2013 Week 12 NFL Picks: Scottie vs. MattyOShow

After 11 long weeks, Scottie is still performing at a high level.  Meanwhile, some of the risks that I’ve been taking just aren’t playing off.  Last week, Scottie managed a 9-6 record and amassed 75 Confidence Points, giving him a 101-61 record on the season with 841 Confidence Points.  I, on the other hand, floundered to a 7-8 record, while managing to rack up 72 Confidence Points.  On the season I am 93-69 with 837 Confidence Points.  I’m officially 8 games back of Scottie, while only being behind 4 Confidence Points.  That basically tells you that Scottie has been getting lucky picking some crappy games!  Anyways, I need to get the ball rolling this week to start cutting down Scottie’s lead.  Let’s do it…

Byes: Bills, Bengals, Eagles, Seahawks

Saints @ Falcons

Scottie: Saints  14

The Falcons have been excrutiatingly awful this season.  The injuries have completely decimated a once promising season.  Now the Birds are looking at a top 10 pick come May’s draft.  On the other hand, the Saints are coming off a win thanks to the zebras protecting Drew Brees.  I really hate the new NFL.  I predict in 10 years, the NFL will be the NFFL, National Flag Football League.  The Saints offense is already too good.  If referees prevent defenses from hitting Brees, they are impossible to stop.

Matt: Saints 12

Who would have thought that the Falcons would be in a the JaDaveon Clowney race on Novemeber 21st?  Not me.  But, Atlanta has been of the worst teams in the league this year, and I expect that trend to continue in this game.

Steelers @ Browns

Scottie: Browns 6

Surprisingly, this game has playoff implications.  Both teams sit at 4-6, one game out of the sixth spot in the AFC.  After the Browns traded away Trent Richardson, I said they would be the worst team in the league.  Scottie wrong yet again.  The Browns have one of the most underrated defenses in the NFL.  Joe Haden might be the best corner in the game today.  The Browns will stymie the Steelers offense and Jason Campbell will manage to squeak out a win on home turf.

Matt: Steelers 7

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been hot lately, while the Cleveland Browns have been sputtering under Jason Campbell.  Ben Roethlisberger has put the Pittsburgh Steelers on his back over the past two games (wins over Buffalo and Detroit), and will need to do that again against a stingy Cleveland defense.  The Steelers have only won one game on the road this season (Week 6 at the Jets), so this one will be close, but I expect the Steelers to remain in playoff contention.

Buccaneers @ Lions

Scottie: Lions  12

I need to air a greivance.  Matthew Stafford is a joke of an NFL quarterback.  He is fantasy football gold, but in real lie, he is terrible.  The Lions offense is simply drop back, and throw the ball as far as he can and let Calvin Johnson make a play.  There is no scheme.  There is nothing other than throwing to Johnson.  The Lions have the potential to be such an exciting team.  But they aren’t.  Fortunately for the Lions, they get the Bucs this week.

Matt: Lions 14

So Sam Bradford goes out for the season with a torn ACL, and now Scottie has to start hating Bradford.  Let me ask you a question there Scottie, who the hell do you like?  Does Drew Brees bunch up your panties?  Is Peyton Manning your arch nemesis?  Did Aaron Rodgers steal your middle school girlfriend?  This kid is ridiculous!  Anyways, the Bucs have been fortunate to have a couple of teams fall apart in front of them over the past few weeks, however the Lions need this win and get it at home.

Vikings @ Packers

Scottie: Packers 4

The Packers three game losing streak will end on Sunday.  The Minnesota quarterback situation is unsettled at best.  In Green Bay, it is Scott Tolzien.  The fact the Packers know who their quarterback is, allows them at least some consistency. The Vikings don’t have a viable quarterback.  They don’t have any receivers worthy of being mentioned in this post.  Adrian Peterson has not been the Adrian Peterson we have come to know and love this season.  Green Bay will ride the Eddie Lacy and the running game to a victory.

Matt: Packers 6

What does it say about the problems in Minnesota when I have more faith in Scott Tolzien than I do in whomever is the starter for the Vikings?

