NFL 2013 Season Predictions: Redskins, Ravens, 49ers, Playoffs, & Super Bowl

I guess its a better time than any to give my predictions for this year.  Last years predictions weren't too off, I projected the Ravens to finish 10-6 winning their division along with the Patriots, Texans, and Broncos.  My predictions for the Redskins were 8-8 and with a chance at the Wild Card slot, they stepped it up to 10-6 and won the division with their end of the year winning streak. Other than the 49ers, Falcons, and Packers my NFC Playoff picks looked off.  I predicted the 49ers would finish 10-6 and win the division.  It's a bit tough to predict a tie, so I'll give myself the benefit of the doubt.  My fandom Super Bowl prediction of Ravens vs 49ers actually happened, but my real prediction of Packers losing to the Texans in the Super Bowl fell short.

Ok so lets break down my picks for this year like the ESPN Experts did, well minus the Coach of the Year, MVP, and ROY predictions.

NFL Season Predictions

		My Fan Picks	My Actual Predictions
SUPER BOWL CHAMPION
AFC East		Patriots	Patriots
AFC North		Bengals	Bengals
AFC South		Texans	Texans
AFC West		Broncos	Broncos
AFC wild cards		Bills, Chiefs	Bills, Ravens
NFC East		Redskins	Redskins
NFC North		Packers	Packers
NFC South		Saints	Falcons
NFC West		49ers	Seahawks
NFC wild cards		Seahawks, Falcons	49ers, Saints
AFC champion		Texans	Broncos
NFC champion		49ers	Saints

Story book ending for Peyton Manning, he ascends into football heaven (retirement) with his 2nd Super Bowl ring then Ray Lewis jumps out of the stands and hugs him, which ends up looking more like a tackle because Peyton wasn't expecting it.

Ok time to do the Redskins, Ravens, and 49ers predictions.  I'll start with the local teams then finish with my favorite team.

The Redskins had a great finish to their season last year, their Rookie QB and Rookie RB combo was practically unstoppable, until the injury.  RG3's injury does worry me somewhat, but I think as long as he takes it easy and stays away from Clay Matthews and Ndamukong Suh in weeks 2 & 3, he'll be ok and return from the BYE at full speed.

1. Eagles - LOSS - I think the Redskins will start off somewhat refrained and the Eagles will be full steam ahead.
2. at Packers - LOSS - Home Advantage
3. Lions - WIN - Shoot Out game.
4. at Raiders - WIN - Not sold on the Raiders
5. BYE
6. at Cowboys - WIN - I hear that the Redskins own Cowboys Stadium
7. Bears - WIN - Depends on which Bears show up, but this is winnable.
8. at Broncos - LOSS - The Bronco's should have all of the parts of their defense at this point
9. Chargers - WIN - I don't believe in the Chargers
10. at Vikings - WIN - Refrain (you can't stop) AP, and this is a win in the bag
11. at Eagles - WIN - The offense will be at full speed and keep up with the Eagles for a very enjoyable game to watch
12. 49ers - LOSS - I'll be here in my 49ers gear, the 49ers are winning this one. (Fan Pick)
13. Giants - WIN - Home Advantage
14. Chiefs - WIN - Andy Reid will make this interesting, but the Redskins appear to have a better team than the Chiefs, plus they are at home.
15. at Falcons - WIN - They almost won it last year, I think they can win it this year with a healthy RG3.
16. Cowboys - LOSS - These last two games could flip flop, they are more so to make the NFC race for 2nd place more interesting as the Cowboys, Giants, and Eagles chase the Wild Card slot.
17. at Giants - WIN

 That puts them at 11-5, one win better than last year and a much more balanced full season.  I think they will win the division by 1 or 2 games, it won't come down to divisional wins in the NFC East this year.  The other 3 teams will be scrambling for wins towards the end of the season to get a wild card spot.

The Super Bowl Champion Ravens, I think this will be a tough transition year for them.  That got younger, which ultimately will mean they will be faster and possibly healthier, but I think it will take some time to get all components of the team to gel properly.  I know that the preseason means nothing, but at times they looked like confused misfits.  All that tells me is that position ranks weren't really determined and the 1st team hasn't had a chance to get used to playing as a unit.  It will take time, luckily the AFC North and the AFC East have a few teams that should help build confidence.

