Milton blog

The undefeated Patriots are again the story this week…. How many points will they rack up against the Jets, and how chilly will the post-game handshake be between coaches Belichick and Mangini?

The time-strapped Milton Pigskin Prognosticator teams up with the Milton Sports Guy to break down this week’s NFL matchups as the season winds down…

Week 15 Picks (Home team in CAPS)

HOUSTON (-1) over Denver
Both of these teams are at 6-7 in the AFC, both out of the playoffs but still with a chance to get in if they continue to win and at least one team ahead of them falters in these final weeks. Both teams are coming off big wins and have won 3 of their last 5 games. The Broncos have the 5th-ranked offense, but are inconsistent, so I’ll take the Texans who are 4-2 at home.

Cincinnati (-8.5) over SAN FRANCISCO
The no-luck 49ers are likely down to their 3rd-string QB for this game – some dude named Hill, which will not help their woeful 3-10 record, while the Bengals have looked marginally better the past 5 games – winning 3 of them – including big wins at Baltimore and vs. Tennessee. With those two big wins, the Bengals should be able to continue their momentum this week against the lowly Niners.

Arizona (+4) over NEW ORLEANS
Like the Thursday night game (Denver at Houston) both of these teams sit at 6-7, just shy of a wild card spot in the NFC. When a game is this critical for both teams, you can generally expect a close game, therefore not wise to pick either team to win by more than a field goal – so I’ll take the Cardinals, who have won 3 of their last 5, including wins over Cleveland and Detroit, while the Saints have lost their last two home games and have lost RB Reggie Bush for the season.

TAMPA BAY (-12) over Atlanta
At first glance, this spread is surprising for a division rivalry, however upon further review, the facts all point to the Bucs to cover. #1 QB Jeff Garcia will be back to start for this game, the Falcons have lost 4 straight games (all by more than this spread), the Bucs won in Atlanta 31-7 four weeks ago and the Bucs’ #3 defence should be able to keep the Falcons to minimal scoring again, while putting up several TD’s of their own at home.

Baltimore (-3.5) over MIAMI
Both of these teams are winless in their last seven games – so let’s call this one the Crap Bowl shall we? Baltimore still has the 5th-ranked defense in the league, so that alone should allow them to contain the 0-13 Dolphins and muster-up enough points to win by 4 – perhaps an exciting game won by two field goals, final score 6-0 – now are you ready for some football!?!

CLEVELAND (-5.5) over Buffalo
The Browns hold the final playoff spot in the AFC and need to win this home game to guarantee they hold their spot for another week. Buffalo is 3-3 on the road this season, with their only wins being against the futile Jets, Dolphins and the Redskins first game after having one of their players murdered – so don’t count on a similar success against a much more prepared and talented adversary. The Browns should be able to rack up lots of yards in the air against the Bills D.

Green Bay (-9.5) over ST. LOUIS
The Rams were down to their third string QB last week, and their offense only had 88 rushing yards and 153 passing yards, while the Packers 3rd-ranked offense has scored 27 or more points in their last 6 games. A 3rd-string QB on an under-achieving team cannot compete against a 11-2 Packer team that has Brett Favre at the helm!

(The Milton Sports Guy comes in from the ‘pen to close this week out)

Jacksonville (+3.5) over PITTSBURGH
Go with the red-hot Jags. They’re red hot and seem to be surging toward the playoffs. The Steelers will be looking to rebound after their thrashing at the hands of New England last week. Also take this into consideration: rain or snow in Pittsburgh on the suspect Heinz Field playing surface could also keep this game close, a la the Steelers’ narrow 3-0 victory over the Dolphins a few weeks ago….

NEW ENGLAND (-24) over N.Y. Jets
Finally the Mangini/Belichick/Spygate saga will come to a resolution…. The Patroits will want to prove a point to the team that ratted them out for cheating with video cameras in the first week of the season, the Patriots are at home and well, um, the Jets just suck. All of the above equals a New England victory by 25+ points.

Seattle (-7) over CAROLINA
Seattle seems to have things figured out now after some early struggles. I’m still not 100% sold on them, but the Panthers are also hard to figure out.

Tennessee (-4) over KANSAS CITY
Stick a fork in the Chiefs’ season. It’s done.

Indianapolis (-10) over OAKLAND
The Raiders put together a couple of impressive performances a few weeks ago but have since predictably fallen back to well below .500.

Detroit (+10) over SAN DIEGO
The Chargers seem to have turned their season around, but there’s no guarantee they’ll cover this spread against a plucky Lions squad who inexplicably gave the Cowboys all they could handle last week.

Philadelphia (+10.5) over DALLAS
Just a hunch Philly will hang close in this matchup of divisional rivals.

Washington (+4.5) over N.Y. GIANTS
An ‘opposite’ prediction: The Giants are the better team playing at home and should be able to cover a 4.5 point spread…. Go with the Redskins.

MINNESOTA (-10) over Chicago
I asked this a few weeks ago: Can you believe the Bears played in the Super Bowl last year?

Survivor
Here’s a summary of the MPP’s picks thus far, with weeks 6 and 10 being the only blemishes:
Week 1 - Denver over Buffalo
Week 2 – Pittsburgh over Buffalo
Week 3 – Carolina over Atlanta
Week 4 – Dallas over St.Louis
Week 5 – Tennessee over Atlanta
Week 6 – Seattle over New Orleans XXX
Week 7 – Washington over Arizona
Week 8 – Cleveland over St. Louis
Week 9 – Tampa Bay over Arizona
Week 10 – New Orleans over St. Louis XXX
Week 11 – Indianapolis over Kansas City
Week 12 – San Diego over Baltimore
Week 13 – New England over Baltimore
Week 14 – Minnesota over San Francisco
Week 15 – Green Bay over St.Louis

Now Milton, what do you think?

The Milton Pigskin Prognosticator is a weekly contributor to MiltonSearch.com. His NFL picks can be read on Fridays every week from now until Super Bowl Sunday. Submit your predictions vs. the spread and see how well you stack up!

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 13th, 2007 at 12:34 am and is filed under Guy Stuff, Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.