Brad's NFL Picks - Week 16 - 2010

Brad's Picks was 9-7 last week.

     the good from that:

San Diego 34, Forty Niners 7. Really, it wasn't that close.

Oakland 39, Broncos 23. Tim Tebow got his first NFL start, and produced a whopping 8 first downs. But also a miraculous 64 yard TD pass to Brandon Lloyd and a 40 yard TD run that was fun to watch.

Chiefs 27, St. Louis 13. It wasn't that close.

Dallas 33, Redskins 30. It was that close. Despite leading 30-14 at the end of the third quarter, Dallas needed a 39 yard field goal in the last minute to win.

Tennessee 31, Houston 17. Titans snapped a six game losing streak and kept their playoff hopes alive.

Carolina 19, Cardinals 12. Panthers snapped a 7 game losing streak with 4 field goals and a TD pass from Jimmiy Clausen.

Falcons 34, Seattle 18. 8 straight wins for the 12 - 2 Falcons.

New England 31, Packers 27. Closer than expected. How did the Patriots let rookie QB Matt Flynn go 24 - 37 - 1- 251 and three TD's? Really, if not for a 71 yard kick off return by a 315 pound offensive lineman (which led directly to a Patriots TD), the Patriots could easily have lost this game. Packers had the ball on the Patriots 15 yard line when young Mr. Flynn fumbled while being sacked. Bad call by the Packers - it was 4th and one and they tried a pass from the shotgun? So, game over, and the Patriots heaved a big sigh of relief.

Bears 40, Minnesota 14. Vikings made it 7-0 when Favre took them to a TD, a 23 yard pass to Percy Harvin, on the opening drive. That was pretty much it for the Vikings, though, as Favre got slammed into the frozen ground at the University of Minnesota stadium a little later and left the game.

     the rest after the jump:

     the bad:

Eagles 38, New York Giants 31. It was Giants 31, Eagles 10 with 8 minutes left in the game. As Yogi said, it ain't over til it's over.

Lions 23, Tampa Bay 20. OT. Lions ended a 26 game losing streak on the road. They did it with a 28 yard field goal in regulation as time expired, and then a 34 yard field goal 5 minutes into OT.

Cincinnati 19, Browns 17. Cedric Benso ran for 150 yards on 31 carries. Peyton Hills ran for 59 yards on 14 carries. Browns got a late TD to make it look closer than it was.

Bills 17, Miami 14. Fins are now 1 - 6 at home (6-1 on the road).

Baltimore 30, Saints 24. Saints first loss in six games. Also the first time in six games they failed to score at least 30 points.

Jets 22, Pittsburgh 17. Both teams are now 10-4, but surprisingly, the Steelers came out of the game to learn that they had clinched a playoff spot. Not so for the Jets.

     the ugly:

Undee 34, Jaguars 24. It's a real close tie between these two teams in the AFC South. Colts go to Oakland next week, while the Jags get the Reds at home. Then it's Jags at Houston and Titans at the Unplace.

     AFC went 4 - 0 against the NFC last week, so on the season it's AFC 33, NFC 27. Home teams won 9, Visitors won 7, so the total is H 124, V 100. Brad's Picks is 134 - 90.

     this week:

     the TNF game:

Carolina (2-12) at Pittsburgh (10-4) - Steelers clinched a playoff spot when they lost last week to the Jets, so will they muff this game? Probably not. They can still win the division over the 10-4 Ravens with wins over the Panthers and Cleveland. Gotta put your money on the Steelers.

      the Saturday 5:30 MST game:

Dallas (5-9) at Arizona (4-10) - Dallas hung on to beat the Redskins by three last week, while the Cards lost in Carolina by 7. That's the NFL for you. I'll take the Cowboys because Kitna is a pretty good quarterback and the Cardinals are bouncing between rookie QB's.

     the Sunday 11:00 MST games:

New England (12-2) at Buffalo (4-10) - Division game. Bills are one of the hottest teams in the league right now. After starting 8-0, they've gone 4-2 lately. But the Patriots are the hottest team.

New York Jets (10-4) at Chicago (10-4) - Bears are the first team to clinch a division title, after stomping the Vikings. Jets had a rough game in Pittsburgh, winning by 5. I'll take the Bears and their good defense..

Baltimore (10-4) at Cleveland (5-9) - Division game. Take Baltimore.

Washington (5-9) at Jacksonville (8-6) - Redskins are in a muddle, after McNabb was made the 3rd string QB. Rex Grossman was 25-43-322 and two INT's but also four TD's last week in Dallas. Not too bad, actually. But I'll take the Jags at home.

Tennessee (6-8) at Kansas City (9-5) - Chiefs at Arrowhead in December is usually a good bet.

Detroit (4-10) at Miami (7-7) - Dolphins are 1-6 at home (but you knew that). Lions won in Florida last week, but you knew that also. I picked the Dolphins to get a home win last week and got burned so won't do it again. I'm taking the Lions.

Minnesota (5-9) at Philadelphia (10-4) - Rookie QB Joe Webb did OK against the Bears last Monday night, going 15/26/129 but he had 2 INT's mixed in. He also ran 13 yards for a TD. But you got to take the Eagles here. Favre is almost certainly out.

San Francisco (5-9) at St. Louis (6-8) - Division game. Only Arizona is eliminated from playoff contention in this division. Rams got thumped at home by the Chiefs last week, but I think they win this one.

Seattle (6-8) at Tampa Bay (8-6) - Tampa lost in OT to the Lions last week, but I see a win here. Seahawks are pretty bad on the road.

     the 2:05 MST games:

Houston (5-9) at Denver (3-11) - Tim Tebow gets the start at QB again. Denver's defense is horrible and the Texans offense is pretty darn good.

Undiaplis (8-6) at Oakland (7-7) - Raiders are playing tough football. Colts got Austin Collie back last week after missing several games with a concussion, and he caught 8 for 87 in a win over the Jags. But alas, he suffered another concussion. Might be a muddy game in the rain. Only one of these teams is used to that.

     the 2:15 MST game:

New York Giants (9-5) at Green Bay (8-6) - Aaron Rodgers will probably be back after suffering a concussion a couple weeks ago - he's looked good in practice. Rookie Matt Flynn did pretty good last week, so if Rodgers can't go, Packers aren't in bad shape. Weather should be decent for this time of the year - mid-twenties, some clouds, maybe a little snow. Packers almost won at New England last week. I'm guessing they can beat the Giants. Should be a good game.

    the SNF game:

San Diego (8-6) at Cincinnati (3-11) - Terrell Owens is out with a knee injury. This opened the way for Cedric Benson to get the ball last week, and he responded with 150 yards on 31 carries. So I expect the Bengals to run it more than they have been, but I also expect the Chargers to win the game - they're playing really well, and they had an extra three days to get ready

     the MNF game - the last MNF of the season:

New Orleans (10-4) at Atlanta (12-2) - Division game. Could you ask for a better finale to MNF? Two really good teams. Falcons beat the Saints by three in Week Three. Falcons are 19-1 at home with Matt Ryan at QB. Both teams were on the road last week - Saints lost at Baltimore, Falcons won at Seattle. Gotta go with the Falcons.