Week 12 Picks

Carolina looks to continue its winning ways as 

it has opened the 10-0 and won its past 13 regular season games

(via huffingtonpost.com)

Philadelphia @ Detroit (-3) - The Lions are currently on a two game winning streak and expect to have a healthy Calvin Johnson.  The Eagles will start Mark Sanchez who has thrown twice as many interceptions as touchdowns (4 to 2) this season.

Carolina (+1) @ Dallas- The Panthers are vulnerable for a loss given that the Cowboys have Tony back  Romo.  Still, the Panthers appeared to be clicking on all cylinders last week in a blowout win against Washington and Romo was far far from perfect as he threw two interceptions last week against the Dolphins.  

Chicago @ Green Bay (-8.5)-  Green Bay appears to be back on track after a blowout win against the Vikings and look to maintain its division lead by taking care of business against the Bears, who got blown out by the Packers at home earlier this season.

New Orleans @ Houston (-3) - The Texans have won 3 of their past 4 games.  While New Orleans is coming off a bye, their defense is ranked last in the league and fired their defensive coordinator Rob Ryan.  

Minnesota @ Atlanta (-1) - Atlanta has lost its past 3 straight games and 4 of its last 5 games.  The Vikings 5 game winning streak just ended against the Green Bay Packers.  Matt Ryan is the superior quarterback to Terry Bridgewater who could struggle on the road against Atlanta's crowd noise.

Tampa Bay @ Indianapolis (-3 ) - Tampa Bay played great against Philadelphia and comes off their 2nd straight win.  They became the first road team in NFL history to throw for five touchdowns and run for 200 yards in the same game according to bucaneers.com.  Andrew Luck is uncertain about his return date, although Matt Hasselbeck is 3-0 as the teams starting quarterback.

St. Louis @ Cincinnati (-8.5) - Rams' wide receiver Stedman Bailey was shot in the head in the Miami area this past weekend.  

#Rams WR Stedman Bailey is out of surgery after several hours of extensive work. He'll be in the ICU for 3-5 days and doctors are hopeful.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 25, 2015

The Bengals appear to be playing much better football and generally have a habit of exploting poor quarterback play. Things could get even shakier for the Rams as they ignored the concussion suffered by quarterback Case Keenum.

NY Giants @ Washington (+2.5) - Look for this game to be a high scoring affair which is a toss up.  Washington is 4-1 at home while the Giants are 2-3 on the road.  The Giants ended up losing another game in tragic fashion to the Patriots.  Washington will need to establish its running game, limit mental mistakes such as interceptions and penalties to come out with a win in this one.  

Oakland (-2) @ Tennessee - Both teams come into this game with losing streaks, the Raiders have lost their past three while the Titans have lost their past two and and 8 of their past 9.  All of the Raiders wins have come against below .500 teams like the Titans.  It will be key for Amari Cooper to limit dropped passes which caused him to be upset in a loss against the Lions. 

Buffalo @ Kansas City (-6.5) - Kansas City has won its past 4 games as it defense has held its opponents to 13 points or less in its past 4 games.  Tyrod Taylor's injured his shoulder in a loss to the Patriots which could limit his productivity.

Miami @ New York Jets (-3.5) - Ryan Tannehill and the Dolphins offense did not look great against Dallas last week.  While Tannehill's ball placement is pretty good, he has struggled with pocket awareness and staring down his receivers.  The Jets in the meantime look to end their 2 game losing streak against the Dolphins, who they beat by double digits on the road earlier this season.  

San Diego (+4) @ Jacksonville - While the Chargers have lost its past 6 games, the Chargers lost 5 of the six game by a single score. The Jaguars have won 3 of their past 4 games.  Look for the Chargers to come out motivated after getting manhandled by the Chiefs.

Arizona (-10.5) @ San Francisco - Tickets for the 49ers are currently selling less than parking passes.  Look for the Cardinals to exploit San Francisco's weak quarterback play as Colin Kaepernick is out for the season.

Pittsburgh @ Seattle (-4) - While Marshawn Lynch had sports hernia surgery, Thomas Rawls  has filled in as an adequate replacement as he carried the ball for 30 times for 209 yards against the 49ers last week.  The Steelers come into the game winning their past 2 games but could struggle because of Seattle's 12th man.

New England @ Denver (+3) - Brock Osweiler makes his second consecutive start and appears to be an upgrade over Peyton Manning.  The Patriots are having trouble fielding a decent receiving corp due to injuries to Edelman and Amendola and could struggle to create offense on the road against the Bronco's defense.

