NFL Week 12 Picks: Arizona Cardinals To Continue Winning Ways Against Indianapolis Colts

New Orleans (8-2) at Atlanta (2-8)

With two wins this season and four consecutive losses by at least 13 points, there's no reason to continue picking the Falcons to win football games. Unless they play Jacksonville, which they don't.

New Orleans wins.

Tampa Bay (2-8) at Detroit (6-4)

The Bucs have won two in a row after losing their first eight games of the season. Those two wins were at home though, and now they'll have to go on the road to face a Lions team that is better than either Miami or Atlanta.

The Lions blew a late lead against the Steelers last week but they have yet to lost two games in a row this season and are 3-1 at home.

This could be a fun game to watch as both offenses should be able to pass the ball fairly well, but at home and with more weapons the Lions should take care of business.

Detroit wins.

Minnesota (2-8) at Green Bay (5-5)

The Packers have lost three straight and in two games in relief this year, quarterback Scott Tolzien has thrown five interceptions, compared to just one touchdown.

Tolzein's accurate though (when hitting his own receivers) , completing 65.8 percent of his passes. That would be good enough for sixth in the league.

The Vikings defense is 29th in the league in passing yards allowed per game. They are tied for 20th in the league in interceptions, tied for 24th in sacks, and have given up the most touchdown passes.

Expect a healthy dose of Eddie Lacey for the Packers, but Tolzein should also fare better against the Vikings.

Green Bay wins.

Jacksonville (1-9) at Houston (2-8)

The Texans haven't won since Week 2, but they continue to fight. In the last four games they have only lost by a single score and an average of 3.0 points per game.

The Jaguars went back to losing last week and should continue to do so on the road in Week 12.

Houston wins.

San Diego (4-6) at Kansas City (9-1)

The Chiefs may have been knocked out of the unbeaten ranks, but this should be a good bounce back week for them.

At home, they are 5-0 this season. Against teams under .500, they are 7-0.

The Chargers are under .500 after losing to the struggling Dolphins last week. They are also 2-4 on the road.

Kansas City wins.

Carolina (7-3) at Miami (5-5)

Even though the Dolphins are 3-2 at home, the Panthers may be too much to handle.

Carolina has won six games in a row, three of which were on the road. Miami's play calling on offense has been rather conservative and the Panthers defense, which is fifth in passing yards allowed per game and third in rushing yards per game, should smother them.

Carolina wins.

Pittsburgh (4-6) at Cleveland (4-6)

The Steelers started off slow but are picking up steam as the season goes on. They have won two consecutive games and four out of their past six.

Meanwhile, the Browns have lost four out of their past five games.

Cleveland is 3-2 at home this season, but momentum seems to be in Pittsburgh's favor. The turnover battle should come into play in this game. Last week the Steelers caused three turnovers against the Lions, while Cleveland turned the ball over four times, including three interceptions.

Pittsburgh wins.

Chicago (6-4) at St. Louis (4-6)

Josh McCown has fared well for the Bears this year. He's got 754 yards passing in four games, to go with five touchdowns and zero interceptions. The team is also 2-0 when he starts, and he'll be starting this weekend.

The Rams got a big win two weeks ago against the Colts and are coming off a bye week, but they are actually under .500 (2-3) at home.

Chicago wins.

New York Jets (5-5) at Baltimore (4-6)

The Jets have alternated wins and losses, but they have been dismal on the road this year (1-4).

The Jets are a game ahead of the Ravens in the standings, but Baltimore is 3-1 at home this year.

Geno Smith is second in the league in interceptions (16), while Joe Flacco is fifth (13). In away games, Smith has thrown 10 picks, while Flacco has only thrown two picks at home.

Baltimore wins.

Tennessee (4-6) at Oakland (4-6)

The Titans are awfully weak at defending the run. They are 20th in the league in rushing yards allowed per game and are tied for allowing the most rushing touchdowns (15) in the league.

The Raiders are fourth in the league in rushing yards per game and last week Rashad Jennings had 150 yards rushing and a touchdown. He's rushed for at least 100 yards and a touchdown in two of his past three games.

Oakland wins.