Chargers @ Chiefs

Scottie: Chiefs 7

I rolled the dice last week and said the Chiefs would beat the Broncos on the road.  That didn’t quite pan out.  The Chiefs return to Arrowhead Stadium and host the Chargers this week.  This will be another test for the Chiefs as the Chargers are an okay team.  I like the Chiefs defense against Phillip Rivers and company.  They may find themselves ahead of the Broncos for the #1 seed if the Patriots can take care of business.

Matt: Chiefs 13

The Chiefs actually played better than I expected last week.  They gave the Broncos more of a fight than I was anticipating.  What has this done?  Given me hope that the Chiefs might actually be for real.  The Chargers started hot, but haven’t been that good lately.  Andy Reid and the Chiefs get back on track at home against the Chargers.

Bears @ Rams

Scottie: Bears 8

Even without Jay Cutler, the Bears find themselves tied for the division lead with the Lions at 6-4.  The Rams are coming off a bye after annihlating the Colts 2 weeks ago.  Normally, I like to take a home team coming off of a bye but I really like Chicago this year.  I love their wideouts and most of all Matt Forte is a monster.  The Bears defense has not been very good against the run as of late, and Zac Stacy may have a big day.  St. Louis has nothing really to play for while the Bears are fighting for a division title.  I am going with the team that has something to play for.

Matt: Rams 1

Scottie basically made my points for me on this one.  The Rams can get after the quarterback.  Robert Quinn and Chris Long might be the best defensive end pairing in the NFL.  Zac Stacy has been one of the most productive running backs in the NFL  over the last couple of weeks, and I expect that to continue against a porous Chicago defense.

Panthers @ Dolphins

Scottie: Panthers  13

Carolina is for real.  Yes, last week’s infamous flag pick up was ridiculous.  But do not let that take away from  how good the Panthers played on Monday.  Cam Newton is looking unstoppable this season being the guy he was projected to be. The Carolina defense was also rather impressive.  Carolina is a scary team to face down the stretch.  Although the Dolphins won last week, I still believe they are a team in shambles.  Carolina may win by 20 down in South Beach.

Matt: Panthers 9

Yes, the Patriots got screwed last week.  However, the Carolina Panthers played one hell of a game.  Luke Kuechly is one of the best linebackers in the NFL.  Cam Newton is playing some of his best football of his career.  Brandon Lafell is emerging as a legitimate receiving threat opposite of Steve Smith.  Meanwhile, the Dolphins are a train wreck, and I kind of like it.

Jets @ Ravens

Scottie: Ravens  10

The Bills embarrassed the Jets last week.  Geno Smith was benched in favor of Matt Simms.  There are times Geno looks damn good.  Other times he has Jets fans calling for the return of the Sanchize.  Surprisngly enough the Jets are 5-5 and still in playoff contention. Ravens are 4-6 and a win goes a long way in getting them back into the race.  Ray Rice looked like the Ray Rice of old last week.  He will have difficulty being productive against the Jets D this week.  I have no faith Geno Snith can protect the ball.  The Ravens will win the turnover battle and ultimately win the game.

Matt: Jets 4

I don’t really know why I’m going with the Jets this week, but I just have a feeling.  The Jets have rebounded well after big losses this season (wins following 25+ point losses against Tennessee and Cincinnati).  The Ravens haven’t been the Ravens.  Joe Flacco is useless.  They blew the game against the Bears last week.  Ray Rice won’t do anything against the Jets defense.  I like Rex and the boys in this one.

Jaguars @ Texans

Scottie: Texans  11

So maybe Case Keenum is not as ready to be an NFL quarterback as I thought he was. He was yanked in favor of old friend Matt Schaub last week.  We know how that ended.  The Texans are 2-8, having lost 8 games in a row.  Mercifully, they get the Jaguars two out of the next three weeks.  The Jaguars have even more problems than one could expect.  Their best receiver, Cecil Shorts, is irate about his lack of targets.  Dear Jacksonville, sign Tebow already.

Matt: Texans 11

Like Scottie and I have said all year, the Jags are unlikely to get our vote at any point this season.  Case Keenum is making a believer out of me, and will cement that view after a big week against the Jags.  Meanwhile, Ben Tate is playing for a payday this offseason, and has a great opportunity to show up big against a mediocre Jacksonville defense.

