Buffalo at Kansas City - The Chiefs lost a bad game last week, but Buffalo had an even worse weekend. Both teams are struggling, but Buffalo at least appears to be hitting the depths right now, and are dangerously close to being effectively eliminated from playoff contention. KC is struggling, having won one game following an impressive 5-0 start. They once had a big, almost seemingly insurmountable lead in the AFC West, but the Raiders and Chargers seem to be getting hot. Now, the Chiefs absolutely need to win, and a weak and floundering Bills team should be just the tonic that they need. My pick: Kansas City
Carolina at N.Y. Jets - Some people are picking the Jets to upset the Panthers. Indeed, Gang Green has been playing surprisingly impressively all season long. But the Panthers seem like an elite team again this year, and they have everything to play for. They are in a wildcard spot at the moment, but only trail the first place Saints by a game. And they have produced some impressive wins, and seem to get the most important wins when they need it. Probably this is a relatively low scoring game, but in the end, it seems to me that the better overall team should win. Personally, I am guessing that will not be the home team. My pick: Carolina
Chicago at Philadelphia - The Eagles are the hottest team in the league right now, with the best overall record of 9-1. The Bears, by contrast, feel like a team losing momentum that they had a few weeks ago. And this game will be played in Philly, to boot. The Eagles have a red hot offense, and seem especially tough at home. This one could get ugly. Frankly, I do not see many reasons to think that Chicago would have a real shot to pull off an upset. My pick: Philadelphia
Cleveland at Cincinnati - The battle of Ohio teams again. Bengals are not a very good team, but the Browns, once again, look like the worst team in the NFL. It feels like they have been that, or near that, for a long time. Cleveland has one of the worst offenses in the league, and their defense is hardly much better. And they are running out of time once again to produce their first win. My best guess is that they will fall short in this game as well, too, as the Bengals keep their playoff hopes, which are on life support, intact for at least one more week. My pick: Cincinnati
Miami at New England - The Patriots are loaded with experience and talent, and their coach might just be the best in NFL history. They are especially tough to beat at home, and this game is up in Foxboro, with less than a week to go before December. The Dolphins are a warm weather team, and have not been particularly impressive. Their offense has been particularly limited. This one should be a cakewalk for the defending champ Pats. My pick: New England
Tampa Bay at Atlanta - The Falcons are getting hot, while Tampa Bay's season has been over for quite some time. Atlanta's offense once again seems to be fine tuning for a playoff run, while the Bucs are to rebuild for next season, and playing for pride for the remainder of this season. It is doubtful that pride will be enough. With the Falcons enjoying home field advantage, and in need of a win, this one should be in the bag for them. My pick: Atlanta
Tennessee at Indianapolis - This is a big game for the Titans, who need a win to keep up with Jacksonville, let the Jaguars pull even further ahead in the race for the AFC South. Tennessee lost a bad game last week, and so they need to bounce back this week, especially since they are playing a bad team. Yes, this is a road game, and the Colts have been decent at home. But if the Titans are to make a serious run to the playoffs, then these are the kinds of games that they need to win, because they are the better team in this game. If they do not win, you have to begin to seriously wonder how much better they are supposed to be than the Colts, and if they are ready for a serious run for the postseason. Now, I cannot say for certain that the Titans will in fact make the playoffs, but my suspicion is that they will make a serious run, but they first need to win this game in order to do it. My pick: Tennessee
Seattle at San Francisco - The 49ers finally got their win two weeks ago against the Giants, but they have a harder test this week. The Seahawks come to town, and the Niners will have their hands full. Seattle has admittedly been sputtering, not winning with the consistency that many expected from them. However, they urgently need a win, and this is precisely the kind of game that might help them to recover enough to get back on track. My pick: Seattle
Denver at Oakland - The Raiders need a win, and the Broncos are really struggling. Denver has not won a game in nearly two months! And Oakland has to win to keep their playoff hopes alive, which means that they cannot overlook this game. It is strange to see the Broncos quite this bad, because I figured that they would be a lot better than this. But at it is, there is little reason to expect them to be able to pull off what would be a truly surprising, even shocking, upset here! My pick: Oakland
Jacksonville at Arizona - The Jaguars are trying desperately to cling to their narrow lead in the AFC South. They have won four straight, and they should be able to produce a solid win today against the Cardinals out in Arizona later today. Why? The Cards just are not that good, and have not played up to their potential in either of the last two seasons. Their playoff hopes are just about dead, and they really have little to play for against a likely extremely motivated opponent. My pick: Jacksonville
New Orleans at L.A. Rams - For the second straight weekend, the Rams will take on another elite team, in a battle of first place NFC teams. Last weekend, the Rams fell far short at Minnesota. Now, they take on the Saints, who are tied with the Eagles for the longest active win streak in the league, with eight straight. But the Saints looked vulnerable against Washington, and you have to guess that they are bound to lose a game sooner or later, right? Indeed, a trip to the west coast to face the still first place Rams will be a tough one, but frankly, I could see either team winning. Ultimately, though, I suspect that home field advantage means something, and could be the difference in this one. My pick: L.A. Rams
Sunday Night Football - Green Bay at Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh is one of the hottest teams in the league right now. They are tied with New England in the race for home field advantage in the AFC playoffs, and are especially tough at home. This week, they take on a usually greatly reduced team in the Packers without Aaron Rodgers. Green Bay has produced exactly one win, and they just have not looked like a playoff caliber team since Rodgers got injured. Little reason to expect them to pull off an upset in the Steel City tonight. My pick: Pittsburgh
Monday Night Football - Houston at Baltimore - The Ravens are a strange team, completely lacking in consistency. The Texans are hardly any more consistent than Baltimore is, though. Both teams need this win in a big way to keep their flickering playoff hopes alive. But I am guessing that the Ravens, who have been hotter of late, will play closer to their capabilities. It would be hard to pick against Baltimore in this one. My pick: Baltimore
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