1. at Broncos - LOSS - Offense vs Offense, I gotta pick Peyton and his deep WR core. This should be a great game, I can't see it being a blow out for either team.
2. Browns - WIN - I expect the Browns to do something this year, just not against the Ravens
3. Texans - LOSS - Texans Defense wins this one
4. at Bills - LOSS - A sleeper loss.  Bills have a decent defense, a better QB, a great RB, and good WRs, I think the Bills can sneak away with this one.
5. at Dolphins - WIN - All of Baltimore will be in Miami on Instagram for this game, the stadium will likely be 75% purple and the Ravens get a big confidence booster.
6. Packers - LOSS - I'm going with Aaron Rodgers on this one.  If the Ravens pass rush is effective, they can make this swing the other way.  Defense will need to be excellent to win this one.
7. at Steelers - WIN - Nice win going into the bye week
8. BYE
9. at Browns - WIN - Feeling fresh from the bye another win to OWN the Browns.
10. Bengals - WIN -  Home Win against the Bengals to feed Ravens divisional confidence
11. at Bears - LOSS -  This could go either way, Home Advantage
12. Jets - WIN -  Do you really want me to explain this?
13. Steelers - WIN - Steelers OWNership with a home win.
14. Vikings - WIN - Home Advantage, plus I trust Flacco more than Ponder.
15. at Lions - LOSS - The Lions high powered offense will out power the Ravens in this road game.
16. Patriots - LOSS -  I just made a bunch of people angry with this one, sorry. I think the Patriots will have a surprisingly good year, this game will put the icing on the season for them.
17. at Bengals - LOSS -  This will likely be a must win for a Wild Card spot, if the Bengals are still playing starters in hope to get a bye then they will get this home win.

Finishing their season at 8-8, I would venture to say that they can get 1 out of the either the Lions or the Bills to finish 9-7 with a chance at the Wild Card in the AFC.

The NFC Champion 49ers, fell short from a Super Bowl win.  Some say it was the refs fault, but I'll just say that the team with more big game experience came out and played harder from the very beginning.  Its hard to expect to win if you are trailing by so much with half of the game gone.  Plus you can never count on refs calls to win games, teams have to play hard all 4 quarters to win games.  I think it was a good experience for a young team, young QB, and a fairly new Coach.  With the emergence of the Seahawks, and a target on their mobile QB, this season will likely be tougher than last year.  The past two years I would say that we were somewhat under the radar, even after going to the NFC Championship most "experts" predicted a huge fall off. 

1. Packers -WIN -  I'll give the advantage to our defense.  Tough game to start the season.
2. at Seahawks - LOSS - Home Advantage plus Guinness World Book Record for loudest crowd might make this game unbearable to watch as a 49ers fan.  It would be awesome if we could silence them though.
3. Colts - WIN - Back home for a win.  Luck  likes to throw INTs, and we have a bunch of folks that like to catch them.
4. at Rams - LOSS -  I don't think we should lose any games to the Rams, but they knew us too well last year, I'll give them this home win.
5. Texans - LOSS - Fanship says we'll win, my gut says it will be close.  I'll give this to the veteran team.
6. Cardinals - WIN - We still have the Cardinals number, Carson or no Carson.
7. at Titans - WIN -  Another nice win to build confidence.
8. at Jaguars (London) - WIN -  Should be a very convincing win, might see BJ Daniels or Colt McCoy in this game at some point.
9. BYE
10. Panthers - WIN - I'll give this to the QB with more weapons and the team with the better offensive line.  Not to mention this is a home game coming off of a bye.
11. at Saints - LOSS - Saints have a vendetta against the Harbaugh led 49ers, with Sean Payton back I think they may have a chance to get this home win against us....maybe.
12. at Redskins - WIN - I already commented on this above.  Defense wins and contains.
13. Rams - WIN -  Bounce back from the week 4 loss with a home win.
14. Seahawks - LOSS -  This game will likely be the deciding game for who will win the division, and the Seahawks will likely have Percy Harvin at this point.  Fanship says we win, but to make things interesting I'll give the Seahawks the sweep. It will make it more fun if we meet in the post season.
15. at Buccaneers - WIN - Might see some backups in the game as well.
16. Falcons - WIN - Last game at Candlestick Park, going out with a West Coast Win over the Dirty Birds
17. at Cardinals - WIN - A strong win going into the post season.

Finishing the season at 11-5, but losing twice to the Seahawks could put us in a Wild Card position if the Seahawks play as expected.  As a fan I believe that we can beat the Texans, get the home win against the Seahawks, and possibly beat the Saints in their house again.  So I guess as a fan I'm saying 13 to 14 wins, but hey I'm a fan, what can I say.

NFL Playoff Predictions and Week 17 Picks

Here's my playoff picture via http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/machine and picks for the week 17 winners.  I went all home teams accept the Buccaneers, I figured that the Falcons don't have anything to lose or gain with this game so they might slack off and put in some bench players.  The other games that didn't matter I just picked the home teams.  Some of the other games, the home teams need wins to have playoff hopes.  I'm sort of thinking that Detroit should just lose to get a better draft pick, but I don't think they will just let a divisional opponent beat them down at home.  They could still lose, but I don't see them just giving the win away.  I think Seattle is in, win or lose, but since they are playing at the same time as the 49ers, they will be playing for the win, just in case the 49ers slip up and lose the game to lose the division.  Also I'm going with the Skins over the Cowboys because they are at home and because they are coming in to this game red hot, so I think they will continue that trend against a mistake happy Dallas team.  The Skins just need to stop the run and let Romo help them win.  Three rookie QBs with 10+ wins gotta make other teams reevaluate what they have.  Head are going to roll in the off season.

