Milton blog

Wild card weekend always features intriguing matchups and this year is no different. Are the Jacksonville Jaguars more of a cold-weather team than the Steelers? We’ll find out Saturday night when the Jags visit Heinz Field where they’ve already beat the Steelers once this year.

4:30pm Saturday
SEATTLE (-3.5) over Washington
When looking at how these teams compare statistically you see no major advantage for either team as you have Seattle’s middle of-the-pack-ranked offense against the Skins’ similarly ranked defense (9th overall against 12th overall) and the Skins’ 15th-ranked offense against the Seahawks’ 15th-ranked defense.

Record: Seattle 10-6, Washington 9-7

League Rankings:
Offense – Overall: Seattle 9th, Washington 15th
Offense – Passing : Seattle 8th, Washington 14th
Offense – Rushing: Seattle 20th, Washington 12th
Defense – Overall: Seattle 15th, Washington 8th
Defense – Passing: Seattle 19th, Washington 16th
Defense – Rushing: Seattle 12th , Washington 4th

Here are the factors that more clearly favour the home team Seahawks:

1. In their last meeting Seattle beat Washington 20-10 in the 2005 playoffs, and did so after losing 2005 MVP RB Shaun Alexander to injury in the 1st quarter.

2. Playoff experience – the Seahawks are heading to the playoffs for their 5th straight season (including a Super Bowl appearance just 2 years ago) – this is a much bigger advantage than some may think – the “playoff jitters” will not be an issue for this veteran team.

3. Game experience – Washington lost their starting QB in week 14 to a knee injury, in comes Todd Collins, who had not started a game for NINE SEASONS – sure he’s been great (winning all 4 of his starts and throwing 5 TD’s with no INT’s) however it’s always harder in the playoffs and especially when it’s your first time and on the road, not to mention facing the 4th best pass rushing team (45 sacks this season – with Patrick Kerney leading the way).

4. Playing on Empty – not only have the Redskins had to deal with the murder of their team mate, which can be motivating but is also a very exhausting process to deal with, they also are coming off 3 straight weeks of “win or face elimination” games against the Giants, Vikings and Cowboys – so these two factors combined are more than likely going to result in a Redskin team with no gas left in their tank – watch for adrenaline to get them through the first quarter or two, but I predict Seahawk domination for the second half of this match.

8:00pm Saturday
Jacksonville (-2) over PITTSBURGH
Hats off to the odds-makers for having the balls to make Jacksonville the favourite for this game, as it is more than warranted, as conventional odds-makers would have incorrectly favoured Pittsburgh.

Here’s some of the key reasons why Jacksonville is the FAR superior team:

1. Pittsburgh finished the regular season at 10-6, but they had an INCREDIBLY soft schedule – I have mentioned this in several of my past weekly predictions, but finally took the time to tally this information today: an incredible 10 of their 16 games were against teams that finished the season with losing records (finishing a less than dominating 7-3 against these teams) while they had a lacklustre record of 3-3 against teams with records of .500 or better. Meanwhile, Jacksonville comes from one of the best two divisions in the league, as only their AFC South division along with the NFC East finished with all 4 teams at .500 or better – meaning they played 6 divisional games against legitimate teams – and for the AFC South, 3 of the 4 teams made the playoffs (Indy, Jacksonville and Tennessee) with only 8-8 Houston on the outside looking in.

2. With the incredibly soft schedule that benefited the Steelers this year all of their team rankings are very tainted – their #1 league defensive ranking is largely thanks to playing 10 of their games against poor teams, so the Jags offensive and defensive rankings are much more earned and more comparable to Pittsburgh than the numbers indicate:

Record: Pittsburgh 10-6, Jacksonville 11-5

League Rankings:
Offense - Overall: Pittsburgh 17th, Jacksonville 7th
Offense – Passing: Pittsburgh 22nd, Jacksonville 17th
Offense – Rushing: Pittsburgh 3rd, Jacksonville 2nd
Defense – Overall: Pittsburgh 1st, Jacksonville 12th (only a difference of 16.8 versus 19 p.p.g. allowed)
Defense – Passing: Pittsburgh 3rd, Jacksonville 15th
Defense – Rushing: Pittsburgh 3rd, Jacksonville 11th

3. Pittsburgh has several injury concerns going into this game, including having lost 2 of their starting offensive linemen to injury in the past 3 weeks, giving a further advantage to the Jags defense. The Steelers also lost their leading rusher (RB Willie Parker, 1316 yards this season) a few weeks ago.

4. Recent history also favours the Jags who have won the last 3 meetings versus the Steelers, including their only meeting this season in week 15 when they won 29-22 and had possession of the ball for almost 75% of the game – very dominating!

5. So often the team with fewer errors is the team that wins in the NFL, and this also benefits Jacksonville – they finished the regular season at +9 (9 more takeaways than giveaways) while Pittsburgh finished at +3. Likewise Jags QB Garrard finished with an impressive TD to Int ratio of 18-3 while Steeler pivot Rothlisberger finished at 32-11.

The only hope for the Steelers is playing at home and having the advantage of starting a QB with much more playoff experience than the Jags QB – but that simply ain’t enough to get the job done.

1:00pm Sunday
TAMPA BAY (-3) over New York Giants
Like Jacksonville (above) the Giants come from a strong division, with three of four teams going to the playoffs (Dallas, NYG and Washington) and the only team not advancing finishing an admirable 8-8 (Philadelphia). Meanwhile the Bucs’ NFC South continues to be a very curious division with the team to win the division having been last place the previous year for the past 3 or 4 seasons, and this season all other NFC South teams finished under .500. Regardless of this fact the Bucs had a much needed shot in the offensive arm this year w

The Giants are the only thing standing in the way of the Patriots and a perfect 16-0 season.