Titans @ Raiders

Scottie: Titans 2

This game is just awful.  I am going to try something different here.  I am going to praise Chris Johnson for being such an explosive running back.  I am going to praise him for how he looked on the first two drives of last Thursday night’s game against the Colts.  I won’t mention that he had 16 yards on his last 9 carries of the game.  I am going to say CJ2K is going to have a day against the Raiders and lead my fantasy team to victory!  (Okay, how much of that do I believe? Not much.)

Matt: Raiders 3

Is Matt McGloin the next coming of Peyton Manning?  Well, maybe I won’t go that far, but former Penn State redhead Matt McGloin did work last week against the Houston Texans last week.  Rashad Jennings has been really good since Run DMC went down, and I expect that to continue against the Texans.  The Raiders have the 6th best run defense in the NFL, so I expect Scottie to get screwed by a poor performance by Chris Johnson.

Colts @ Cardinals

Scottie: Cardinals 5

The Cardinals are the biggest surprise in the NFL this season.  Week after week, I come on here and bash Carson Palmer.  I say the Cardinals will not win because of Carson Palmer.  But guess what? The Cardinals are 6-4 and in playoff contention.  I told anyone that would listen the Patriots should have drafted the Honey Badger.  Apparently only Arizona reads this blog.  Andrew Luck has not been the same since Reggie Wayne went down for the season.  He wants TY Hilton to be his new binkie but can’t quite pull the trigger. I will take the Cardinals at home.

Matt: Colts 8

I’m not necessarily sure what Scottie is thinking here.  Yes, the Cardinals have been a bit of a surprise this season.  Nobody expected them to be 6-4 at this point in the season.  However, the Cardinals aren’t really contenders, whereas the Colts look like serious contenders in the AFC.  The Cardinals have an awesome run defense, so I expect another terrible week for Trent Richardson, but with the 20th ranked pass defense in the league, I expect Andrew Luck to have his way against Arizona’s secondary.

Cowboys @ Giants

Scottie: Giants 3

The Giants are just going to keep rolling.  After an 0-6 start, the G-Men have won 4 in a row and are knocking on the door of playoff contention.  We have seen Tom Coughlin do this before.  There is no reason to say he won’t do it again.  It has become his modus operandi. Lose five or six games early, get hot late in the season, win the Super Bowl.  It’s the Giants way.

Matt: Cowboys 2

I think that the Cowboys pull this one out.  Yes, they got blasted in New Orleans last week, but the Cowboys have a knack of being that type of team.  They get smoked one week and show up the next.  That is the Cowboy way.  The Giants have won 4 straight, but I can’t say that I’m overly impressed with wins against Minnesota, Philadelphia, Oakland, and Green Bay (minus Aaron Rodgers).  This one will be a shootout, and I think the Cowboys ride DeMarco Murray to a victory.

Broncos @ Patriots

Scottie: Patriots 9

Game time temperature= 17 degrees.  Peyton Manning is the Ryan Leaf of cold weather quarterbacks.  Paramedics will need to be on hand to provide CPR for Peyton as he will undoubtedly choke in grand fashion.  The Patriots are still fuming about last week’s loss vs. the Panthers.  The offense looked good against a tough Carolina defense.  They ran the ball well.  I think the Patriots will get back to their early 2000 ways run the ball, manage the clock, and let Peyton be Peyton in freezing temperatures.  Best of all, I will be on hand in the 326 section to witness all of this transpire.

Matt: Broncos 5

I have not been this disappointed in my entire life.  Scottie calls me up last week, offers me tickets to the one regular season game that I would absolutely love to attend.  Luckily for me, I have an exam on Monday morning at 8am, and getting back into Boston at 3am following a Pats game just isn’t good form leading up to an exam.  Sorry Scottie, but I appreciate the offer.  I know that the game won’t be the same without me being there, but try and persevere.  Anyways, the Pats got screwed last week.  Temps are gonna be cold.  Can the Patriots secondary cover anyone?  Debatable.  How are we going to manage to cover Julius Thomas without Mayo?  We aren’t.  What does this mean?  Broncos victory.