Indianapolis (7-3) at Arizona (6-4)

Since beating Denver and coming out of the bye, the Colts have not looked very sharp. They are 2-1 since beating the Broncos, but they needed comebacks to beat Houston and Tennessee by three points each and were demoralized by the Rams at home.

The Cardinals have won three straight and are 4-1 at home. Carson Palmer threw for 419 yards and two touchdowns in last week's win and it was the first game this season he hasn't thrown a pick.

The Colts are 21st in total yards allowed, while the Cardinals are eighth.

Arizona wins.

Dallas (5-5) at New York Giants (4-6)

The Cowboys looked like the strongest team in the NFC East a few weeks ago, but they've lost two of their past three games. Both losses came on the road and they are 1-4 on the road this season.

The Giants are hot, winning four in a row, three of which were at home. The Giants will have their work cut out for them later in the season with three road games in their final five, but right now they have all the momentum and home field advantage.

New York Giants win.

Denver (9-1) at New England (7-3)

The Broncos just knocked off the only undefeated team remaining in the league. They're first in passing yards for and first in points per game. I can see wide receiver Wes Welker having a big game against his former team.

The Patriots are and have been banged up defensively. They are 20th in the league in yards allowed per game.

The Pats are undefeated at home, but do they have the horses to keep up with the Broncos?

Denver wins.

San Francisco (6-4) at Washington (3-7)

For all the talk about the final (non)call in the New England-Carolina game last week, 49ers fans had plenty to gripe about as well with roughing the passer calls.

What's done is done, however, and the 49ers have now lost two consecutive games coming out of the bye week. Those were against teams with winning records. They won't have that same problem against the Redskins.

Washington has lost two in a row and there seems to be a slight rift in the team, mainly between quarterback RG3 and head coach Mike Shanahan.

The 49ers passing offense has struggled mightily this season, but facing the Redskins defense, ranked 26th in passing yards allowed per game, should help.

San Francisco wins.

Bye week: Buffalo, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Seattle

Last week: 11-4

Overall: 102-60

Photo Credit.
Larry Fitzgerald and Carson Palmer: AP Photo/Matt York

NFL Week 12 Picks

Thursday on Twitter I picked the Texans over the Lions, the Cowboys over the Redskins and the Patriots over the Jets.

Minnesota over CHICAGO

CINCINNATI over Oakland

CLEVELAND over Pittsburgh

INDIANAPOLIS over Buffalo

Denver over KANSAS CITY

MIAMI over Seattle

Atlanta over Tampa Bay

TENNESSEE over Jacksonville

Baltimore over SAN DIEGO

ARIZONA over St. Louis

NEW ORLEANS over San Francisco

Green Bay over NEW YORK GIANTS

PHILADELPHIA over Carolina

Last Week: 13-1

Season: 103-56

NFL Week 12 Picks: Is This the Week the Colts Finally Win?

On Thanksgiving I picked the Packers, Dolphins and Ravens on Twitter.

Houston over JACKSONVILLE

NEW YORK JETS over Buffalo

CINCINNATI over Cleveland

ATLANTA over Minnesota

ST. LOUIS over Arizona

INDIANAPOLIS over Carolina

Tampa Bay over TENNESSEE

Chicago over Oakland

SEATTLE over Washington

SAN DIEGO over Denver

New England over PHILADELPHIA

Pittsburgh over Kansas City

NEW ORLEANS over New York Giants

This Week: 2-1

Last Week: 11-3

Season: 101-60

Photo Credits.

Reggie Wayne: AP Photo/AJ Mast

NFL Week 12 Picks

AP Photo/John Marshall Mantel

Thanksgiving gives us three games this week on Thursday, and for being fans, the NFL has thanked us with some really fantastic matchup on Monday night between the undefeated Saints and the New England Patriots, as well as some other good matchups between division rivals Pittsburgh and Baltimore, and the Giants against the Broncos.

For me, I’m thankful that all you guys take the time out of your day to read my stuff.

Enjoy the holiday!

Green Bay (6-4) at Detroit (2-8)

Detroit and rookie quarterback showed some gut and guile to come back and beat Cleveland as time expired.

