Poker, Football, and everything sports

Before last week, I thought that this was getting too easy. In the past, I would have gladly taken an 11-5 record on picks in one week, because the NFL is that diverse. But not this year, where I'm expecting a 12-4 record if not better. Last week was a big reality check, though still a successful week by most standards at 10-6. Especially since I'm not counting the spread, I feel like I should be getting 12-13 every week. Here's hoping I can right the ship. My record since I started is now at 54-19. Going for 13-3 this week!

1. New York Jets at Buffalo- This game looks alot less unsure after the Bills handled a good Dolphins team last week. Fred Jackson is emerging in Buffalo, and TO has finally woken up. But the Jets are the better team here. I'm going with the Jets in what will be a tight one 21-17.

2. Philadelphia at Atlanta- What has happened to the Falcons? They were looking like locks for the playoffs going into their Monday night game against the Saints a month ago. But since that loss, they have lost to the Panthers and barely beat the Bucs last week. Philly needs this win to stay tough in the NFC east, and they will get it on the road in probably less then convincing fashion. 24-21.

3. St Louis at Chicago- Two teams that aren't very good matching up here. The Rams are fighting for only one thing now and that is the #1 pick. The Bears take this one in a non shoot out 17-10.

4. Detroit at Cincy- When I post my Fantasy Matchups later today, you will realize how big a game this is for me. The Bengals are far superior here, and they need to show they can beat the lesser teams of the league(cough Raiders cough). Here's hoping they run it up against a Lions teams that allowed 37 points to the Browns!!! Bengal trounce the Lions 44-21.

5. Tennessee at Indianapolis- What looked like it would be a cakewalk 5 weeks ago is now looking like a huge matchup. The Titans have little room to falter if they want to make the playoffs, and while they are on fire, the Colts are on a different level. Colts win this one 31-23.

6. Denver at Kansas City- I really want to pull the trigger on an upset here. The Broncos beat a Giants team that isn't very good last week to show they are once again for real. Except that they aren't. And the Chiefs are showing promise on the Offensive side with Chambers, but still have no D. Denver wins a surprisingly close one here 24-20.

7. New England at Miami- Two teams that got embarrassed last week. But at least the Pats were embarrassed by the League's best team. The Pats will start their surge for the playoffs with a win here 28-17.

8. Oakland at Pittsburgh- Dennis Dixon played very well in his season debut, though he will have to work on his zone reads to be a good QB in the NFL. He looked lost in the last couple drives when the Ravens threw zone at him. Regardless of who is QB, the Steelers should take this one. They win 27-10.

9. New Orleans at Washington- A complete mismatch here. The Saints have shown that they can struggle against the lesser teams this year(Rams, Panthers). But they shouldn't here. Brees gets some rest in the 4th qtr as the Saints win big 37-13.

10. Tampa Bay at Carolina- My first "upset pick". There's not many teams that can beat the Panthers and have it be considered an upset, but the Bucs are it. I am loving Josh Freeman at QB. This looks like a different team. A win over the Packers, a near win over the Falcons. And its hard to believe that Delhomme's backup can lay any worse then Delhomme has shown this year, but he just mite. Bucs win this one on the road 21-13.

11. Houston at Jacksonville- The Texans had me looking like Nostradamus for a quarter and a half last week when they were up 17-0. But then Peyton showed up, and the rest is Colts history. But the Texans are very solid, and the Jags looked awful last week against San Fran. Texans win in what yahoo has as an upset but I don't 31-21.

12. San Diego at Cleveland- This one will be over at halftime. The Chargers will put up 28+ in the first half and rest their guys. The Browns are no where near san Diego's league. Chargers win this one 38-10.

13. Dallas at New York Giants- This could be the game of the week, or it could be an absolute snoozer. Thats how good and bad both teams have looked this year. Something is up in New York they aren't clicking or something so I'm going with the Cowboys on the road here. They win either 13-10 or 31-30 lol.

14. San Francisco at Seattle- Both teams coming off wins, but the 49ers win was much more impressive. Both offenses will do well here, so this one comes down to the defenses. And the 49ers D is better then the Seahawks D. Niners take it 28-24.

15. Minnesota at Arizona- This game might lose a bit of its luster if Leinart starts. Sorry Trojan fans he will have his time but Warner gives the Cards the best chance to win. Not sure how yahoo pick em has the Vikes as an underdog here, but I think they take this one because the Vikes D can contain the Cards O, but the Cards D(or hardly anyone for that matter) can contain the Vikes O. Vikes win again 34-23.

16. Baltimore at Green Bay- Going with another "upset" here and picking the Ravens. The Ravens got a tough win against Pittsburgh last week, and while Aaron Rodgers is a machine, I think he will make a couple costly mistakes against this defense. The Ravens win what could be a surprising thriller 27-24.

Think I can reach my 13-3 mark? It will be tough alot of potential coin flips out there. Leave comments if you agree or disagree! Thanks for reading.