Baltimore @ Cleveland (-3) - Josh McCown and the Browns managed to beat the Ravens earlier this season on the road and now the Ravens will be without Joe Flacco for the remainder of the season.

Last week: 10-3-1
Total: 80-57-6

Week 11 Picks

The Jaguars and Texans game may be the  least exciting game this season Tennessee @ Jacksonville (-3) - Jacksonville has won 2 of its past 3 games.  Tennessee has won 2 of its past 9 games.  Jacksonville also has homefield which could be a significant factor with short rest on a Thursday night game.   Washington @ Carolina (-7) - Kirk Cousins won NFC offensive player of the week for the 2nd time this season.  If Washington somehow comes away with a win this week, they could seriously entertain the idea of making it the playoffs.  Still, Carolina is undefeated and their defense should do a lot more to contain Washington than the Saints did last week. Oakland (-1.5) @ Detroit -  Detroit did look impressive at times against the Packers in their first win Lambeau since 1991.  Still, the Raiders could bounce back against the Lions after losing last week to the Vikings.  Dallas @ Miami - Tony Romo makes his return and even a rusty Romo is a significant upgrade for what Dallas has been throwing out there at quarterback.   Dallas proceeded to six games and celebrated by getting Romo back to the lineup by cutting Brandon Weeden.   Indianapolis (+6) @ Atlanta - The Colts may be without Andrew Luck, but Hasselbeck has been an adequate replacement as he is 2-0 as a starter this season.  The Falcons did have a bye to rethink its overall strategy after losing 3 of its past 4 games.   St. Louis @ Baltimore - While it remains questionable what St. Louis offense will look like as they go to QB Case McNeenum over Nick Foles, the Ravens have bigger questions on they are playing for this season after losing last week to the Jacksoville Jaguars.   New York Jets @ Houston Texans (+2.5) - Houston has been playing well, winning 3 of its past 4 games and looks to perhaps shore up a run for a playoff spot in a weak AFC South.   Green Bay @ Minnesota (+1) - Its time to take the Vikings seriously who have won its past 5 games.  The Packers are struggling with consecutive losses to the Broncos, Panthers, and Lions.   Tampa Bay (+5.5)  @ Philadelphia - Mark Sanchez playing in place of Sam Bradford appears to be a downgrade for the Eagles.  The Buccaneers  will attempt to win consecutive games for the first time this season.    Denver (+1) @ Chicago - This feels like a game where Broncos right the ship again.  Although if they do not, Peyton Manning could hear more noise about him getting benched since he has the worst quarterback rating among active starters.   Cincinnati (+5) @ Arizona- While the Bengals struggled immensely against the Texans, they could respond with a better effort and are still playing for a top seed in the AFC.   San Francisco @ Seattle (-12.5) - Seattle looks to take out revenge of its frustration on the 49ers after last weeks loss against the Cardinals. Kansas City (-3) @ San Diego - The Chiefs have bounced back with 3 consecutive wins.  The Chargers are coming off a bye but have lost their last 5 games.  Buffalo (+7) @ New England- New England could have a hard time replacing Edelman in the short term which could make this a relatively close game.  Tyrod Taylor struggled in his last meeting against the Patriots but has played much better lately.  
Last week: 6-7 Total: 70-54-5

Week 10 Picks

 Rex Ryan looks to get revenge against his former team

(via CBSSports)

Buffalo (+2) @ New York Jets - LeSean McCoy had injury to his shoulder but is able to play in this game.  Tyrod Taylor looks like the better of the two quarterbacks.  Geno Smith plays against Ik Enemkpali who is an honorary team captain.

Detroit @ Green Bay (-11.5) - Green Bay has lost two games in a row but look to get on track against the Lions.  This is the first time in three weeks that the Packers will not be playing an undefeated team.

Dallas @ Tampa Bay (-1.5) - Tony Romo still is not back and the Bucaneers look to get back on track after a double digit loss to the Giants.

Carolina (-5.5) @ Tennessee - Carolina just rolled past the Packers.   If it was hard for Aaron Rodgers to get it going against the Panther's defense, the same could be true for Marcus Mariotta.

New Orleans @ Washington (+1) - These are two evenly matched teams.  I will take Washington at home with the points although it could get ugly for Jay Gruden and Washington if they manage to lose this one.  

Miami +6 @ Philadelphia - Perhaps coach Campbell can get back to running the ball against the Eagles.  Sam Bradford was impressive against Dallas but has more or less been inconsistent this season.

