NFL Picks - Week 13

There were some excellent games a week ago, but there is also drama. What’s going on in Washington with RGIII? And who is going to start in New York? Plus, how about that AFC North! That division is unbelievable. Same is true of the NFC South, but unbelievably bad… Here is the standings:

Andrew – 897 Points (108-53)

Greg – 840 Points (106-55)

This week is all about Thanksgiving. Bears at Detroit, Eagles at Cowboys, and Seattle at SF… Wow! But things could be better on Sunday when Cleveland plays at Buffalo, San Diego plays at Baltimore, the Saints play at Pittsburgh, and the Cardinals play at Atlanta. Then the biggest ones: New England at Green Bay and Denver at KC. Heavyweight battles for sure!

Below are our picks and confidence points for all the games. Play along in the comment section if you want:

Greg’s Picks

16       Indianapolis over Washington

15       Miami over NYJ

14       Cincinnati over Tampa Bay

13       Detroit over Chicago

12       Arizona over Atlanta

11       Baltimore over San Diego

10       NYG over Jacksonville

9          Pittsburgh over New Orleans

8          Minnesota over Carolina

7          Green Bay over New England

6          Kansas City over Denver

5          Buffalo over Cleveland

4          Houston over Tennessee

3          St. Louis over Oakland

2          Seattle over San Francisco

1          Dallas over Philadelphia

Andrew’s Picks

16       Indianapolis over Washington

15       Cincinnati over Tampa Bay

14       Miami over NYJ

13       Detroit over Chicago

12       Baltimore over San Diego

11       Buffalo over Cleveland

10       Houston over Tennessee

9          St. Louis over Oakland

8          NYG over Jacksonville

7          Pittsburgh over New Orleans

6          Arizona over Atlanta

5          Dallas over Philadelphia

4          San Francisco over Seattle

3          Green Bay over New England

2          Denver over Kansas City

1          Carolina over Minnesota

Enjoy week 13!

By: The Sports Guys

NFL Power Rankings

NFL Power Rankings

After Week 12

NOTE: Previous ranking is noted in the first parenthesis, record in second parenthesis.

1. (1) New England Patriots (9-2) – The Pats carved up the best defense in the league (statistically) and showed why they are the team to beat this year.

2. (3) Green Bay Packers (8-3) – Not as convincing a win on Sunday as it’s been recently, but they got it done nonetheless. They are now alone in first place in the NFC North.

3. (5) Denver Broncos (8-3) – They pulled out a close win over Miami to stay atop their division and one game behind the Pats in the AFC. Manning was great again.

4. (2) Arizona Cardinals (9-2) – Still own first place in the NFC, but Stanton did little to retain our confidence in their offense. It was at Seattle, but still a letdown.

5. (7) Indianapolis Colts (7-4) – Not sure what I was watching in the first half Sunday, but the Colts finally played normal in the second half. Luck’s bid for an MVP was hurt by his performance however.

6. (8) Philadelphia Eagles (8-3) – McCoy finally ran wild as we thought he would all year. But against Tennessee, that really counts for little.

7. (9) Dallas Cowboys (8-3) – Romo looks fully healthy again as he was terrific in the win. Obviously, Murray ran for over 100 again too, but Beckham ripped their defense apart. That’s cause for a little concern.

8. (4) Kansas City Chiefs (7-4) – What happened against Oakland? What the crap happened?

9. (6) Detroit Lions (7-4) – Is Detroit suddenly reeling after another defeat? Probably not, just tough scheduling. But with a showdown vs. Chicago on Thanksgiving looming, the Lions better right the ship.

10. (10) San Francisco 49ers (7-4) – I’m still waiting on their offense, but their defense has arrived.

11. (11) Cincinnati Bengals (7-3-1) – Maintained their slight edge in the AFC North, the best division in football. AJ Green looks normal again.

12. (12) Seattle Seahawks (7-4) – Big home win against Arizona got them back into the thick of things. But with their schedule continuing to rise in difficulty, will it be enough?

13. (13) Pittsburgh Steelers (7-4) – Remained just behind Cincy for the division lead, but with a late bye, they should be refreshed and ready to go.

14. (14) Baltimore Ravens (7-4) – Great win at New Orleans on MNF. The Saints typically don’t lose at home in primetime, so that’s an incredible victory actually.

15. (16) San Diego Chargers (7-4) – It wasn’t convincing, but the Chargers stayed in that 7-4 group. Marcus Gilchrist’s late INT proved to be the dagger they needed.

