Nagler's Never Right: NFL 2014 Season Week 12 Picks
Aaron's NFL picks for Week 12.
By PackerAaron
Last Week: 8-6
Season: 96-65-1
Kansas City vs Oakland
Yes, it’s starting to look like the Raiders will go 0-16. Seriously, look at their schedule and try to find a win. I hope Reggie McKenzie is renting. I actually think this game will be somewhat close, but the Chiefs should handle the Raiders.
New York Jets vs Buffalo
This game will likely be postponed due to the insane snow Buffalo has gotten and will be getting more of today. Whenever they play it, I expect the Bills to bounce back from their tough loss to the Dolphins. Also, if you like watching great defensive line play, this is the game for you. Both fronts will be disruptive as hell.
Tampa Bay vs Chicago
The Lovie Bowl. How funny is it that Bears fans will probably greet the coach of the Bucs with more affection than the coach of the Bears. Not that I can blame them. Even in victory over a pretty pedestrian Vikings team, Trestman’s group looks like they’re going through the motions, already resigned to a lost season. I actually think the Bears will win a close one here, but I don’t expect it to inspire Bears fans.
Detroit vs New England
Revis vs Megatron is worth the price of admission alone. This is going to be a great game, with both defenses being the stars of the show. Yes, Brady and the Pats offense will want to pound the football, and Gronk will do Gronk things, but I tend to see the Patriots defense winning this game for them. Matt Stafford and company are in for a long day at the office. Pats get a tough-fought victory at home.
Jacksonville vs Indianapolis
The Jaguars are a child’s plaything for Andrew Luck after what he faced in the Patriots. This one gets late real early for the Jaguars.
Cleveland vs Atlanta
Your first place Falcons take on a Browns team smarting from a pretty physical Texans team. I don’t expect a ton of points in this one but I do expect the Falcons to win their first game outside of the NFC South.
Cincinnati vs Houston
Ryan Mallett won’t be mistaken for an elite quarterback any time soon, but he played pretty well in his first NFL start. JJ Watt continues to defy the laws of God and Man on the football field. The Bengals looked like a completely different team against the Saints than the team that got spanked by the Browns. Which one shows up this Sunday? I tend to think the Bengals get another tough road win.
Green Bay vs Minnesota
Trap game? Not quite. As McCarthy pointed out in his press conference, Division games are always tough and this one will be no exception. Vikings rookie linebacker Anthony Barr has been incredibly disruptive and has made a bunch of plays, but he misses an alarming number of tackles. The Vikings defense actually had a decent stretch against the Packers offense once the last game settled down. If they can come out with that focus right off the bat, they have a chance to slow Aaron Rodgers and company. But this game should be decided long before the 4th quarter. The Packers get the divisional road win.
Tennessee vs Philadelphia
The Titans showed a hell of a lot of heart against the Steelers the other night, until Ken Whisenhunt ended up costing his team the game by coaching scared. The Eagles are smarting from their beat down in Lambeau, but they should get back on track against the Titans at home.
St. Louis vs San Diego
The Rams are an incredibly intriguing team. They have been playing well on the defensive side of the ball for the last three or four weeks. Now they seem to have something going on the offensive side as well with the return of quarterback Shaun Hill. The Chargers looked less than inspiring coming off their bye week in a victory over the Raiders and now we learn Philip Rivers is dealing with a mysterious injury? Yes, I’m picking the Rams.
Miami vs Denver
The Dolphins are playing defense as well as anyone in the league, and no, not just because they most recently played an impotent Buffalo team. In Denver, Peyton Manning is talking about needing to play with fire on the offensive side of the ball. That might be hard with a banged up receiving corps against this excellent Dolphins defense. I’m still taking the Broncos, only because they’re at home, but I expect this one to be a nail-biter.
Arizona vs Seattle
The Seahawks are hard to watch in the passing game and it starts with Russell Wilson. The third year quarterback has admitted as much, and I expect him to look much crisper at home than he did in Arrowhead. That said, the Cardinals will not be afraid to bring the heat, and they’ll most likely get to Wilson once or twice, especially with center Max Unger out. On the flip side, I love the job Bruce Arians has done while swapping quarterbacks in and out of the lineup, but this is one place where Stanton’s mistakes will be compounded by an opportunistic defense. This will be another close game, but unlike last year, this time the Seahawks pull it out.
Washington vs San Francisco
RGIII and Jay Gruden deserve each other. 49ers win big.
Dallas vs New York Giants
The Giants have a patchwork offensive line, a play caller under fire and a quarterback reverting back to being a turnover machine. Oh, and the defense is mediocre to downright bad. Other than that…
The Cowboys have flaws, but none that even come close to the flaws that are running rampant through this Giants team. Cowboys win at MetLife.
Baltimore vs New Orleans
It’s funny to think that both these teams are in heated division races. Baltimore obviously resembles that sentence, but New Orleans has looked punchless. Only residing in the putrid NFC South is letting these games have meaning for the Saints - because for as bad as they’ve played, no one in their division is playing any better. The Ravens are the better team, but I’m rolling with the home team on Monday night. The Saints get a much needed win.
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Comments (5)
FITZCORE1252
November 20, 2014 at 07:30 pm
What the hell. I'll take a flyer on Oakland tonight. KC traveling on a short week... what the hell.
jeremyjjbrown
November 20, 2014 at 08:53 pm
Charles Woodson sure looks like he can still play. Just wondering what would have happened with him at Safety last year instead of the Dr.
PackerAaron
November 21, 2014 at 05:52 am
Yeah, I've said a few times this year, I was with Ted on this one. I thought Woodson was done. He most certainly wasn't.
While he's not the dynamic playmaker he was, he can still play a bit. Now, it helps when he plays teams like the Chiefs who refuse to push the ball down the field and he's allowed to sit in the box and get downhill. But overall, he's played so much better than most anyone Ted thought could replace him.
And that's the frustrating part. It's Cullen Jenkins all over again. I'm fine with the idea of moving on, but the failure to have a competent replacement really hampers the team. It took years to find Mike Daniels and they're still working on Woodson's replacement, though Clinton-Dix looks promising.
FITZCORE1252
November 21, 2014 at 12:44 pm
Not sure, but I feel comfortable saying... Woodson would've fell into a pick or two!
FITZCORE1252
November 21, 2014 at 12:46 pm
I'll take Cleveland, Houston and SD. Mobile would only let me see the first game yesterday for some reason.