Mikey's NFL picks

Last week: 11-5 Season record: 159-79-2 Wow, is it really Week 17?  I hate that the season is over in the blink of an eye but the long offseason feels like two years.  It also sucks when your team (Giants) is out of the playoff race six games in, two years in a row.  I love the playoffs but I almost wish there was one more week of them.  Anyway I've complained all season that there are typically between two and four games in the late window, but this week we have seven early games and eight(!) late games, and the NFL even rearranged them so that the games with meaning are in the late window--so that all of the drama will unfold in real time.  That being said, a lot of the playoff field is already determined, but there are byes and home games to sort out.  Okay, let's do this..... Miami at Buffalo --I could never pick a Florida team playing in the snow belt in late December.  Bills 20, Dolphins 17 Detroit at Green Bay --We could very well be seein...

Last week: 10-6 Season record: 148-74-2 Washington at Tennessee --Somehow Jay Gruden squeezed a win out of Josh Johnson in Jacksonville, but he won't even squeeze a turd out of this one.  Titans 19, Skins 12 Baltimore at LA Chargers --Suddenly this looks like a fantastic match up, especially of defenses.  Chargers 17, Ravens 16 Cincinnati at Cleveland --Remember how shocked everyone was that the Browns drafted Baker Mayfield?  The Browns have already won six games, which is six times as many as they won in 2016 and 2017 COMBINED.  Browns 27, Bengals 17 Tampa Bay at Dallas --Boy, did the Cowboys look awful against Indy last week.  They seemed like a lock to win the division after beating Philly for the second time a few weeks ago, and then were shut out by the Colts.  This is not an easy job, and I'm sure it's even more nerve wracking for, you know, Vegas types.  Cowboys 24, Bucs 13 Minnesota at Detroit --It looks like the Packers will miss t...

Last week: 10-6 Season record: 136-69-2 Okay so the Chargers' incredible come-from-behind victory in KC the other night has this guy starting at 0-1 for Week 15.  That also throws another wrench into the power rankings, as it seems like every time we see one or two teams look elite and unbeatable, someone beats them.  Which means the playoffs are gonna be absolutely nuts.  But first......we have two Saturday games, always a December NFL treat especially since the college bowl season usually starts around now with the Meineke Bowl or Krispy Kreme Bowl or Goody's Headache Powder Bowl.  So let's get to it..... Houston at NY Jets --I am struggling with this pick.  The Colts broke the Texans' winning streak last Sunday and the Jets beat the Bills on the road.  I honestly feel like this could go Gang Green's way but on the other hand..... Texans 20, Jets 16 Cleveland at Denver --This has the potential to be a very low scoring game.  The Browns have wo...

Last week: 10-6 Season record: 136-68-2 Always go with your gut, people.  Last week my gut was telling me to pick the Raiders over the Steelers and I ignored it.  Also my gut was telling me to pick the Colts over the Texans.  Both of those seem absurd on the surface, yet they would have been correct.  So for the rest of the season, I'm going to pick what I feel..... LA Chargers at Kansas City --This is an epic heavyweight battle, the kind of game the NFL is not thrilled to be showing on a Thursday I'm sure.  It'll be in the upper 30's tonight at Arrowhead, which is not ideal for a California team (see last week Rams at Bears), but it could be worse.  Still, the home crowd is going to propel the Chiefs here.  Chiefs 38, Chargers 35

Last week: 11-5 Season record: 127-62-2 Things are getting good now.  Despite crazy parity and swings from one week to the next, there are about three or four or five elite teams with the rest wanting to try their best to sneak into the party and see how long they can stay.  So with that, let's do some picking! NY Jets at Buffalo --The first thing I did was to check the weather, because it's Buffalo in December.  And, well, the weather is going to be downright summery--30 degrees and sunny!  Not that weather would impact either of these northern (and not-very-good) teams.  Bills 17, Jets 13 Carolina at Cleveland --This appears to be an even match up and maybe it is, but consider this--the Browns are 3-2-1 at home, 1-5 on the road.  The Panthers are 5-1 at home, 1-5 on the road.  You don't have to be a rocket scientist, or even a stats geek to see where this is headed.  Browns 27, Panthers 26 Atlanta at Green Bay --Might Mike McCarthy tune ...

Last week: 11-5 Season record: 126-62-2 It's Week 14, the start to the NFL's fourth quarter.  Let's kick it off with this riveting match u-------okay, a little less than riveting.... Jacksonville at Tennessee --Both of these teams play good defense and generally have low-scoring affairs.  The Jags have had a terribly disappointing season after looking Super Bowl bound a few games into the season.  The Titans are impossible to figure out and impossible to ever count out of playoff contention.  Titans 19, Jags 16

Last week: 11-4 Season record: 115-57-2 hey folks.....it's Week 13 and that means a FULL slate of games.  There are 14 games today and one tomorrow, which means a frenetic Andrew Siciliano trying to figure out how to get six games on a screen at once and holding in his pee for three hours.  Anyway, let's get to it.... Baltimore at Atlanta --I saw Lamar Jackson play up close two years ago.  And I am not surprised one bit at how well he's playing in the NFL after seeing him shred Boston College's defense in the air and on the ground.  I wonder what the future holds for Joe Flacco.  Wide receiver?  A change up here and there to mess with the defense?  A very expensive decoy?  Ravens 27, Falcons 24 Denver at Cincinnati --You know what's hilarious?  When you see something on Red Zone either live or seconds after it happens, and then 15 minutes later seeing Fox or CBS have a "game break" with Curt Menafee or Carissa Thompson.  Siciliano...