16. (18) Cleveland Browns (7-4) – A last second win counts the same as a blowout, and the Browns pulled one out at Atlanta. They remain in the thick of things in the AFC wildcard race, along with their division race.

17. (15) Miami Dolphins (6-5) – Tough loss at Denver set them back to 6-5. They are still in the hunt, but now behind a number of teams.

18. (19) Buffalo Bills (6-5) – Huge blowout win on Monday (thanks to the huge amount of snow in Buffalo) helped them hang around in the wildcard race. Must be nice to play the Jets right now…

19. (23) Chicago Bears (5-6) – The Bears are inching their way closer and closer to relevancy. There are some injury concerns in general but a win this week still gets them to .500 again.

20. (17) Houston Texans (5-6) – Ryan Mallott is now gone for the season, even though he just made his second career start. That’s a tough pill to swallow.

21. (20) Atlanta Falcons (4-7) – Still can’t believe how bad this division is…

22. (21) St. Louis Rams (4-7) – Close to another upset, but fell just short.

23. (22) New Orleans Saints (4-7) – This team just isn’t playing Saints football right now. I see changes coming in the next year or two.

24. (24) Minnesota Vikings (4-7) – Another nice effort on Sunday, but another close loss. That’s been their story the last two weeks.

25. (26) Carolina Panthers (3-7-1) – They got rest from a bye, and somehow managed to stay in the hunt in their division.

26. (28) Washington Redskins (3-8) – A close loss is good enough to move them up because the rest of these teams are very bad.

27. (29) New York Giants (3-8) – Great effort in a loss, at least by the offense. Beckham is a rising star!

28. (25) New York Jets (2-9) – Just wow… this team is pathetic!

29. (27) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-9) – Mike Evans scored again, and the defense played great in the first half. But then they fell apart.

30. (30) Tennessee Titans (2-9) – Mettenberger continues to show promise, but he’s the only decent player out there it seems like.

31. (32) Oakland Raiders (1-10) – Their first win was shocking and impressive. The problem is, the more they win, the lower they pick in the draft.

32. (31) Jacksonville Jaguars (1-10) – Decent first half on defense against the Colts, but no good in the second half. The offense was bad the whole game.

By: The Sports Guys

NFL Picks - Week 12

Could have been called upset week in the NFL, as Denver, Washington, Cleveland, and New Orleans went down in somewhat shocking ways. Philly got torched by Green Bay, and Seattle was also defeated by KC. New England continued to dominate the AFC by taking out the Colts, and Miami beat Buffalo in a game with big wildcard implications. Here are the updated standings in our pick-em contest:

Andrew – 797 Points (96-50)

Greg – 740 Points (94-52)

This week features a few big games, such as Detroit and New England, Arizona and Seattle, and Miami vs. Denver. But there are also some underlying storylines: Lovie Smith returns to Chicago. Cincy at Houston, Cleveland at Atlanta, and Baltimore at New Orleans are big games in the AFC North race (all road games too). And Dallas returns from their bye to take on the Giants, a division rival.

Below are our picks and confidence points for all the games (less this week due to byes). Play along in the comment section if you want:

Greg’s Picks

15        Indianapolis over Jacksonville

14        Kansas City over Oakland

13        Philadelphia over Tennessee

12        Green Bay over Minnesota

11        San Francisco over Washington

10        Chicago over Tampa Bay

9          Cleveland over Atlanta

8          New England over Detroit

7          Cincinnati over Houston

6          San Diego over St. Louis

5          Buffalo over NYJ

4          Arizona over Seattle

3          Dallas over NYG

2          New Orleans over Baltimore

1          Denver over Miami 

Andrew’s Picks

15        Indianapolis over Jacksonville

14        Kansas City over Oakland

13        San Francisco over Washington

12        Philadelphia over Tennessee

11        New England over Detroit

10        Buffalo over NYJ

9          Green Bay over Minnesota

8          Denver over Miami

7          Chicago over Tampa Bay

6          Dallas over NYG

5          San Diego over St. Louis

4          New Orleans over Baltimore

3          Seattle over Arizona

2          Atlanta over Cleveland

1          Cincinnati over Houston

Enjoy week 12!

By: The Sports Guys

NFL Power Rankings 11

NFL Power Rankings

After Week 11

NOTE: Previous ranking is noted in the first parenthesis, record in second parenthesis.

1. (1) New England Patriots (8-2) – Now own the best record in the AFC, with wins over Denver and New England, two of the other top teams. Tom Brady continues to play well, Gronk is back, and Jonas Gray is now up to speed.