Week 17 Predictions

Home Team in CAPITALS

New England (-14) over N.Y. GIANTS
The Patriots need this one to become the first team in NFL history to have a perfect 16-0 season and the first team to go undefeated for the season since the ’72 Dolphins (who went 12-0). Both of these teams are already in the playoffs, and both of these teams are already locked in to their playoff spot (Patriots: first in the AFC, Giants: 5th in the NFC) so this game has no effect on their playoff positioning. The only thing that matters is the Patriots’ quest for perfection, along with being very close to breaking various other regular season records, including total points and total TD catches by a receiver during the regular season. The Giants have nothing to gain in having their stars play this game, or at least should be expected to have them only play a limited amount, which should make a big Patriots’ win the most likely outcome.

Buffalo (+7.5) over PHILADELPHIA
Both of these teams come into this game at one game under .500 (7-8) and only one will finish with a .500 season. The matchup of interest in this game will be Bill’s RB Marshawn Lynch against the Eagles’ 5th ranked run defense – look for Lynch to win this over the banged-up Eagle D.

TAMPA BAY (+2.5) over Carolina
The odds makers must be favouring the Panthers for this game based on the assumption the Bucs will be resting some starters for this game as they’ve already locked up the 4th seed for the NFC playoffs. However, there are some other factors which favour the Bucs in this one – it’s a home game for Tampa where they play strong, QB Garcia may play at least one half, as he’s only had one game back since several weeks off due to injury, and with that being said, the 2nd-ranked Bucs defence can preserve whatever lead Garcia and the other offensive starters who play for only the first half will secure.

MIAMI (+3) over Cincinnati
You know you’ve had a crappy season when you’re only favoured by a field goal over the 1-14 Dolphins. Miami has a chance in this one, as the Bengals live and die by their passing game, and in this one they face the 4th-best pass defence in the league, so watch for Miami to give their home crowd something else to be happy about besides “earning” the first draft pick for 2008.

Dallas (+9) over WASHINGTON
Even if Dallas chooses to rest all their stars for the entire game, I can’t take the Skins to beat the top NFC team by such a large spread – even at home. Yes, the Skins need to win to make the playoffs, however winning by over 9 points will not be easy considering they’re starting their back-up QB Todd Collins (who is decent) and the Skins will therefore lean heavily on their run attack. Dallas however, will counter with the 4th-ranked run defence. I think the Skins will win, but not by 9.

GREEN BAY (-4) over Detroit
Green Bay has nothing to play for this week, having already clinched second spot in the NFC, however after a horrible game in Chicago last weekend they will want to end the regular season on a positive note at home. Some interesting statistics on these two teams against the spread for this season, which makes the Packers the wise choice when picking this week – Detroit is 2-5 against the spread for road games, while Green Bay is 5-1 against the spread at home. Detroit has the 2nd-worst defence when their opposition is on third down and long, while the Packers can expose this weakness with the 4th-best offense in the league (2nd-best passing game).

Jacksonville (+6.5) over HOUSTON
This should be a hard-fought divisional rival game with the Jags already locked into 5th spot in the AFC while the Texans are motivated to finish the season with a .500 record. Watch for the Jags’ 2nd-ranked run attack to expose the weak Texans run defence.

New Orleans (-2) over CHICAGO
The Saints need to win plus have the Redskins and Vikings lose in order to squeak in for the final playoff spot in the NFC, so you know they’ll be bringing their A game to Chicago, who relies heavily on their 5th-ranked offense (3rd ranked passing game) while the Bears have no hope of making the playoffs and no clear starting QB after this disappointing season.

BALTIMORE (+3) over Pittsburgh
The Steelers’ starting QB is not scheduled to start this game, with 4th place in the AFC already guaranteed. Meanwhile the Steelers 3rd-ranked run attack will have their hands full since losing RB Willie Parker to injury last week AND going against the 2nd-best run defence in the NFL. The Ravens have had a horrible year, but stand a great chance to compete in this meeting.

Seattle (+2) over ATLANTA
Seattle shows great discipline, leading the league with a low of only 60 penalties called against them all season, while the Falcons have had more than twice as many penalties called against them this season (and that’s not including the charges against Vick!). Even if Seattle rests a lot of their starters for the playoffs they will still contend against the 3-12 Falcons.

CLEVELAND (-10) over San Francisco
The 9-6 Browns need the Titans to lose to make the playoffs – they should have absolutely no problem taking care of the horrible 49ers… now, what about the Titans?

Tennessee (-6) over INDIANAPOLIS
The Titans need to win this game to maintain the final playoff spot in the AFC, if they lose the Browns are in. The Colts should be resting a lot of their starters (having sewn up 2nd in the AFC) meaning the Titans’ 5th-ranked running game and 5th-ranked defence should be able to earn them this critical win.

Minnesota (-3) over DENVER
The Broncos have no shot at the playoffs, while the Vikings need to win and have Washington lose to Dallas in order to finish 6th in the NFC. The Vikings roll into Denver with the top running game and the top run defence in the league, so they have the weapons to win this one.

San Diego (-8) over OAKLAND
By winning this game, the Chargers guarantee staying in 3rd place in the AFC, which ensures one more playoff round before they could ultimately have to face the intimidating Patriots. This will be all the incentive they need to take care of the lowly Raiders.

ARIZONA (-6) over St. Louis
The Cardinals were the sexy pick before this season started as a team that could surprise this season and make a run in the playoffs. Unfortunately that never materialized, however Warner has been great as the backup QB thrust into the starting role due to injury, so watch for them to end this season strong and hope that momentum carries through to 2008.

