NFL 2021 Week 12 Recap

 Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action has come and gone. After the Turkey day festivities concluded another full day of football happened on Sunday. There were great games like the Lions choking away another Thanksgiving, a Toilet Bowl in Houston, and gaffe-a-palooza in Baltimore. In this post I'll do a recap of the week's action. Let's get to work!

Week 12 Recap

Chicago 16, Detroit 14: TW: Lions; CV: Bears
Fifth straight loss on Thanksgiving for the Lions. Huzzah! Andy Dalton would get the start for Chicago and had 24 completions out of 39 passes thrown. He had 317 yards passing with a touchdown pass to Jimmy Graham and had an interception. David Montgomery rushed for 46 yards on 17 carries and Andy Dalton rushed for 11 yards on six carries. Jared Goff played pretty well given the circumstances as he had 21 completions out of 25 attempts for 171 yards with two touchdown passes to TJ Hockenson and Josh Reynolds. Dandre Swift wasn't much of a factor in this game as he only ran the ball for three times with a 4-yard run being his longest. He would leave the game with a right shoulder injury. Jamaal Williams would get most of the carries for the Lions with 15 with 65 yards rushing. It was an optimistic showing for the Lions but shitting the bed seems to be their forte. 

TW: 0-1; CV: 1-0

Next week:
Chicago: vs Arizona
Detroit: vs Minnesota

Las Vegas 36, Dallas 33: TW: Cowboys; CV: Cowboys
Glad Dallas lost but holy shit that game reeked of bad calls by the referees. Derek Carr had a fairly good showing with 24 completions out of 39 attempts for 373 yards for a touchdown. Josh Jacobs rushed for 87 yards with 22 carries along with a touchdown. Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota would come into the game and score a rushing touchdown on a 3-yard run to the right for a score. It was a big day for Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson as he was a pefect 5 for 5 on field goals. Including the game-winner for Las Vegas. Dak Prescott had similar numbers as he threw 32 completions out of 47 attempts for 375 yards with two touchdowns. Tony Pollard rushed for 36 yards on 10 carries. Pollard would also be a key contributor on special teams as he returned a kickoff for a score. Ezekiel Elliot rushed for 25 yards on nine carries for a touchdown. Cowboys kicker Greg "The Leg" Zuerlein would hit 2 of 3 field goals. The yellow flag was a frequent uninvited guest to the Turkey day festivities as both teams would be flagged 14 times with 110 yards on the Raiders and 166 to the Cowboys. Ouch.

TW: 0-2; CV: 1-1

Next week:
Las Vegas: vs Washington
Dallas: @ New Orleans

Buffalo 31, New Orleans 6: TW: Bills; CV: Bills
It was back to better football for the Buffalo Bills. Josh Allen threw 23 of 28 passes for 260 yards with four touchdown passes but did throw two weird passes to guys in Saints jerseys. He would also have 43 yards rushing in the game. Devin Singletary rushed for 44 yards. Buffalo's defense was the key to this game as the Bills held the Saints to 190 total yards, including 44 rushing yards. Trevor Siemian would play meh but not awful as he threw 17 of 29 passes for 163 yards with a touchdown but also threw an interception. New Orleans had might hoped to exploit the Bills rush defense but with no Alvin Kamara there was no shot. Tony Jones would be the leading rusher for the Saints in this game with 27 yards on 16 carries. Time to see if the Bills are for real as they play against the Patriots next week.

TW: 1-2; CV: 2-1

Next week:
Buffalo: vs New England
New Orleans: vs Dallas

Carolina 10, Miami 33: TW: Panthers; CV: Panthers
Time to abandon ship on the Panthers again. Cam Newton wasn't stellar in this game as he had 5 completions out of 21 passes for 92 yards with two interceptions. Cam Newton would account for the only offensive touchdown for the Panthers on a 2-yard run. PJ Walker would throw 5 completions out of 10 passes for 87 yards with an interception. Christian McCaffrey ran the ball well enough as he had 35 yards rushing on 10 carries. Tua Tagovailoa threw the ball well with 27 completions out of 31 attempts for 230 yards with a touchdown pass to Jaylen Waddle. Myles Gaskin was the workhorse for the Dolphins as he rushed for 49 yards on 16 carries and had two trips to the endzone. Phillip Lindsay rushed for 42 yards on 12 carries. Turnovers kill your team and with three interceptions on the Panthers the result wasn't surprising in truth. 

TW: 1-3; CV: 2-2

Next week:
Carolina: Bye
Miami: vs NY Giants

Atlanta 21, Jacksonville 14: TW: Falcons; CV: Falcons
Have a day Cordarelle Patterson. Matt Ryan threw fairly well with 19 completions out of 29 passes for 190 yards with a touchdown pass to Russell Gage but also threw an interception. Cordarelle Patterson was a beast on the field with 16 carries for 108 yards rushing with two touchdowns. Trevor Lawrence threw a lot in this game as he threw 23 completions out of 42 passes for 228 yards with a touchdown pass to Tavon Austin and had an interception. Jacksonville got good production out of their running back James Robinson as he added 86 yards rushing. Very similar stats for both teams but it really came down to Cordarelle Patterson as the Jaguars couldn't stop him.

TW: 2-3; CV: 3-2

Next week:
Atlanta: vs Tampa Bay
Jacksonville: @ LA Rams

NY Jets 21, Houston 14: TW: Texans; CV: Jets
Good news: you still have a shot to have the #2 pick in the draft. Bad news: you lost to the Jets. Zach Wilson returned to action and did okay with 14 of 24 passes completed for 145 yards with an interception. New York's rushing attack really was the key to this game as Tevin Coleman had 67 yards rushing. Ty Johnson had 42 yards rushing. Austin Walter rushed for 38 yards with a touchdown. Zach Wilson also visited the endzone on a 4-yard run. Tyrod Taylor was a solid contributor as he had 17 of 26 passes completed for 158 yards with two touchdown passes and an interception. David Johnson rushed for 39 yards on 10 carries. One bright spot for the Texans was Tyrod Taylor's 30-yard run as that was the longest run in the game. Red Zone Efficiency was key in this game as the Jets were 2 for 4 and the Texans were 1 for 2. 

TW: 2-4; CV: 4-2

Next week:
NY Jets: vs Philadelphia
Houston: vs Indianapolis

Philadelphia 7, NY Giants 13: TW: Eagles; CV: Eagles
Well played 2021 season, well played. Jalen Hurts wasn't much of a factor in this one as he completed 14 of 31 passes for 129 yards with three interceptions. Jalen Hurts also rushed for 77 yards on eight carries in the game. Miles Sanders rushed for 64 yards. Boston Scott rushed for 64 yards with a touchdown run. Daniel Jones completed 19 of 30 passes for 202 yards with a touchdown pass to Chris Myarick. Saquon Barkley rushed for 40 yards with a 32-yard run being the longest in the game. Daniel Jones rushed for 30 yards in the game as well. Jalen Hurts was off by a lot and the Giants took advantage of his mistakes. The game would come down to a game-winning pass from Jalen Hurts to Jalen Reagor that would ultimately get dropped.

TW: 2-5; CV: 4-3

Next week:
Philadelphia: @ NY Jets
NY Giants: @ Miami

Pittsburgh 10, Cincinnati 41: TW: Steelers; CV: Bengals
A thorough demoliton in the Queen City. Ben Roethlisberger was off in this game as he completed 24 of 41 passes for 263 yards with a touchdown to his favorite target Pat Freiermuth but threw two costly interceptions. One of the two was returned for a touchdown by former Steeler Mike Hilton. Pittsburgh's bread and butter running game wouldn't get much as Najee Harris rushed for 23 yards. Kalen Ballage rushed for 21 yards. Joe Burrow was good as he completed 20 of 24 passes for 190 yards with a touchdown to Tee Higgins but also had a pass that was picked off by Minkah Fitzpatrick. Joe Mixon ran over the Steelers defense as he had 28 carries for 165 yards with two touchdowns. With the AFC North being open I wouldn't count the Steelers out yet but with a demoralizing loss like this it could cause them to blow up and search for a rebuild. 

TW: 2-6; CV: 5-3

Next week:
Pittsburgh: vs Baltimore
Cincinnati: vs LA Chargers

Tampa Bay 38, Indianapolis 31: TW: Buccaneers; CV: Buccaneers
This game was a fairly entertaining one as both teams totaled 750 yards of offense. Tom Brady completed 25 of 34 passes for 226 yards with a touchdown pass and an interception. Leonard Fournette ran for the century mark as the runner had 100 yards rushing for three touchdowns with a 28-yard run being his longest. Ronald Jones rushed for 37 yards with a touchdown. Carson Wentz threw 27 completions out of 44 passes for 306 yards with three touchdowns and had two interceptions in the game. Jonathan Taylor had a quieter game as he had 83 yards rushing with a touchdown run on 16 carries. Imagine what the Colts could've done without those costly turnovers. It might've been a different game. 

TW: 3-6; CV: 6-3

Next week:
Tampa Bay: @ Atlanta
Indianapolis: @ Houston

Tennessee 13, New England 36: TW: Patriots; CV: Patriots
At least the Patriots can be counted on when it comes to picks. Ryan Tannehill played a meh game as he completed 11 of 21 passes for 93 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Tennessee's running game had some great contributions by players not named Derrick Henry. Dontrell Hilliard rushed for 131 yards with a touchdown. The touchdown would come from a 68-yard run. Donta Foreman rushed for 109 yards. Mac Jones continued to have a great rookie season as the passer completed 23 of 32 passes for 310 yards with two touchdowns. Rhamondre Stevenson didn't have great numbers but he did have 46 yards rushing on 9 carries. Damien Harris rushed for 40 yards with a touchdown. The Patriots had a great game with Nick Folk hitting 5 of 6 field goals in the game. 

TW: 4-6; CV: 7-3

Next week:
Tennessee: Bye
New England: @ Buffalo

LA Chargers 13, Denver 28: TW: Chargers; CV: Chargers
Of course the Chargers would take a day off against an AFC West opponent. Justin Herbert would have 28 completions out of 44 passes thrown for 303 yards with two touchdown passes to Austin Ekeler and Jared Cook. He would also have two interceptions that were obtained by Broncos rookie Patrick Surtain II. The second he picked off would go for a 70-yard touchdown. Justin Herbert would be the leading rusher in the game for the Chargers with 36. Austin Ekeler would have 31 yards rushing on 12 carries as well as 68 receiving yards with six catches. Teddy Bridgewater would start and leave the game and then come back. He finished with 11 of 18 passes completed for 129 yards passing with a touchdown pass to Eric Saubert. Drew Lock would come in for relief and had 4 of 7 passes completed for 26 yards with an interception that would lead to a Chargers touchdown. Melvin Gordon rushed for 83 yards on 17 carries. Javonte Williams rushed for 54 yards with a touchdown. Teddy Bridgewater rushed for a touchdown on a 11-yard play. This season is just wild. 

TW: 4-7; CV: 7-4

Next week:
LA Chargers: @ Cincinnati
Denver: @ Kansas City

LA Rams 28, Green Bay 36: TW: Packers; CV: Rams
No Toe injury would keep Aaron Rodgers from tippy-toeing out of this game. Matthew Stafford would complete 21 passes out of 38 passes for 302 yards with three touchdown passes and an interception. Darrell Henderson had 16 carries for 55 yards. Aaron Rodgers completed 28 passes out of 45 attempts for 307 yards for two touchdowns as well as a tippy-toe rushing touchdown on a 1-yard play. AJ Dillon rushed for 69 yards on 20 carries. Remember when the Rams were still at 7-1 and didn't have Von Miller and Odell Beckham Jr., yeah that seems like a long time ago. 

TW: 5-7; CV: 7-5

Next week:
LA Rams: vs Jacksonville
Green Bay: Bye

Minnesota 26, San Francisco 34: TW: 49ers; CV: Vikings
San Fran still holding out for a possible wild card berth. Kirk Cousins completed 20 of 32 passes for 238 yards with two touchdown passes to Adam Thielen. He would also get a pass picked off. Dalvin Cook would put up a decent rushing total with 39 yards rushing on 10 carries. It would be Alexander Mattison that would get a rushing score while getting 21 yards rushing. Jimmy Garoppolo had similar numbers to Cousins as the passer had completed 17 of 26 passes with 230 yards with a touchdown pass and an interception. Elijah Mitchell was a monster running over the Vikings defense as he had 133 yards with a touchdown. Deebo Samuel would get some play at running back as he would rush for 66 yards on six carries with two touchdowns and a 49-yard run being his longest. It would be a 20 point scoring frenzy for the 49ers that would be the key in this game as both teams wouldn't get a point in the 4th quarter. 

TW: 6-7; CV: 7-6

Next week:
Minnesota: @ Detroit
San Francisco: @ Seattle

Cleveland 10, Baltimore 16: TW: Ravens; CV: Ravens
How do you not beat a team whose quarterback threw four interceptions. Baker Mayfield was off in this game as he completed 18 of 37 passes for 247 yards with a touchdown pass to David Njoku. Cleveland's rushing attack would be held in check as Kareem Hunt would have 20 yards rushing on 7 carries. Nick Chubb had eight carries for 16 yards. Lamar Jackson completed 20 of 32 passes for 165 yards with a touchdown and had four interceptions. Lamar Jackson did rush for 68 yards on 17 carries. Along with the four turnovers by Baltimore, the Browns would fumble two times in the game. Shouldn't be surprised the Browns have reverted back to average. 

TW: 7-7; CV: 8-6

Next week:
Cleveland: Bye
Baltimore: @ Pittsburgh

Seattle 15, Washington 17: TW: Football Team; CV: Football Team
It was a tight contest but the Football Team would hold off one last Seattle march. Russell Wilson completed 20 of 31 passes with 247 passing yards with two touchdowns. Obviously a better showing for him. He would also be the running back in this game as he rushed for 16 yards. Anthony Collins rushed for 14 yards on seven carries. Seattle would get a blocked kick that would go back for a Seattle safety. Seattle had a chance to tie the game on a 2-point conversion but a pass intended for Freddie Swain would get dropped and would get grabbed by Kendall Fuller. Taylor Heinicke completed 27 of 35 passes for 223 passing yards with a touchdown pass but also had an interception in the game. Antonio Gibson carried the ball for 29 times for a 111-yard day on the ground. JD McKissic rushed for 30 yards with a touchdown. Time of possession was an advantage for Washington as they had 41 minutes of ball control. Seattle going 4-12 on 3rd down wasn't a good stat for the Seahawks either. 

TW: 8-7; CV: 9-6

Next week:
Seattle: vs San Francisco
Washington: @ Las Vegas

2021 Pick'em Records:

My record:

Week 1: 7-9
Week 2: 10-6
Week 3: 10-6
Week 4: 9-7
Week 5: 12-4
Week 6: 11-3
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 7-7
Week 10: 5-8-1
Week 11: 8-7
Week 12: 8-7

Total: 104-75-1

Cardinal Viking's record:

Week 1: 6-10
Week 2: 12-4
Week 3: 13-3
Week 4: 10-6
Week 5: 10-6
Week 6: 12-2
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 8-6
Week 10: 5-8-1
Week 11: 10-5
Week 12: 9-6

Total: 112-67-1

Previous Picking Records:

Cardinal Viking:

2017: 167-89
2018: 156-98-2
2019: 151-104-1
2020: 163-92-1

My record: 

2012: 164-90-2

2013: 162-92-1

2014: 172-83-1

2017: 164-92

2018: 156-98-2

2019: 161-94-1

2020: 167-88-1 

See you all on Wednesday for the Week 13 picks post! See you then!

-Tom

NFL 2021 Week 12 Picks

 Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action is coming upon us yet again. Thanksgiving will soon be upon us and family, friends, food and football will dominate the landscape on Thursday. Truly a tradition like no other. For Week 12 games I'm keeping an eye on the Bills-Saints, Steelers-Bengals, Buccaneers-Colts, Titans-Patriots, and Rams-Packers matchups. In this post I'll do a preview of the week's games and my picks for the games. Let's get to work!

Week 12 Preview

The NFL's 12th week of the regular season starts in Detroit, Michigan and finish up in Landover, Maryland. Arizona Cardinals and Kansas City Chiefs are on a bye this week. The week features a 15-game slate where 30 teams will play. Week 12 features three Thursday games, seven early games, three late games, a Sunday night game and a Monday night game. FOX will have the doubleheader and CBS will have the single, regional game this week. Let's get to the picks!

