NFL Week 13 Predictions

December means crunch time for a lot of people.  For college students, it means cramming for late-semester tests and final exams.  For many families, it means lots of frantic preparation and shopping for Christmas.  And for NFL teams, its do or die as the fight for the playoffs nears its exciting conclusion.  By this point, it's easy to see who most of the contenders and pretenders are.  Which teams will step up their game this week and make their case for a place in the postseason?

Thanksgiving weekend turned out to be a pretty good weekend for me, and not just because I got to spend a lot of time with my girlfriend and her family and take a trip to Asheville.  Last week was without a doubt my best week this season when it came to predicting the games, as I went an impressive 14-2 (2-1 on Thanksgiving Day, 13-1 the rest of the week) to bring me to 109-67 (61.9 %) on the season.  Like I've been doing the last few weeks, I'm just going to post my pick for Thursday's game tonight and get the rest later in the week.

Eagles over Seahawks

• Both of these teams have been pretty disappointing this season, though Philadelphia undoubtedly more so because of all the talented players on defense that they signed.  But given the state of Seattle's offense - 30th in the league - not even an Eagles team that's been under-performing on defense, will once again be without starting QB Michael Vick, and had to bench star WR DeSean Jackson last week for his lackadaisical performance, should have any problems coming out of this one with a win.  Vince Young may well have been Philly's best acquisition this season.  

Stay tuned for Sunday's and Monday's picks, and stay frosty, y'all!

B-)
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UPDATE, 12/04/11: I would have had this up sooner, but there was a power outage in Clemson this evening that couldn't have happened at a more inopportune time - during the ACC Championship Game!  At least my Tigers won, though I would've liked to have been able to see all the action.  Movin' on...

Titans over Bills

• Tennessee's got a pretty good opportunity this week to gain some ground on Houston for the AFC South title against a Buffalo team that's lost four in a row.  

Chiefs over Bears

• Is it just me, or are there a lot more starting quarterbacks getting sidelined this season?  Regardless, the offense in this game is not going to be pretty with Tyler Palko (or perhaps Kyle Orton starting against his former team) and Caleb Hanie running the show for each side.  I'm going with Kansas City because their defense looked pretty darn good last week against Pittsburgh and kept them in the game til the very end.  

Falcons over Texans

• Houston's down to its third-string quarterback, rookie T.J. Yates.  They'll need a mighty big performance from RB Arian Foster to pull this one off.  

Raiders over Dolphins

•  The 'Fins may not have gotten the win over Dallas last week, but they certainly hung in there.  I'm still picking the Raiders to win this one, but I gotta say that with Matt Moore leading the charge, Miami could really do some damage in the near future. 

Broncos over Vikings

•  With Vikes RB Adrian Peterson again questionable, the only thing that'll be "All Day" in the Metrodome will be Tebowmania. 

Patriots over Colts

• I really don't get all this talk of the Colts trading Peyton Manning.  He should be healthy again next season, and I'm pretty sure he's still another good year or two left in him.  I'm trying to imagine what it would have been like if the Penguins had traded Sidney Crosby after he was out for almost a year... 

Steelers over Bengals

• The word in the street is that both SS Troy Polamalu and LB LaMarr Woodley will be playing on Sunday.  The Steelers will need both of them against a Bengals team that's only one game behind them.  On an unrelated note, I didn't know Pacman Jones was still playing in the NFL. 

Panthers over Buccaneers

• The Bucs have lost five in a row, and QB Josh Freeman is ailing.  I like Carolina's chances here. 

Jets over Redskins

• Rex Grossman had a rare flash of brilliance for the 'Skins last week.  I wouldn't count on a repeat performance this week against the Jets, who haven't exactly been the picture of consistency, either.  

Ravens over Browns

• Baltimore's got more firepower on offense, but Cleveland's top-ranked pass defense could make this game closer that it might seem.  

Cowboys over Cardinals

• Kevin Kolb's back at QB for the Cards.  Not that it'll help them much... 

Packers over Giants

• Is there any stopping Aaron Rodgers and the Pack?  I could see the G-men pulling off the upset.  Then again, that's what I said about Detroit last week.  

49ers over Rams

• With Rams QB Sam Bradford questionable - and St. Louis struggling anyway - the Niners will finally clinch the NFC West this week.  

Saints over Lions

• With DT Ndamukong Suh serving a two-game suspension, the Lions don't stand much of a chance against the Saints' offensive juggernaut.  It's a shame that one player's stupidity could very well cost his team a playoff spot, because Detroit started the season so well.  

Chargers over Jaguars

• Jack Del Rio became the first coaching casualty of the season last week.  Norv Turner might be next, but I'm pretty sure he'll live to coach another week after this match.  Remember when Monday Night games used to be interesting?