Cleveland @ Pittsburgh (-5.5) - In what is likely to be the battle of backup quarterbacks, Landry Jones has the statistical advantage over Johnny Manziel, a superior supporting cast, and is also playing at home.

Jacksonville @ Baltimore (-5.5) - Jacksonville has played well the past couple of weeks.  Still, I expect Baltimore to be amped up for this one as they come off a bye.  

Minnesota @ Oakland (-3) - This is a battle of surprise teams.   Minnesota has looked really good but struggled against West Coast opponents like the 49ers and Terry Bridgewater is out.  I expect Oakland to rebound after a close loss to the Steelers.

Kansas City @ Denver (-6) - Peyton Manning was unable to pull it out against the Indianapolis Colts.  The Chiefs appear to be cursed against the Broncos and have not beaten Manning since he joined the Broncos.  

New England (-7) @ NY Giants - While Eli Manning has played especially well against the Patriots, including two Super wins, the Patriots offense could get going against a Giants defense that has struggled to create a pass rush .

Arizona @ Seattle (-3) - Look for Seattle to win a close one against the Cardinals as it is always hard for the road team to get it going in Seattle's especially loud stadium.  Both teams are coming off byes.  

Houston @ Cincinnati (10.5) - Cincinnati is still undefeated and is looking to prove a point as being one of the top teams in the NFL.  While Houston is coming off a bye and a win against the Titans, the Bengals should have more than enough rest coming off a Thursday night game.

Last week: 5-8

Total:  64-47-5

Week 9 Sunday Picks

Cam Newton and the Panthers 

look to remain undefeated against Green Bay 

(via ESPN)

Oakland @ Pittsburgh (-4.5) - The Raiders are streaking but look for Roethlisberger to shake off the rust in his second start back from injury.

Jacksonville @ New York Jets (-7.5) LOCK - The New York Jets look to put the clamps on the Jaguars after losing two straight to the Patriots and the Raiders. 

St. Louis (+2) @ Minnesota - This will be the battle of the best running backs in the league including rookie Todd Gurley and Adrian Peterson.  The Rams defense is more imposing and perhaps Nick Foles can play well on the road with a good running game behind him.

Miami @ Buffalo (-3) - Miami has been playing better lately but last time they played Buffalo, they were lost 41-17. 

Tennesee @ New Orleans (-8) - Tennessee looks to get a boost from firing its head coach but New Orleans plays better at home.

Washington (+14) @ New England - New England is a favorite playing at home and getting extra rest off of a Thursday night game.  Still, Washington is coming off a bye and Kirk Cousins may put together back to back solid games.

Green Bay @ Carolina (+2.5) - While Aaron Rodgers could have a bounce back game after a disappointing performance, the Packers have struggled against the run and Carolina's defense could do enough to remain unbeaten.

Atlanta (-7) @ San Francisco - San Francisco now turns to Blaine Gabbert who has been terrible in Jacksonville.  Atlanta looks to make up for last weeks loss against the Buccaneers.

New York Giants (2.5) @ Tampa Bay - After losing last week, the Giants look to avoid consecutive losses to hold on to their division lead.  

Denver (-5) @ Indianapolis - Denver looks to put the clamps down on Andrew Luck after holding the Packers to less than 200 yards of offense.  

Philadelphia (-3) @ Dallas - Dallas will remain underdogs as long as Tony Romo is sidelined.

Chicago (+4) @ San Diego - While both teams have two wins, Chicago has been the slightly better team with Jay Cutler under center.  

Last week: 6-5-2

Season: 59-39-5

Week 9 Thursday Night Pick

Johnny Manziel was pulled over by police after

arguing with his girlfriend and was drinking.

And he's starting this Thursday

(via Rantsports)

Cleveland (+12) @ Cincinnati - The Bengals are undefeated and Johnny Manziel failed to lead the Browns to any points last time these two teams met.  Still, Cleveland looks like a better team than last year's team and it could be close given that they are division foes.

2012 QBs Struggling and Week 8 Picks

Ryan Tannehill currently has the

best winning percentage in 2015

out of all the QBs from the 2012 draft

The 2012 draft class featured four quarterbacks being drafted in the first round including Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin, Ryan Tannehill, and Brandon Weeden.  Russell Wilson and Kirk Cousins were also drafted later in the draft  

However, 2015 has not been kind to these quarterbacks.  Only Ryan Tannehill has a .500 record and even his season was off to rocky start given that his head coach was fired and was criticized for making fun of practice squad players who intercepted his passed in practice

Andrew Luck is currently 1-4 and has also suffered a shoulder injury earlier in the season.  Even his backup quarterback Matt Hasselbeck is 2-0 in place of Luck.  Robert Griffin lost his starting job in training camp, who lost 12 of his 13 games even before getting benched.  

