NFL Pro Football 2009 Week 14 Picks early games

NFL Pro Football 2009 Week 14 Picks

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Fearless Rick's NFL Week 14 Picks - Early Games

Rick Gagliano | December 10-14

All times Eastern - Click here for late games.

Thursday, Dec. 10

Pittsburgh (-10, 33) at Cleveland, 8:20 pm - Losers of four straight games, the Steelers are now on the outside, looking in, at playoff possibilities. Their hope is that they can win their final four games of the season, beginning with the creampuff Cleveland Browns, and get some help in order to finish the regular season at 10-6 and have a shot at a wild card. The Steelers are one of four teams with 6-6 records in the AFC (Baltimore, Miami and the Jets), all of which seek one of the two wild card slots, and this game would suit Pittsburgh perfectly to get a jump.

However, the Browns have been playing better since inserting Brady Quinn back at QB. More than a month ago, these two met in Pittsburgh, with the Steelers winning 27-13. The weather may be very raw, which both teams enjoy, and Cleveland should treat the Steelers like the wounded duck they are. This has upset written large.

PREDICTION: Browns 20 Steelers 16

Sunday, Dec. 13

New Orleans (-10 1/2, 52) at Atlanta, 1:00 pm - The Saints nearly gave up their perfect record last week in Washington, finally emerging with the 33-30 OT win against one of the league's best pass defenses. even though the Saints are on the road for the second straight week, they are facing a very wounded Atlanta squad, which hasn't looked the same since Michael Turner turned an ankle a few weeks ago. The Falcons have dropped 5 of their last 7, with the only wins against Washington and Tampa Bay. Last week's 34-7 slaughter at the hands of the Eagles speaks volumes about the overall health and dubious playoff prospects in Atlanta.

New Orleans may put up 40 here.

PREDICTION: Saints 41 Falcons 17

Detroit at Baltimore (-13, 39 1/2), 1:00 pm - Evidence that the Ravens have lost their mojo was widespread on Monday night as they were mauled by the Packers in Green Bay. The normally stout defense has faltered badly, and even if Ed Reed manages to get back in uniform this week, his contributions may not be enough to keep the Ravens from faltering once again. Still, the Ravens are a better team than the 2-10 Lions, and one has to wonder how long rookie QB Matthew Stafford's left shoulder will hold up, especially against the normally blitz-happy Ravens.

Baltimore is unlikely to reach the playoffs unless they get healthy in a hurry, and Detroit has nothing to prove on the road. The Ravens should win without much of a sweat, and just barely cover. The one player Detroit can't stop is Ray Rice and he's likely to be the difference.

PREDICTION: Ravens 31 Lions 14

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Green Bay (-3, 41) at Chicago, 1:00 pm - Chicago's season ended a few weeks ago. The dreams of reaching the playoffs were all but eliminated when they were manhandled by the Vikings, 36-10. After seeing what the Packers did to the Ravens on Monday night, one has to wonder why the line isn't more like -7 or 8, so this looks like a real gift to Green Bay fans.

The Packers are going to reach the playoffs as a wild card. Two more wins would likely do it for them. The Packers are probably playing the best of just about any team in the league right now, while the Bears are just a little worse than ordinary, meaning they will lose yet again.

PREDICTION: Packers 27 Bears 10

Seattle at Houston (-6, 44 1/2), 1:00 pm - A very tough call with both teams seemingly out of the playoff picture with identical 5-7 records. Seattle scores about 3 points fewer than Houston per game, but both teams allow 22 points per contest. Houston is not very good at home, registering a 2-4 record, while the Seahawks are an even worse 1-5 on the road. Sounds like a coin flip might be in order to determine the pick, but considering that Houston's home losses came against the Jets, Colts, Titans and Jags, three of which are divisional foes and all but Tennessee have .500 or better records, laying the 6 is probably going to produce a profit.

PREDICTION: Texans 31 Seahawks 19

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Denver at Indianapolis (-7, 44), 1:00 pm - The Colts, along with the Saints, are still undefeated, though Denver seems to have picked it up of late with a couple of solid wins after a string of four straight losses. At 8-4, they look like the last formidable opponent the Colts will have to face in order to complete a perfect season. Indy's final three games are at Jacksonville, home for the Jets and at Buffalo. As good as Indy's offense has been (27.6 ppg), their defense has been maybe better, currently tied for second in the league with these same Broncos at 16.8 ppg.

The Colts have the top passing game in the NFL; the Broncos have the second-best pass defense. Something must give, and it's more than likely to be Indy's passing game. Peyton Manning has thrown 6 of his 11 interceptions over the past four games, a trend that cannot be ignored. If anyone's going to undo Indy's shot at perfection, it would be the Broncos. Even though their 10 INTs on the season is near the league lows, one gets the feeling that they're overdue to pick off bunches of passes, and soon.

PREDICTION: Broncos 27 Colts 24

Miami at Jacksonville (-3, 44), 1:00 pm - Key match-up between two of the Florida teams, both seeking playoff spots. Jacksonville holds a 1-game edge, which could be erased if the Dolphins can pull off the minor upset. After what the Dolphins did to New England last week, being on the road again probably won't be much of a distraction, especially since the trip is just a short one up the coast.

Both Miami and Jacksonville have had remarkable seasons, considering the level of competition and, in Miami's case, the assortment of injuries to their offense. The Dolphins have a unique bag of tricks that the Jags may find unnerving. Given the offensive styles and the relative weakness on both defenses, one would have to give Miami the edge on creativity alone.

PREDICTION: Dolphins 22 Jaguars 21

Buffalo (even, 37 1/2) at Kansas City, 1:00 pm - The Chiefs have had their moments, but the Bills seem to have had more of them this season, even though they are a disappointment at 4-8. The Chiefs have one of the worst defenses in the league, while the stoppers have been a bright spot for the Bills. Buffalo has adequate talent offensively to put a hurting on the slackers in KC.

PREDICTION: Bills 21 Chiefs 10

Cincinnati at Minnesota (-6 1/2, 43), 1:00 pm - If this looks like the best game of the week to you, you're not alone. In what has an outside chance at being a preview of the Super Bowl, the Bengals head to Minny on a two-game win streak over a pair of pushovers - Cleveland and Detroit. The Bengals beat the Steelers - one of two teams to which the Vikings have lost - twice, and did the same to Baltimore, which came within a last-second field goal of beating Minnesota back in October. Whether those comparisons will translate into a win for the Bengals is as yet undetermined, though one would have to like their chances. Of their 3 losses, only one - a 28-17 beat-down by Houston in Week 6 - was by more than 5 points.

The Vikings are capable of kicking just about any team's behind - they have been all season - but they may be suffering from the long season, as evidenced by last week's sub-par performance at Arizona. Both teams cannot afford to give up on any game, so this one bears close scrutiny.

PREDICTION: Bengals 23 Vikings 20

All times Eastern - Click here for late games

Copyright 2009, 2010, Rick Gagliano, Downtown Magazine. All rights reserved. Downtown Magazine is located in the Uinted States of America and is not affiliated with the National Football League or the NCAA. For more information, contact us here. Use of this site is for entertainment purposes only.

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