NFL Week 11 Preview/Predictions

Creds to Bradly W. Stewart

By: Joe Smeltzer 
Hello, all.  Week 11 is here, and as you can see, Joseph Arthur Smeltzer is ahead by a considerable margin. Let's see how much further behind everybody else will be by the end of this week. This is a special week, as although he has not made it onto our graphic yet, one of my pals from Pittsburgh, Connor Roese will be picking some games. Let's get into it.

1:00
"Paul Allen is goofy" game of the week 
Vikings (5-4) vs. Cardinals (4-4-1)

Logic tells me that Arizona should win this game. They are the more talented team. However, I just have a feeling that Minnesota is due. They have lost four in a row, and are too talented to keep up the disappointment much longer. Sam Bradford will have his best game as a Viking, leading a game-winning drive in the process, and the twin cities will be pleased once again. Among those who disagree is my cousin Brad, who stated that the Vikings "are falling off the face of the earth." Well, sometimes the face of the earth is overrated. Connor agrees with me, saying that he "has faith in the old Vikings". Atta boi.

Vikings 23, Cardinals 20

What actually happened: Vikings 30, Cardinals 24 (close enough)
Smeltz: 1-0


"Aliteration" game of the week
Buffalo Bills Cinniciniti Bengals 

This guy is good (photo creds to Yahoo Sports)

Buffalo is a decent football team. They are. But they have lost three in a row, and I feel that as badly as we want them to, the Bungles can't suck forever. They are still a talented club, and A.J. Green is magnificent. Green will have 130 yards receiving on seven catches, and the Bungles will get the W. Brad's twin brother, Jeff, agreed with yours truly, adding that the "Bengals are just the better team." I concur.

Bungles 28, Bills 20
What Actually Happened: Bills 16, Bungles 12, and A.J. Green got hurt. So #smeltzgotitwrong

Bears (2-7) at Giants (6-3) 
Jeff picked the Bears
Why? Because "Jay Cutler is gonna play great again." Yeah, no. Mr. Roese sees Eli Manning pounding Jay. Atta boi again.

Giants 33, Bears 14
What Actually Happened: Giants 22, Bears 16. Closer than it should have been, but Smeltz was right. 2-1.

Will the Browns win?
God, I hope not. Otherwise, Mike Tomlin may have some bad news on the doorstep when this season is done.

Good Jameis or Bad Jameis?
Tampa (4-5) at Kansas City (7-2)

Photo creds to Grantland

Probably the latter. As good as Jameis Winston can be, he can also be pretty damn bad. If you mesh Winston's habit of throwing picks with the Chiefs secondaries habit of creating them, that is one dangerous combination for Tampa. Winston will throw three picks, and Spencer Ware will have 100 yards rushing on the dot. Believe that.

KC 34, Tampa Bay 14
What actually happened: Bucs 19, Chiefs 17. Dude, we were way off. 

Bye Bye Birdies 
Ravens (5-4) at Cowboys (8-1) 

Big D is on fire. I don't believe that Joe Flacco and his band of scrubs will be able to halt that eight-game win streak. How bout them Cowboys, and how bout them Steelers (hopefully) tied for first? Brad made the tragic mistake of disagreeing with me, stating that the Cowboys "are in for a letdown this week." It is Brad who is in for a letdown. Not Dak Prescott. Connor is praying for a Cowboys victory. Well, you'll get your wish.

Cowboys 24, Ravens 13
What actually happened: Cowboys 27, Ravens 17. Close enough. Smeltz moves to 3-2.  I said welcome to Detriot City 
Jags (2-7) at Lions (5-4) 

What a story in Detriot. On November 1st of the year of our Lord, 2015, the Lions were 1-7. Although they finished with six wins in their last eight games, things looked bleak once again when the face of the franchise, Calvin Johnson, decided to hang up his cleats at the age of 30. But through Jim Caldwell's leadership, Matthew Stafford's arm, and Marvin Jones looking more like Marvin Harrison than Marvin Jones for a brief period of time, the Lions have a legit shot at an NFC North crown. Jacksonville, on the other hand, well, they suck. I am also happy to report that Bradley William Stewart has given up on his dream of seeing the Jags in the Super Bowl. Wise decision. The only one who sees Jacksonville winning is big old boi Connor Roese. Well, it's not happening.
Lions 35, Jags 14
What actually happened: Lions 26, Jags 19. Closer than we thought, but still got dat W.

"Amazingly pointless" game of the week
Titans (4-5) at Colts (5-5)

Andrew, son of Oliver (Photo creds to New Arena)

The AFC South is garbish. That's a nice way of putting it. That said, the starting quarterbacks in this AFC South matchup are not garbish. They are excellent, and because of that, I expect to see an exciting football game between two mediocre teams. The Colts have shown flashes of being an excellent football team, and this will be one of those games that will make us wonder if Indy can't raise a little hell in the AFC playoff picture. On the other side, Marcus Mariotta will fight valiantly, but at the end of the day, Indy's superior offensive talent will come out on the cool side of the pillow. Jeffery agrees, predicting that Andrew, Son of Oliver,  and his top receiver, T.Y. Hilton, will have "magical games." I think magical might be a bit of a stretch, but both men will do their jobs well.

Colts 34, Titans 26
What actually happened: Cols 24, Titans 17. Almost nailed the exact margin of victory. 

4:05
Dolphins (5-4) at Rams (4-5) 
It was tough to tag this one with the notorious "who the hell cares" label, but I just think that of all the matchups around the league this week (not counting the Thursday night game), this one has the least going on. Jarred Goff is making his NFL debut, and that certainly is noteworthy, but I'll be surprised if Goff is anything better than average coming out of the gates. The Rams defense will get them dat W. Not that I really care.

Rams 17, Dolphins 10

4:25
Will the Patriots lose?
Ha. No.


The "Battle of the Birds" 
Eagles (5-4) at Sehawks (6-2-1)

Should Seattle be on upset alert? Perhaps. After all, Philly has developed somewhat of a reputation as giant killers over this season, with wins over Pittsburgh, Minnesota and Atlanta, all as the underdog. However, I can never bet against Seattle at home, especially considering the matchup of Philly's rotten core of receivers against Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, and Earl Thomas. Yikes. We all picked the Seahawks, and Brad made to revelation to me that he "is not a fan of the Eagles at all." Double yikes. Connor foresees a blowout. He may be right.

Seahawks 31, Eagles 19
What actually happened: Seahawks 26, Eagles 15. Again, almost the exact margin of victory

Sunday Night
Aaron Rodgers has lost my trust. 
Packers (4-5) at Redskins (5-3-1) 
Aaron Rodgers has lost my trust.

Photo creds to CBS Sports

What actually happened: Aaron Rodgers has not regained my trust. 
Monday Night Carr
Mexico City, meet Derek Carr.
Texans (6-3) at Raiders (7-2) 

Let's not kid ourselves. The Texas may be 6-3, but they are not a threat to get to the Super Bowl. Oakland is. Oh, and they have Derek Carr on their team. I kind of like Derek Carr. He's pretty good at this game called football. He throws the ball well.

Raiders 27, Texans 17
What actually happened: Raiders 27, Texans 20. Close enough.

So, to recap, here is how we all did for Week 11

Joe: 11-3
Ryan: 11-3
Brad: 7-7
Jeff: 10-4
Rutz: 11-3
Roese: