Ramblin’ Fan’s NFL Picks and Predictions: Week 13

With week 12 in the books its time to review our NFL picks and look forward to week 13′s picks and predictions.  Week 12 was a mediocre week for our picks here at Ramblin’ Fan.  We went an unimpressive 7-6 with our NFL picks in week 12, so hopefully we can get back to our week 8 pace and hit double digits again in week 13.  This week all of the NFC West teams will be in action with the Rams traveling to take on the 49ers and the Seahawks hosting the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football.  The Thanksgiving holiday put a bit of a delay on the publishing of this article, so if anyone out there was expecting it Thursday I apologize but hope you had a great Thanksgiving. Thanks for reading our weekly NFL picks article and as always Go Rams!!!

Green Bay Packers @ Detroit Lions (FOX-Thanksgiving). The Packers will be without Aaron Rodgers, and that will be too much to overcome against a potent Lions offense.  Calvin Johnson and Matthew Stafford could have a field day against the Packers secondary.  If the Lions can avoid committing multiple turnovers, which as been their downfall in several games this season, they should win this comfortably and have a chance to take control of the NFC North. Lions win 24 – 16.

Oakland Raiders @ Dallas Cowboys (CBS-Thanksgiving).The Cowboys and Raiders should actually be a closer game than many might anticipate.  The Raiders are starting to round into form and have been competitive with Matt McGloin slinging the football around.  The Cowboys just have a bit too much firepower for the Raiders to keep up in this one, but it could be a heck of a game. Cowboys win 28 – 21.

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Baltimore Ravens (TNF-NBC). The Steelers and Ravens both started slow but have managed to crawl their way back into the wild card hunt in the AFC.  This is a tough AFC North matchup and it really could go either way, but I will go with the home team in what could be a great Thanksgiving night matchup. Ravens win 20 – 13.

St. Louis Rams @ San Francisco 49ers. The Rams will travel out to San Francisco to take on their longtime rivals one last time in Candlestick.  The Rams got their doors blown off by the 49ers in the first matchup of the season, but have since completely changed their gameplan minus Sam Bradford.  The Rams defense has put in some dominant efforts since, but have also been gashed by the run.  The 49ers are likely to try to pound the rock and see if they can control the tempo and limit the Rams pass rush opportunities.  This could be another classic battle, but if the Rams hope to keep their faint playoff hopes alive this is a must win game.  Robert Quinn needs to continue to make his case for Defensive Player of the Year for the Rams to win. Rams win 30 – 28.

Jacksonville Jaguars @ Cleveland Browns. The Jaguars have steadily improved this season under first year head coach Gus Bradley.  The Browns have been up and down as they have suffered through several quarterback injuries.  This game is pretty much a coin toss, but we will go with the home team. Browns win 21 – 20.

Tennessee Titans @ Indianapolis Colts. The Colts seem like a shell of the team that knocked off the Broncos at Lucas Oil Stadium.  If they want to win the AFC South, they need to find a way to make life easier for Andrew Luck without Reggie Wayne.  Trent Richardson has been a huge disappointment up to this point, he needs to step up and ease some of the burden for the young franchise QB. Colts win 27 – 10.

Chicago Bears @ Minnesota Vikings. The Bears should be able to go on the road and pick up the W over their NFC North rivals.  The Bears have been playing good ball on offense with Josh McCown under center, but the defense has struggled mightily.  The Vikings offense hasn’t exactly lit the world on fire, so if the Bears can limit Adrian Peterson (that’s a BIG if) they should be able to control the game. Bears win 27 – 13.

Miami Dolphins @ New York Jets. The Jets have been up and down all season, life with a Rookie QB.  The Dolphins had a pretty rough stretch following their 3-0 start and have also been the latest victim of Ritchie Incognito.  Both of these young signal callers will make some plays, but the Jets defense should be able to secure the victory at home. Jets win 20-17.

Arizona Cardinals @ Philadelphia Eagles. The Cardinals are suddenly the media darlings following their 29 point dismantling of the slumping Colts last week.  The Cardinals are clearly in the hunt for a wild card birth, while the Eagles are looking to win the NFC East.  If the Eagles can get Carson Palmer to cough up the ball once or twice they should be able to win this game as Nick Foles has played great football as the starter. Eagles win 28 – 24.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Carolina Panthers. The Panthers secondary is vulnerable to the deep ball, and the Bucs have a few big play receivers so this could be interesting.  The only question is can the Bucs keep the Panthers fierce front 7 off of Glennon long enough to make the connection? Panthers win 27 -16.

New England Patriots @ Houston Texans. In what appears to be the mismatch of the week the always tough Patriots travel to Houston to take on the struggling Texans.  The Texans have suffered blowout after blowout, with injuries galore and plenty of drama.  The Patriots should be able to come to Texas and leave with a comfortable victory, but they better make sure to take care of JJ Watt as he can absolutely wreck a gameplan. Patriots win 31 – 17.

Atlanta Falcons @ Buffalo Bills.The Falcons season certainly hasn’t gone according to plan, and for one of Steven Jackson’s biggest fans it couldn’t be harder to watch.  Jackson and the entire Falcons offense has struggled with injuries and poor play from the offensive line.  The defense has also been hit hard by injuries, and although they played better than expected against the Saints they just can’t keep it together for 4 quarters.  The Bills should be able to get the victory at home against the struggling Falcons. Bills win 20 – 17.

Denver Broncos @ Kansas City Chiefs. The Broncos will head to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs for the second time in 3 weeks.  The question is how do they respond after blowing their huge halftime lead against the Patriots last week.  The Chiefs on the other hand have lost two straight and could be without their two best defensive players.  If the Chiefs defense can’t pressure Peyton Manning (which they couldn’t do last time) it could be a long day at Arrowhead. Broncos win 35 – 20.

Cincinnati Bengals @ San Diego Chargers. This is one of the tougher games to call this weekend, but the Chargers have quietly been one of the better teams in the AFC this season.  Philip Rivers is playing great football this season and they have been getting solid contributions from the running game.  The Bengals have been sort of up and down over the last couple of weeks as injuries have started to take their toll on the defense.  Chargers win 21 – 17.

New York Giants @ Washington Redskins (SNF).  The Redskins have been about as bad as any team in the NFL this season, and it seems obvious that RGIII just isn’t 100%.  The Giants started the season 0-6 but rattled off 4 in a row before failing to complete the comeback last week against the Cowboys.  Still the Redskins defense has been terrible and it should give Eli Manning another opportunity to remind everyone that Peyton isn’t the only Manning playing QB in the NFL these days.  Not necessarily a great Sunday Night Football matchup but at least Rams fans can root against the Redskins for draft position purposes. Giants win 28 – 10.

New Orleans Saints @ Seattle Seahawks (MNF). This could be the single most important regular season game in the NFC as the Saints and Seahawks are battling for playoff positioning.  With each team boasting an impressive homefield advantage this game very well could decide who claims homefield throughout the playoffs.  The Seahawks haven’t lost at home since Russell Wilson took over at QB, but their defense will be without both Brandon Browner and Walter Thurmond which could prove costly against the high-flying Saints.  If the Saints defense can limit the damage that Marshawn Lynch can do they should be in great shape to secure the victory on Monday Night Football.  Saints win 28 – 24.

NFL Week 13 Matchups

Pick

Packers @ Lions(FOX-Thanksgiving)

Lions

Raiders @ Cowboys (CBS-Thanksgiving)

Cowboys

Steelers @ Ravens (TNF-NBC)

Ravens

Rams @ 49ers

Rams

Jaguars @ Browns

Browns

Titans @ Colts

Colts

Bears @ Vikings

Bears

Dolphins @ Jets

Jets

Cardinals @ Eagles

Eagles

Bucs @ Panthers

Panthers

Patriots @ Texans

Patriots

Falcons @ Bills

Bills

Broncos @ Chiefs

Broncos

Bengals @ Chargers

Chargers

Giants @ Redskins (SNF)

Giants

Saints @ Seahawks (MNF)

Saints

Last Week

7-6

Overall Record

103-72