Brandon Weeden took the starting job of Tony Romo after he was injured.  Weeden only to get benched in favor of Matt Cassell after going 0-3.  Russell Wilson is 3-5 and has failed to capitalize on the acquisition Jimmy Graham from the New Orleans Saints.  

Kirk Cousins did win offensive player of the week, after bringing Washington back from a 24-0 deficit and is currently selling -shirts based on his comments after the game.  Deion Sanders joked that Kirk Cousins may have been directing those statements to RG3.  Still, Cousins only holds a 3-4 record as a starting quarterback this season.  

YOU LIKE THAT! Get your official tee supporting International Justice Mission at https://t.co/sCSLssw9Hs @Redskins pic.twitter.com/n3JIrLMZqx

— Kirk Cousins (@KirkCousins8) October 27, 2015

WEEK 8 PICKS

Miami @ New England (-8) - Miami has been playing well but the Patriots are still playing at a high level and could devise a game plan that could stifle Tannehill.

Detroit @ Kansas City (-5) - The Lions are struggling while the Chiefs are coming into their own after a win against the Steelers as Chandrick West appears to have filled the void left by Jamal Charles.

Minnesota @ Chicago (-1) - The Bears are coming off a bye and Jay Cutler looks to get back to .500 as a starting quarterback.

Tampa Bay (+7) @ Atlanta - Tampa Bay will look to redeem themseleves after a 24 point collapse against Washington.  Atlanta has not been putting their opponents away convincingly as of late. 

NY Giants @ New Orleans (-3) - The Giants defense has been below average.  Brees will have time to dissect the defense given that New York has not done much to pressure oppossing quarterbacks. 

Pittsburgh @ Cincinnati (-1) - The Bengals remain undefeated and have had time to prepare coming off a bye.  Big Ben could make his return but could have some rust after a 6 week layoff.

San Diego @ Baltimore (-3) - Both teams are struggling.  The Ravens being the home team has to count for something.  

San Francisco @ St. Louis (-8) - The Rams look to continue their undefeated record against division foes.  Colin Kaepernick has struggled in the past against this Rams' defense.

Houston (-4) @ Tennessee - Houston looks to get its act together after a humiliting loss against the Dolphins.  

Oakland @ NY Jets (-2.5) -   The Jets could stifle the passing attack of the Raiders.  

Seattle (-6) @ Dallas - Dallas could get Dez Bryant back and its rushing attack was pretty good last week with Darren McFadden spelling Joeseph Randle who went down.  Still, Seattle's secondary could capitalize on Cassel's lack of arm strength.  

Denver Broncos @ Green Bay Packers (-3)-  This is the 4th time in the NFL history that 2 6-0 teams have met.  Denver's defense has been great although the Packers defense could take advantage of Manning's lack of arm strength.  

Indianapolis @ Carolina (-7) - This is a battle of #1 picks of respective drafts.  Cam Newton is 6-0 while Luck is 1-4 .

Why Back to the Future was Wrong about the Cubs and Week 5 Picks

Why people should not have bet

their life savings that the Cubs were going to win

In the movie Back to the Future 2,  which was made in 1989, Marty McFly visited on October 21, 2015 at 4:29 PM (Pacific Time Zone).  Marty noticed that the Chicago Cubs won the World Series.  People believe in this Hollywood prediction so much that Vegas actually made the Cubs the favorites, despite the fact that the Cubs are supposedly cursed and have not won a World Series since 1908.

To the disappointment of Cubs fans everywhere, the Cubs season ended on October 21st, which may be the most Cubbiest thing ever, continuing the trend as perhaps the most tragic franchise ever.   Of course, there were signs that the movie's predictions were a bit faulty.  In the movie, the Cubs beat the Miami Marlins in the World Series.  While the movie somehow predicted that the Miami Marlins would exist, even though they did not exist in 1989, it was still an impossibility that these two teams would play in the World Series given that they are both in the National League.   Back to the Future predicted that the World Series ended on October 21st.  However, since there are six more playoff teams, the World Series will end at the earliest on October 31st, and most likely will end sometime in early November.  And of course, there are  no flying cars, no film production of Jaws 19 (although there have been a few Sharknados), no mini pizzas that can be hydrated to large pizzas, and people do not have a fax machine in every room of their house.  

