Week 16 Pick 'em

Week 16 picks. On time! I must be crazy, I only have TWO home teams winning next weekend. When's the last time that happened?
Indianapolis at Jacksonville - Last week I said Jacksonville wouldn’t win another game this season. This time I mean it. The Jags are too divided in the locker room to stop the Indy train.
Baltimore at Dallas - The uphill battle for Dallas continues. This one may end in heartbreak.
Cincinnati at Cleveland - Yuck, who cares?
New Orleans at Detroit - Seriously, I’m getting really excited about a total defeat season for the Lions. After that, I’ll feel sorry and root for them a little.
Miami at Kansas City - How ‘bout that effort from KC? I see this team improving immensely over the off-season. This won’t be their week either, as Miami has playoff dreams and the Chiefs don’t.
Arizona at New England – After a routing from a Minnesota team that should have been hindered offensively, it’s hard to have faith in the upstart Cardinals. However, looking at the points allowed by New England yesterday at Oakland, I could see this offensive juggernaut just outdoing the former/still kinda offensive juggernaut. Call it the Sexy Pick.
San Francisco at St. Louis- San Francisco + Shaun Hill = Wins, baby. Someone should kick Mike Martz for the bad QB call.
Pittsburgh at Tennessee – THIS is the game of the week, folks. It’s essentially a battle for Home field advantage (this site’s namesake!). It’s about time for Tennessee to meet a real defense.
San Diego at Tampa Bay – San Diego had a big win to stay alive (barely) yesterday, but can they go in and win at the hampered halls of Tampa? My guess is no.
Buffalo at Denver – Which Denver will show up next week? They’re at risk of losing a playoff spot that seemed guaranteed a couple of weeks ago, so they better start the winners.
Houston at Oakland – Sadly, it was impressive that Oakland scored 26 points yesterday. I believe that’s a season high. Houston’s win over Tennessee was much more impressive, however.
New York Jets at Seattle – A good effort from the Jets will keep the AFC North log-jammed.
Atlanta at Minnesota – Minnesota seems like they’re on a roll into the playoffs. Could Atlanta’s young, tough defense hold AP back?
Philadelphia at Washington – Philly’s on a hot streak. Washington is burying themselves in drama. I reserve the right to change my mind following MNF. I got a feeling.
Carolina at New York Giants – Maybe this is the game of the week. It’s also essentially for home field, and the NFC has been much more exciting this season. Of course, the Giants have also sucked lately.
Green Bay at Chicago – Green Bay crumbled. I blame the injuries.

NFL Prospects 2009: Taylor Mays

The nomination for The Home Field All-American Free Safety goes unanimously (getting 1 of 1 votes) to USC's Taylor Mays. This guy is loaded with talent, and has one quick set of legs, making him prime NFL Draft material. The only question left is.. Will he make the jump to the pro in his senior season? Click through to find out!

Actually, no one has the answer to that question yet. Mays has insisted that the decision will come at the advice of his father and Pete Carroll, head coach at USC. It certainly wouldn't be a bad year to enter, considering the light load of talent at the position. Is there a glut of talent at ANY position this year? Things look a bit bleak. Regardless, Taylor Mays looks to be a surefire first-rounder, despite a lack of safeties being taken so early last year. While the draft order is anything but set, it's worth discussing where a potential star like Taylor Mays will end up. Obviously, the Detroit Lions could use a boost at safety, but then again they seem to need one of everything on defense. My guess is they draft the best-available, very likely out of the entire class, on defense. A lot of people see them taking a quarterback with the first pick, but that's a story for a different post. Another obvious choice for Mays would be with the Patriots who, like it or not, need to replace Rodney Harrison with someone competent. Other teams that need help at safety include Denver, Seattle, Houston, and Oakland (again, they need a LOT of things). Of course, any team would benefit from a free safety like Taylor Mays, as his speed and tackling skills make him an upgrade to a great deal of players currently holding the position. Just wait until you see his 40-time at the Combine. A lot of scouts will look his way.

Week 15/Mama, I'm Comin' Home

I can't apologize enough for the lack of updates lately, but as of next week posts should return to their daily, or almost daily, frequency. This isn't like those other times I said that, either. Anyways, some Week 15 predictions after the jump.

New Orleans at Chicago - A good defense will overcome a great offense tonight.