Kansas City (+6) over N.Y. JETS
I can never take the Jets as a favourite – they simply don’t deserve it, even with some injuries to the Chiefs.

Survivor

Here’s a summary of my picks thus far, missing only on weeks 6 and 10:

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
Week 16 – *the dog ate my picks*
Week 17 – Washington over Dallas

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!

Coming off their first win, the Dolphins go for two in a row vs. the Patriots *laughs to himself*

Well, the busy holiday season has caught up with the Milton Pigskin Prognosticator. This means you the readers are left with my questionable insights based on my limited knowledge of the NFL landscape…

It goes without saying that I really don’t follow football THAT closely. I know the standings and the major happenings around the league, but don’t expect any head-to-head comparisons from years past, key injury updates or offensive/defensive team rankings as you usually find in this space.

So, if you have a few minutes to waste, you’re more than welcome to review my thoughts on the final week of the NFL season. The MPP will be back next week in full force to give you his projected wild card winners as the playoffs get under way.

Week 16 (Home team in CAPS)

Pittsburgh (-7.5) over ST. LOUIS
Take the Steelers to come up big against the Rams, vying for a Central Division title.

Dallas (-10.5) over CAROLINA
This game scares me - all logic points to the Cowboys blowing out the Panthers, but the game is in Charlotte and the Cowboys had an off-game vs. the Eagles last week. However, home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs is at stake for ‘The Boyz’, so I’m expecting them to come up big.

CINCINNATI (+3) over Cleveland
The Browns’ recent history in clutch games points to them losing at divisional-rival Cincinnati in this huge game with playoff implications.

Green Bay (-8.5) over CHICAGO
‘da Bears have given up on the season and Green Bay needs this one to have a shot at home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. This one could get ugly.

Houston (+7) over INDIANAPOLIS
The Texans have been playing some good ball of late and I think they’ll give the Colts all they can handle.

DETROIT (-4.5) over Kansas City
Yuck.

NEW ENGLAND (-22) over Miami
Like last week, this one depends on the weather. Unless it’s a blizzard, or it’s minus double-digits, the Pats will run up the score and see if the Dolphins can muster anything against their reserves.

BUFFALO (+2.5) over N.Y. Giants
I like the fiesty Bills at home even against the Giants, looking to punch their playoff ticket.

JACKSONVILLE (-13) over Oakland
The Jags are rolling. Peter King deemed them as the team ‘most likely to knock off the Patriots in the playoffs’ earlier this week. Now, will they ever draw enough of a crowd in Jacksonville to take the tarps off the upper deck?

NEW ORLEANS (-3) over Philadelphia
The Eagles looked good in knocking off the Cowboys, but there’s a reason why they’re 6-8: inconsistency. The Saints will come up big at home looking to stay in the playoff mix in the NFC after a terrible start.

MINNESOTA (-6.5 ) over Washington
I’ve taken a lot of favourites here… Both of these teams are looking to make it to the postseason. Minnesota should prevail - I think it will be a close game until the 4th quarter when the Vikes will literally ‘run away’ with it.

ARIZONA (-10) over Atlanta
I’ve gotta go with the Cards to cover given Atlanta’s issues on and off the field this year… They just want to get the season over with…

Baltimore (+10) over SEATTLE
Having long since clinched a playoff berth, the Seahawks may begin to rest some of their regulars, allowing the Ravens to keep this one close, playing for pride after their embarrassing OT loss to the Dolphins last week.

TENNESSEE (-9) over NY Jets
Another big spread, but again, I’ve got to go with the Titans to cover, looking to come up big trying to clinch a playoff berth. And it’s in Nashville. Oh, and did I mention they play the Jets?

SAN FRANCISCO (+6.5) over Tampa Bay
I think the Niners keep this close playing for pride, and versus a Bucs team who just clinched the NFC South Division Title last week.

SAN DIEGO (-8.5) over Denver
Even though they have clinched the AFC West, the Chargers’ season has been mildly disappointing and I think they’ll be looking to tune up the offence getting ready for their playoff opponent.

Survivor:
Let’s go with the Jags over Oakland

Now Milton, what do you think?

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!

Will the 12-0 Patriots continue to fall back to Earth this week when they host the 9-3 Steelers in Foxboro?

Week 14 Picks (Home team in CAPS)

WASHINGTON (-3) over Chicago
Bears QB Rex Grossman is a steaming heap of crap – if the Bears’ incredible kick return man Devin Hester doesn’t score one or more TD’s than the Bears have no other legitimate threat for putting points on the board. Both of these teams come into this game with 5-7 records – only one win away from the final wildcard spot in the NFC – so the winner will remain in contention while the loser will essentially have no hope of making the playoffs. The Skins have won 3 of the past 5 meetings and watch for RB Clinton Portis to have a huge game against a Bears run defence that has given up 100 plus running yards for the past 8 straight games.

JACKSONVILLE (-10.5) over Carolina
The Jaguars have a wildcard spot for the AFC, but with the Browns and Titans just one win behind them Jacksonville needs to win these sort of lopsided matchups to maintain their postseason seat. The Panthers are 1-5 over their last six games, having beaten only the lowly 49ers and losing 4 of their 5 games by more than this spread. The Jags’ defence can greatly limit the Panthers’ ability to run the ball and bring their 2nd-ranked run offence into this game to help literally run up this score.

DETROIT (+11) over Dallas
This is the time of year when playoff spots greatly dictate how close a game SHOULD be. The Lions are currently one spot out of the playoffs and require a win to stay in contention. The Lions have lost 4 straight, but if they can’t show-up this week than their season is as good as done – so take them to “represent” this weekend.