49ers @ Redskins

Scottie: 49ers 1

The 49ers suddenly find themselves in jeopardy of not making the playoffs.  Maybe if Kaepernick wasn’t busy doing McDonald’s commercials and every other endorsement under the sun in the off-season, he wouldn’t be in this position.  He went from being an athletic freak of a quarterback to Pat White in one season.  The Redskins will be without Leonard Hankerson for the rest of the season taking away an RG3 option.  Shanahan should be fired down in DC because he is single handedly blowing the Redskins season.  His awful play calling will allow the 49ers to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Matt: 49ers 10

I’m not really sure what Scottie is so worried about in this one.  Only 1 confidence point on the 49ers?  Yes Scottie, the Niners haven’t been the same team this year that they were a year ago, but have you seen the Redskins play?  Shanahan’s play calling isn’t awesome, but RG3 looks like a shell of himself.  Alfred Morris is a stud, but then they go and put Roy Helu in on third downs.  Nick Young (or whoever the damn fullback is) gets short yardage runs?  Alfred Morris ran for 1600 yards last season!  Give him the bleeping ball!  Anyways, even a sputtering 49ers team takes out the Redskins.  Plus, Kaepernick loves the spotlight.

Patriots First Round NFL Draft Options

UPDATE

* After trading down to 52, six players from original first round predictions are still available: FS Jonathan Cyprien, WR Justin Hunter, DL, Jesse Williams, WR Robert Woods, WR Terrence Williams & CB Jamar Taylor. *

*Patriots have 19 selections before they are on the clock, but could use extra picks from Vikings to move up and take a player early in the second round *

In about three hours the New England Patriots will be on the clock. Even though head coach Bill Belichick and the war room actually traded up last year, drafting defensive impact players Chandler Jones and Dont’a Hightower, there is a sense of a return to normalcy this season as the Pats will likely be up to their old tricks, trading down to accrue more selections, especially this season as their normal glut of selections is quite bare by Patriots standards.

However, lets surmise that New England actually stays put at No. 29. They will have several players to choose as the board is currently laid out and a player or two that could slide to the Pats and force them to pull the trigger on a player as opposed to a deal that would get them a future first or second round pick or extra second or third (and don’t count out another late round sixth or seventh for good measure).

It’s obvious that the Patriots have a need at wide receiver but adding depth at the cornerback, defensive line, linebacker, safety and offensive live spots is also prevalent.

If New England stays put (which we all know is highly unlikely) here is a list of players that could be joining the Patriots in just over 200 minutes.

WR – Cordarelle Patterson – Tennessee

• The perfect match of need and talent late in the first round. If he’s there, Patriots will definitely have to look at it, but there have been questions about his ability to grasp a complex playbook after a low wonderlic score.

CB – Xavier Rhodes – Florida State

• Rhodes would need a big slide to reach the Pats, but New England would definitely pull the trigger if he was still there.

DL – Datone Jones – UCLA

• A big body that fills a need in depth on the line.

CB – Desmond Trufant – Washington

• The likely pick at corner should the Patriots stand pat and choose to go with secondary selection.

FS – Jonathan Cyprien – FIU

• Another player that is not expected to be available at 29, but an immediate impact player in the secondary.

WR – Justin Huner – Tennesse

• The player opposite Cordarelle Patterson, but a good player in his own right and the possible pick if the Patriots decide they need a wide receiver.

FS – Matt Elam – Florida

• There have been plenty of knocks on Elam through the draft process, which means he’ll be available, but likely still there in the early second round as well.

DT – Jesse Williams – Alabama

• An imposing force on the front line that would be an intriguing combo with Vince Wilfork. Could be the pick for the Pats.

WR – Robert Woods – USC

• After the departures of Welker & Lloyd, the Patriots have been linked to just about every available wide receiver.

WR – Terrance Williams – Baylor

• See! Williams took a back seat to Josh Gordon last year and lost Griffin this season but is still a solid player.

CB – Jamar Taylor – Boise State

• Again, may be gone by 29 just like Rhodes & Cyprien, but would be a welcome addition to the secondary corps.

CB – DJ Hayden – Houston

• I just said Taylor would be gone, and there is no chance Hayden is still there when the Pats pick… but hey, crazier things have happened.

WR – DeAndre Hopkins – Clemson

• St. Louis was linked to Hopkins in the early going after losing Amendola, but buzz has cooled as of late. Could slip to Pats.

DE – Bjoern Werner – Patriots

• The thought of this guy and Ninkovich on the ends with Chandler Jones running people down from all angles is scary. Might not be a bad idea for the Patriots to look at.