NFL Playoff Predictions Going Into Week 16

This playoff prediction is based on my week 16 and week 17 weekly picks using the ESPN Playoff Machine (http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/machine).  My predictions put starting rooking QB's in the playoffs and two of the squaring off in DC, while the other one travels to Baltimore to face a QB that has been in the playoffs since his rookie year.  Which makes for some exciting times in the Maryland/DC area.

My Week 6 Picks: NFC Championship Rematch

Well I'm going to have to say that the game of the week this week is the New York Giants at the San Francisco 49ers.  Not just because I'm a fan, but because these two teams met in the NFC Championship last year and the winner of that match up went on to win the Superbowl.  Two #1 overall drafted Quarterbacks face off for only the 3rd time in their careers.  Even though this is Eli's 9th year and Alex's 8th year in the league last year was the first time they played each other.  Eli faced Cody Pickett's 49ers in 2005, Trent Dilfer's 49ers in 2007, and J.T. O'Sullivan's 49ers in 2008, he beat all three versions of the attempting to rebuild team as Alex was dealing with injuries and between getting benched by various coaches.  The Alex vs Eli match up is tied up 1-1, both games were played in San Francisco last season, the first game the 49ers won 27-20 and lost in the NFC Championship 17-20 in overtime after two dropped kick returns.  Most 49ers fans feel cheated, however I feel like it was a necessary evil to help the 49ers to address some of their weaknesses and to help them play with more of a chip on their shoulder.  This will be the 3rd New York opponent for the 49ers in a row but most would argue that those other two teams weren't really an opponent at all beating them by a total score of 79 points to 3.  Regardless of those scores no one in their right mind would think that this game will be a blowout for either team.

As a 49ers fan I'm picking the San Francisco 49ers to win this game by 7.  As a fan of football I am also selecting the San Francisco 49ers to win based on their improved offensive and defensive lines. 

The 49ers Offensive line will have to play to a perfection to fight off the Giants fierce Defensive line and pass rushers. 

On the other side of the ball the Giants Offensive line hasn't looked too strong this year and with the 49ers Defensive Line and Pass Rushers playing very well its likely that Eli will be getting reintroduced to the Candlestick grass.

I do expect this to be a dog fight, the best defensive stand will lead to the winner in this game.  The 49ers can win this game as long as they play focused and aren't focused on revenge.

Ok so here's the rest of my picks.

Steelers over Titans - The Titans haven't been able to get anything going yet this year.  Maybe if they rush the ball 30 times and get CJ going this will be competitive other than that, I can't see the Titans winning this one.

Buccs over Chiefs - I just think that Tampa should be able to pull this one off at home.

Ravens over Cowboys - Both of these teams have alter egos but I think the Cowboys alter ego is the worse of the two, the Cowboys would have to win this game on the ground to open up for the passing game, other than that Romo will have another rough game.

Falcons over Raiders - The Falcons will keep rolling with their undefeated record, last week was probably the best chance for them to lose one.  The Falcons do have a weakness against the run, but I haven't noticed McFadden having any stellar games lately.

Eagles over Lions - The Lions seem like they are missing something and the Eagles have been able to pull out wins at home this year.

Bengals over Browns - Bengals are just a better team.

Colts over Jets - The Colts look good, the Jets look bad, easy pick if you ask me.

Cardinals over Bills - The Bills look really bad right about now, and the Cardinals still have a pretty good defense.  The Cardinals should be able to bounce back from that road loss with a win at home this week.

Seahawks over Patriots - This is my underdog pick of the week.  I'm going with the 12th man and the defense to show up against the Patriots this weekend.  The Patriots have been able to play better when they can get the running game going, against the Seahawks defense I think that running game will suffer.

The San Francisco 49ers over GiAints - I explained this above.

Vikings over the Redskins -  I went back and forth with this one.  The Skins usually win when I pick against them and lose when I pick them so who knows what will happen.  The Vikings have looked like they have a good offense and the defense has also showed up lately, where as the Skins have way more offense than they do defense right now so I'm going with the more balanced team.

Texans over Packers - You would think the Packers would bounce back this week, but they have a tough match up against a team that knows how to play solid defense, get to the QB, and run the ball effectively to set up for the play action pass so I think they will have to wait a game or two for that bounce back.  The Texans still look like the complete package even after a not so impressive game against the Jets.  Texans stay undefeated for another week.

Broncos over Chargers - Tough pick, I flipped a coin.  Plus Peyton is more dependable than Phillip.

My Week 5 Picks

My Game of the week is the "So We Meet Again" game Tom Brady and the Patriots vs Peyton Manning and the Broncos.  To keep it short and simple, I'm going with the underdog Broncos for the win based off of their better defense.

I picked Cardinals over the Rams, but they blew up in my face, but as a 49ers fan I'm glad to see the Cards lose one.