Miami (+7) over BUFFALO
Buffalo won the first meeting this season by a mere 3 points, and truly do not have a strong enough team to ever be chosen to cover a 7 point spread, especially when facing the 3rd best pass defence in the league. The Bills would have been coming into this game on a three game losing streak if they had not played the emotionally drained Redskins last week. Take the points on this one.

N.Y. Giants (+3) over PHILADELPHIA
You’ve gotta like the 8-4 Giants and their 5th-ranked run defence against the 5-7 Eagles. The Eagles’ success rests heavily on the shoulders of RB Westbrook – so watch for them to struggle against the strong Giant run defence and the Giants need to keep winning to maintain their Wild Card spot. The Giants won their first meeting with Philadelphia earlier this season 16-3.

Oakland (+10) over GREEN BAY
Too big of a question mark regarding Favre’s availability for this game to take the Packers to cover this big spread – and even if he does start (which is likely in order to keep his consecutive game record alive) he will not be 100% and may not be able to finish the game. Sure the Packers back-up QB held his own against Dallas last week, but he’s not going to lead the Packers to blow-out wins, plus the Raiders come in with two straight big wins over K.C. (20-17) and Denver (34-20).

Pittsburgh (+13) over NEW ENGLAND
I think the Patriots could very well cover this spread, because after 2 straight close wins against mediocre teams New England will be eager to prove all their doubters wrong this weekend with a convincing win at home. However the Patriots face the top-rated defence in the league this week (best against the pass and second best against the run) and the Steelers also have the 3rd-best run attack, so it’s a pretty big spread.

TENNESSEE (+1) over San Diego
The Titans are sitting in the 7th spot in the AFC playoff hunt, so this is a critical home game for them. Tennessee has the 5th-best running game and the 5th-best overall defence. The Chargers have lost 4 of 6 road games this season, with their only wins being against sub .500 teams.

CINCINNATI (-6.5) over St. Louis
This game gives the Bengals the perfect opponent, as the Rams’ weak offence will make it easier on the lousy Bengal defence. Likewise, the 4th-ranked Bengal passing game can feast on the weak St. Louis defence.

Tampa Bay (-3) over HOUSTON
The NFC South leading Bucs have won 4 straight and their 4th-ranked defence should allow this to continue versus the 5-7 Texans, who are on a 2 game skid. As the Bucs continue to get players back off the injured reserve, their success should continue.

Arizona (+7) over SEATTLE
The Cardinals have won the past two meetings with Seattle and need a win to guarantee holding the final Wild Card spot in the NFC. Both of these teams have played well of late, with Seattle on a 4-game winning streak while Arizona has won 3 of 4 – during this stretch Arizona has averaged 31 points per game and Seattle 26 – so watch for this to be a back-and-forth high scoring game with a close finish.

Minnesota (-8.5) over SAN FRANCISCO
The Vikings have won 3 straight, while the 49ers have only won 3 all season. Minnesota has outscored their opponents 83 to 27 in just the last two games and should have no trouble running the ball down the 49ers’ throat. Winning this game will allow Minnesota to stay in the wild card hunt in the NFC.

Cleveland (-3.5) over N.Y. JETS
Besides one decent win over the overrated Steelers, the Jets’ only two other wins all season came versus the 0-12 Dolphins. Meanwhile the Brown scoring machine has racked-up 21 or more points in 10 of their 12 games this season , only being held below this amount by the #1 and #3 defences in the league (Pittsburgh and New England). The Jets are no match in this one, and the Browns need this win to keep their wild card spot with the Titans right on their tail.

DENVER (-6.5) over Kansas City
Two slumping divisional rivals meet up in this game, with the Broncos having lost 4 of their last 6 games while the Chiefs have lost 5 straight. The Broncos have won the last 3 meetings with K.C., having won by 9 or more points in the past two – so watch for QB Cutler to get back to form at home after two tough road losses, as without a win hear the 5-7 Broncos will be all but out of the playoff hunt.

Indianapolis (-9.5) over BALTIMORE
Oh those poor Ravens, having narrowly missed beating the 12-0 Patriots at home in the Monday-nighter last week. Baltimore will not have any gas left in their tanks after that emotional game, and factor in one less game to rest/prepare for a Colt team which has the 4th-ranked overall offence and the 2nd-best overall defence. In a roundabout way, the Colts will be eager to show the football world that they can beat the Ravens more handily than their arch rivals did.

New Orleans (-5) over ATLANTA
The Saints have beaten this divisional rival the last three games, by 6 points this season and by 20 and 18 points last season when Atlanta had a stronger team. The Saints should win this one with a strong passing attack, having thrown for 260+ yards in their past five games (not including last week’s loss to the 4th-ranked Tampa pass defence).

Survivor
Here’s a summary of my picks thus far, with misses in week 6 and 10:
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

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!

How will the Redskins react this week vs. the Bills after the tragic shooting death of Sean Taylor?

Week 13 Picks (Home team in CAPS)

Green Bay (+7) over DALLAS
This is simply too big of a spread against a Packer team that is very comparable to the Cowboys. Both of these teams are 10 and 1, both have strong passing games (Green Bay 2nd, Dallas 5th) and either of these teams has a legitimate shot to win this game. Dallas has a better defense on paper, but Green Bay has more experience and a much bigger “heart” in Favre. Watch this game – it should be a good one – dare I say even more riveting than the Grey Cup.