Tampa Bay at Atlanta - Tampa should keep things interesting in the South.

Washington at Cincinnati - Cincinnati should start shopping the draft class now. Seems to me they need a play maker at RB, but they're probably going to need some wide-outs, and a defense as well.

Tennessee at Houston - Sexy pick of the week. Houston is playing well lately and deserves a big win this weekend. Not that it would do much good in the short term, but it could be a morale boost for '09.

Green Bay at Jacksonville - Jacksonville isn't all that likely to win another game this season. They already played Detroit, after all.

San Francisco at Miami - San Francisco pulled a big one over the Jets. Can Miami do better? My fantasy football team is hoping for a return to the Wildcat formation with Ronnie Brown under center.

Seattle at St. Louis - Seattle is starting to look like the team it should have been all year. Could this be the end of Hasselbeck? Probably not, but we'll see how it turns out.

Buffalo at New York Jets - Every game is a must-win for the Jets from here on out. Expect this to be a motivating factor.

San Diego at Kansas City - I would not be surprised at all if Kansas City pulled the rug out from under San Diego, but I've already made my Sexy Pick o' the week.

Detroit at Indianapolis - Lock of the week, part 1.

Minnesota at Arizona - Tarvaris Jackson should be back in action, which means a loss in production from the Vikings, and another step closer to playoff action for the cruise-control Cards.

Pittsburgh at Baltimore - This is kind of a half-sexy pick. Pittsburgh has been pretty stale offensively lately, and Baltimore's got a defense to match theirs. Look for low scores and lots of running.

Denver at Carolina - I haven't had the pleasure of watching the Panthers in action this season. That will change this weekend when I see just what this team is made of.

New England at Oakland - Lock of the week, part 2.

New York Giants at Dallas - This is a tough situation for Dallas, where it needs virtually every game to make the playoffs. My money says they don't, and Jerry Jones is going to raise hell.

Cleveland at Philadelphia - This should be an easy win, but then I said that when Cleveland met New York on Monday Night a while back. Don't count out the Mistake by the Lake just yet.

Yippeeee!!

Before today, there were thirty year old fans in Arizona who had NEVER seen their team win a stinkin' division title. Those days are in the rear view now thanks to a smooth Cardinals victory over the Rams. 33 years, to be exact. That's hard to believe.

I plan to use the EXACT template you see above when the Cubs finally win the World Series, except I'll substitute the word Arizona for Chicago. And the number 33 with, like 189.

Miami also came one step closer to impressing the crap out of everyone with a playoff berth after finishing 1-15 a year ago. What's next, a 2010 Super Bowl appearance from a certain 0-13 team? That'll be the day.

Retrospecticus: The Dreadful Detroit Lions

Back in November, before I wrote an article discussing how the Detroit Lions fell so hard over the off-season, I wasn't quite sure which team I was going to dissect. I certainly had my pick of underachievers, namely the Bengals, Seahawks, Rams, Chiefs, and Browns (who were still winless at that point). Boy, did I hit the nail on the head with the Detroit Lions! As their quest for a beaten season rages on, look back at the Home Field classic for some perspective on just what went wrong in Motor City. Besides the auto industry, I mean.

An Early Playoff Forecast

NFL.com has posted a beautiful (if not hard to find) chart displaying the playoff picture as it stands today. There’s some very interesting stuff going on right now, so let’s take a look at some of the highlights.


• Only five out of twelve teams that would make the playoffs today made the playoffs last year. That’s what separates the NFL from other sports: parity.

• An astounding five out of twelve starting quarterbacks to make the playoffs are aged 35 or over. The list includes Kerry Collins, Kurt Warner, Gus Frerotte, Jeff Garcia, and everyone’s favorite football senior Brett Favre. A year ago, only two over the age of 35 made it: Garcia and Favre (Collins was also in as a backup, but saw no playing time).

• Two teams that finished last in their divisions (and were largely expected to be non-factors) have made their case for a playoff berth: the Atlanta Falcons and the Baltimore Ravens. The two big birds also happen to feature rookie quarterbacks who have played exceptionally well. It’s been a while since a rookie quarterback brought his team to the playoffs. It’s been a LONG while since two have.

• A team that finished DEAD LAST in the NFL, the Miami Dolphins, is pursuing a wild-card playoff berth. Now that’s impressive.