Ravens over Chiefs - Chiefs don't seem to have what it takes to put together a complete game.

Steelers over Eagles - this was a tough pick but I went with the fresher legs after the bye over the beat up and bruised team.

Packers over Colts - Should be a good game but the Packers should come out on top.

Bengals over Dolphins - The Bengals just seem to be a more put together team.

Giants over Browns - This would ba a serious upset if they lose.

Redskins over Falcons - as my underdog pick.  The Skins have enough offense and a good enough running game to make this game tough for the undefeated Falcons.  Last team with the ball wins the game, I expect it to be a shoot out.

Bears over Jaguars - Bears are a better team.

Seahawks over Panthers - another underdog, but I'll go with defense over a team that doesn't seem to have it together.

The San Francisco 49ers over the Bills - The Niners should be able to run the ball well against this weak rushing defense at home.  A mistake free 49ers should be able to get busy this game.

Vikings over the Titans - The Vikings are looking good so I'm going to stick with them on this one.

Broncos over Patriots - Like I said above, I'm going with defense.

Saints over Chargers - Even with the loses the Saints seem like they have it together a bit more than the Chargers and they should get their first win at home this week.

Texans over Jets - Jets suck and the Texans look like the most complete team in the NFL right now.


I know these are late but I make my picks on Thursday and I don't change them after that.  I'm just getting around to doing the blogpost.

NFL 2012-13 Season Predictions and Projections for Redskins, Ravens, and 49ers

Ok, I did this last year so I'm going to do it again this year.  I will get my predictions for the two local teams, then get my prediction for my favorite team as a fan and logically thinking.  Last year I predicted the Ravens at 10-6 or 12-4 at best, they finished at 12-4.  I projected 7 wins for the Redskins, 9 if they got lucky, they ended up with 5.  As for the 49ers logically I gave them 6 wins, as a fan I gave them 10, they shocked the world and ended with 13.

Lets start with the league as a whole and playoff projections. 

I will take the Patriots, Ravens, Texans, and Broncos as AFC divisional winners (again) with the Chargers and Bengals getting the Wild Card.  Its tough not to pick the Steelers, but I think they are getting old, we saw signs of this last year and I think it will continue this year. 

As for the NFC Eagles, Packers, Falcons, and 49ers winning their divisions with the Giants* Bears and Saints as Wild Card teams. 

AFC Championship Texans and Ravens, NFC Championship Packers and Eagles. 

I think the Super Bowl will be Texans and Packers, with the Texans winning it all. 

However I would love for the Super Bowl to be 49ers and Ravens.  Eagles vs Texans would also be an interesting Super Bowl just because it would be a QB vs his old backup, if they both make it though the season.

*please note, I didn't change the Giants because of the opening game results, but because I think the NFC East has one of the toughest schedules in football this year and the division winner will likely win by one game and/or thanks to having the best record in divisional matchups.  I'm picking the Eagles to win that division with 9 or 10 wins. The Bears, Buccs, and Lions will have more wins than the #2 team in the NFC East so one of them will be granted the Wild Card Spot*

Let's start with the Redskins, I think they have made a lot of good steps forward to build their team, not sure if they will completely reap the benefits this year but I do think they will be noticeably better because of it.

 

Washington Redskins

1. at Saints - Loss.  The Saints have a lot to prove right now and will likely be operating on all cylinders, this game could get out of hand.  Also right now I can only compare RG3 to Cam Newton, and the Saints seem comfortable dealing with him as an opponent.
2. at Rams - Win.  This won't be as easy as it would have been last year but it will be a win.
3. Bengals - Loss.  The Bengals could actually win the AFC North they are a dangerous and young team on both sides of the ball.
4. at Buccaneers - Loss. This one was tough, I think the 2010 Buccs will be back. Close game though.
5. Falcons - Loss.
6. Vikings - Win.
7. at Giants - Loss.  The current champs have a chip on their should about getting beat twice, don't think it will happen at their house this year.
8. at Steelers - Loss.
9. Panthers - Win.  Defense will win this game.
10. Bye
11. Eagles - Win.  Good win coming off the bye to an Eagles team that would have just gotten beaten up by their previous 3 match ups.
12. at Cowboys - Loss.  Flipped a coin.
13. Giants - Win.
14. Ravens - Loss.  I'd rather see the Redskins win this game of all the games.
15. at Browns - Win.
16. at Eagles - Win.  Playing the spoiler.  Also beating the Eagles twice puts them in the Super Bowl automatically, lol.
17. Cowboys - Win.  Still playing the spoiler and knocking the Cowboys out of the Wild Card spot.

That's an even 8-8, I think even if they flip flop some of those wins they will finish 8-8 or 7-9 in a very tough division and playing against a very tough divisions in the AFC North and NFC South.  The beginning of the season will seem like a roller coaster but they will finish strong to give more hope for the future.

