It’s officially the Christmas season, /r/NFL! Everyone has their holiday decorations up, their gift lists sent out, their letters to Santa on their way, and their ugly sweaters out of storage. We had another interesting week where I went 11-5 on my picks, bringing me to 119-61 on the season. How did everyone else do? We’re back to the byes in force, with six teams out and three less games to watch. We have just two division games this week, with five inter-conference and six cross-conference games lined up. Let’s get to it!

Winner Loser Comments
Cowboys over Seahawks Seattle is limping into the game with poor QB/O-line play and can’t count on the running game to boost everything. The Cowboys have destroyed reeling teams at home all season long and even though Seattle’s defense has improved, there are enough holes to exploit for a red-hot Dak and Pollard can continue his recent surge.
Titans over Colts Minshew is finding ways to make enough plays off Taylor’s running and a more active defense. The Titans haven’t been pretty offensively with Levis, but they go as Henry goes. The Colts’ defense has improved, while the Titans present a challenging front to the run. Levis comes through here as Tennessee makes it two in a row in Nashville.
Chargers over Patriots The Pats have bottomed out, and unproductive QB play remains a huge problem, averaging just 167.5 passing YPG through a four-game losing streak, with Mac and Zappe combining for three TDs and six INTs in that stretch. The Chargers are on a three-game losing streak, but Herbert’s play is not the problem.
Lions over Saints I just can’t with this team right now. When your QB has five trips to the red zone and the only TD you get is a pick six, there’s a fundamental coaching problem that needs to change in addition to Carr’s awful playing. The Dome is gonna have to be rocking extra loud to give the Saints a chance to win against a very good Lions team.
Jets over Falcons The Falcons got their rushing and defensive groove back with Ridder at home, and a breakout by Robinson. But Ridder isn’t the same QB on the road and the Falcons’ passing game won’t post much of a challenge as a complementary threat here. The Jets will find some success with Hall and Wilson to spark their struggling offense at home.
Steelers over Cardinals The Steelers generated more than 400 yards under new OC Faulkner, and they return home after a pair of divisional road games. The defense has allowed just 15.7 PPG over the last six weeks. The Cardinals are 0-6 on the road and have not scored more than 16 points in any of those losses. Look for Pittsburgh to continue its playoff push.
Dolphins over Commanders Washington fired DC Del Rio after an embarrassing Thanksgiving loss to Dallas. Now, Rivera faces the challenge of slowing down a Miami offense that leads the league in total offense. The Phins have been loose with the ball with three turnovers the last two weeks, but they can clean that up.
Broncos over Texans Denver is on fire and I’m all aboard the Bronco wagon. Wilson has eight TD passes and no INTs in their streak. Houston, whose pass defense allows 252.5 YPG, could be in trouble. The Texans are 4-2 at home and Stroud has been brilliant, but Denver makes one more play on the road here.
Buccaneers over Panthers The Panthers fired Reich on Monday, the end of an era that produced a 1-10 record. Tabor is the interim HC, and there is always the opportunity for a play-up moment for the franchise. Tampa has lost six of seven games, but four of those losses have been of the one-score variety. Trashy division game incoming.
Rams over Browns Cleveland will struggle in their West Coast trip to L.A. Injuries to DTR and Garrett are a problem, and the Rams’ Kupp should be healthier this week. Cleveland has failed to score 14 points in its last two games, and L.A. is fine with getting into a defensive battle. Stick with the home team by a field goal.
49ers over [](/PHI Eagles) GotW/NFC Championship Game rematch, and one hell of a tough pick. The Niners are a road favorite, but the Eagles are making second-half comebacks a thing this season, and both teams have similar sack totals. (San Fran at 33, Philly at 32). Which team will force that mistake at the right time? Hurts has more turnovers, and Purdy picks apart the Eagles’ pass defense. Not confident at all in this pick.
Chiefs over Packers Mahomes is making his Lambeau debut. Love is making his SNF debut. The Packers have improved with back-to-back victories, but the injuries to the defense have mounted. The Chiefs’ only road loss this season was part of a five-turnover nightmare in Denver. Green Bay is 5-2 as an underdog this season, and they will still be a tough out at home. This could be a monster game for Kelce.
Jaguars over Bengals Browning proved capable when he got the ball out quick for the Bengals, but he still took four sacks in his debut. Jacksonville has settled into a rhythm despite two blowout losses at home. The Jags have not been on MNF since 2011, so anticipate a rowdy crowd. Lawrence, averaging 303 passing yards the last two weeks, gets it done.

Byes: Bills, Bears, Raiders, Vikings, Giants, Ravens

Those are my predictions, let’s hear yours. Keep it civil and fun.

  • 102WOLFPACK@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    11 months ago

    11-5 last week, putting me at 104-76 on the year. Finally over the 100 mark!

    Cowboys > Seahawks: TNF games can turn into a shit show quickly, but the Cowboys have been too solid this season for me to think that the Seahawks can cause the mayhem needed to win here.

    Colts > Titans: Riding a pretty solid three-game win streak, but losing Jonathan Taylor at this juncture of the season. Still, at this point, I feel confident taking the Colts to win here, even if it’s winning by a small margin. AFCS games have been the bane of my predictions this year so who knows.

    Chargers > Patriots: On one hand, the Chargers have managed to lose so many games they should have won this year, on the other, the Pats have been horrendous all season. Maybe the Chargers get an easy win to help them get back on track, or maybe they lose and Staley finally gets canned. Who knows?

    Lions > Saints: Carr has just completely fallen apart at this juncture. The Lions will want to rebound after the Thanksgiving catastrophe, and I think they’ll make light work of the Saints.

    Falcons > Jets: Arthur Smith finally seemed to realize that Bijan Robinson kinda kicks ass, and while the Jets defense is terrifying, the Falcons will squeak out regardless.

    Steelers > Cardinals: Well, Pat Pete did talk shit about the Kyler Murray so there’s a non-zero chance we get murdered here similar to what happened with Brock Purdy, BUT, the Steelers ground game has been rolling the last few weeks, and should carry that performance against a Cardinals team that gave up over 200 to the Rams.

    Dolphins > Commanders: I have no reason to doubt Miami here. Sorry Commies.

    Broncos > Texans: I think CJ Stroud is incredible, but this Broncos team is rounding into form at the right time. That defense is creating turnovers at an insane rate, and Russ is efficient in the red zone. Should be a fun one at the very least.

    Buccaneers > Panthers: No post-coach-firing bounce for the Panthers just yet sadly.

    Rams > Browns: The Browns are decimated right now. No other way to slice it. Garrett’s supposedly still good to play, but the injury list just grows and grows.

    Eagles > 49ers: This is going to get ugly, and the Eagles seem to enjoy winning ugly, close games. Home team prevails here.

    Chiefs > Packers: This feels straightforward to me. Maybe the Packers build off of last week, maybe they don’t, but I fully expect the Chiefs to win here.

    Jaguars > Bengals: I hate Browning not because he’s a Bengal, but because he’s a Husky. Go Jags.