• The Denver Broncos are only 7-5 but can clinch a playoff spot this week with a win and a San Diego Chargers loss. Now that’s pathetic.

• Three (of four) teams from the NFC South would make the playoffs today.

• The Arizona Cardinals are going to make the playoffs! Seriously, it’s already wrapped up! Holy cow! I’ll be rooting for this underdog.

Fortunately for many of the hard working teams out there, the playoffs DON'T begin today, and the picture will likely be altered in at least one or two ways. The Dallas Cowboys, for example, have an uphill climb to get the wild-card berth, but there's a lot invested in this team and if anyone can do it, they can. Also in the hunt is the Chicago Bears, the Miami Dolphins, the New England Patriots, and every other team in the NFC East.

Rose Bowl Anyone?

I got an email today asking me to forward this link on to my faithful readers, it's a contest that you can enter every day to get four tickets to the Rose Bowl with airline and hotel included. Not too shabby eh? You may have to submit to a Comcast mailing list (the proprietor of the deal) but those are usually pretty easy to get out of. Go enter, but just once because I want those tickets! Early estimates on the match up include Oklahoma vs. Florida (courtesy of SI). That would work for me.

Take me to the Rose Bowl!

Pick 'Em Week 14 (Fourteen?!)

Alas, the NFL season is drawing to a close once again, leaving fans everywhere feeling as though it has just begun. I suppose that's one more reason for an extended season. On a personal note, I apologize for the picks not being posted in recent weeks, it's been a bit hectic lately, as I explained earlier. Poppa needs a degree.. Click through for Week 14 picks with LOTS of playoff implications. Oh Boy!

Oakland Raiders at San Diego- I wasn’t willing to admit it until just about now, but San Diego is OFFICIALLY out of the hunt after a pathetic rout by the Atlanta Falcons that are surprising everybody. With a 4-8 record, they sit pretty even with the Raiders, which just wasn’t supposed to happen. Sexy pick of the week, obviously.

Jacksonville Jaguars at Chicago Bears- Chicago’s going to try and stay relevant long after Jacksonville gave up on that whole deal.

Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions- I’m actually more excited about the possibility of a completely winless season for one team than I was for a completely undefeated one. It’s been a while since this happened.

Houston Texans at Green Bay Packers- Green Bay has some serious catch-up to do if they’re going to make the playoffs. They’re a talented enough squad to do it, but maybe a little too battered up to play the spoiler role.

Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts- As it stands, the Colts are vying with the Ravens to get that AFC Wildcard spot. This should be an easy one, but I would have also said that about Cleveland.

Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints- Again, nobody saw this Falcons team coming. The Saints took a loss in the last matchup between these two a few weeks ago, though, and I think they’ll come from behind and take a win. Not that it will do much good in a division where every team is at .500 or above.

Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants- I’m actually kneeling down right now praying for a matchup as sweet as the last one between these two. The NFC East rules.

Cleveland Browns at Tennessee Titans- Cleveland could play spoiler to a team with their eyes firmly fixed on the playoffs. What an entertaining Thanksgiving blowout they provided…

Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills- It’s a sad state affairs in Buffalo, where there Bills started 5-0 and has only one win since. Miami will be trying to stay in the hunt here as the Jets get slowed down a bit.

Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos- Even the Chiefs are practically in the playoff hunt in this sorry division.

New York Jets at San Francisco 49ers- New York’s going to be looking for blood after that loss last weekend. They have a couple of teams close on their tails and can’t afford a loss to a team of this caliber.

New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks- Bad season to have this kind of schedule, Seattle.

St. Louis Rams at Arizona Cardinals- Cardinals. All the way. Hey, I’m rooting for them, so you should too.

Dallas Cowboys at Pittsburgh Steelers- Pittsburgh sent a message to the entire AFC last weekend went it routed the Patriots. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, Dallas ain’t in the AFC.

Washington Redskins at Baltimore Ravens- the Ravens are so hot right now.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers- I wanted to know why the Eagles/Giants game hadn’t been moved to primetime until I saw this gem of a matchup. These two teams are tied for first in the NFC South and it should be fairly decisive of who’s moving on to the playoffs. On a side note, this matchup holds the record for being the lowest rated Monday Night Football game of all time just two years ago. Strange they would chance it once again.