Brads NFL Picks Week Sixteen 2016
Brads Picks was 10 – 6 last week and is 138 – 84 – 2 on the season. Here’s what happened last week.
the good:
Seatttle 24, Rams 3 (TNF) – Rams had a total of 183 yards, but 90 came in garbage time, and after Case Keenum replaced Jared Goff, who left with a concussion. Rams didn’t score any points behind Keenum. Not a great performance by the Quacks, considering that the Rams are so bad, but they did clinch the NFC West.
Dolphins 34, NY Jets 13 (the Saturday night game) – Fins 13, Jets 10 at the half. Matt Moore, in for an injured Ryan Tannehill, was 12-18-236 with 4 TDs and 1 INT in his first start in 5 years.
Baltimore 27, Eagles 26 – With 4 seconds left, the Eagles tried a two point conversion when a one point kick would have sent the game to OT. The attempt failed.
Steelers 24, Cincinnati 20 – Bengals 20, Steelers 9 at the half.
NY Giants 17, Lions 6 – Matt Stafford says his busted finger isn’t bothering him, but he only managed one INT and no TDs. (Eli Manning had 2 TDs and no INTs.) But give credit to the Giants defense, maybe the best in the league right now.
Houston 21, Jaguars 20 – Jags 20, Texans 11 after the third. Brock Osweiler was benched in the 2nd quarter after tossing two INTs. Tom Savage (4th round pick in 2014) came in and threw for 260 yards and the Texans pulled out a win.
Jags coach Gus Bradley was fired right after the game. Houston has now won 5 in a row over the Jags.
Buffalo 33, Browns 13 – LeSean McCoy had his best game with 153 yards and two TDs.
Packers 30, Chicago 27 – Aaron Rodgers didn’t throw a TD or an INT. Matt Barkley threw 2 TDs and 3 INTs. But it was Rodgers’ 60 yard pass to Jordy Nelson that set up a 32 yard FG as time expired that won the game for the Packers.
Atlanta 41, 49ers 13 – As expected.
Raiders 19, San Diego 16 – It took one TD pass from Derek Carr and 4 field goals for a Raiders win.
the bad:
Titans 19, Kansas City 17 – Windy and cold at Arrowhead. Both QBs tossed an INT but no TDs. Ryan Succcop kicked a 53 yard FG into the wind as time expired to give the Titans the win.
Saints 48, Arizona 41 – Drew Brees threw 4 TDs (no INTs) while Carson Palmer had two TDs and no INTs. The teams combined for 913 yards (and 89 points). Drew Brees had thrown 3 INTs in each of his last two games.
Dallas 26, Buccaneers 20 (SNF) – Close game. Boys jumped out to a 17-3 lead, but it was Bucs 20, Boys 17 at the end of the 3rd. Takeaways by Dallas were a big part in the win.
the ugly:
Patriots 16, Denver 3 – Brady is now 3-7 at Mile High. Broncos offense was sloppy all over.
Colts 34, Minnesota 6 – Adrian Peterson’s return didn’t help the Vikings – he gained 22 on 6 carries, and lost a fumble. Colts offense really dominated. Sam Bradford threw for 291 yards but the Vikings couldn’t find the end zone.
Panthers 26, Washington 15 (MNF) – Panthers play well in December and the Reds just weren’t very good. Reds are now 1-16 at home on MNF since 1998.
this weeks games:
the TNF game:
NY Giants (10-4) at Philadelphia (5-9) – Division game. Giants are 7-1 at home, just 3-3 on the road. But their defense is playing great (they held the Lions and Cowboys to a total of 13 points the last two games). Eli Manning seems to be out of his slump, and I think the Giants can get a win at Philly.
the 11:00 Saturday MST games:
Miami (9-5) at Buffalo (7-7) – Division game. Looks like a cold and rainy game. That favors the Bills because they’re good at running and the Fins aren’t good at stopping the run. Fins run game hasn’t been as good lately as it was earlier with Jay Ajayi. Maybe Jay will bust loose.
NY Jets (4-10) at New England (12-2) – Division game. Jets played on Saturday night. Cheaters are 16.5 point favorites, and are playing for the top seed. Jets are playing for an early trip to Bermuda.
