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Okay, so here we are now, in the final month of the NFL regular season. One of the relatively rare things that we are seeing is one unbeaten team, the 11-0 Pittsburgh Steelers, still undefeated after the first three months, while we also have the last remaining winless team, the New York Jets. To have two such polar opposites this late into the same season really is quite unusual. I can only remember one other season, back in 2007, when there were two teams that went this far in such opposite directions. And back then, the two teams were in the same division! That was the year when the New England Patriots famously completed their perfect regular season, while the Miami Dolphins flirted with a winless season, dropping their first 13 games, before finally beating the Baltimore Ravens for what turned out to be their one and only win of the season. Meanwhile, the Patriots went undefeated right into the Super Bowl, but famously (or infamously, depending on your viewpoint) lost in the final minute of that game to the Giants.
Can the Steelers also remain undefeated through the regular season? History says no, because only two teams in the Super Bowl era have managed that feat: the 1972 Miami Dolphins, and the aforementioned 2007 New England Patriots. But who will beat them, then? It seems more likely than not that they will lose, perhaps at Buffalo in a couple of weeks, and failing that, maybe in Cleveland in the final week. But they actually might have a tough time this weekend, coming off an unimpressive win against the much weakened Ravens, and now facing a very short week before facing the Washington Football Team this weekend.
How about the Jets? Will they finally win a game? They will host the Raiders, who looked absolutely awful in last week’s blowout, and rather humiliating, loss to the Falcons in Atlanta. Are they perhaps vulnerable? Can Gang Green end their now historically bad start with an upset over the silver and black?
Plus, there are plenty of other intriguing games involving teams battling to remain relevant in the playoffs. There are other teams that are trying to win their division titles. Both the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers appear to be on the cusp of exactly that. Then there are other teams that feel their once promising season slipping away, and will fight to try and keep the hope alive, at least for one more week.
The season is in the final weeks now, and this is where it grows in intensity.
So, now let’s take a look at the games scheduled for this first weekend in December:
Las Vegas at NY Jets – The Jets are winless as we enter December. They are off to the worst start in franchise history. And this week might offer a halfway decent chance for them to finally earn their first win of the season. That’s because the Raiders, who looked like a possible division champion contender just a couple of weeks ago, have now lost two games in a row. They are now basically out of the running for the AFC West title, and even their playoff chances have taken a serious hit. They lost last week in Atlanta, but it was not so much that they lost, but how they lost that game. The Falcons absolutely humiliated the Raiders last week, which ad to be absolutely demoralizing. But the Raiders also must feel that this game against the Jets comes at an opportune time, as they were really hurting. Las Vegas has a good offense that should really test the Gang Green defense. Even if the Raiders do not have their best game, they might not need to score a ton of points, because the Jets have the worst rated offense in the league. They have scored 20 points or more only three times this season. Then again, the Raiders defense has hardly ranked among the elites. This should be a close contest, but again, at this point, Gang Green has made it virtually impossible to actually predict them to win any of their games. So that means that I have to go with the silver and black on the road for the win. My pick: Las Vegas
Detroit at Chicago – The two bottom teams in the NFC North square off. Neither of these teams are likely going to the playoffs, barring some kind of a miracle. But one of these teams is bound to win this one. The Bears have lost five straight games, going from a seemingly powerhouse team at 5-1, to a team that is very much on the outside of the playoff picture, looking in, and needing a lot of help. But first, they have to help themselves by actually snapping their present losing streak. In come the Detroit Lions, who are used to perennially being a disappointing team, and this year is no different. They could win this, because they seem to play well at unexpected times. But sooner or later, the Bears will snap this streak, and my guess is that it will be this week at home against the lowly Lions. My pick: Chicago
Cleveland at Tennessee – Two of the better teams in the AFC square off. The Browns have finally obtained a solid record at 8-3. The Titans are coming off a huge road win and now have taken over first place in the AFC South, so they are fired up and surely brimming with confidence. Cleveland has been impressive, too, of course. But they also have been having some problems on their offensive end lately, and it feels like the Titans are recovering from an earlier bad streak themselves, and finding surer footing. So, my pick will have to be with the home team in this one. My pick: Tennessee
Indianapolis at Houston – Last week’s home loss to the Titans had to be a crushing loss for the Colts. But they have to get back up and keep fighting, because they still are very much in the running for a playoff spot, and even still could win the division. The Texans have recovered from a very poor start to the season, and have looked much better in recent weeks. But this game is too important for the Colts, who should emerge with the win here. My pick: Indianapolis