Stafford was incredible, coming back after injuring his shoulder to throw for 422 yards and four touchdowns.

Still, I believe he is extremely banged up and will be hurting against the Packers, who will be coming at him hard.

Green Bay’s passing defense is ranked seventh in the NFL and they have the fourth most interceptions.

I like Green Bay to win this game.

Oakland (3-7) at Dallas (7-3)

Oakland QB Bruce Gradkowski didn’t look too bad in place of JaMarcus Russell in Sunday’s win over the Bengals. His 73.5 passer rating was better than all but one of Russell’s games (85.4 week five against the Giants), and he led a game-tying drive that he capped off with his second touchdown pass of the day (compared to his one interception).

The Cowboys scored only one touchdown for the second week in a row.

Still, they were able to win the game. Another bright spot: Marion Barber rushed for 99 yards, the first time he’s rushed for more than 53 yards since week two, when he ran for 124 yards against the Giants.

Oakland has the third worst ranked rushing defense and they have given up the most rushing touchdowns. If Marion Barber is truly back to form, then he should have a field day, especially at home.

I predict the Cowboys to win.

NY Giants (6-4) at Denver (6-4)

The Giants are a team that got back on track last week. Denver is a team that continued its horrific slide.

In their four game losing streak, Denver has only scored more than ten points once. They are currently ranked 25th in the NFL in points per game, while the Giants are tied for sixth (conversely the Giants are tied for 23rd in points allowed, while Denver is seventh).

Denver’s inability to score points lately, or really throughout the whole season, is discouraging.

I’ll take the Giants to win.

Tampa Bay (1-9) at Atlanta (5-5)

Atlanta is on a mini-slide, losing four out of their last five games. Tampa Bay is on a season-long slide.

Tampa is also winless in six tries against conference opponents (0-2 in the division), whereas the Falcons are 4-4.

Atlanta finally gets to settle in at the Georgia Dome, as they start a three game home stretch and play four out of their final six at home.

Falcons win.

Miami (5-5) at Buffalo (3-7)

Buffalo no longer has the worst rush defense. They are now second to Tampa Bay.
Miami’s strength all season has been the running game, and they proved that last Thursday against Carolina. Ricky Williams had a spectacular night, rushing for 119 yards and two touchdowns, as well as catching one.

The last time these two teams squared off in week three, Miami went off for 38 points, 250 rushing yards, and three rushing touchdowns.

Miami’s confidence is building. Buffalo’s, if they had any, is absolutely crumbling.

Dolphins win.

Cleveland (1-9) at Cincinnati (7-3)

Cleveland surprised everyone by scoring 37 points. Still, they lost.

Cincinnati handed Oakland a victory. Still, they are in first place in the AFC North.

The Bengals seem to be a team that plays to their competition. The first time these two teams met, the Bengals needed OT to win.

Still, I only consider last weeks loss a minor setback, as this team has played tough all season, whether it's pretty or not.

The same can't be said for Cleveland.

Bengals win.

Carolina (4-6) at NY Jets (4-6)

The Jets rush defense is average, ranked 16th, and will have their hands full with the NFL’s fourth best rusher DeAngelo Williams.

However, Jets RB Thomas Jones is ranked sixth in the NFL while Carolina’s rush defense is miserable, ranked 26th in the entire league.

If the Jets really utilize Jones against such a weak rush defense, they can limit the pressure on rookie QB Mark Sanchez and the amount of turnovers he causes. They will also dominate time of possession (Jones is strong at pounding the ball up the middle) and neutralize Williams.

Jets win.

Washington (3-7) at Philadelphia (6-4)

Washington almost came away with its first win streak of the season last week against the Cowboys. They were winning for the majority of the game (actually until 2:41 left in the fourth quarter) and only allowed one touchdown. However their offense could only muster up two field goals. That won’t cut it against the Eagles.

The Eagles have been held to less than 10 points only once this season; the Redskins have been held to under 10 points three times. The Eagles are tied for sixth in the NFL in points per game; the Redskins are 29th.

Eagles win.