A Jaws movies marathon of 18 Jaws movies would

last about 48 hours

Still, Back to the Future did acknowledge that the world was never bound to these future events.  Marty and Doc Brown end up changing the world a few times by traveling back to 1955 and 1885. And in the final scene of Back to the Future 3, Doc Brown explains

It means your future hasn't been written yet.  No one's has. Your future is whatever you make it.  

And of course, the Back to the Future trilogy are just movies.  There is no Hill Valley where the clock tower got struck by lighting in 1955.  So despite all the people who believed that the Cubs were going to win because of the movie, it was never guaranteed.  

NFL Picks

Seattle @ San Francisco (+6.5) - Seattle may be better than its 2-4 record, but this is a rivalry game that could be close especially with the 49ers playing better in recent weeks.  

Buffalo @ Jacksonville (+4) - Buffalo will be without its starting quarterbacks, its top two wide receivers, and its backup running back.  Jacksonville looks to get on track in London.

Cleveland @ St. Louis (-6) - Cleveland's offense has been playing relatively well, although they came up short against the Denver Broncos.  St. Louis looks to regain momentum at home coming off a bye as the Rams look to get their first win outside of their division.  

Pittsburgh (-2.5) @ Kansas City - Pittsburgh may have found an adequate quarterback in Landry Jones in case Big Ben is unable to make a return this week.  Kansas City needs to find ways to create offense without Jamal Charles.  While Kelce is an excellent pass catching tight end, the Chiefs still need to expand their passing game with Alex Smith, who lacks arm strength.

Houston @ Miami (-4)- Both teams are coming off wins.  The Dolphins looked more impressive in their win against the Titans where they showed the ability to run the ball and had more physicality.

New York Jets @ New England (-9) - Even though New England continue to be unbeaten, they had an off game for themselves.  Still, New England will look to take advantage of Ryan Fitzpatrick, who has been turnover prone.  

Minnesota @ Detroit (+2.5) - Two evenly matched teams.  The Stafford/Calvin Johnson connection appears to be alive and well.  

Atlanta (-5) @ Tennessee -  Look for Atlanta to rebound after a tough loss to the New Orleans Saints.  

Tampa Bay @ Washington (-3.5) - Tampa Bay seems to have a great number of offensive weapons that could give Washington trouble.   Mike Evans is a big receiver that Washington has had trouble defending, although he has struggled for most of the season.  Doug Martin could exploit Washington's run defense which has gotten lit up in the past two weeks weeks by Devonta Freeman of the Falcons and Chris Ivory of the New York Jets.  And Tampa Bay is also coming off a bye which should prepare them.

Still, Winston is a rookie quarterback that is a wild card and could be due for a bad game against Washington's defense, which forced 3 turnovers last week.  Washington is also a significantly better team if their health improves as Trent Wiliams, Jordan Reed, and Matt Jones practice and look to make their returns.  

New Orleans @ Indianapolis (-4.5) - While the Saints looked excellent against the Falcons, it remains to be seen if they can carry that momentum on the road.  Despite a horrendous special teams play, the Colts dLid manage to keep the game close

Oakland (+4) @ San Diego - The Chargers and Raiders are two evenly matched teams.  The Raiders could rebound for a win coming off a bye.  

Dallas Cowboys @ New York Giants (-3.5) - The Giants have been exposed as not having a pass rush which have lead for closer games than anticipated.  Still, Dallas questions at the quarterback continue as they insert Matt Cassel into the lineup and it remains uncertain if Dez Bryant can make his return.   One wold think that the Giants would have the extra motivation to make up for not only last week's blowout against the Philadelphia Eagles but also a 4th quarter collapse in week 1 of the NFL season to the Dallas Cowboys.  

Philadelphia @ Carolina (-3)- Philadelphia win against the Giants was impressive but the Panthers present a tough challenge as one of the four remaining undefeated teams.  Carolina's defense is one of the league's best and Cam Newton presents problems as a mobile quarterback who also create downfield.

Baltimore @ Arizona (-7.5) -   Arizona looked terrible against the Steelers.  However, the Cardinals should be properly motivated to win in a primetime game.  The Ravens defense has been exploited by practically every team this season.  It will probably take an excellent performance by Joe Flacco to keep this one close.  

Last week: 5-8-1

Season: 51-35-4