2. (3) Arizona Cardinals (9-1) – Best record in the NFC, by two games! In fact, they own the best record in the NFL, largely based on their great team defense. Who cares about Carson Palmer?

3. (7) Green Bay Packers (7-3) – Aaron Rodgers continues to play at an MVP level, and this team suddenly seems unbeatable. My money would be on this team making it to the Super Bowl if I had to pick now (in the NFC).

4. (8) Kansas City Chiefs (7-3) – The Broncos won’t pull away with the AFC West this season, as the Chiefs are one of the hottest teams in the league. Taking out Seattle Sunday was impressive, as they use tough defense and a stellar rushing attack.

5. (2) Denver Broncos (7-3) – The Broncos suffered a shocking loss to St. Louis, which really hurts their chances at the #1 seed in the AFC. They are suddenly tied atop their own division, so now they have to take care of that.

6. (5) Detroit Lions (7-3) – A road loss to the best team in the NFC by 8 points isn’t too disappointing. But they did lose their division lead and it was a loss to a backup QB. What I’m still trying to figure out is what happened to their offense this season?

7. (6) Indianapolis Cots (6-4) – The Colts didn’t play their best in a loss to the Pats, particularly on defense when they allowed Jonas Gray to run all over them. Seems like the Pats simply have their number.

8. (4) Philadelphia Eagles (7-3) – The buzz saw that is Green Bay was too much for the Eagles on Sunday, but every team would lose at Green Bay right now.

9. (9) Dallas Cowboys (7-3) – The bye was great for the Cowboys as they saw Philly lose and it gave Romo more time to heal up.

10. (11) San Francisco 49ers (6-4) – Despite a sluggish effort on offense, the 49ers won in Aldon Smith’s return. The defense forced 5 Eli Manning INT’s in the win. Chris Borland is making us forget about Patrick Willis.

11. (13) Cincinnati Bengals (6-3-1) – The Bengals got back on track and played great on both sides of the ball. Dalton had three TD’s and the defense held the Saints to 10 points… and it was at New Orleans!

12. (10) Seattle Seahawks (6-4) – Seattle is vulnerable on defense against the run. We saw this now against a bunch of teams. They also struggle passing the ball, especially with Tate and Harvin gone. This is a much different team than last year.

13. (15) Pittsburgh Steelers (7-4) – Thanks to LeVeon Bell, Pittsburgh is back on track. They now have a bye week before the get ready for a crucial stretch run.

14. (14) Baltimore Ravens (6-4) – Their bye week saw Cleveland lose, but the Bengals simply took over the top spot. This division seems to change hands on a weekly basis.

15. (16) Miami Dolphins (6-4) – Miami helped their wildcard pursuit by taking out the Bills. Buffalo was another wildcard hopeful, so this win could prove big.

16. (18) San Diego Chargers (6-4) – The Chargers righted the ship coming out of their bye, which kept them very much alive in the crowded AFC wildcard race.

17. (21) Houston Texans (5-5) – Ryan Mallott moved to 1-0 as an NFL starter. He also kept Houston alive despite their likely slim playoff chances.

18. (12) Cleveland Browns (6-4) – I was very disappointed in the Browns this week due to a disastrous effort against Houston… I had just started believing in them too. Funny how that always works.

19. (17) Buffalo Bills (5-5) – Buffalo lost a road matchup to a fellow division opponent, and a fellow wildcard team. They have to be disappointed, but they have to bounce back strong.

20. (22) Atlanta Falcons (4-6) – What team is winning the NFC South? This one! Yes, 4-6 and 20^th in my power rankings accomplishes that feat.

21. (24) St. Louis Rams (4-6) – What team can say they have wins over Seattle, San Francisco, and Denver? Only St. Louis. Too bad they can’t play that way every time.

22. (19) New Orleans Saints (4-6) – Two home losses in a row for a team once thought to be unbeatable there. Join the club if you are utterly confused by them.

23. (27) Chicago Bears (4-6) – So they can win at home! Chicago finally won their first home game of the season with a victory over Minnesota. Defense actually did some positive things. But Jay had two more INT’s.

24. (20) Minnesota Vikings (4-6) – Minnesota had a chance to reach .500 but couldn’t get the victory at Chicago. If AD returns, he could surely help.

25. (25) New York Jets (2-8) – This ranking isn’t based on their whole season, but on the fact they now look capable under Michael Vick. We’ll see if they can continue being competitive coming out of their bye.