I think the Ravens will miss Suggs, and Ray Lewis will start to show some signs of his age. He will still be effective and a great motivator for his team but they will have to rely on some other people for the big plays, mainly the offense. The better the offense plays the more rest Ray Ray gets.

Baltimore Ravens

1. Bengals - Win.  Tough game played to the wire.
2. at Eagles - Loss. 
3. Patriots - Win.
4. Browns - Win.
5. at Cheifs - Win.
6. Cowboys - Win.
7. at Texans - Loss.  With a healthy Matt Schaub.
8. Bye
9. at Browns - Win.
10. Raiders - Loss.  Random loss to a team who will be high powered in their ground game.
11. at Steelers - Win.
12. at Chargers - Win.
13. Steelers - Loss.  I just feel like they will split the games this season.
14. at Redskins - Win.  Like I said before, I'd rather see the Skins win this one.
15. Broncos - Loss.  Peyton full steam ahead.
16. Giants - Loss.  This game will help secure the Giants as a Wild Card
17. at Bengals - Win.  Winner of this game wins the division.

That puts them at 10-6, I think at best they could end up 11-5, but the AFC North will be won with in one game, likely that last game between the Ravens and the Bengals.  This actually looks like a fairly easy schedule for the Ravens but I do think to win these games it will have to be the offense instead of the defense carrying them.

Here we go the 49ers who won 13 games last year and everywhere I look I'm reading that they got the easiest schedule along with the Patriots.  Then I'm reading that history shows that they won't win more than 9 games coming off of that 13 win season.  Personally based on some of the flaws that I noticed last year we have a tougher season this year.  Last year we only faced one QB considered "Elite" in Eli Manning and we faced an injured Big Ben.  If Ben was healthy and could plant his foot on some of those throws a few holes might have been exploited in the defense.  In the off season we addressed secondary and receivers, the main issues that held us back last year. 

 

San Francisco 49ers

1. at Packers - Loss.  Packers got a lot to prove and I think we still have some getting used to when it comes to our new weapons on offense.  I don't think it will be a high scoring game like the 49ers/Saints game ended.  It will more of a better defense vs a better offense and a below average offense vs a below average defense.  The kickers will have fun and Rodgers will have to use his feet to get in the endzone due to coverage.
2. Lions - Win.  SNF Prime Time win at that.
3. at Vikings - Win.
4. at Jets - Win.
5. Bills - Loss.  Seems like a weird loss, I know.  The Bills defense will be nice and they will be heavily under rated as a whole.  I'll just say this will be the one that got a way.
6. Giants - Win.  Revenge, plus we aren't losing back to back at home.
7. Seahawks - Win.  Hard hitting game, but the experience of our defense and offense will hold strong.
8. at Cardinals - Win.
9. Bye
10. Rams - Win.
11. Bears - Loss.  Traditionally great defense and a more high powered offense, this will be a tough game.
12. at Saints - Loss.  Sorry to say, but revenge game in the Super Dome sounds dangerous.  Brees is still one of the most dangerous QBs in the game.
13. at Rams - Win.
14. Dolphins - Win. 
15. at Patriots - Loss.  Cold December Night... Doesn't sound like a good look for the boys from the bay.
16. at Seahawks - Loss.  That stadium has never been a good place for the 49ers to play.
17. Cardinals - Win.

So not completely picking as a fan I gave the 49ers a 10-6 season and winning the NFC West.  As a fan, I'd add two more wins out of the Elite QB games that were picked as losses (Packers, Bears, Patriots, Saints), most likely the Bears and Packers.  I'd also probably add a random road divisional loss and take that Bills game at home as a win.  So as a fan I'm saying 12-4, logically I'm saying 10-6 or at worse 9-7.

T-Sizzle Takes On Football's Hey-Zeus (Plus Wild Card Picks)

First off, calling Tim Tebow Jesus is blasphemous, and all the references to him performing miracles is even worse.  Second, his team has been as bad as it has been good, he didn't turn around the organization. The guy he replaced came back and beat them and if the Raiders had won they wouldn't have made the playoffs.  But at 8-8 they have made the playoffs and will face an injured Steelers team in Denver.  Nothing in my football mind can allow me to pick them to win this weekend.  Actually as a quick run down, I'm picking the Steelers over the Broncos by 12, the Bengals over the Texans in a close game decided by field goals, The Saints over the Lions in a shoot out where the last TD wins, the Falcons over the Giants by 4 points.  The NFC games were there toughest to pick for me, I wouldn't bet money on any of those games they could go either way and not be an upset.  The only upset would be the Broncos beating the Steelers, well the Ravens & Patriots wouldn't be upset about that one.

OK so now to the title of this post. I read some comments that Terrell Suggs aka T-Sizzle of the Ravens had to say about Tim Tebow in the playoffs.  They were very entertaining but also had a lot of weight/truth behind them.  I don't blame Tebow for any of this the media has made his simple actions way bigger than they would have been with anyone else and I think T-Sizzle is just responding to this character that the media has built up and I'm sure if he knew Tebow as a person her wouldn't be attacking his actions.  Read below for his comments copied from ESPN's AFC North Blog written by Jamison Hensley.

