[/center]GAME OF THE WEEK - Kansas City Chiefs (9-0) at Denver Broncos (8-1), DEN by 8 - This is the game that everybody's been waiting for. The biggest test that the Chiefs have faced all season, as well as probably the biggest that the Broncos have faced (outside of traveling to Indy). Both of these teams have played cupcake schedules, yet for some reason the Chiefs are the only ones facing any criticism for that. Stupid. I'm anticipating a close game here. However, two things play to an advantage for the Broncos: number one, they're at home, and a rowdy home Mile High Stadium crowd on Sunday Night with a HUGE division matchup is nothing to sneeze at. Number two, the Chiefs' star wide receiver Dwayne Bowe was just arrested on drug possession charges, so who knows how that will affect his status for this game. I'm personally of the opinion that these two teams will split the season series and the Chiefs will wind up winning the division, but who knows. Can't wait to see this game. Broncos 24, Chiefs 23
THURSDAY NIGHT - Indianapolis Colts (6-3) at Tennessee Titans (4-5), IND by 3 - What the fuck happened to both of these teams last week? Talk about embarrassing. The Colts got absolutely shellacked, and the Titans lost to what I'd thought was the worst team in NFL history. The Titans may be without Jake Locker for the rest of the season. For the Colts, it was probably just a one week hiccup. I'd expect them to rebound here. Colts 31, Titans 13
Atlanta Falcons (2-7) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-8), ATL by 1.5 - I still don't understand how Atlanta got so bad so quickly. It makes almost no sense. The Buccaneers have lost a lot of games this year and they're a mess as an organization, but at least they've been competitive in most of their action. I'm actually going to go with the minor upset here and pick the Bucs at home. UPSET! - Bucs 27, Falcons 20
New York Jets (5-4) at Buffalo Bills (3-7), BUF by 1.5 - Boy, the Jets really don't get any respect, do they? At this point they're in the driver's seat for the final AFC playoff spot, but they're still underdogs to a team that's lost three more games than they have. Granted, Buffalo isn't a pushover and they're playing at home, but I think it's a disservice to the Jets not to have them favored. Plus, it's an odd week, and the Jets always win on odd weeks in 2013! haha. UPSET! - Jets 20, Bills 16
Detroit Lions (6-3) at Pittsburgh Steelers (3-6), DET by 2 - Boy, it would really be classic Lions for them to come out after a huge divisional victory and drop one on the road to the hapless Steelers. But these ain't your daddy's Lions. I think they take care of Pittsburgh and pretty much put the kibash on any hopes that the Steelers have for a comeback into playoff race relevancy. Lions 29, Steelers 14
Washington Redskins (3-6) at Philadelphia Eagles (5-5), PHI by 3.5 - Nick Foles has officially earned the starting nod for the rest of the season at QB in Philly, as well as he should. The Eagles are also the only team in NFL history to be .500 or better after 10 games without having won a single game at home. In fact, it's been more than a calendar year since the Eagles last won a game at home. I'm guessing that streak comes to an end this week. Eagles 31, Redskins 27
San Diego Chargers (4-5) at Miami Dolphins (4-5), SD by 1.5 - The Dolphins' offensive line is an absolute mess right now both on the field and off of it, and Ryan Tannehill has already broken the franchise record for sacks taken in a season with SEVEN GAMES LEFT! Insane. This is a must-have game for both of these teams, as they're likely going to be competing for the final wild card spot against each other. The winner gets the all-important tiebreaker. With the Dolphins in shambles organizationally, expect the Chargers to take advantage. Chargers 23, Dolphins 20
Baltimore Ravens (4-5) at Chicago Bears (5-4), CHI by 3 - The Bears absolutely should not have played Jay Cutler at quarterback last week - it was clear from the get go that he was hurting too much to be able to be effective. Now, he may have aggravated his injury and the Bears could be in an even worse position than before. With the playoff race in the NFC heating up, the Bears need this game to stay in it. Meanwhile, the Ravens are still hanging around in the wild card race for the AFC after a surprise win over the Bengals last week. It wasn't pretty, but they got it done. I don't expect a pretty game at all this week, but given my own bias and the direction that both of these teams seem to be heading, I'm taking the Ravens. UPSET! - Ravens 26, Bears 20
Cleveland Browns (4-5) at Cincinnati Bengals (6-3), CIN by 5.5 - The Browns have had two weeks to prepare for the Bengals and are a completely different team without Brandon Weeden at quarterback. The Bengals have lost their best defensive player and Andy Dalton has apparently regressed back to underwhelming levels. The Bengals should absolutely win this game, but I'm in an upset mood right now and could definitely see the rested Browns coming in and raining on their parade, causing some sudden panic in Cincy about whether the Bengals will actually be able to seal the deal on a division title. UPSET! - Browns 24, Bengals 21
Oakland Raiders (3-6) at Houston Texans (2-7), HOU by 7 - The Texans, like the Falcons, are one of those teams where it's impossible to understand how they've fallen apart so quickly. The Raiders have been extremely hard to predict this season. Every once in a while they'll come out with a really impressive performance that makes you think they're turning the corner, but then they drop a complete dud. I really have no idea what to say, but I guess I'll go with Oakland. UPSET! Raiders 27, Texans 17
Arizona Cardinals (5-4) at Jacksonville Jaguars (1-8), ARZ by 7 - The Cardinals have vaulted themselves into the wild card race in the NFC, and yet not a soul is talking about them. Not that I think they'll actually get to the playoffs, just found that interesting. Regardless of their victory over the Titans last week, I still think the Jaguars are easily the worst team in the NFL at the moment. I'll take the Cardinals to win. Cardinals 30, Jaguars 10
Minnesota Vikings (2-7) at Seattle Seahawks (9-1), SEA by 13.5 - Percy Harvin gets healthy just in time to face his old team... imagine that
. This will most likely be a slaughter, and while I'm no Seahawks fan, I'm always down for watching the Vikings get shitcanned. Seahawks 41, Vikings 9San Francisco 49ers (6-3) at New Orleans Saints (7-2), NO by 3 - If San Francisco wants any hope of a division title, it's going to need to win this game. Unfortunately, the Saints are nearly impossible to beat at home when they've got a capable defense, and this Rob Ryan-led squad has been excellent this season so far. In a game where Drew Brees is going to be throwing and throwing and throwing, the 49ers' 32nd-ranked passing attack is going to be a sure liability. Saints 34, 49ers 13
Green Bay Packers (5-4) at New York Giants (3-6), NYG by 6.5 - The Giants have quietly won three straight and shockingly enough are not yet out of it in the NFC East. The Packers are in full-on desperation mode, having dropped two straight after being hit with the injury bug harder than any team in NFL history. Scott Tolzien played some solid football in relief of Seneca Wallace in relief of Aaron Rodgers, but the Packers' defense is the true concern here. The safety play has been abysmal, and they as a defense have completely given up each of the last two weeks. I think the Packers get sent their death blow this week, unfortunately. Amazing how just eight days ago I had faith that this team was Super Bowl bound. Giants 42, Packers 17
New England Patriots (7-2) at Carolina Panthers (6-3), CAR by 2.5 - Really interesting matchup here. It was one thing to see the Panthers take down the 49ers. But can they compete with a team coached by Bill Belichick and quarterbacked by Tom Brady? We're going to find out a lot about the Panthers' potential as contenders this week. If they win this game, expect a whole lot of Super Bowl hype to suddenly start floating around this team. But I never like to bet against the Patriots, especially when they're coming off a bye. UPSET! - Patriots 31, Panthers 24
BYES: Dallas Cowboys, St. Louis Rams