Atlanta (+4.5) over ST. LOUIS
Sure the Rams have won 2 of their last 3, but they’re still losers of 9 of 11 games this year, while Atlanta has one more win under their belt for the season. Atlanta is wavering on who should be their starting QB (with only 4 TD passes thrown in their past 7 games) but the Rams pass defense has been mediocre (giving up over 200 yards in passing the last 4 games) so either Harrington or Leftwich should be able to perform well as the Falcons’ starting QB for this game.

WASHINGTON (-6) over Buffalo
With the tragic shooting death of one of their players this week it is near impossible to predict how the Skins will react – they could show-up with no focus and ill-prepared, or they can come out all fired-up to dominate in honour of their fallen comrade – I prefer to think the later will occur, especially in front of their home crowd. The Bills have been blown out in their last two games by a combined score of 92 to 24, so I don’t see a problem with a Skins team still fighting for a playoff spot to squeak out a win by 6 or more.

MINNESOTA (-3.5) over Detroit
The Vikings beat the Lions in both meetings last season – by 10 points and by 9, while the Lions responded by winning the first match-up this season 20 to 17. Minnesota’s won 3 of their last 4 games (with that one loss being against the 10-1 Packers) while Detroit has lost three straight (including a loss to the lowly Cardinals). The Vikings have won their past two games without their Rookie of the Year candidate RB Adrian Peterson and hope to have him back for this game which makes their chances that much better.

Houston (+4) over TENNESSEE
It’s surprising to see the Titans favoured by more than a field goal when they’ve lost 3 straight and beat Houston by just 2 points in their meeting earlier this season. In their past 8 games the Titans have only 2 TD passes compared to having thrown 11 interceptions, the only thing keeping them in some games is their 4th-ranked running game and 5th-ranked defence.

Jacksonville (+7) over INDIANAPOLIS
The Jaguars have looked solid on both sides of the ball for the past 5 weeks, winning 4 of 5, scoring 24 points per game minimum during that span and allowing no more than 23 points in all but one of these games. Meanwhile the Colts have lost a bit of their lustre starting with 2 straight losses in weeks 8 & 9 and having thrown 9 interceptions over their past four games with just 6 TD passes. Mind you, the Colts still have the 4th-ranked offense in the league backed by the second best defense, while the Jags have the 3rd-ranked running game. This should be a close division match-up.

N.Y. Jets (+1) over MIAMI
I have to take the Jets solely on principle for this game. How does an 0-11 team get favoured over anyone!?! Sure the Jets have only had two wins – but one was versus Miami (who they also beat in both games last season) and the other was an impressive win over the Steelers just two weeks ago. Did the Dolphins bring Marino out of retirement this week? Maybe Ricky Williams gave some of his “medicinal” stash to the odds makers? I don’t get it.

San Diego (-5) over KANSAS CITY
My god I’ve had no luck picking either of these teams against the spread this year due to their inconsistent play. After winning 4 of 5 the Chiefs have lost 4 straight, and over that same stretch the Chargers have won every other one of their games, going 3 and 2. KC won the earlier meeting this season 30-16 and split the two games last year, but the big difference here is that the Chargers really need this game to stay in command of their playoff destiny – that is a much stronger motivator than coach Turner yelling at them for the past 11 games to start playing with some *@!#!* consistency!!!

Seattle (+3) over PHILADELPHIA
Yeah, yeah – the Eagles gave the undefeated Patriots their toughest game of the season thus far last week, losing to them 31-28, but the 5-6 Eagles are streaky at best while the Seahawks are looking better with three straight wins and an offense that has scored 24 points or more in 5 straight games, holding their opponents to 23 or less in 4 of those 5 games. The Eagles have allowed 25 or more points to be scored against them in 3 of the last 4 and have scored only 17 points in two of those match-ups. If the Eagles did not have RB Brian Westbrook they would likely only have one win so far this season.

San Francisco (+3) over CAROLINA
Truthfully, no one deserves to win this game, however I’ll go with the hopeless 49ers, who showed guts winning 37-31 in OT last week against the equally hopeless Cardinals. The Panthers have stunk it up with 5 straight losses (allowing 31 or more points against in 3 of those losses). Both teams are forced to start back-up QB’s and some poor commentators are forced to attend and do the play-by-play for this “game”.

Tampa Bay (+3) over NEW ORLEANS
The Saints need this win over their division-leading opponent if they hope to have a chance to catch the Bucs in the NFC South, but the Bucs have won 3 straight and spanked the Saints in their first meeting this season 31-14. This game pits the Saints 4th-ranked passing game against the Bucs 5th-ranked passing defense. Meanwhile the Bucs running game has been surprisingly decent (120 plus rushing yards in 4 of the last five) while the Saints have not been as fortunate.

Cleveland (+1) over ARIZONA
Are the Browns deathly allergic to dry heat? This game will be all Cleveland. The 7-4 Browns are by far the better team in this match-up, with the Cardinals showing extra uselessness in their OT collapse against the weak 49er team just last week.

OAKLAND (+3) over Denver
QB Cutler has looked strong for the Broncos the past several weeks, however he’s up against the 4th-ranked pass defense and the Raiders have the 5th-best running game (with the Broncos run defense being very suspect this season). The Broncos have won the past 3 meetings, but two of those games were close ones, as a result I like the Raiders at home.

N.Y. Giants (-2) over CHICAGO
The Bears are coming off the high of a big 37-34 win over Denver last week while the Giants had a wake-up call against the Vikings last week, losing 41-17. As a result the Bears will be ill-prepared, with a horrible excuse for a QB in Grossman, while the Giants’ QB Eli Manning is dying to get out on the field and erase the memories of the 4 picks he threw last week. The only Bears’ threat will be neutralized as long as the Giants do not kick the ball to their return expert who won it for them last week.