Asked by Skip Bayless for his take on Tebow, Suggs said, “He’s all right. He’s all right. Come on now, let’s be honest, Skip. I can put up the numbers he was [putting up]. It’s all about numbers, baby. Give me a shot. Let’s see what we can do, create my own offense and hopefully my kicker can nail a 62-yarder to bail me out a few times, Jesus shows up."

Suggs added, "That boy be praying on the sidelines, boy. I don’t feel comfortable [if] I’ve got to pray every fourth quarter like, ‘Oh my God, please come save me again.’ Let’s just go out there and win the game.”

Suggs then took a shot at Tebow's religious persona. "With all due respect, we don't pray on the sideline," he said. "We do -- we give it up to God to keep us safe and healthy. When our quarterback prays, he's like, 'God, sit on the couch and enjoy this. Thank you for blessing me and letting me wake up and play this game. I'm going to impress you.'"

Bayless pointed out that Tebow went 7-4 as a starter and led the Broncos to the AFC West title.
"He didn’t win the AFC West," Suggs said. "Oakland lost it."

So, would Suggs rather have Joe Flacco or Tebow as his quarterback?

“Are you kidding me? Why don’t you like my quarterback, Skip? Is it his mustache? Is it his eyebrows? Is it because Tim Tebow is prettier?” Suggs said. “I understand you’ve got your man crush but you can’t force that on the rest of us. We here in Baltimore, we’ve got a quarterback that fits our personality. … I love the kid. He plays football. He’s my quarterback. I stand by him. And I love him on the sidelines with the ice in his veins. I just feel awesome about him.”

Back to my opinion, nothing is wrong with praying, or praying publicly, its actually a great testament of faith.  But pray to be safe, pray for strength, pray for health, pray for an injured player, I don't think praying to win a game is something a professional should do. Its a game, its not life.  If your life was on the line if you didn't win, then yes, please pray.  But a game is just a game at the end of the day, if everyone stays healthy then they go on to play another game and continue to get paid.  If Tebow is praying for wisdom in tough situations, then I greatly applaud that.  At the end of the day its between him and God, and I can only blame the media for making a simple gesture of faith by an overrated player into such a big deal.  Personally I think this is a great chess move by Terrell Suggs, but Tebow doesn't listen to any chatter that hits the media or if he does he doesn't let it effect him.  But it would be smart to hype up the opponent of the team that you don't really want to face for a third time this year in an elimination game on the anniversary of them eliminating your team from the playoffs a year ago.

 



My NFL Week 5 Picks - For the Birds...

I feel like I've used this picture before, but now its completely different. Mentor and Mentee from the Philly Byrd Gang will get a chance to square off and the only thing on the line is their future.  McNabb may think its Kolbs fault he got the boot from Philly, but wouldn't it be justice served if the guy that McNabb co-signed to come to Philly (Vick) is the reason that Kolb got the boot as well.  The bad thing is that none of the Byrd Gang QB's from 2 years ago are off to a good start.  Although Vick is putting up great fantasy numbers, real fans are getting their hearts broken at 1-3.  The Arizona Cardinals are sitting at 1-3 as well, they haven't played bad but they haven't finished games.  Then the Minnesota Vikings, who have become the choke artist team for the first quarter of the season, losing most of their games after having a nice lead at the half, are 0-4.  When teams are 0-4 usually you see coaches get fired or QBs get replaced.  With Christian Ponder already stating that he's excited to learn from a Pro Bowler but he wants that #1 spot, not later but right now, I think McNabb might have the most at stake right now.

Therefore in the battle of the former Eagles I'm picking Minnesota over Arizona

Here's my quick run down for the rest of the games:

Philly over Bills - I think the emotions and anger from last weeks game that was theirs for the taking that they ended up losing will fuel the Eagles to come together as a team and win this pivotal game on the road.

Carolina over  New Orleans - This is one of my underdog picks, I'd just like to see Cam win this divisional match up, plus its a home game, so I'll use that as my reason for giving them the advantage on this one.  On paper its seems like Carolina has the better pass defense thus far.  Not that they can stop Brees, but maybe they can make them rely on the run more than usual.  The bad thing is that I have both QBs on one of my Fantasy Teams, I haven't started Cam yet, but I'm considering it.

Houston over Oakland -  this might be the first time I picked against the Raiders, but the Texans have their running game back and even with out Andre Johnson I think they will have enough of a passing game to make the difference.  Plus their pass rush is pretty good, Campbell will be under pressure.

Indy over  KC - Honestly even though Indy lost on Monday, they looked like a better team than the Kerry Collins lead team.  I'm going with them for the win at home.

Cincy over Jacksonville - Just don't believe that the Jags can win games and Cincy has a nice defense.

