NFL Football - Survivor Football

Alright, halfway there!  Onto Week 9, and I’ll provide a little more detail on the prior weeks.

Week 1: Patriots 38, Dolphins 24- Week 2: Steelers 24, Seahawks 0- Week 3: Chargers 20, Chiefs 17- Week 4: Packers 49, Broncos 23- Week 5: Saints 30, Panthers 27- Week 6: Raiders 24, Browns 17- Week 7: Cowboys 34, Rams 7- Week 8: Ravens 30, Cardinals 27, Texans 30, Browns 12.

Well, the Miami Dolphins got their first win at the expense of KC takers.  In last week's article I warned against that, so hopefully you're still alive in your survival pool.

Going forward, I’m going to pick 2 teams, one to continue my own survival pool, and another to start after the "Giant" debalc in Week 5.

As always, we’ll review 5 popular picks, and then I’ll give you my pick.

Philadelphia Eagles:  (ESPN 31% / Yahoo 55%) – The Eagles are in must-win territory now, if they want a chance at the playoffs.  The schedule only gets tougher from here on out, so they have to take advantage this week (now or never).  While they are 3-5, they have lost to quality teams, but have handled the weak teams pretty well.  It’s a slightly short week coming off of MNF with the Bears, but the Eagles should prove to be the superior birds in this upcoming matchup with Kevin Kolb out and Beanie Wells banged up.

Baltimore Ravens: (ESPN 13% / Yahoo 17%) – While the Ravens have been the stronger team this year, the only two teams they’ve beat on the road are the Rams and Steelers.  Granted the Steelers are a good team, but prior to that only the Rams.  Ravens played up to the Steelers, and they won’t bring the same intensity to Seattle, which is always a tough place to play.  I can see the Ravens having a letdown game here.  Ravens are the road team, and do try to avoid the road whenever possible.

Green Bay Packers: (ESPN 14.9% / Yahoo 26.0%) – Packers are at home on MNF, but this is a rivalry game, and crazy things can happen on MNF.  Do you remember the Jaguars beating the Ravens? (hint: road game for Baltimore).  The Packers will lose eventually this year.  Their defense hasn’t been strong enough to hold their opponents to a few points, and Rodgers has to have a bad game – right?  Right??? Right?????  Also, Christian Ponder and the Vikings are coming off a bye, so they’ve had two weeks to prepare for the Packers, and the Vikings are looking for a positive win in what has so far been a dismal situation.  You know as they say, “Any Given Sun…  errr Monday”.

Pittsburgh Steelers: (ESPN 11.0% / Yahoo 17.0%) – The Steelers need to win to keep pace with the Ravens, and to compete in the AFC Wildcard, but don’t count these Bengals out.  They have a great defense, and their offense is led by two rookies in Andy Dalton and A.J. Green, who have developed a great chemistry in only a short amount of time.  Did you know the Bengals have won 5 straight?  This is their longest winning streak since 1988.  I don’t quite know if they can beat the Steelers, but they certainly won’t be pushovers.

Jacksonville Jaguars: (ESPN 8.8% / Yahoo 8.1%) –Here’s your standard pick against the Colts pick.  I still believe the Colts will win one game on the season.  I can’t say for certain this will be the one, but conversely, the Jaguars have had a rocky season as well.  The key here is MJD and the fact that they’re coming off a bye.  With the extra day on the bye week, some teams have been rusty.  Although, having two weeks to prepare for a team is a great advantage, and with the Colts’ poor run defense, I expect Jaguars to win, but be cautious.

My pick…

Philadelphia Eagles: It’s panic time in Philly.  They retooled their offense/defense to create the “Dream Team” in order to win the Championship this year.  While it’s still possible, they’ll need help to get in.  Additionally, after letting Kolb go, Eagles can’t lose to the Cards even if Kolb is still injured.  Plus, they have the added bonus on facing the Cardinals traveling West and playing in the morning.  I think the Eagles will win comfortably

If you have questions on other matchups, reach out to me at Twitter @FD_James.