Cincinnati (+7) over PITTSBURGH
The Steelers are coming off a Monday nighter where they barely beat the winless Dolphins 3 to 0 and lost the previous week to the hapless Jets. As a result, it is safe to say they’re not looking so hot right now. With one less day to prepare, the Steelers could have a tough time against a Bengal team that had an impressive win over a strong Titan team last week (35-6). The Bengals beat the Steelers in one of their meetings last season and lost the other game against them last year in overtime, so this division match-up should prove to be another close one. Enjoy watching the Steelers’ #1 pass defense against the Bengals’ #3 passing game.

BALTIMORE (+20.5) over New England
You’ve got to factor pride into this decision. No one likes losing the Monday nighter in front of a national audience – especially at home. As a result, Ray Lewis will have his defensive teammates all stoked to keep the perfect Patriots in check, having taken notes on how the Eagles played New England very close last week. If anyone can apply pressure to QB Tom Brady similar to the Eagles last week, it is the 4th-ranked Raven defense – this will keep the game within 20 points, but the Patriots will still win.

Survivor
Here’s a summary of my picks thus far, the only blemishes coming in weeks 6 and 10:
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

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!

Will Brett Favre be feasting on Lion in the annual Turkey Bowl in Detroit?

Week 11 Picks (Home team in CAPS)

Green Bay (-3.5) over DETROIT
Gobble, gobble, gobble – Thursday afternoon football thanks to American Thanksgiving – so plan ahead, start laying the ground work for your reason you won’t be into work ahead of time – I recommend starting with a lot of coughing around the workplace on Tuesday and complaining of fever and a bad headache then take things up a notch on Wednesday by frequent trips to the washroom (have some reading material stashed in your pocket). Detroit is starting to play more to their level, having lost their last two games, while the Packers have won 5 straight and are an impressive 9-1 for the season. The Packers have the top passing offence in the NFL – better than New England, Dallas and Indianapolis – that’s very impressive. The Packers beat Detroit in both meetings last season by margins of 7 points and 8 points, so a 3.5 margin should be no problem.

DALLAS (-14) over the N.Y. Jets
Gobble, gobble, gobble – the second Thanksgiving Day game (like Americans need a weekend dedicated to overeating!) Do not be fooled by the Jets’ upset win over the Steelers last week – the Steelers are strong team but not an elite team yet (their great record going into the Jets game was due to a very soft schedule) and the Jets just got really lucky. Dallas will cover this week because: 1. they are closer to being an elite team than the Steelers, 2. the Jets won’t get lucky two weeks in a row, 3. the Jets will still be hung over from their big win last weekend and finally 4. it’s in Dallas and the Cowboys will want to give their fans a Thanksgiving treat – Texas style.

Indianapolis (-12) over ATLANTA
Gobble, gobble, gobble – do I look fat in these pants? God bless America for inventing elastic waist bands - our neighbours to the south will be stretching them to their limits this weekend! This would have been a great holiday match-up if Vick was still QB for Atlanta, but now it’s just a 3-7 Falcons team struggling to determine which of their QB’s sucks less (Leftwich was touted the starter, but pulled last week when he was stinking it up against Tampa; while Joey Harrington is no hero himself) against a Colts team that lost 2 straight before squeaking out a 13-10 win last week against K.C. With the Colts having the 3rd best offence and defence in the league watch for Manning to get back on track with this game – his TD to INT ratio the last 3 games has been a depressing 3-8, but the Falcons will give him lots of open receivers to hit and lead the Colts to a big win.

Denver (+2) over CHICAGO
The Broncos have won two straight, including their impressive Monday night win over Tennessee, while the Bears are back with Grossman at QB (who had 0 TD’s and was sacked 5 times last week) in their loss to Seattle. Even though this is a home game for the Bears, the Broncos should have been the favourite for this match-up. QB Cutler looked sharp, and the offence very solid and this will continue versus Chicago.

Tennessee (-1.5) over CINCINNATI
Even though the 6-and-4 Titans have lost their last two games they are a much better team than the 3-and-7 Bungals. Both teams have decent offences (the Titans with 4th-ranked running game and the Bengals with 5th ranked passing game) however the difference is the Titans have a middle of the road defence while the Bengals have one of the absolute worst defences in the world.

JACKSONVILLE (-7.5) over Buffalo
Boy, I sure am picking a lot of the favoured teams this weekend – but can’t help it – the spreads seem a bit too small to pass up. The Jags are 7-3 this year, and have earned that record with a decent offense (3rd-ranked running game) and a strong defense (2nd best overall). The Bills are 5-5, but all 5 wins are against sub-500 teams (2 against the Jets, Baltimore, Bengals and Miami) – the Jags will make this very obvious with a routing of the Bills this weekend.

Oakland (+5.5) over KANSAS CITY
K.C. swept this series last week and won the first meeting this season, however two of those wins were by 4 points and 2 points – this should be another close one. Rookie Raider coach Lane Kiffin has been wavering between starting Josh McCown and Duante Culpepper at QB. He went back to Culpepper last week and the Raiders have been much more competitive with him starting, which will be the case again for this game. Meanwhile the Chiefs’ back-up QB held his own in his first start last week, but his starting does not lend itself to the Chiefs posting a win with such a large spread and with an inexperienced QB against the 4th-best pass defence in the league.

Houston (+3.5) over CLEVELAND
Cleveland is having a great season, having discovered that their initial 3rd-string QB is a fantastic starter, however of their 6 wins, only 4 are by more than this spread – and those 4 games were against horrible teams, all of them with losing records (Cincinnati, Baltimore, Miami and St. Louis). The Texans have shown signs of being a contender, and come into this game with a 5-5 record and are coming off a big 23-10 win over the Saints last week, where they held the re-born Saints offense in check.