Week 12 Picks

Note: TW is me and CV is Cardinal Viking, my former roommate. All game times are in US Eastern.

Chicago (3-7) @ Detroit (0-9-1) (FOX; 12:30 pm): TW: Lions, CV: Bears
Last week the Bears lost to the Ravens and the Lions lost to the Browns. The Turkey Day festivities starts with a wimper matchup in Detroit. Both teams are not very good. This is really and only the time that Detroit gets to be on the national stage so I will actually take the Lions. I'm really going to hate myself if honestly they lose to the Bears. This season has been so crazy that anything is possible. I think Dandre Swift will have a good game. Don't fail me Detroit. 

Las Vegas (5-5) @ Dallas (7-3) (CBS; 4:30 pm): TW: Cowboys; CV: Cowboys
The two teams lost last week as the Raiders lost to the Bengals and the Cowboys lost to the Chiefs. The sleeper game features two teams that are on somewhat of a downswing, at least more so for the Las Vegas Raiders. The Cowboys can play really good football and play really bad football. Last week was one of those games where they really couldn't find their running attack as I don't think the Chiefs put up a spectacular game last Sunday. I can't stand Dallas and I hope the case is that the Cowboys lose but I want to get back to winning this season in Pick 'Ems. 

Buffalo (6-4) @ New Orleans (5-5) (NBC; 8:20 pm): TW: Bills; CV: Bills
Both teams lost last week as the Bills lost to the Colts and the Saints lost to the Eagles. Once the afternoon nap is over this matchup is the one where you find and nibble on some leftovers. The two teams possess very good defenses as they wouldn't be this far this season looking for playoff position. Buffalo hasn't played well and their defense got exposed badly against the Colts. New Orleans can be very inconsistent and they really bad offense. However I still like the Buffalo Bills in the matchup as the Saints are ranked 21st in pass defense, giving up 267.1 yards/game. This could be a problem as their pass offense is not very good either as they have 214.6 yards/game. I'll take the Bills. 

Carolina (5-6) @ Miami (4-7) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Panthers; CV: Panthers
The Panthers lost to the Football Team and the Dolphins beat the Jets last week. Cam Newton has provided the Panthers new life after the Sam Darnold project failed. Their defense kind of had a setback last week against Washington and really should've won the game. Miami has been on a tear lately winning three straight games. What made that change was them playing not great teams in the Texans or Jets but rather their defense has been back to playing at a level that we were expecting at season's start. I don't really think that the Dolphins will win this game but I feel it could be close. I'll take the Panthers.

Atlanta (4-6) @ Jacksonville (2-8) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Falcons; CV: Falcons
Both teams lost last week as the Falcons lost to the Patriots and the Jaguars lost to the 49ers. Both teams aren't that great. Atlanta looked like a possibility of a wild card and then they got blown up by the Cowboys and Patriots. Jacksonville wasn't expected to be good. They have a decent running attack and sometimes surprise you on defense. Atlanta just can never get a good offense or defense together at the same time. I could see either team winning but I'll take the better offense in the Falcons. 

NY Jets (2-8) @ Houston (2-8) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Texans; CV: Jets
The Jets lost to the Dolphins and the Texans beat the Titans last week. Truly a toilet bowl matchup of two teams vying for a top-5 pick in next year's draft. Neither of them have any upside or advantage over the other. Quite honestly I think that they should both lose or at least tie. I suppose I could take the home team as Tyrod Taylor can be a fun watch at quarterback.

Philadelphia (5-6) @ NY Giants (3-7) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Eagles; CV: Eagles 
The Eagles beat the Saints and the Giants lost to the Buccaneers last week. The I-95 rivalry returns with a matchup that finds the Eagles looking at an opportunity for a playoff spot and the Giants looking to play spoiler. New York dumped offensive coordinator Jason Garrett earlier this week and could possibly see an improvement in offense. Philadelphia has had a rebirth in offense with Jalen Hurts leading the way. New York's defense will have its hands full with this offense. I don't see the Giants winning so I will take the Eagles. 

Pittsburgh (5-4-1) @ Cincinnati (6-4) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Steelers; CV: Bengals
The Steelers lost to the Chargers and the Bengals beat the Raiders last week. When these two teams played in early October, the Steelers were still trying to figure themselves out on offense. With a 37-point performance last week the Steelers seem to have figured themselves out. TJ Watt will likely be returning to play. Pittsburgh will need him to be back. Cincinnati hit somewhat of a curb for a while and then got a huge win against the Raiders which are trending down. I think the Steelers will rebound and get a win. I think the point margin will be less than five. 

Tampa Bay (7-3) @ Indianapolis (6-5) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Buccaneers; CV: Buccaneers
Both teams got wins last week as the Buccaneers beat the Giants and the Colts beat the Bills. Tampa Bay hit a skid for a few weeks and got back to winning ways against the hapless Giants. They face the Indianapolis Colts with their star running back Jonathan Taylor who had a day last week with five total touchdowns. Tampa has the #1 rush defense in the NFL and Indy has the #4 rush offense. Something's going to give. You're also choosing either Tom Brady or Carson Wentz in this matchup. I think I'll take Brady. 

Tennessee (8-3) @ New England (7-4) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Patriots; CV: Patriots
The Titans lost to the Texans and the Patriots beat the Falcons last week. Tennessee really had a letdown last week as they lost to the Houston Texans. They also lost to the New York Jets as well. New England will now be facing against their biggest tests of the season with this Titans team and Buffalo. Just how good can the Patriots be without Tom Brady. I think they just might have a shot to win. With no Derrick Henry still and Adrian Peterson waived, I don't see Tennessee winning this game.

LA Chargers (6-4) @ Denver (5-5) (CBS; 4:05 pm): TW: Chargers; CV: Chargers
The Chargers beat the Steelers and the Broncos were on a bye last week. Los Angeles had a great game on offense as Justin Herbert reverted back to his old self that we've been so accustomed to. Their defense was a bit suspect as they gave up 31 points to an average Steelers offense. What they face in the Broncos is a team that at one point was 3-0, now they're 5-5. They have a solid offense and a better defense. They're banged up a bit on defense though with Bradley Chubb and Kareem Jackson with an injury bug. I'll take the Chargers.

LA Rams (7-3) @ Green Bay (8-3) (FOX; 4:25 pm): TW: Packers; CV: Rams
The Rams were on a bye and the Packers lost to the Vikings last week. The weather on Sunday will be 37 degrees for the high in Green Bay. With a team that is used to warm weather and in a semi-dome stadium the Rams could find it difficult to deal with the temperature. The Rams have had a skid lately losing their last two games by double digits. Green Bay's defense didn't play solid ball but Aaron Rodgers nearly did win that game. It could be a toss-up game but I'll take the colder weather Packers.

Minnesota (5-5) @ San Francisco (5-5) (FOX; 4:25 pm): TW: 49ers; CV: Vikings
Both teams won last week as the Vikings beat the Packers and the 49ers beat the Jaguars. A must win for both teams. San Francisco is a team on the rise with two straight wins. What they face is a Vikings team whose offense came to life and ran over the Packers defense that looked like championship caliber quality. The 49ers pass defense is good and they will need to be good to stop/slow down Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen. I'll take the 49ers. 

Cleveland (6-5) @ Baltimore (7-3) (NBC; 8:20 pm): TW: Ravens; CV: Ravens
The Browns beat the Lions and the Ravens beat the Bears last week. Sunday primetime game as the Browns look to stay in a playoff hunt. They face off against their bigger brother in the Baltimore Ravens. Baltimore had some issues with the Bears passing attack but did alright against stopping the run. Cleveland will need to really have a stellar game on offense by not turning it over and keeping Lamar Jackson off the field. I don't see it happening. 

Seattle (3-7) @ Washington (4-6) (ESPN; 8:15 pm): TW: Football Team; CV: Football Team
The Seahawks lost to the Cardinals and the Football Team beat the Panthers last week. Week 12 finishes up with a meh game. Seattle had looked really good at the start of the season but with Russell Wilson having an injury and having coming back from injury has left the Seahawks with the possibility of having a losing season since 2011. Washington has played well in recent weeks in beating the Buccaneers and Panthers. They have a good offense and a defense that has been playing better. I like Washington to continue their winning ways in this one. 

Early & Late TV Pairings (courtesy of 506sports.com):

Note: Games in bold are games being shown in my area.

CBS Single

Tennessee @ New England
Ian Eagle, Charles Davis

Pittsburgh @ Cincinnati
Kevin Harlan, Trent Green

NY Jets @ Houston
Spero Dedes, Jay Feely

LA Chargers @ Denver (LATE)
Greg Gumbel, Adam Archuleta

FOX Early

Tampa Bay @ Indianapolis
Kevin Burkhardt, Greg Olson

Philadelphia @ NY Giants
Adam Amin, Mark Schlereth

Carolina @ Miami
Chris Myers, Daryl Johnston

Atlanta @ Jacksonville
Kevin Kugler, Mark Sanchez

FOX Late

LA Rams @ Green Bay
Joe Buck, Troy Aikman

Minnesota @ San Francisco
Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma

For more information on which is being shown in your area, check local listings, and check out NFL 2021: Week 12 maps. 

2021 Pick'em Records:

My record:

Week 1: 7-9
Week 2: 10-6
Week 3: 10-6
Week 4: 9-7
Week 5: 12-4
Week 6: 11-3
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 7-7
Week 10: 5-8-1
Week 11: 8-7

Total: 96-68-1

Cardinal Viking's record:

Week 1: 6-10
Week 2: 12-4
Week 3: 13-3
Week 4: 10-6
Week 5: 10-6
Week 6: 12-2
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 8-6
Week 10: 5-8-1
Week 11: 10-5

Total: 103-61-1

Previous Picking Records:

Cardinal Viking:

2017: 167-89
2018: 156-98-2
2019: 151-104-1
2020: 163-92-1

My record: 

2012: 164-90-2

2013: 162-92-1

2014: 172-83-1

2017: 164-92

2018: 156-98-2

2019: 161-94-1

2020: 167-88-1 

See you all after the Monday night game for the Week 12 recap post! Happy Thanksgiving and enjoy the games. 

-Tom

NFL 2021 Week 11 Recap

 Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action has come and gone. With 11 weeks in the books and seven more left to go, we are starting to see the playoff picture a bit clearer. There was a shutout in Atlanta, a duel in the cold north of Minnesota, and a 

Week 11 Recap

New England 25, Atlanta 0: TW: Patriots; CV: Patriots. 
The cigar smoking quarterback wins yet again. Mac Jones was efficient yet again as he threw 22 completed passes out 26. He had 207 yards passing with a touchdown and an interception. Rhamondre Stevenson had 69 yards rushing on 12 carries with a 21-yard run being his longest. The star of the game was the Patriots pass defense which picked off four passes from Matt Ryan, Josh Rosen and Feleipe Franks. Kyle Van Noy would take a Josh Rosen pass to the house for 35 yards. Matt Ryan would get most of the playtime out of the three quarterbacks as he had 19 of 28 passes completed for 153 yards. Qadree Ollison rushed for 34 yards on 9 carries with his 12-yard run being the longest for Atlanta. Not sure if the Patriots are quite ready for a Super Bowl run but they might have the pieces to give the Buffalo Bills some hardships. 

TW: 1-0; CV: 1-0

Next week:
New England: vs Tennessee
Atlanta: @ Jacksonville

Detroit 10, Cleveland 13: TW: Browns; CV: Browns
It was a tight game but the Lions will have to look to next week to get their first win. Tim Boyle would get the start over Jared Goff and wouldn't do a lot to help the Lions cause. Boyle had 15 of 23 passes completed for 77 yards with two passes picked off by Malcolm Smith and Denzel Ward. Dandre Swift once again torched the Browns rush defense for 136 yards with a touchdown run that was for 57 yards. Baker Mayfield would get the start for the Browns. He didn't fare better as he threw 15 of 29 passes for completions with 176 yards for a touchdown but also had two passes picked off by Lions defenders. Like Swift, Nick Chubb came back to life and added 130 yards rushing for the Browns. Jarvis Landry would handle the quarterback duties on a 16-yard run that would result in a touchdown. Safe to say the Browns are still alive for playoff positioning. 

TW: 2-0; CV: 2-0

Next week:
Detroit: vs Chicago (Thanksgiving)
Cleveland: @ Baltimore

Baltimore 16, Chicago 13: TW: Ravens; CV: Ravens
Baltimore be like, not so fast Andy Dalton. Tyler Huntley would get the start over Lamar Jackson who was out due to non-COVID illness. Huntley threw 26 completions out of 36 for 219 yards with an interception. Devonta Freeman carried the football 16 times for 49 yards with a touchdown that would be the only touchdown for the Ravens. Justin Tucker would stay clutch and hit 3 of 3 field goals with a 46-yard field goal being his longest. It would be Freeman's touchdown and Tucker's extra point that would give the Ravens the edge. Justin Fields would start and had 4 pass completions out of 11 passes thrown for 79 yards and 23 yards rushing. Fields would leave the game due to injury. Andy Dalton would throw 11 of 23 passes for completion for 201 yards passing and had two touchdown passes to Darnell Mooney and Marquise Goodwin. At least Andy Dalton didn't break your heart if you're a Ravens fan. 

TW: 3-0; CV: 3-0

Next week:
Baltimore: vs Cleveland
Chicago: @ Detroit (Thanksgiving)

Green Bay 31, Minnesota 34: TW: Packers; CV: Vikings
At least it was a close game that went the Vikings way. Aaron Rodgers would throw 23 completions out of 33 attempts for 385 yards with four touchdown passes. AJ Dillon rushed for 53 yards on 11 carries for the Packers. Davante Adams would have two touchdowns, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Josiah Deguara each had one of Aaron Rodgers' tosses. Kirk Cousins threw 24 completions for 35 attemps for 341 yards with three touchdowns. Two of those passes would go to Justin Jefferson and one to Adam Thielen. It would come down to a Greg Joseph field goal from 29 yards to give the Vikings a 5-5 record on the season. 

TW: 3-1; CV: 4-0

Next week:
Green Bay: vs LA Rams
Minnesota: @ San Francisco

Houston 22, Tennessee 13: TW: Titans; CV: Titans
Seriously Tennessee! What the fuck. Tyrod Taylor would start for the Texans and had 14 completions of 24 passes thrown for 107 yards. Tyrod Taylor would have 28 yards rushing for two touchdowns that would ultimately give the Texans the edge. Rex Burkhead would have 18 carries for 40 yards. Ryan Tannehill would have a horrid day as he had 35 completions out of 52 passes thrown for 323 yards with a touchdown and had four interceptions. Desmond King would have two interceptions, Kamu Grugierhill and Terrance Mitchell would have one interception of the four interceptions that Tannehill threw to. Adrian Peterson rushed for 40 yards in the game. Tennessee would outgain Houston on total yardage with 420 to 190. Tennessee's injury problems continue as AJ Brown would leave the game with a chest injury. 

TW: 3-2; CV: 4-1

Next week:
Houston: vs NY Jets
Tennessee: @ New England

Indianapolis 41, Buffalo 15: TW: Bills; CV: Bills
Kudos to Cardinal Viking who had Jonathan Taylor on his fantasy team. Carson Wentz threw 11 completions out of 20 passes for a touchdown. Jonathan Taylor would do the rest for the Colts as the runner had five total touchdowns. He would have 185 yards rushing on 32 carries for four touchdowns and had 19 receiving yards with a receiving touchdown. Josh Allen threw for 21 completions out of 35 passes with 209 yards passing with two touchdowns but also had two passes picked off by Colts players. Buffalo wouldn't account for much of their running game as Matt Breida rushed for 51 yards on five carries with a 28-yard run being his longest. Don't look now Buffalo but the Patriots are ahead of you in the AFC East. 

TW: 3-3; CV: 4-2

Next week:
Indianapolis: vs Tampa Bay
Buffalo: @ New Orleans (Thanksgiving)

Miami 24, NY Jets 17: TW: Dolphins; CV: Dolphins
Oh thank god the Dolphins didn't make me look stupid. Tua Tagovailoa threw 27 completions out of 33 passes for 273 yards with two touchdown passes and had an interception thrown. Albert Wilson would play quarterback for one play but it would be an incompleted pass. Myles Gaskin rushed for 89 yards with a 20-yard run being his longest. Joe Flacco threw 24 completions out of 39 passes thrown for 291 yards with two touchdowns. Elijah Moore and Jamison Crowder were the two receivers of those Flacco passes. Michael Carter rushed for 63 yards with a 39-yard run being his longest in the game. Miami rolling along with a three-game winning streak! 

TW: 4-3; CV: 5-2

Next week:
Miami: vs Carolina
NY Jets: @ Houston

New Orleans 29, Philadelphia 40: TW: Saints; CV: Saints
New Orleans couldn't stop the Jalen Hurts juggernaut. Trevor Siemian threw 22 completions of 40 passes for 214 yards with three touchdown passes but had two passes thrown to Eagles players. One of those players was to Darius Slay who would return it for a pick-six. Siemian would also score a rushing touchdown on a 17-yard run. Mark Ingram rushed for 88 yards on 16 carries with a 28-yard run being his longest. Jalen Hurts threw 13 completions out of 24 passes for 147 yards in the game. Miles Sanders would rush for 94 yards on 16 carries. Hurts would rush for 69 yards on 18 carries with three touchdown runs. At least the Saints tried to make it a competitive game after not showing up for the first three quarters. 

TW: 4-4; CV: 5-3

Next week:
New Orleans: vs Buffalo (Thanksgiving)
Philadelphia: @ NY Giants

San Francisco 30, Jacksonville 10: TW: 49ers; CV: 49ers
Result wasn't a surprise. Sky is really blue isn't it. Jimmy Garoppolo threw 16 completed passes out of 22 throws for 176 yards with two touchdown passes to Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle. Deebo Samuel rushed for 79 yards on eight carries with a 25-yard run being his longest. Jeff Wilson rushed for 50 yards on 19 carries. Trevor Lawrence threw 16 completed passes out of 25 throws for 158 yards. James Robinson rushed for 29 yards with a touchdown run that would be the only offensive touchdown for the Jaguars. At least for once there was somewhat of an expected result. 

TW: 5-4; CV: 6-3

Next week:
San Francisco: vs Minnesota
Jacksonville: vs Atlanta

Washington 27, Carolina 21: TW: Panthers; CV: Panthers
It was a homecoming for Cam Newton. Taylor Heinicke and the Washington Football Team were there to play spoiler. The Washington passer threw 16 completions for 206 yards with three touchdowns. Terry McLaurin, Cam Sims, Deandre Carter would be recipients of those passes. Antonio Gibson continued his solid season and added 95 yards on 19 carries with a 20-yard run being his longest. Cam Newton had a solid day in his return to Carolina. He threw 21 completions out of 27 passes for 189 yards with two touchdown passes and added 46 yards rushing and a touchdown to that too. Christian McCaffrey had 59 yards rushing and had 60 yards receiving with a touchdown catch. DJ Moore was the other reciepient of a Cam Newton pass. Not being able to convert on third down and fourth down really hurt the Panthers as they were 2-9 and 1-3 in those stats respectively. Washington also held the ball for 35 minutes to Carolina's 24 minutes. 

TW: 5-5; CV: 6-4

Next week:
Washington: vs Seattle
Carolina: @ Miami

Cincinnati 32, Las Vegas 13: TW: Raiders; CV: Raiders
Raiders in free fall, same story, same season. Joe Burrow would get back to his better play and had 20 passes completed out of 29 passes for 148 yards with a touchdown pass to Ja'Marr Chase, his favorite target. The biggest contributor for the Bengals would be their star runner Joe Mixon who had 123 yards rushing with two touchdown runs and 30 carries. His longest run was from 20 yards. Derek Carr threw 19 completions out of 27 passes thrown for 215 yards with a touchdown pass to Foster Moreau during the fourth quarter. He would have an interception that was grabbed by Bengals defender Eli Apple. Josh Jacobs rushed for 37 yards with an 18-yard run being his longest. Time of possession and 3rd down conversions were in Cincy's favor in this one as the Bengals totaled over 37 minutes of time of possession to the Raiders 22 minutes. On third down the Bengals converted 8 of 16 times and the Raiders only converted one third down out of seven. Time to bury the Raiders.

TW: 5-6; CV: 6-5

Next week:
Cincinnati: vs Pittsburgh
Las Vegas: @ Dallas (Thanksgiving)

Arizona 23, Seattle 13: TW: Cardinals; CV: Cardinals
The Cardinals did what they need to do with the circumstances that were dealt to them. Colt McCoy threw very well in the game as he had 35 passes completed out of 44 passes thrown for 328 yards with two touchdown passes to Zach Ertz. James Conner provided solid yardage on the ground as he had 62 yards with a touchdown run. Russell Wilson threw 14 completions for 26 throws with 207 yards. Anthony Collins rushed for 36 yards on 10 carries. Deejay Dallas rushed for 25 yards with a touchdown run that would be the only score for the Seahawks. The Cardinals offense was on the field for over 2/3 of the game. I mean it wasn't a great factor but c'mon it has to be something. That or 2-10 on 3rd down conversions for the Seahawks also is a factor. 

TW: 6-6; CV: 7-5

Next week:
Arizona: Bye
Seattle: @ Washington

Dallas 9, Kansas City 19: TW: Cowboys; CV: Chiefs
Of course Dallas would shit the bed. Mike McCarthy versus superior opponents are his kryptonite. Dak Prescott wouldn't play fairly well in this game as he had 28 completions out of 43 passes thrown for 216 yards but threw two interceptions to Ljarius Sneed and Charvarius Ward. Ezekiel Elliot would be injured and would come back but he had 32 yards rushing. Tony Pollard was the leading rusher for the Cowboys with 50 yards on the ground with a 31-yard run being his longest. Patrick Mahomes wouldn't have a stellar day either but he had 23 completions out of 37 passes for 260 yards with an interception that was grabbed by Jayron Kearse. Clyde Edwards-Helaire rushed for 63 yards for a touchdown in his return after missing a few games due to injury. Tyreek Hill rushed on a 33-yard run play that was the longest run in the game. Travis Kelce would score the other touchdown on a 4-yard run. It's alright Dallas you still have the Eagles with a 5-6 record in your rear mirror. 

TW: 6-7; CV: 8-5

Next week:
Dallas: vs Las Vegas (Thanksgiving)
Kansas City: Bye

Pittsburgh 37, LA Chargers 41: TW: Chargers; CV: Chargers
This game was pretty quiet for most of the game. Then the 4th quarter happened. Ben Roethlisberger returned after missing last week's game due to COVID protocol. The veteran quarterback threw 28 completions for 44 passes with 273 yards and had three touchdown passes. Najee Harris would get some yardage but not as much with 39 yards rushing but had a touchdown run. Justin Herbert had one of his vintage games as he threw 30 completions out of 41 passes thrown for 382 yards with three touchdowns but had an intercepted pass by Cameron Sutton. LA's running attack was top notch in this game as Herbert also rushed for 90 yards on nine carries with his 36-yard run being the longest in the game. Austin Ekeler would be the star of the show as Ekeler rushed for 50 yards with 11 carries and got into the endzone on a running play twice. He would also catch two passes for touchdowns as well. Safe to say the Steelers need TJ Watt back. 

TW: 7-7; CV: 9-5

Next week: 
Pittsburgh: @ Cincinnati
LA Chargers: @ Denver

NY Giants 10, Tampa Bay 30: TW: Buccaneers; CV: Buccaneers
Tom Brady would beat his least favorite team tonight so that means something. Daniel Jones would be not great in this game as he threw 23 completions for 38 passes for 167 yards with a touchdown pass to his offensive tackle Andrew Thomas. The pass would give the Giants a 17-10 deficit into halftime. Jones would also get picked off by Buccaneers players Mike Edwards and Steve McLendon. Saquon Barkley would rush for 25 yards on six carries. Tom Brady would throw better than last week as he had 30 completions out of 46 passes thrown for 307 yards with two touchdowns and had an interception. Leonard Fournette rushed for 35 yards on 10 carries. Ronald Jones would get 33 yards with a touchdown run. Hopefully this win will get them back to normal Buccaneer football. 

