brutal final two weeks at New Orleans and home against Carolina.
Falcons 33, Bucs 10