1:00pm NY Giants (+1.5) vs. the Atlanta Falcons
It’s that time of the year when the Gmen start heating up and get ready for their final playoff push; or, like two years ago, when they falter. Who the hell knows. This team can either be one the best teams in the league or one of the worst on any given Sunday, but after a clinic over the dismal Saints I think they're primed to beat an over-achieving Falcons team. While Bradshaw might be ruled out, David Wilson can torch defenses as was proven last week. Eventually, Bradshaw will be obsolete as the youth tandem of Wilson and Brown take over NYC.
The Falcons, with Matt “I blow in the playoffs” Ryan at the helm, might have the most dynamic offense with the likes of Julio Jones, Tony “The ageless wonder” Gonzalez, Rowdy Roddy White (The 3 have combined for 2968 receiving yards and 19 TD’s), and the Burner Turner although their rushing yards per game is 4th worst in the NFL. I’m liking this Jacquizz Rodgers guy. Could be a sleeper in fantasy next year. Offensively, look for Manning and Cruz to exploit the Falcons’ defense pathetic defense as they rank 16th in opponent passing yards and 23rd in rushing. I have a feeling the Giants will dissemble them like last year’s playoff game.
4:05pm Detroit (-6) vs. the Cardinals
God the Cardinals are bad. That 4-0 start feels like a distant memory as they were embarrassed last week by a middle of the pack Seahawks team (58-0). The Lions are finding ways to lose why the Cardinals wish they even had an opportunity to find a way to lose. In their 9 game losing streak, their average of loss is 15.1 ppg while the Lions have an average loss of 5.2 ppgs in their 5 game skid. The Cardinals haven’t lost 10 straight since they started 0-10 in 1943…until after this week.
At this point, they should sit Larry Fitzgerald to keep him healthy for next year and let their legion of injury prone, underachieving running backs (Stephens- Howling, Wells, and Williams) and QB’s (Kolb, Skelton, Lindley) get the shit knocked out of them. They do have a solid defense with one of the best safety/corner tandems in the game with Kerry Rhodes and Patrick “Best Athlete Award” Peterson. Even with their strong secondary and a front seven that includes Calais Campbell and Darnell Dockett, they are going to give up points since they are on the field for 90% of the game. Even Lance Armstrong would get tired while doping if he played that long. Although the Lion’s have a mediocre secondary, their front seven more than make up for it with the likes of Stephen Tulloch, Nick Fairley, Ndamukong Suh, Vanden Bosch, and Avril. Having Avril, Fairley, Suh, and Vanden Bosch as your front four is unreal.
The Lions running game is poor as they rank 21st, but the Stafford/CJ squared combo is already legendary and makes a running game as necessary as having Jack Black in a movie. Calvin Johnson is 303 yards shy of Jerry Rice’s 1848 yards in a season record with 3 games to go and he’s averaging 110 ypg. You do the math. Even crazier is that if he can somehow average 151.7 ypg in the next 3 games, which is something that he has the ability to do, he will break the impossible 2000 receiving yards in a season mark. Besides Megatron, they have receiving weapons in the cancerous Titus Young and the crafty veteran Nate Burleson. They also have 2 solid TE’s in Brandon Pettigrew and Tony Scheffler. Watch the Lions get a nice bird for dinner.
Sun 8:20pm San Francisco 49’s vs. the New England Patriots (o46.5)
The New England Patriots is hands down the best team in the NFL. If you think differently, then you're simply hater. Tom “Diva” Brady (Remarkable 29 TD’s to 4 Picks this season) is on fire even without their best offensive weapon, Gronkowski. Wes Welker has been looking at the top of his game (1116 yards this season), Hernandez has been playing great, and the Patriots finally have that runner they've been searching for over the last several years in Stevan Ridley (1082 rushing yards and 10 TD’s). Imagine what they will do when Gronk comes back…
The Niners aren’t completely anemic either. With Michael Crabtree finally playing up to his potential, Vernon Davis can eventually make some plays although has been playing a disappearing act recently, and they still have the beast of the west Frank Gore (1035 yards and 7 TD’s). The Patriots pass defense is a sad 29th in the NFL which should fare well for the mobile Colin “Stop talking about my Tats” Kaepernick. Their back-up receivers have proven this year and in the past that they can make some epic plays (Moss and Manningham). On the defensive side, both teams have playmakers who get their offenses in great position by either holding them to deep punts or forcing turnovers. The Pats have McCourty, Mayo, Hightower, Wilfork, and Talib. The Niners secondary contains the ever-dangerous Dashon Goldson and Carlos Rogers, while their front seven includes the perennial probowler Patrick “Hit Stick” Willis, and the NFL leader in sacks in Aldon Smith (19.5 sacks). By the way, you should watch this kid for no other reason than the fact he is three sacks shy of tying Michael Strahan’s record.
I would like to point out that this is by far the best weekend of football this season, as it’s smothered with playoff implications. Highlights include Ravens/Broncos; Steelers/Cowboys; Packers/Bears; Giants/Falcons; and Colts/Texans. Rodger Goodell is somewhere pounding himself to how well the schedule worked out.
Lock-Street Record
19-20-1
Week 14
0-3
Week 13
1-2
Week 12
2-0-1
Week 11
2-1
Week 10
2-1
Week 9
1-2
Week 8
1-2
Week 7
2-1
Week 6
1-2
Week 5
1-2
Week 4
3-0
Week 3
2-1
Week 2
1-2
Week 1
0-1
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