TW: 8-7; CV: 10-5

Next week:
NY Giants: vs Philadelphia
Tampa Bay: @ Indianapolis

2021 Pick'em Records:

My record:

Week 1: 7-9
Week 2: 10-6
Week 3: 10-6
Week 4: 9-7
Week 5: 12-4
Week 6: 11-3
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 7-7
Week 10: 5-8-1
Week 11: 8-7

Total: 96-68-1

Cardinal Viking's record:

Week 1: 6-10
Week 2: 12-4
Week 3: 13-3
Week 4: 10-6
Week 5: 10-6
Week 6: 12-2
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 8-6
Week 10: 5-8-1
Week 11: 10-5

Total: 103-61-1

Previous Picking Records:

Cardinal Viking:

2017: 167-89
2018: 156-98-2
2019: 151-104-1
2020: 163-92-1

My record: 

2012: 164-90-2

2013: 162-92-1

2014: 172-83-1

2017: 164-92

2018: 156-98-2

2019: 161-94-1

2020: 167-88-1 

See you all on Wednesday for the Week 12 Picks post! See you all then!

-Tom

NFL 2021 Week 11 Picks

Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action is coming upon us yet again. The season has been one of the most wild seasons for picks for me and Cardinal Viking. Will it be this week that things get back to normal? I'm keeping an eye on the Patriots-Falcons, Packers-Vikings, and Cowboys-Chiefs matchups this week. In this post I'll be doing a preview of the week, my picks for the games and the Early & Late Game TV Pairings. Let's get to work!

Week 11 Preview
The 11th week of the National Football League's regular season will start in Atlanta, Georgia and finish up in Tampa, Florida. The week features a 15-game slate that will have 30 teams play. The Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams are on a bye this week. Week 11 features a Thursday night game, nine early games, three late games, a Sunday night game and a Monday night game. CBS will have the single, regional game and FOX will have the doubleheader this week. Let's get to the picks!

Week 11 Picks

Note: TW is me and CV is Cardinal Viking, my former roommate. All game times are in US Eastern.

New England (6-4) @ Atlanta (4-5) (FOX/Amazon Prime/NFL Network; 8:20 pm): TW: Patriots; CV: Patriots
Last week the Patriots beat the Browns and the Falcons lost to the Cowboys. The week starts off with an okay matchup that pits the red hot Patriots and the cooling Falcons. Bill Belichick might end up winning out in the long run against Tom Brady assuming the Patriots win a Super Bowl with Mac Jones. I don't think the Patriots are that legit of a contender for the championship yet. Atlanta has some good pieces but I personally don't think they'll win this game as they have a rush offense that averages 82.9 yards/game Its not going to be enough for them to get it done. The Patriots seem to be the safe bet as they haven't lost since playing against Dallas. I think Mac Jones could slow down a bit but I think it'll be a good day for the Pats rush offense.

Detroit (0-8-1) @ Cleveland (5-5) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Browns; CV: Browns
Last week the Lions tied the Steelers and the Browns lost to the Patriots. The winless Lions got a half-win last week against Pittsburgh. The tie might've come at a rough time as they face off against a Browns squad that is resilient. Detroit plays hard and come close in games. Heck they probably should've won against the Steelers last week. I think the matchup to keep an eye on is the the Browns defensive line vs Dandre Swift. If they can keep him under 100 yards they have a shot to win. I personally like the Browns in the matchup as their defense can shut down opponents when their own offense doesn't turn the ball over. Maybe momentum will go Detroit's way but I'll take the Brownies.

Baltimore (6-3) @ Chicago (3-6) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Ravens; CV: Ravens
Last week the Ravens lost to the Dolphins and the Bears had a bye week. Baltimore fell to earth as their motto of having slow starts caught up to them. Chicago played a solid game against the Steelers in Week 9 despite some calls going against them. If the Baltimore plays a slow game then the Bears will make them pay for it as Justin Fields is a younger version of Lamar Jackson as he can both be dangerous with his legs and arm. I don't really see it happening personally as I think John Harbaugh will get them back to earth and get back to the better football that we usually expect from them. 

Green Bay (8-2) @ Minnesota (4-5) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Packers; CV: Vikings
Both teams won last week as the Packers beat the Seahawks and the Vikings beat the Chargers. The game intrigues me. You have a Packers squad that had its struggles on offense against the Seahawks. Green Bay's defense picked up the slack. Minnesota's offense played well and their defense really limited what the Chargers could do on offense. Honestly, the game could be a toss-up but I think the Packers and Vikings will end up splitting the series this season and the Pack will take the first game. 

Houston (1-8) @ Tennessee (8-2) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Titans; CV: Titans
The Texans had a bye and the Titans beat the Saints last week. Houston really is the epitome of terrible. Their Week 1 win against the Jaguars seems like eons ago and they are surely looking forward to getting the #1 pick in next years draft. Tennessee won't have Derrick Henry in the game again. They're really a different team without him and having Ryan Tannehill anchor your offense hasn't blown up in flames yet. I don't trust Houston to do anything significant in this game so I'll go the obvious route and take the Titans. 

Indianapolis (5-5) @ Buffalo (6-3) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Bills; CV: Bills
The Colts beat the Jaguars and the Bills beat the Jets last week. Its a solid game not going to lie. Both teams are pretty similar on paper. Indy's rush offense I would give the nod to over Buffalo. On the quarterback and defensive front I would give it to Buffalo. This I think will be the biggest factor in the game. Carson Wentz has played better since the start of the season but Buffalo's defense is legit. It could be a toss-up game but I'll take the home team. 

Miami (3-7) @ NY Jets (2-7) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Dolphins; CV: Dolphins
The Dolphins beat the Ravens and the Jets lost to the Bills. Both teams stink, let's be frank about that. For New York, Zach Wilson and Mike White are out. Joe Flacco will get the nod to start. New York's defensive front seem to be a good group and I tend to trust them a bit more than Miami. Miami surprised some people when they beat the Ravens last week. Joe Flacco could revert back to his old self but honestly the way this season has gone I wouldn't be too shocked by it. I'll go with the safe bet and take the Dolphins.

New Orleans (5-4) @ Philadelphia (4-6) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Saints; CV: Saints
The Saints lost to the Titans and the Eagles beat the Broncos last week. Philly has a legit entertaining offense that can be fun to watch. They will be going against a New Orleans squad that is better on defense. New Orleans will have to get better production from the running game in order to win as Jalen Hurts can hurt you if he's on the field. When he's not then he won't hurt you at all. It'll be a close one. 

San Francisco (4-5) @ Jacksonville (2-7) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: 49ers; CV: 49ers
The 49ers beat the Rams and the Jaguars lost to the Colts last week. San Francisco really played their best game of the season against the Rams. Jacksonville hasn't had a lot of luck go its way this season. Their bright spot in their running attack has been fun to watch at times. The 49ers sadly have a better running game and I think it'll be a factor in the game. I'll take the 49ers. 

Washington (3-6) @ Carolina (5-5) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Panthers; CV: Panthers
The Football Team and the Panthers won last week against the Buccaneers and the Cardinals respectively. The Ron Rivera Bowl! Carolina seemed to find its spark in the return of Cam Newton. Newton seems to be the guy that will get the start. I'm not quite ready to hop on the Panthers bandwagon just yet but if they win against a fairly below average Washington team I might be convinced a bit more that Carolina is legit. 

Cincinnati (5-4) @ Las Vegas (5-4) (CBS; 4:05 pm): TW: Raiders; CV: Raiders
The Bengals had a bye and the Raiders lost to the Chiefs last week. Cincinnati had some talk for a good part of the season where they'd run over the division. Then the New York Jets came and ruin it. Dang Jets always ruining everything. Las Vegas has had a lot of bad luck come their way. Some of it was warranted like injuries. The Unwarranted would be the Henry Ruggs III screwing up badly. I still like the Bengals in the matchup but this game really seems like an upset game in the making. I'll take the Raiders in assuming they don't play dumb football.

Arizona (8-2) @ Seattle (3-6) (FOX; 4:25 pm): TW: Cardinals; CV: Cardinals
Both teams lost last week as the Cardinals lost to the Panthers and the Seahawks lost to the Packers. Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins need to get back eventually for the playoff run. With the Rams having a bye week they have an opportunity to get back to a sizable lead in the NFC West. What stands in their way is their old bully in the Seahawks. Russell Wilson came back after missing games with a finger injury. He didn't play well and he could get back to normal in this one with more rest. A lot of this hinges on if Murray can play. If he can play they have a good shot to win.

Dallas (7-2) @ Kansas City (6-4) (FOX; 4:25 pm): TW: Cowboys; CV: Chiefs
Both teams won last week as the Cowboys beat the Falcons and the Chiefs beat the Raiders. FOX's marquee game has the Cowboys going to Arrowhead to face the Chiefs. Both teams got back to playing better offense and better defense. Dallas has been the better team so far this season. The Chiefs seemed to be back to their old selves despite a season where the pundits including myself thought that the Chiefs would win the division. I'd say pump on the brakes a bit on the Chiefs a bit. I'll take the Cowboys. 

Pittsburgh (5-3-1) @ LA Chargers (5-4) (NBC; 8:20 pm): TW: Chargers; CV: Chargers 
The Steelers tied the Lions and the Chargers lost to the Vikings. Old school classic AFC matchup on NBC! The Steelers could possibly get Ben Roethlisberger and Chase Claypool back. That's the good news sadly. The bad news is that the key players on defense like TJ Watt or Minkah Fitzpatrick. The Chargers have fallen off the cliff after looking like the team to beat in the AFC. If there was one thing that the Chargers could exploit is the Steelers lack of a rush defense. The rush defense allowed 130 yards to Dandre Swift. If Austin Ekeler can have a solid game by rushing 50+ yards they have a great shot to win. This game could be an interesting one to watch but I'll take the Chargers. 

NY Giants (3-6) @ Tampa Bay (6-3) (ESPN; 8:15 pm): TW: Buccaneers; CV: Buccaneers
The Giants had a bye and the Buccaneers lost to the Football Team. Week 11 finishes up with Tom Brady & company face off against the down but not out Giants. New York has the well rested card up their sleeves but they're facing off against a Bucs team that plays well after a loss. This Bucs team isn't as solid as it was last year but champions aren't crowned in November. I think Tampa will get back to winning ways in this one. 

Early & Late TV Pairings (courtesy of 506sports.com):

Note: Games in bold are being shown in your area, check local listings. 

CBS Single

Baltimore @ Chicago
Jim Nantz, Tony Romo

Indianapolis @ Buffalo
Kevin Harlan, Trent Green

Miami @ NY Jets
Greg Gumbel, Adam Archuleta

Houston @ Tennessee
Andrew Catalon, James Lofton

Cincinnati @ Las Vegas (LATE)
Ian Eagle, Charles Davis

FOX Early

Green Bay @ Minnesota
Kevin Burkhardt, Greg Olson

New Orleans @ Philadelphia
Adam Amin, Mark Schlereth

Washington @ Carolina
Kevin Kugler, Mark Sanchez

Detroit @ Cleveland
Gus Johnson, Lavar Arrington

San Francisco @ Jacksonville
Chris Myers, Daryl Johnston

FOX Late

Dallas @ Kansas City
Joe Buck, Troy Aikman

Arizona @ Seattle
Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma

For more information on which game is being show in your area check out: NFL 2021: Week 11 Maps

2021 Pick'em Records:

My record:

Week 1: 7-9
Week 2: 10-6
Week 3: 10-6
Week 4: 9-7
Week 5: 12-4
Week 6: 11-3
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 7-7
Week 10: 5-8-1

Total: 88-61-1

Cardinal Viking's record:

Week 1: 6-10
Week 2: 12-4
Week 3: 13-3
Week 4: 10-6
Week 5: 10-6
Week 6: 12-2
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 8-6
Week 10: 5-8-1

Total: 93-56-1

Previous Picking Records:

Cardinal Viking:

2017: 167-89
2018: 156-98-2
2019: 151-104-1
2020: 163-92-1

My record: 

2012: 164-90-2

2013: 162-92-1

2014: 172-83-1

2017: 164-92

2018: 156-98-2

2019: 161-94-1

2020: 167-88-1 

See you after the Monday night game for the Week 11 recap post! Enjoy the games!

-Tom

NFL 2021 Week 10 Recap

 Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action is in the books as we had another week of blowouts and more upsets. It almost feels like Week 9.5 for some reason. We had a shocker in Miami, a game finishing in a tie for the 4th straight season, and yours truly having a birthday today. We'll get to those games and more in this week's recap post! Let's get to work!

Week 10 Recap

Baltimore 10, Miami 22: TW: Ravens; CV: Ravens
Don't look now but the Dolphins are on a two-game winning streak. Lamar Jackson looked really off in this one with 26 of 43 passes completed for 238 yards with a touchdown pass to Mark Andrews and a interception that was grabbed by Justin Coleman. Jackson would once again be the leading rusher for Ravens as he had 39 yards on nine carries. Jacoby Brissett would start for the Dolphins and complete 11 of 23 passes for 158 yards. He would leave the game after hurting his knee. Tua Tagovailoa would come into the game and complete 8 of 13 passes for 158 yards and would score the only offensive touchdown on a run up the middle. Xavien Howard would score a fumble-six on a Lamar Jackson pass to Sammy Watkins for 49 yards. Myles Gaaskin rushed for 31 yards on 14 carries. Who would've thought slow starts would hurt a team like the Ravens. 

Next week:
Baltimore: @ Chicago
Miami: @ New York Jets

TW: 0-1; CV: 0-1

Atlanta 3, Dallas 43: TW: Cowboys; CV: Cowboys
Safe to say, the Cowboys are back on track. Matt Ryan would complete 9 of 21 passes for a doozy 117 yards with two passes to Dallas jerseys like Anthony Brown and Jourdan Lewis. Cardinal Viking's adopted son Josh Rosen would come into the game and provide 14 yards passing with an interception. Wayne Gallman rushed for 55 yards on 15 carries and Cordarrelle Patterson rushed for 25 yards on four carries. Dak Prescott would come back to form and threw 24 completions out of 31 passes attempted for 296 yards with two touchdowns. Prescott rushed for five yards with a touchdown. Tony Pollard rushed for 42 yards on 11 carries and Ezekiel Elliot rushed for 41 yards with two endzone trips. Really speaks for itself when it comes to the team stats as the Falcons averaged 4.0 yards/play and Dallas averaged 6.0 yards/play. Dallas ran 72 plays in this game. 

TW: 1-1; CV: 1-1

Next week:
Atlanta: vs New England
Dallas: @ Kansas City

Buffalo 45, NY Jets 17: TW: Bills; CV: Bills
Like Dallas, the Buffalo Bills got back to form this week. Josh Allen completed 21 of 28 passes for 366 yards with two touchdown passes and had an interception as well. Stefon Diggs and Matt Breida would be the scorers of those Allen passes. Buffalo wouldn't get a lot of yardage out of their runners but would get scores out of them. Devin Singletary would score a touchdown with 43 yards on seven carries. Matt Breida scored a touchdown with 28 yards rushing. Zach Moss would score a touchdown on 27 yards rushing. Isiah McKenzie rushed for 17 yards with a touchdown. Mike White would get the start for the Jets. The game would turn out not like his previous starts as the quarterback threw 24 completions out of 44 passes for 251 yards with four interceptions. The takeaways for Buffalo were from Levi Wallace, Tredavious White, Taron Johnson, and Jordan Poyer. Joe Flaco would come in and provide 47 yards passing with a touchdown pass to Elijah Moore. Michael Carter rushed for 39 yards with a touchdown run. Well New York, your 15 minutes of fame are done. 

TW: 2-1; CV: 2-1

Next week:
Buffalo: vs Indianapolis
NY Jets: vs Miami

Cleveland 7, New England 45: TW: Patriots; CV: Patriots
Good news: the Ravens and Steelers lost so Cleveland still has a shot to win the division. The bad news: Baker Mayfield could be out for a while. Mayfield would throw 11 completions for 21 passes thrown with 73 yards passing with a touchdown pass to Austin Hooper that would be the only score for the Browns. Case Keenum would complete 8 of 12 passes for 81 yards. Dernest Johnson rushed for 99 yards on 19 carries. Mac Jones was spectacular in this game. He had 19 of 23 passes completed for 198 yards with three touchdown passes. Two of those touchdown passes were to Hunter Henry. Brian Hoyer would see some action and add 85 yards passing with a touchdown pass to Jakobi Meyers. Rhamondre Stevenson rushed for 100 yards and had two touchdowns. Kendrick Bourne rushed for 43 yards. Brandon Bolden rushed for 32 yards on three carries. Cleveland hasn't won in New England since 1992. 