NYG over Seattle - The Seahawks appeared to develop a passing game with Sidney Rice healthy, but the Giants have a much better passing game, as long as they don't leave this win up to chance and actually play like the team that they are, this should be an easy win.

Pittsburgh over Tennessee - this won't be an easy win, I'm giving Pitt the home field advantage on this one.  The Titans seem like a great improvement over last year, while the Steelers seem to still be on their Superbowl hangover.  Hopefully for them this home game can help them shake it off.

San Francisco 49ers over Tampa Bay - My reasons are this. I'm a 49ers fan. The Buccs had a short week. Last year Tampa came to town and held the 49ers scoreless at home for the first time since the 70s, which also lead to the firing of Singleterry.  Not that Harbaugh is anywhere near a hot seat of any sort, but this will be big redemption game for him at home for 1 the overtime loss against the Cowboys at home and for 2 to show that he's here to clean up the mess of the past 7 years.  Last reason is that Tampa is better when their run game is thriving, the 49ers have one of the toughest Run Defenses in the league, if McCoy had a bad game imagine how Blount will do.

San Diego over Denver - The Chargers are just a better all around team, I would be shocked if the Broncos win, even though they are at home.

New England over NYJ - I can't see Brady and the gang getting beat at home by the No Offense Jets.  Not to mention the Jets defense doesn't look as well put together as it did last year.

Green Bay over Atlanta - Sure the Falcons have home field advantage, but this isn't last years Falcons or the Matty Ice that we've seen in the past, furthermore Aaron Rodgers has become unreal this year, this is a career year.  On top of that they know that in order to win their division this year that have to be flawless.  The Packers have 5 more games that could be tough, including this one (ATL, SD, DET, NYG, DET) but at the rate they are going this looks like undefeated team that might do what the Patriots could do against the Giants in the Superbowl a few years ago. Yeah I Said It, someone alert the '72 Dolphins. LOL.

Detroit over Chicago - This hasn't really been an exciting match up in awhile but I think the Lions won't need to make any comebacks to win this game.  I think it will be close but I'll give Detroit the advantage for being at home and for having a better Passing Game.

Update: ESPN decided to highlight the Eagles QBs in an article as well, I guess great minds think a like. All three are having a tough year.  But the season is far from over for either of them, well at least not yet.

My NFL Week 2 Picks...the Breakdown

Maybe I'm reaching with one of them, but hey I'm a fan.  Plus I've heard several other sports analyst make similar predictions about that Renewed Rivalry game between the 49ers and the Cowboys.

GAME OF THE WEEK

Philly over Atlanta - Honestly, Vick could lose this game for the Eagles if he gets caught up in the emotions of being back there as a starter or trying to get revenge, but this new Michael Vick doesn't seem to be that type of guy.  I think he will be poised and play a great game.  This game will be determined by the defenses. If Philly studied what kept the Falcons wings clipped last week they can win this game without a problem.

Buffalo over Oakland - I'd rather see the Raiders win this one, but the Bills look pretty explosive last week, and West Coast teams tend to have a bad record playing the 10am PST game on the East Coast.

Detroit over KC - KC stunk last week, I need them to do better (fantasy football reasons). But Detroit aren't who we thought they were. Detroit's defense might be nice this year.

Tampa Bay over Minnesota - I don't think the Vikings are put together well right now. Tampa Bay has potential.

Chicago over New Orleans - The Bears looked great last week, as did the Saints.  I just went with an underdog here, hopefully it works out for me.

New York Jets over Jacksonville - Does anyone think differently?

Pitt over Seattle - Do I need to explain this. Forget the Pitt ya'll saw last week, yeah their defense is old, then need a lil more Bengay than most units, but I'm sure that they well get their legs back for this game.

Washington over Arizona - I'm picking this based off of the Skins looking good against the Giants and the Cards defense allowing Cam Newton to get silly on them last week. Hightower might have a career game and a lot of receptions.

Green Bay over Carolina - The person who picks against the Packers in this game and win is paid for life. But this aint Vegas and I'm not gambling so I'm picking the logical pick for this one.

San Fran over Dallas - The QB with the least mistakes (leading to turnovers) will lead his team to victory in this game.  If the game is flawless, and the Special Teams of the 49ers doesn't "do it A-Ginn", then the Cowboys have the best chance to win. But I don't see this being a flawless game and I think Romo will make the most mistakes. 49ers win, 28-27.

Cincy over Denver - Eh... who cares.  I closed my eyes and picked this one.

Houston over Miami - This is a toss up to me, but I think Houston has a better offense and a stronger running game to control the clock. 

San Diego over New England - I wasn't impressed by the Patriots defense allowing a mediocre team to almost score at will, so I believe that a team with a strong running game and passing game should be able to make the game a lot closer than the game was in Miami. On top of that a team with a much better defense should hold Tom Brady to a 200-300 yard game. Chargers win by 4.

St. Louis over New York Giants - Eh... both teams seem to be injured right now, I wouldn't bet my money on either of these teams in this game. I went with the underdog for this one.