Tennessee (8-6) at Jacksonville (2-12) – Division game. Doug Marrone takes over as Interim HC of the Jags after the firing of Gus Bradley. Titans are the better team.
Minnesota (7-7) at Green Bay (8-6) – Division game. Packers are 4-0 lately. Vikings got blown out at home last week by the Colts. Take Green Bay. They’ve even discovered a run game with Ty Montgomery moving to RB from WR.
San Diego (5-9) at Cleveland (0-14) – The big game of the week. Browns really want a win, Chargers really don’t want to be the team that loses to the team that so far has gone defeated. But the Chargers have lost three in a row in uninspiring fashion. I’m thinking the Chargers uninspire again and the Browns get a win.
Washington (7-6-1) at Chicago (3-11) – Reds are lousy on D and were lousy at home last week in a loss to the Panthers. Bears have lost a few close ones to playoff teams lately. I think they can get a win at Soldier Field.
Atlanta (9-5) at Carolina (6-8) – Division game. Atlanta’s offense has been high octane this year, and especially lately. But Carolina has been tough in December the last few years (21-6 under HC Ron Rivera in December and January). Cam Newton plays well at home. This one could go either way, and a blowout by the Falcons is possible. But I’ll take Carolina in a bit of an upset.
the 2:05 MST game:
Indianapolis (7-7) at Oakland (11-3) – Colts have done well on the road the last couple of games (atJets; at Vikings) but I think the Raiders pass rush will give Luck some problems. I expect a close game (both teams are still in the play off game, Raiders for a good seed, Colts just to get in). I’ll bet a nickel on the Raiders. But don’t forget what the Colts did at Minnesota last week.
the 2:25 MST games:
Tampa Bay (8-6) at New Orleans (6-8) – Division game. Bucs beat the Saints two weeks ago 16-11. Drew Brees turned it around last week after two horrible games, and I bet he’s irked at being snubbed by the Pro Bowl. I’m taking the Saints. They lost to the Bucs by 5 two weeks ago and I bet they win by that much or more at home.
Arizona (5-8-1) at Seattle (9-4-1) – Division game. Seattle last played nine days ago. Cardinals are unraveling – couldn’t beat the Saints at home last week. Take the Quacks. Although the Cards would like to derail the Quacks hopes for a bye in the playoffs – I don’t think they can pull it off but they might make a game of it..
San Francisco (1-13) at Los Angeles (4-10) – Division game. LA played on TNF. 9ers were at Atlanta. 9ers beat the Rams 28-0 in Week One. The only decent QB in this game will be Colin Kaepernick and I think the 49ers will get their second win of the season.
the Saturday night game:
Cincinnati (5-8-1) at Houston (8-6) – Bengals have had a lot of close losses to good teams. Brock Osweiler was replaced last week by Tom Savage, a 4th round pick in 2014. He’ll start this game. Bengals and Dalton have been terrible in prime time, but so have the Texans (2-10; Bengals are 3-9 in their last 12 prime time games). With the pressure off, I’m taking the Bengals.
the Christmas Day games:
at 2:30 MST game:
Baltimore (8-6) at Pittsburgh (9-5) – Division game. Ravens are 1-4 against teams with a good offense. Steelers have a very good offense, and Le’Veon Bell will gain a lot of yards, even though the Ravens have been stout against the run. Steelers are 13-2 in December since 2013.
the 6:30 MST game:
Denver (8-6) at Kansas City (10-4) – Division game. Both teams are coming off losses at home. Chiefs won at Mile High 30-27 in OT in Week Twelve. Neither teams offense has been doing much lately. If recently acquired RB Justin Forsett can get it going for the Broncos, and if the Broncos D can re-capture a little magic (also known as pick sixes and scoop and scores) the Broncos could win. But it’s a tossup.
the MNF game:
Detroit (9-5) at Dallas (12-2) – Dallas lost at the Giants two weeks ago, but bounced back last week to beat the Bucs. Bucs are currently a better team than the Lions. No matter how much Matt Stafford denies it, his busted finger on his throwing hand has led to a big drop in his performance. Take Dallas.