NFL Week 10 Picks and Predictions
The week 9 picks rebounded to 11-3 and a season record of 86-46 so far. This week has some really interesting and hard to call games, so lets get started.
Oakland Raiders @ Baltimore Ravens – Ravens by 8. The Ravens are still 6-2. But everyone seems to have forgotten about them. They haven’t played great recently, but the defence is getting stronger and Joe Flacco is better at home than on the road. The Raiders, meanwhile, could come into this game with Taiwan Jones at running back, and he has barely touched the ball all season. Carson played well for most of last week, but it will be tough to carry the team into Baltimore and win.
Denver Broncos @ Carolina Panthers – Broncos by 9. The Panthers defence is hurt, while Peyton Manning and the Denver offence is playing well. If Cam Newton can be kept in the pocket and forced to make good throws then they won’t be able to score enough points to keep up. The only thing the Panthers have going for them is that some of them are playing for next season.
New York Giants @ Cincinnati Bengals – Giants by 10. A win here could separate the Giants from the rest of the NFC East at 7-3, with the winner of Dallas @ Philly at 4-5. They weren’t great against the Steelers last week, but the Bengals defence is not on the same level, and Andy Dalton isn’t Big Ben. The Bengals need to win here to keep their season alive, but the Giants should have too much talent.
Tennessee Titans @ Miami Dolphins – Miami by 8. The Titans were shocking last week against the Bears. Their defence is really poor and has struggled to stop anyone, so Reggie Bush and co ought to be able to move the ball well. Jake Locker looks to be back under centre which will help the offence improve, but it won’t be enough.
Detroit Lions @ Minnesota Vikings – Lions by 3. Will Christian Ponder be able to throw for more than 100 yards? He hasn’t managed it in two of their last three games. If the Lions can shut down Adrian Peterson (and that is a massive if) then they should be comfortable, but otherwise they will need to keep up the balanced offence that they found against the Jaguars. Joe Webb could see an outing today.
Buffalo Bills @ New England Patriots – Patriots by 13. After dropping 45 points on the Rams in London, New England has had a bye week to make adjustments and improve. Buffalo, meanwhile had a tough game against the Texans last week, and sit at 3-5. Their defence has struggled, and the offence has had too many turnovers. While the Patriots are still looking for a way to defend the deep pass (Talib is still suspended) they should be able to keep up the pressure on Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Atlanta Falcons @ New Orleans Saints – Saints by 2. The Saints are fighting back from a dreadful start, going 3-1 in their last four. While the Falcons are undefeated and controlled the Cowboys in prime time, this is a closer game than records would suggest. In the Superdome and against a division rival, the Saints have one of the best chances of spoiling the Falcons undefeated record.
San Diego Chargers @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Buccaneers by 5. Doug Martin was incredible last week, and while he won’t have the same numbers, he will find more joy against another AFC West team. Vincent Jackson could also come back to haunt the Chargers. It seems Norv Turner is still clinging on to his job, but there isn’t a lot of talent on this team. Beating up the Chiefs might have given them some good vibes, but this will be the real test of Turner’s job retention push.
New York Jets @ Seattle Seahawks – Seahawks by 6. The Jets are coming off a bye week, but Seattle is a tough place to play. The Jets drama just keeps rolling on, but they aren’t a good team, while the Seahawks have a good defence, strong power running game and Russell Wilson has played well at home.
Dallas Cowboys @ Philadelphia Eagles – Cowboys by 3. In terms of column inches, this is probably game of the week. Unfortunately for both these teams, those inches are devoted to which coach gets fired first. I think that Dallas will be able to make fewer mistakes and turnovers, so they will be able to win by default.
St Louis Rams @ San Francisco 49ers – 49ers by 12. The Rams defence had problems against New England last time out, and they will have to slow down the balanced and strong San Fran offence. Also, moving the ball for the Rams on offence will be incredibly hard against this 49ers defence.
Houston Texans @ Chicago Bears – Bears by 2. The Bears defence has been phenomenal this season, and are capable of winning games even when the offence isn’t firing. This is the best game of the week, especially the Houston rushing game and error-free offence against the turnover machine that is the Bears. Charles Tillman possibly missing the game could be the key factor in the game. JJ Watt against the Bears offensive line could be painful to watch. This could be a Superbowl preview, and both teams will want to put down a marker.
Kansas City Chiefs @ Pittsburgh Steelers – Steelers by 15. Another prime time pasting for the Chiefs. They are not moving the ball, can’t seem to stop people moving it on them. The sooner this season ends, the better. The only real question left for this team is if they pull out the late wins to lose out on the number 1 pick to the Jaguars.
Byes: Cleveland Browns, Washington Redskins, Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals.