My NFL Week 17 Picks & Playoff Predictions

My NFL Week 17 Picks 

& 

Playoff Predictions

Ok here we go with the quick rundown and just so you know my picks are submitted into a pool every week so I do think about my picks before I make them because at the end of the games I like to collect money.  I have only won once this year, but I've been amongst the people battling for the pot on Monday Night several times.  With that said he's the quick rundown.

Atlanta over Carolina: They are in Atlanta, yeah they lost to the Saints but the Saints are the Superbowl champs, who are the Panthers? Road Kill.

Pitt over Cleveland: This will be a tough matchup but I think the Steelers will have the most heart and the most to play for to pull this one out.

Minnesota over Detroit: This could be a close joint, but the Viks looked good last week if they can keep that going they should be able to win without any issues.

Oakland over KC: Oakland has been amazing against divisional opponents this year and they will be the first team to be undefeated in their division but not make the playoffs.

New England over Miami: The Dolphins can't beat the Patriots, unless they decide not to show up today because they got their #1 seed clinched.

New Orleans over Tampa Bay: this was a hard pick for me but I think the Saints will be able to pull this one out mainly because they are at home.  I have a feeling it will be down to the wire though...

NY Jets over Buffalo: The Jets know they need this to make the playoffs and I think they won't allow the Bills to come into NY and play the spoiler role.

Baltimore over Cincy: Cincy has played the Ravens hard in the past few years but I'm confident that the Ravens who are now aware that they have the best WR core, will run the Bengals out of town.

San Diego over Denver: Honestly I picked this because Rivers said its a privilege to play in the NFL and even though his team won't make the playoffs he's going to play today.  And because in one of my fantasy football leagues I'm in the championship with Rivers as my QB (I added Tebow on the bench to give Rivers some encouragement to do better, it worked for Aaron Rodgers in my other Championship I won last week).  

Green Bay over Chicago: The Packers at home will show the Bears why they were predicted to win the division before all of the injures and what not.  Aaron Rodgers has been amazing this year and he will show his talent today against the Bears to give his team playoff hopes.

Indy over Tennessee: The Titans stink and Indy knows if they lose this and the the Jags win, then they are out of the playoffs, its not going to happen.

Philly over Dallas: Vick will use this game as a bounce back game to prove to the people that have started to talk and doubt him based on last weeks performance that him and his young teammates can take this all the way.

San Francisco over Arizona: The Niners beat them in Arizona, I expect nothing less than that from them at home.  Plus I think this year every first game for the new coaches that take over teams, they have won, I expect this to continue for this last game of the season.

NY Giants over Washington: The Giants are an up and down team and have looked more down than anything lately, but I think they will win this game today but it won't be a blow out. I think it will be a game that has a difference of one score in the end.  The win will mean nothing because they still won't make it to the playoffs.

Houston over Jacksonville: If MJD isn't playing I don't think the Jaguars will have what it takes to beat Houston for the 2nd time this year.  They need this win and Indy to lose to make the playoffs, the chances of both happening are probably Vegas odds that could win someone their whole salary by betting just a weeks worth.  

Seattle over St. Louis: I'm only picking this because of home field advantage and as most people know the 12th man in Seattle has helped them win plenty of games.  On top of that the Rams have been horrible on the road this year.  But on the other hand if the Seahawks are smart they will throw this game so that they don't go down in history as the worst team to ever make the playoffs at 7-9, in my opinion.

My NFL Playoff Predictions as of Week 15

NFL Playoff Predictions

as of week 15

My Predictions are exactly the same after week 15, the only thing that is a flip flop, based on week 17 games. I now have Oakland beating KC in week 17 which allows the Chargers to become the #3 seed in the AFC.   Everything else remains the same.

NFL Playoff Predictions

as of week 14

My friend put me on to this playoff predictive page that ESPN is on, and my quick predictions as of now look like this...

click on the image to enlarge

The 49ers will be the first team to enter the playoffs at below .500 based on this prediction.  This is with them losing on Thursday against the Chargers in San Diego but winning in St. Louis then beating the Cardinals in San Francisco to end the season.  Of course in my weekly picks I'm still picking the 49ers to win the game on the Thursday but for this Playoff Predictions page I went with a little more logic than faith.  But honestly the Chargers have lost to a few teams this year that people didn't think they would lose to, and we have had close games with with NFC 3 NFC teams that are for the most part playoff bound.  Greed lost us the game against the #1 seeded Falcons.


No matter how I picked the games the following teams were in it no matter what, Patriots, Steelers, Ravens, Jets, Falcons, and Philly.  The teams that need the most from their own teams and loses by other teams were the Packers, Jacksonville, and Kansas City.  There was one way that I picked it where the NFC playoffs included Atlanta, Philly, Chicago, New Orleans, Tampa Bay, and SF.


The Giants, Chargers, Colts, and Buccaneers were the teams that seemed like they were really on the bubble depending on several factors.