26. (23) Carolina Panthers (3-7-1) – A blocked FG kept them from winning a big game over Atlanta. They now have a bye week to get things sorted out.

27. (31) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-8) – Mike Evans is emerging as a young star in this league. He had over 200 yards on Sunday in a big win.

28. (26) Washington Redskins (3-7) – I should actually rank them lower after their poor effort, but the rest of these teams suck also.

29. (28) New York Giants (3-7) – Can’t win a game when Eli throws 5 INT’s! Simple as that this week.

30. (29) Tennessee Titans (2-8) – The Titans had the game against Pittsburgh all but won. Too bad they couldn’t stop Bell. At least Mettenberger did some positive things.

31. (30) Jacksonville Jaguars (1-9) – They slid a spot despite a bye due to the Bucs win.

32. (32) Oakland Raiders (0-10) – Only six more games left this year to get a win. Will it happen?

By: The Sports Guys

NCAA Top 25

The first weekend was exciting, yet fairly predictable. In fact, none of my teams ranked in the Top 25 lost. Harvard was the only team in the AP that lost. This week will be interesting though, especially with Duke and MSU facing off.

Top 25 – 11/17/14

NOTE: Previous ranking in first parenthesis (from my Preseason Top 25).

1. (1) Kentucky Wildcats (2-0)

The Wildcats weren’t great against Buffalo in their second game, but they responded well in the second half. As I told my friends before the season, Trey Lyles could be their best player. He should start!

2. (2) Duke Blue Devils (2-0)

Okafor has looked great, but the fellow freshmen have been equally as good. Coach K has quite the team this year. They’ve been more impressive to me than Kentucky.

3. (3) Wisconsin Badgers (2-0)

They have played without one of their key bench players, but that doesn’t matter. Wisconsin is already in mid-season form.

4. (4) Arizona Wildcats (2-0)

Brandon Ashley has been very good upon return. I figured he’d start slow, but he hasn’t. Hollis-Jefferson has also been very impressive.

5. (5) North Carolina Tarheels (2-0)

Despite the great young players they have, the returners have been the best so far. Meeks is in fact averaging a double-double.

6. (6) Kansas Jayhawks (1-0)

All the talk preseason was about Cliff Alexander being a Julius Randle type player. He’s not, and he doesn’t even start. Perry Ellis is the big man everyone should rave about, even though he isn’t a freshman.

7. (7) Texas Longhorns (2-0)

This team has played together well, and has been fairly stingy on defense. On Thursday they face Iowa though, which will be very telling for both teams.

8. (8) Florida Gators (1-0)

We’ll see how long Finney-Smith will be out. If he’s out for a while, that’s a huge loss!

9. (9) Louisville Cardinals (1-0)

Most impressive win of the opening weekend belonged to Louisville, as they dismantled Minnesota, who some people thought would be a tough game.

10. (10) Virginia Cavaliers (2-0)

11. (11) Wichita State Shockers (1-0)

They are undefeated, look out!

12. (12) Gonzaga Bulldogs (1-0)

Looked great in their first game, but they take on SMU tonight. This will show us how good they really are.

13. (13) Villanova Wildcats (1-0)

14. (14) Oklahoma Sooners (1-0)

Great transfer news this week as TaShawn Thomas was declared eligible immediately. Who needs Cameron Clark now.

15. (15) Ohio State Buckeyes (1-0)

I raved about Russell this offseason, so it’s fitting that he led them in scoring in their opener.

16. (16) VCU Rams (1-0)

17. (17) Iowa State Cyclones (1-0)

High scoring but no defense. That’s how it will be this season.

18. (18) Connecticut Huskies (1-0)

Boatright showed that he is capable of stepping it up with Napier. In fact, his stat line reminded me of Shabazz: 24 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals, and a block.

19. (19) Iowa Hawkeyes (1-0)

20. (20) Stanford Cardinal (2-0)

I was higher on Stanford than most, but they are proving me right so far.

21. (21) San Diego State Aztecs (1-0)

22. (22) Kansas State Wildcats (1-0)

23. (23) Nebraska Cornhuskers (1-0)

24. (24) Michigan State Spartans (1-0)

Take on Duke this week, but could be without a starter (Ellis).

25. (25) SMU Mustangs (1-0)

Big week for SMU, as they take on Gonzaga and IU.

Dropped from Previous Top 25: None

Also Considered: Michigan, Colorado, UCLA, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Dayton, Notre Dame, Utah, Memphis, Arkansas, Indiana, BYU

By: The Sports Guys