ST.LOUIS (+3) over Seattle
If this game was being played 3 weeks ago I’d take Seattle to cover, however since then the Rams have won their first two games of the season and averaging 25 points in those two games and holding their opponents to under 50 yards rushing both times. The Rams won both those games on the road with this weekend marking their home coming as a team on a winning streak as opposed to their last return home as an 0-4 team. Also of interest: Seattle beat St. Louis both times last year – but by only 2 points each time, but blew the Rams out earlier this season by a score of 33-6 before the Rams got in their groove.

N.Y. GIANTS (-7) over Minnesota
The Giants’ D has held their opponents to 15 or fewer points in 5 of their last 7 games, and are 7-1 in their last 8 games, with their only loss being against the powerful Dallas team. The Vikings have an inconsistent passing game and will likely be without their superstar rookie RB Adrian Peterson again this week (and they cannot rely on back-up RB Chester Taylor to have as good of a game against the Giant D as he did against the soft Raider run D last week).

CAROLINA (+3) over New Orleans
These division rivals are both sitting at 4-6 and both are on losing streaks (4 straight for the Panthers and 2 straight for the Saints). The Panthers have won their 3rd straight versus the Saints (including two against the Saints last year when they had a solid 10-6 record). As a result, history has the Panthers as the wise choice, and even with their 3rd-string QB starting, they should be able to hold their ground against the Saints by simply not making costly turnovers on offence, and playing solid D at home.

TAMPA BAY (-3) over Washington
The NFC South leading Bucs are on a 2-game winning streak while the 5-5 Redskins have lost their last two. Tampa Bay has the 3rd-best pass defence, meaning Washington’s only hope lies in their running game, which has totalled under 100 yards in 4 of their last six games. The Bucs are 4-1 at home this season, with 3 of those 4 wins being by a 7 or more points. These teams met in Tampa last year, with the Bucs winning by 3, that was before their offence acquired QB Garcia – which has strengthened their ability to put points on the board.

San Francisco (+10) over ARIZONA
Arizona has not been playing well enough to be favoured by 10 points over anyone, even the struggling 49ers, especially with a banged-up back-up QB in Warner. In their last three meetings (week 1 of this week and the 2 games last season) all of the games have been decided 7 points or less, with San Fran winning the first match-up this year. Arizona has won 2 straight to get their record up to 5-5, but you still can’t bank on them to blow San Fran out of the water (or the desert in this case).

Baltimore (+9.5) over SAN DIEGO
The Chargers have not played to their potential this year resulting in their 5-5 record so far this season, while the Ravens have a hard time putting up points consistently, but can rely on their 5th-ranked defence (second against the run) to keep this game within 9 points in all likelihood. In fact, Baltimore beat San Diego last season by a score of 16-13, so have some faith in this underdog.

NEW ENGLAND (-23) over Philadelphia
New England has won 5 of their 10 games by more than 23 points this season, including winning by 46 points over Buffalo last week. Factor in that Philly QB McNabb is listed as day-to-day with a bad ankle and thumb (I’d be taking a hammer to my thumb and/or ankle to miss this game if I was him) and you have a back-up QB going up against the 4th-best defence, not to mention the Patriots’ top-ranked offence. If this game was in Philly, I’d very reluctantly take the Eagles simply due to the points they have on their side, but with the game in Foxboro, take the Patriots for another thumping! If you’re even 1% conservative you should take Philly, or consider getting out of gambling as it ain’t for the conservative – unless you get a rush out of breaking even!

Miami (+16) over PITTSBURGH
Pittsburgh has two critical injuries for this week – WR Holmes (who leads the team in receiving yards and TD’s) along with defensive star SS Polamalu. Meanwhile the Dolphins have the 5th-ranked pass defence which should help keep Roethlisberger in check. The winless Fish lost by 21 to New England and by 17 versus Dallas – both of those teams are better than Pittsburgh, so when you factor in that plus the Steeler’s injuries you’ve gotta pick the worst team in the NFL.

Survivor
Here’s a summary of my picks thus far, with week 6 and 10 being wrong:
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

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!

Jon Kitna is laughing because his upstart Detroit Lions are causing havoc for bettors and are still getting no respect.

Week 11 Picks (Home team in CAPS)

San Diego (+3) over JACKSONVILLE
Jacksonville has the third ranked rush offense in the league, however San Diego, after being crushed on the run against rookie superstar Adrian Peterson two weeks ago, made the proper adjustments last week by limiting Indianapolis to 75 total rushing yards. The Chargers have won 4 of their last 5 games – and definitely have some great momentum in their favour, while Jacksonville has lost 2 of their last 4.

INDIANAPOLIS (-14.5) over Kansas City
Just what the doctor ordered – after starting 7-0, the Colts have two straight losses – so bring in the 4-5 Chiefs (who’ve also lost two straight). The Colts will be looking to get back in stride this weekend with a good old fashioned thumping – which will be made easier by the fact KC is likely down to their back-up QB Croyle (who is he – exactly!) and RB Larry Johnson is still out. Indi has the third ranked offense and third ranked defense in the league, while KC biggest asset is a cheerleader that can belch the alphabet – you do the math!

Oakland (+5) over MINNESOTA
With Rookie of the Year Adrian Peterson out this week with a knee injury, the Vikings will have a tough time putting up any points as they’ve averaged well under 150 passing yards per game this season. The Raiders’ fourth-ranked pass defence can keep Minnesota to low passing yards and beat the crap out of the Vikings’ back-up RB Chester Taylor. Meanwhile, the Raiders have the fifth-best rush offense to challenge the strong Viking D.

Cleveland (-3) over BALTIMORE
Baltimore has the fifth-ranked overall defence in the league, thanks mostly to their ability to stop the run – that bodes well for the Browns’ impressive passing game. The Ravens can’t score, having only exceeded 14 total points in one of their past six games, while the Browns have 17 or more points in all of their past 8 games (only scoring less than 17 in week 1, which was before Anderson took over as their starting QB).

Pittsburgh (-9.5) over N.Y. JETS
The Steelers are 7-2 with 6 of their wins by more than this spread and with the Jets at 1-8 with their only win over the hapless Dolphins, the odds are good for Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh comes into this came with the fifth-ranked offense, and more impressively with the elite defensive team of the league – first overall and first against the run and the pass – the Jets will be grounded this weekend (I could throw in a bus joke if Bettis had not retired!).

Tampa Bay (-3) over ATLANTA
This is a critical game for the Bucs to keep first place in their division to themselves, and they’re coming off a bye week so they should be well prepared – including getting RB Pittman back from the injured reserve. The Bucs have the third-best pass defense in the league which spells trouble for Atlanta’s QB Harrington, leaving their underachieving running game as their only hope. Meanwhile, with Garcia at QB the Bucs are putting up more points than in years past.

Arizona (+3) over CINCINNATI
The Bengals have a horrible defense, only having the chance to win against teams with absolutely no offense (resulting in their 3 wins against Baltimore (twice) and one against the Jets). The Cardinals are still in contention for the playoffs and need to win this game to keep their hopes alive – they had a strong game in their win against Detroit last weekend and look to continue their winning ways.

Miami (+10) over PHILADELPHIA
Philly will only win this game by over 10 points if their RB Westbrook has a great game, as the Dolphins have the fifth-best pass defense – so I’ll side on the winless Dolphins since they’ve hung-in close in their past two games (losing each game by just a field goal). The Dolphins will beat the spread for this game with lots of pressure on McNabb in the form of sacks and interceptions. The Eagles have only had one win this season by more than 10 points, and that was a fluke game where they registered 9 sacks against Detroit.

New England (-15.5) over BARFALO
I spent a week in Buffalo one night – and I’ll never go back! New England has won 8 of their 9 games by more than this paltry fifteen-and-a-half point spread, including their 38-7 win over these Bills in week 3. Buffalo still stinks (except for great special teams and infrequent strong defensive games) while the Patriots are by far the best team on the planet right now. The Bills chances are further hampered with RB Lynch questionable after leaving the game last week with an ankle injury. The home fans will need to be drunker than ever to enjoy this game and/or in order to think their facial-hair covered tubby cheerleaders are anything close to hot!

Washington (+10.5) over DALLAS
This is the first meeting of the season against these great divisional adversaries – such match-ups tend to be closer games, making the underdog the wise pick. The Redskins D seems to step up against better passing teams (holding Favre to 150 passing yards) while letting lower-ranked passing teams like Arizona and the Jets pass for much more. If they can step up against the #3 passing offense and continue to run the ball well against the 5th-ranked run defence (Washington has rushed for over 400 yards combined in the past two games) then this game will indeed be close.

New Orleans over HOUSTON (pick ‘em)
Both of these teams are 4-5, so losing is not an option to stay in contention for the playoffs. The Saints have more talent – so take them to win, as they have been the hotter of the two teams, winning four of their last five. Even if Saints RB Reggie Bush is questionable they have strong back-ups at this position with Duece McAllister and Aaron Stecker.

GREEN BAY (-10) over Carolina
With the Panthers stuck with back-up QB’s for the past 3 weeks they’ve been outscored 71-27 while Brett Favre and the Packers have been lighting it up this year, with over 300 yards of passing in 6 of the last 7 games and a 13-6 TD to INT rating during that period. Combine the Panthers’ QB woes with the hostile frozen tundra of Green Bay and you’ve got a blowout.

N.Y. Giants (-3) over DETROIT
Both of these teams are coming off a loss after having won several in a row (6 for NY and 3 for Detroit). Last week was much more likely to be a reality check for the Lions (losing to middle-of-the-pack Arizona) while the Giants lost a hard-fought match to a great Dallas team. As a result, the stronger/better Giants should be able to reconfirm for everyone watching that Detroit is not yet a true contender, they should stick to making over-priced crappy American cars!

St. Louis over SAN FRANCISCO (pick ‘em)
The Rams won an impressive game over a Saints team last week that was coming into their match-up against St.Louis with 4 straight wins. This was the Rams’ first win of the season, while the 49ers have only two wins this season (having lost their last 7 games). St. Louis has their offense producing better of late, with 57 points in the past two weeks. The Rams could easily play .500 ball for the remainder of the season now that they have that monkey off their back.

SEATTLE over Chicago (pick ‘em)
What the hell is going on with all of the pick ‘em’s this week? Does this have something to do with all of the Hollywood screenwriters going on strike? Seattle will have their work cut out with RB Alexander questionable following a leg injury last week, but I can’t pick Chicago winning with QB Grossman (with emphasis on Gross) since Griese went down with a shoulder injury last week. Grossman specializes in low passing yards per game and untimely interceptions. Can you believe this was a playoff game from last year??

Tennessee (+2) over DENVER
How are the Titans not favoured in this game? The 6-3 Tennesseeans are hands down better than the 4-5 Broncos. Tennessee has the 4th-ranked running game (with Denver susceptible to the run) and the 2nd-best overall defence in the league. The Titans will showcase their abilities on Monday Night.

Survivor
Here’s a summary of my picks thus far, with week 6 and 10 being wrong:
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

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!