Put Away The Bats And Break Out The Pigskin…

Only time will tell if I am as reliable at predicting the results of football games as I am at picking winners for baseball…
My Picks For Week 8:

Cleveland (2-4) at Houston (0-6)
Its been a long time since I’ve seen a pro matchup this bad. Both teams rank in the bottom of the NFL in both defense and offense. Houston ranks dead last in total offense, but they have to win a game sometime. There’s no way that the Browns move to 3-4 with a team that would get blown out by either USC or Notre Dame.
My Pick: Texans in a game that no one will be watching

Jacksonville (4-2) at St. Louis (3-4)
The Rams are well-known for their tendency to look absolutely dreadful on the road but dominate at home. However, they are not the “Greatest Show On Turf” that they once were. They are playing without their coach or their quarterback against a Jaguar defense that ranks second in the AFC.
My Pick: Jaguars

Arizona (2-4) at Dallas (4-3)
A young un-tested quarterback(Josh McCown) who struggled offensively last week against the Titans mediocre secondary goes up against a solid Dallas defense in Texas. Dallas has choked in the fourth quarter three times this year, but they won’t have the chance to do so this week…The game will be long over by then.
My Pick: Cowboys in a blowout

Minnesota (2-4) at Carolina (4-2)
The Vikings have been absolutely awful thus far. Dante Culpepper has already thrown more interceptions then he did all of last year. Last week, Minnesota looked like they were packing it in for the season when they went down 17-0 to Green Bay. Then, in the second half they showed me glimpses of the way that they should be playing with the talent that they have on this team and came back to win. Don’t count them out yet. They could easily win the NFC North if Culpepper is able to build on his great second half last week and start performing up to his potential. The Panthers seem susceptible to me because their offense has been pretty bad as well despite their three game winning streak. Stephen Davis ranks 29th in the league in rushing yards and Jake Dehlomme is not spreading the ball around at all, making their passing game dangerously predictable(Steve Smith has 39 catches while second and third receivers Ricky Proehl and Keary Colbert have combined for 19). The Vikings need this one far more, and they are in high spirits after their comeback win over the Packers.
My Pick: Vikings pull off the upset

Washington (4-2) at New York (4-2)
Fresh off of a last-second comeback win over the Broncos, Eli Manning returns to New York hoping to pull off some more 4th quarter heroics. But, there to meet him are Mark Brunell(who has proven that when actually given pass protection he is still a solid quarterback) and Santana Moss(the premier deep threat in the NFL with an average of 19.7 yards per catch), eager to attack the porous New York secondary(31st in the league).
My Pick: Redskins

Chicago (3-3) at Detroit (3-3)
The winner takes over sole possession of first in the NFC North. Chicago has an elite defense despite their lack of a passing game(sorry Kyle Orton) as they proved last week when they beat Baltimore 9-6. Detroit, now that Jeff Garcia is healthy, finally have a legitimate quarterback and can get Joey Harrington off the field for good. In a battle of two evenly matched opponents I’ll take the home team.
My Pick: Lions

Green Bay (1-5) at Cincinnati (5-2)
Despite another great year by Favre(who leads the league with 14 TD passes), the Packers have been awful. I think that they are about ready to pack it in for the year after their second half collapse to the Vikings last week. Its hard to pick against Favre because the man has so much heart and you know that he is determined to will the Packers to victory this weekend. Unfortunately, after injuries to Ahman Green and Robert Ferguson he has Donald Driver and a bunch of practice squad players to work with offensively. Plus, Cincy’s potent(and healthy) offense is pretty good and is itching to get back on the field after a humiliating loss to the Steelers last week.
My Pick: Bengals

Oakland (2-4) at Tennessee (2-5)
Two teams who aren’t quite good enough to compete consistently. Conventional wisdom says to take the Titans who are playing at home and who finally have Pro-bowl QB Steve Mcnair healthy. But, the Raiders looked pretty good last week. The offensive line actually gave Kerry Collins time to throw the ball and he showed me that despite the fact that he is about as mobile as a rock, he still has a cannon. I’m banking on the pass protection being as good as I saw last week and for Moss to finally step up and start earning his paycheck.
My Pick: Raiders

Miami (2-4) at New Orleans (2-5)
New Orleans is without the services of its best player(Duece McCallister) for the rest of the season. They do however have a decent quarterback(Aaron Brooks) which is more than the Dolphins can offer. With Ricky Williams gaining negative yards, expect Ronnie Brown to get most of the carries and have a big name. It won’t be enough though…
My Pick: Saints

Kansas City (4-2) at San Diego (3-4)
K.C. has a solid team, but the Chargers are way too talented to fall to 3-5. Tomlinson is going to be hungry after having the worst game of his career last week against the Eagles. Expect an entertaining game with the home team winning a shootout.
My Pick: Chargers

Tampa Bay (5-1) at San Francisco (1-5)
With Brian Greise out for the year, and un-tested Chris Simms now at the helm for the Bucs, its tempting to pick this game as Alex Smith’s first victory. However, the Tampa Bay defense is as good as it gets in the NFL and they are capable of winning the game by themselves. Plus against a San Fran secondary that is allowing over 300 yards per game I could throw for a couple touchdowns.
My Pick: Buccaneers

Philadelphia (4-2) at Denver (5-2)
The stalwart Philly defense held LaDanian Tomlinson to single digit rushing yards last week. Tatum Bell and Mike Anderson shouldn’t provide many problems for them. Denver is still stunned from their last second loss to Eli Manning and the Giants. And if they couldn’t get it done against a N.Y. passing defense that ranks next to last, attacking the solid Eagles secondary is going to prove to be a much more arduous task.
My Pick: Eagles

Buffalo (3-4) at New England (3-3)
The Bills were just pummeled by a Raiders squad that has struggled all season. Now they have to travel to New England to face a Patriots team that has had two weeks to prepare for them. This could get ugly…
My Pick: Patriots

Monday Night:
Baltimore (2-4) at Pittsburgh (4-2)
The Ravens’ offense is averaging 11.5 points per game and has only one rushing touchdown all season. Baltimore is coming off a loss to the Bears in which they only managed to score two field goals. Meanwhile, the Steelers are riding high, with a healthy Roethlisberger and an unstoppable rushing attack that led them to a convincing victory over the division-leading Bengals.
My Pick: Steelers in dominating fashion