Sunday, November 20, 2016

Week 11: This is the World that We Live In

Tom Brady good. Colin Kaepernick bad. That is the boys'
detailed analysis of the Pats-49ers Week 11 matchup.
With the landscape of the NFL changing, the game projections become all the more complicated. The Chiefs and Raiders are two of the best teams in the AFC. The Lions are outclassing the Packers and Vikings. And the Titans are in prime position to win a terrible AFC South.

This is the world that we live in. Here we go.

Stally's Seven-Point Pick
New England over @San Francisco

Stally: The Patriots struggled against the Seahawks, but are still one of the Super Bowl front runners. There's no way they lose to 1-8 San Francisco.

Austen: My head will explode if the 49ers beat the Patriots. The Pats might have to lose 2-3 quarterbacks to injuries for the 49ers to even have a shot. 

Austen's Seven-Point Pick
Pittsburgh over @Cleveland

Austen: The Steelers have been playing well below where they need to be playing if they are going to make the playoffs, but the Browns are no match to the Steelers, no matter how poorly they play. 

Stally: The Browns aren't going to win a game this season, so keep picking against them with full confidence.


Stally's Six-Point Pick
@Seattle over Philadelphia

Stally: The Seahawks looked good in New England last week ... really good.  (And I would know because I was there.)

Austen: This is going to be a close game, and a real fun one to watch. However, I think the Seahawks at home are always a safe bet. 

Austen's Six-Point Pick
@Kansas City over Tampa Bay

Austen: I've said it once, I'll say it again, no team has won more games than the Chiefs since they started the 2015 season 1-5. They are fighting to be the top team in the AFC and they will not falter against a mediocre Bucs team at home. 

Stally: The Chiefs have quietly become one of the elite teams in the AFC.

Stally's Five-Point Pick
Oakland over Houston (in Mexico City)

Stally: Having lived in LA, I remember a lot of Mexican immigrants being Raiders fans.  I wonder if that translates over to Mexico City.  Either way, these two teams are headed in opposite directions as franchises.  The Raiders will win over more Mexican fans with a lopsided win.

Austen: Just like the Chiefs, the Raiders are playing for the top seed in the AFC. I cannot believe that is a sentence that I am typing, but this is the world we live in. Brock Osweiler is one of the worst starting quarterbacks not just this season, but in the history of the NFL. He will not be able to keep up with the Raiders. 

Austen's Five-Point Pick
@Dallas over Baltimore

Austen: Best record in football at home? I'll take Dallas over a Ravens team, despite the Ravens' impressive run as of late. Don't over think this one too much. 

Stally: It's tough to pick against the Cowboys these days.  The rookies are impressive!

Stally's Four-Point Pick
@New York Giants over Chicago

Stally: Ok, ok, I'm finally coming to terms that the Giants are a decent team ... and the Bears clearly are not.

Austen: No Alshon Jeffery means that this Bears' offense is going to be extremely limited in what they can do. The Giants defense is coming together and getting better every week. A road win for one of the worst teams in the NFL is tough to visualize. 

Austen's Four-Point Pick
@Detroit over Jacksonville

Austen: Picking against the Jags week after week has been one of the few things that I have done right this season on this blog. I'll keep that streak going until further notice. 

Stally: The Lions are now the division leaders in the NFC North, and I expect that to last through this week as well.

Stally's Three-Point Pick
Arizona over @Minnesota

Stally: The Vikings are turning back into pumpkins quickly.  The Cardinals aren't as good as last year, but should keep the Minnesota free fall going.

Austen: The start to the Vikings season seems like a mirage. After starting 5-0, they have yet to win a game since their bye week. This is one of the worst offenses in the league, lead by a historically inept rushing attack. If the Cardinals lose this game, we can officially write them off as a playoff team. 

Austen's Three-Point Pick
@Cincinnati over Buffalo

Austen: I feel like a 1pm game at home is exactly the type of game where Andy Dalton looks like Tom Brady. The Bills struggle against Tom Brady, so I'll take the Bengals in a game that reeks of playoff implications. 

Stally: I'm taking the Bills.  The Bengals just aren't nearly as good as I thought they were.

Stally's Two-Point Pick
@Carolina over New Orleans

Stally: I got this one correct on Thursday night, but Carolina did its best to blow a 23-3 lead and barely held on.

Austen: I stand by not putting any amount of faith in either of these teams. It always comes down to the 4th quarter with these two, and both are bad in the 4th. 

Austen's Two-Point Pick
@Washington over Green Bay

Austen: Since starting off the season slow, the Redskins have been red hot. This offense is humming, and it gets a juicy matchup against one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL. This is going to be a crazy high scoring game, and right now I have more faith in the Kirk Cousins' lead Redskins than the Aaron Rodgers' led Packers. Again, this is the world we live in. 

Stally: Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers are both household names, but the team really isn't very good this year.

Stally's One-Point Pick
Tennessee over @Indianapolis

Stally: At 5-5, the Titans are playing some decent football.  I'll give them the nod over an Indianapolis team that has been far from impressive.

Austen: All I know about this game is that there are going to be a lot of points scored. The Titans have been great as of late, but Andrew Luck is 8-0 against the Titans in his career. 

Austen's One-Point Pick
Miami over @Los Angeles

Austen: The Fins are mediocre and on an upswing, while the Rams are sub par and starting a rookie quarterback who has not looked ready to start an NFL game. The Dolphins are playing must win football for the rest of the season. 

Stally: Two weeks in a row that the final pick comes down to a snoozer of the Rams vs. some AFC East dwarf.  Last week, they beat the Jets 9-6.  This week, they'll beat the Dolphins.

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