Indianapolis (10-0) at Houston (5-5)

Houston is 1-14 all-time against the Colts. They have a losing record at home (2-3) this season and against the division (1-3). Last time they met a Kris Brown missed field goal as time expired prevented the teams from needing OT. Houston also played Monday night in week 11, so the Colts will have one extra day of rest and preparation for this matchup. It’s all enough for me to not see an upset here.

Colts win.

Seattle (3-7) at St. Louis (1-9)

A winnable game for St. Louis, but this team is just so bad.

These teams met in week one and the Seahawks pounded the Rams 28-0. Not much has changed. St. Louis has failed to score more than a touchdown three more times throughout the season.

The Rams offense is ranked 26th in the league, and if it wasn’t for Steven Jackson, the NFL’s second leading rusher, it may possibly be the worst offense.

Seattle will win.

Kansas City (3-7) at San Diego (7-3)

When you’re hot you’re hot.

San Diego has won five games in a row. In three of those five wins, they have scored 31 points or more. All season they have yet to score less than 21.

Also LaDanian Tomlinson has become a relevant player again, leading the team in rushing in eight of the Chargers’ 10 games this season. He’s scored a touchdown in three of his last four games, twice scoring two touchdowns. He’s also only lost one fumble this year.

Kansas City is tied for 25th in the league in points allowed.

This does not look good for the Chiefs. Chargers win.

Jacksonville (6-4) at San Francisco (4-6)

For a 6-4 team, Jacksonville is perplexing. They have scored only 199 points this season, while giving up 235. They’ve benefitted from strong play at home and are surprisingly 5-2 against the AFC.

However San Francisco is 0-3 against the AFC, and only 1-4 against teams with winning records this year (and that win was in week one against Arizona, who has gotten significantly better since the opening week).

I’m not crazy about them, but I like the Jaguars to win.

Arizona (7-3) at Tennessee (4-6)

Arizona had a rough start to the season, but the defending NFC champions are 6-1 since their week four bye.

Tennessee, however, is 4-0 since inserting Vince Young as the starting QB. In those four games they have scored at least 20 points each time and in three of those games they scored at least 30.

Still, Tennessee is also 30th in the league in points per game allowed while Arizona is tenth in the league is points scored per game.

The Cardinals are also 5-0 on the road and surprisingly have a winning record against the AFC (2-1).

Arizona wins.

Chicago (4-6) at Minnesota (9-1)

Minnesota is +6 in the turnover battle over the season, while the Bears are -3 thanks to Jay Cutler leading the NFL in interceptions thrown (18).

Minnesota is also 5-0 at home, 4-0 against the division, and 7-0 in the conference. In comparison, Chicago is 1-4 on the road, 1-1 in the division, and 2-5 against the conference.

Vikings win.

Pittsburgh (6-4) at Baltimore (5-5)

Both teams suffered rough losses last week, but are still fighting for spots in the playoffs.

Pittsburgh has the top ranked defense (Baltimore is ninth) and the sixth ranked offense (Baltimore is 13th).

The Steelers haven’t lost three games in a row since the 2006 season. They’ve had their struggles this season, but overall, the Steelers have been the stronger team out of the two.

I predict the Steelers to win.

New England (7-3) at New Orleans (10-0)

What a good matchup we have for Monday Night Football this week.

This is the toughest opponent New Orleans will face on their way to possibly finishing the regular season 16-0, and one would think the team that would most want to knock them off would be the only team to finish a season 16-0—the Patriots.

One huge difference between these two teams, though, is their attitude in the fourth quarter and their ability to close games.

The Patriots have outscored their opponent in the fourth quarter 55-45 and in two of their three losses they were winning going into the fourth quarter (to be fair Denver did need overtime to finish New England off). However, the Saints have outscored their opponents 105-24 in the final period.

To continue with the teams’ fourth quarter, New England has shut out their opponent in the fourth quarter five times while New Orleans has accomplished that six times. Even more impressive though is that while the Patriots have been held scoreless in the fourth three times, New Orleans has made sure they put points on the board in the final quarter in every game this season.

Also alarming for the Patriots is that they are 1-3 on the road, while New Orleans is 5-0 at home.

I will pick the Saints to win this one.

Last week: 14-2

Season: 88-40