Week 12 NFL Picks

At Cincinnati -7.5 Oakland
Will Carson Palmer get his revenge? I think not. Raiders will get Reece going, but the Dalton outshines Palmer
Pick: Bengals -7.5

Pittsburgh -1 At Cleveland
The Steelers can win with Charlie Batch. I mean they were pretty damn close with Leftwich, who was all kinds of hurt in the second half of last week’s game against Baltimore. The Browns got something special with Trent Richardson, who took the blame for last week’s loss for failing to plow into the endzone and instead going over the top of the defense at the goal line, which was not successful. That’s the kind of good stuff you like to hear from a first-year, featured piece of the franchise. But Richardson can’t do it all by himself. The Steelers D has been stepping up of late, and with some combo of basic Batch, steady Mendenhall and battering Dwyer, the Steelers will take this one.
Pick: Steelers -1

At Indianapolis -2 Buffalo
Fred Jackson is back in the mix, giving the Bills a two-headed boost in the run game. The Colts are coming off a Patriot pounding, but they haven’t lost at home since September. The Bills win streak stops at one game.
Pick: Colts -2

Denver -10.5 At Kansas City
It’s a large spread yes, but the Chiefs are riding a seven game losing streak for a reason. Hillman steps in for the Broncos and Peyton continues march this team into the playoffs.
Pick: Broncos -10.5

Tennessee -3 At Jacksonville
Will Chad Henne keep it going and play himself back into a regular starting job? Will Chris Johnson continue his run of quality starts? I’m not really sure on either account. Both these are playing for pride at this point. The Jags are done already, but the Titans could squeak their way into playoff contention if they get hot. With more to play for, edge goes to the Titans.
Pick: Titans -3

At Chicago -6.5 Minnesota
With Cutler expected to start and Percy Harvin expected to sit, it’s safe to trust the Bears again.
Pick: Bears -6.5

Atlanta -1 At Tampa Bay
Even though the Bucs have put together an impressive stretch of games, and despite the fact that I don’t get overly impressed by the championship-hopes of the 9-1 Falcons, I still think Atlanta will pull away in this matchup.
Pick: Falcons -1

Seattle -3 At Miami
The Seahawks need to figure out a way to win on the road consistently. Golden Tate has been doing good things for Seattle, accounting for four TDs in the last two games. Miami has been shooting itself in the foot and that offense just hasn’t been clicking for some time now. Go with Seattle.
Pick: Seattle -3

Baltimore -1 At San Diego
The Ravens are a different team on the road. The Chargers have shown a bit of spark lately. I think the Ravens get edged out in San Diego.
Pick: Chargers +1

San Francisco -2.5 At New Orleans
It’s hard to think back to the 0-4 Saints. They’ve won five of their last six, and even though the 49ers have gotten better after the QB switch, I like the Saints at home.
Pick: Saints +1.5

At Arizona -1 St. Louis
Both teams are in a bit of a tailspin, but the Rams will make a mess of things for Ryan Lindley.
Pick: Rams +1

At NY Giants -3 Green Bay
The Giants have lost two straight. They’re lock on the NFC East is looking a bit vulnerable at this point. In this battle of the last two Super Bowl champs, I like the winners of Super Bowl XLV.
Pick: Packers +3

Carolina -3 At Philadelphia
Steve Smith called this the battle of the bads, a pretty apt description. Who’s worse? Hard to say. You want to believe the Eagles can stop the bleeding and not go out like this, but it’s the end of the line for the season and for the Reid regime. Everyone knows it, and it’s hard to stay motivated when a big house cleaning is right around the corner.
Pick: Panthers -3

Last Week: 6-8
Season 79-74-2
Last Season: 140-120-12