New Orleans at Atlanta – The Falcons just earned a huge, blowout win against the Raiders last weekend, and have looked good since a really bad start to the season. But right now, few teams can match how hot New Orleans has gotten. Indeed, the Saints seem to be running on all cylinders right now, having pulled off eight straight wins. They have basically locked up the NFC South title, and also enjoy the best record in the NFC right now. Yet, they still need to win to secure home field advantage. Historically, the Falcons have enjoyed frustrating the Saints many times during their history together, but I think that this Saints team should be better than those past failures. So, my pick goes with the Saints. My pick: New Orleans
Jacksonville at Minnesota – The Vikings had one bad miss in the last month or so, when they lost to the Cowboys. But otherwise, they have won four of five games and look hot. They host the Jaguars, who have lost ten straight and just look awful right now. This one should be a win for the Vikings. My pick: Minnesota
Cincinnati at Miami – This is kind of a mismatch. The Bengals are really struggling this season, while the Dolphins are soaring towards the playoffs. Depending on what happens on Monday Night between the Bills and 49ers, the Dolphins could earn a tie atop the AFC East this weekend, but they obviously must win this one first, which they will. My pick: Miami
NY Giants at Seattle – Oh, man! As a Giants fan, I am happy that they have won three in a row and managed to climb their way to a first-place tie with Washington in the NFC East. But going on the road to Seattle? That’s rough. They actually have a shot to pull off a major upset, but that is exactly what it would be. The G-Men are hot, so that helps. But the Seahawks have been one of the best and most consistent teams in the NFC this year, and they tend to be especially tough at home. So while I hope this guess is wrong, it is hard to pick against the home team in this one. My pick: Seattle
LA Rams at Arizona – The Rams just got swept by the 49ers for a second year in a row, and lost their share of the NFC West lead. Yet, here they are in another big division showdown, this time against the Cardinals. The Rams seem like an up and down, fairly inconsistent team this year. But then again, so does Arizona, as they have dropped three of their last four after an impressive 5-2 start to the season. This should be a tight, close game, and it could go in either direction. But in the end, I think the Rams should be ever so slightly be better. My pick: LA Rams
Philadelphia at Green Bay – The Eagles feel dangerously close to being in a free fall. And this game at Green Bay is not a good way to try and bounce back from a bad streak. The Packers might not be invincible. After all, they did struggle against the Jaguars at home not long ago, and outright lost to the Vikings at Lambeau. Still, Green Bay is not usually an overly friendly place for road teams, especially ones who have not been playing well, like the Eagles. Hard to picture Philly pulling this one off, so I have to go with the home team. My pick: Green Bay
New England at LA Chargers – Well, the Patriots might not be the same team that they have been in recent seasons. Yet, they are 5-6, and if they can manage to defeat the Chargers on the road, they will get back to even, with an outside chance at making a run at the playoffs. The postseason might seem unlikely, but the Pats are still capable of winning some games, especially against a relatively weak team, which the Chargers are. Belichick will likely have something cooked up for this one. My pick: New England
Sunday Night Football: Denver at Kansas City – Things are going very well right now for the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs, thank you very much. They have one of the most explosive offenses in the league, and even their defense ranks among the relative elites. Of course, how much of that is just that their offense jumps ahead in such a big way early, making other offenses more predictable when they have to rely on throwing to try and mount a big comeback, is anyone’s guess. But right now, the Chiefs just look great, and possibly might be the best team in the league still. Plus, they have to try and keep winning, to keep in the race for home field advantage, as they trail Pittsburgh by just one game. The Broncos continue to have offensive problems, and their defense will have their hands full, to say the least. This should be a win for the champs. My pick: Kansas City
Monday Night Football Game 1: Washington at Pittsburgh – The leagues sole remaining unbeaten team has a short week before facing Washington, but the extra day helps. Washington is tied with the G-Men for first place, but that is in the lowly NFC East. This is a tough challenge for any team, going to Pittsburgh’s Heinz Field. Frankly, I think it is a bit too much for Washington, although I will say that the Steelers look ripe for an upset loss. They did not look great against the Ravens, and maybe, this could be the game where it all catches up to them. But based on what we have seen from these two teams thus far, it would be crazy to pick against the Steelers. My pick: Pittsburgh
Monday Night Football Game 2: Buffalo at San Francisco – A tough challenge for both teams. If this were in Buffalo in the month of December, then my pick would be with the Bills, fairly easily. But it will be in San Francisco – or rather, Santa Clara – and the 49ers looked good last weekend against the Rams. They still have an outside chance at the playoffs. Meanwhile, Buffalo is clinging to a narrow first place lead that the Dolphins clearly want a piece of, as well. But my guess is that this is a gut check for the Bills, and that they pull off an impressive road win here. My pick: Buffalo
Tuesday: Dallas at Baltimore – Neither team looks good right now, and both teams are in disarray, having lost numerous starters. But the Ravens, despite almost appearing like they are in free fall, held tough at Pittsburgh just a few days ago. If they play that tough again, they should be able to get past the ‘Boys in this one. My pick: Baltimore
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