TW: 3-1; CV: 3-1

Next week:
Cleveland: vs Detroit
New England: @ Atlanta

Detroit 16, Pittsburgh 16 (F/OT): TW: Steelers; CV: Steelers
Football ties baby! HELL YEAH! Jared Goff would throw 14 completions out of 25 passes thrown for 114 yards. Dandre Swift was a factor in the game for the Lions as he had 130 yards rushing with 33 carries. Godwin Igwebuike had a touchdown with 56 yards with a 42-yard run being the longest in the game. Jamal Jefferson rushed for 41 yards with a touchdown with a 28-yard run being the longest for him. Mason Rudolph would get the start over Ben Roethlisberger as he would test positive for COVID. Roethlisberger had been vaccinated prior to the positive test. Rudolph wouldn't really be much of a factor as he threw 30 completions out of 50 passes thrown for 242 yards with a touchdown pass to James Washington. Najee Harris would continue to add to his statsheet and case for Rookie of the Year with 105 yards rushing on 26 carries. I could say a lot about the plethora of errors like the Pat Friermuth fumble or Ryan Santoso's inability to hit a field goal but neither team didn't want to win nor lose. Want a crazy stat? The last time the Detroit Lions had a non-loss against the Steelers on the road was back in 1959. The Steelers were still in Forbes Field at that time. 

TW: 3-1-1; CV: 3-1-1

Next week:
Detroit: @ Cleveland
Pittsburgh: @ LA Chargers

Jacksonville 17, Indianapolis 23: TW: Colts; CV: Colts
Thank god for Jonathan Taylor. Trevor Lawrence didn't throw well in the game as he only had 16 completions out of 35 passes thrown. He finished the game with 162 yards passing and 33 yards rushing. James Agnew rushed for 79 yards with a touchdown. The touchdown would come on a 66-yard run that would give the Jags some points in the game. James Robinson rushed for 57 yards with a touchdown. Carson Wentz would fare a bit better with his play as he had 22 of 34 passes completed with 180 yards passing. Jonathan Taylor rushed for 116 yards with a touchdown run, with a 34-yard run being his longest in this game. Indianapolis would score on a blocked punt as EJ Speed would speed in for a 12-yard scoring play. I feel the special teams contribution was the biggest factor in the Colts win as they really had no reason to keep this game this close as it was. 

TW: 4-1-1; CV: 4-1-1

Next week:
Jacksonville: vs San Francisco
Indianapolis: @ Buffalo

New Orleans 21, Tennessee 23: TW: Saints; CV: Saints
Close but no cigar for you New Orleans. Trevor Siemian finished with 19 of 34 passes completed with 298 yards with two touchdown passes to Marquez Callaway and Trequan Smith. Taysom Hill would see some action and provided 11 yards passing on 2 of 2 passes completed. Mark Ingram rushed for 47 yards with a touchdown run. The Saints had a chance to tie the game on a two-point conversion but it would fail as a Trevor Siemian pass to Mark Ingram would go incompleted. Ryan Tannehill would be the scorer for the Titans as he had 19 of 27 passes completed for 213 yards with a touchdown pass thrown to Mike Pruitt in the 3rd quarter. Tannehill would rush for a touchdown on a play up the middle for 1 yard. Titans kicker Randy Bullock would kick well as three of his field goals would would be good. 

TW: 4-2-1; CV: 4-2-1

Next week:
New Orleans: @ Philadelphia
Tennessee: vs Houston

Tampa Bay 19, Washington 29: TW: Buccaneers; CV: Buccaneers
Biggest surprise of the week. Tom Brady would have a very slow start as he threw 2 for 6 completions for 5 yards with two interceptions. He would bounceback and have 220 passing yards with two touchdowns thrown to Mike Evans and Cameron Brate. Leonard Fournette rushed for 47 yards with 11 carries. Taylor Heinicke would seem to be the better quarterback in the game as he had 26 completions out of 32 passes attempted. He had 256 yards with a touchdown pass to Deandre Carter. Washington's running game would provide the scoring in this game as Antonio Gibson rushed for 64 yards on 24 carries and had two touchdown runs. His 15-yard run would be the longest in this game. The win would be costly as Washington would lose defensive end Chase Young to a right knee injury. At least Washington would get some measure of revenge over their Wild Card loss last January. 

TW: 4-3-1; CV: 4-3-1

Next week:
Tampa Bay: vs NY Giants
Washington: @ Carolina

Carolina 36, Arizona 10: TW: Cardinals; CV: Cardinals
Superman returns! PJ Walker would get the start for the Panthers and played for most of the game. He had 22 passes completed out of 29 for 167 yards with an interception that was grabbed by Jalen Thompson. Cam Newton would sign a deal with Carolina on Friday and would get a chance to show off his old style of play as the former MVP threw for 8 yards with a touchdown pass to Robby Anderson. Christian McCaffrey would see a return to his old form as he rushed for 95 yards on 13 carries with a 15-yard run being the longest in the game. Chuba Hubbard and Cam Newton would add to the rushing scoring with 27 yards and 14 yards of production for the game. Colt McCoy would get his second consecutive start for the Cards and had 107 yards passing with an interception. Third-string quarterback Chris Streveler would only add 36 yards passing with his play. James Conner would be the only scoring for Arizona as the back would have 39 yards rushing with a 11-yard run being his longest. Definitely will need to have Kyler Murray and Deandre Hopkins back if the Cards want to win and go far. 

TW: 4-4-1; CV: 4-4-1

Next week:
Carolina: vs Washington
Arizona: @ Seattle

Minnesota 27, LA Chargers 20: TW: Chargers; CV: Vikings
The Chargers are just imploding before our eyes. Kirk Cousins would play better than his last start against Dallas a few weeks ago. Cousins threw 25 completions out of 37 passes for 294 yards with two touchdown passes to his tight end Tyler Conklin. Dalvin Cook would play in the game despite currently dealing with legal issues with his ex-girlfriend. Cook would be on fire in the game as he rushed for 94 yards with a touchdown run. Justin Herbert would look a bit off again for the 2nd-straight game as he had 20 completions out of 34 passes for 195 yards with a touchdown to Austin Ekeler but also had an interception. Austin Ekeler would run the football alright but he would have 44 yards rushing on 11 carries. Larry Roundtree III would contribute a score on a one-yard run. At least the Vikings didn't go to overtime this time. 

TW: 4-5-1; CV: 5-4-1

Next week:
Minnesota: vs Green Bay
LA Chargers: vs Pittsburgh

Philadelphia 30, Denver 13: TW: Broncos; CV: Broncos
Well I really should've took the Eagles if the Denver Broncos were going to shit the bed. Jalen Hurts played fairly well who had 16 of 23 passes completed with 178 yards passing with two touchdown passes to Devonta Smith but had a pass picked off. Hurts also had 53 yards rushing in the game. Jordan Howard and Boston Scott contributed to the rushing offense as both Howard and Scott added 83 and 81 yards rushing respectively. Teddy Bridgewater threw the ball alright but wasn't stellar as he had 22 of 36 passes completed for 226 yards. Javonta Williams rushed for 48 yards on eight carries. Melvin Gordon rushed for 45 yards with a touchdown run. It would be the only offensive score for the Broncos. The big play would come off of a Melvin Gordon fumble as Darius Slay would take the gift and run it back for 83 yards for a touchdown. Still, its not like the AFC West is up for grabs. 

TW: 4-6-1; CV: 5-5-1 

Next week:
Philadelphia: vs New Orleans
Denver: Bye

Seattle 0, Green Bay 17: TW: Packers; CV: Seahawks
It was a weird game in a weird week and a weird season. Russell Wilson would return after missinga few games due to a finger injury. Wilson would complete 20 of his 40 passes for 161 yards with two interceptions that were thrown to Packers players in the endzone. For sure not one of his better days. Perhaps it was his finger that was keeping him from making better throws. Anthony Collins would put up decent numbers as he rushed for 41 yards on 10 carries. Aaron Rodgers made his return after testing positive for COVID that would put him out of playing for 10 days. The reigning MVP wasn't particularly solid either as he completed 23 of 37 passes for 292 yards with an interception that was caught by Jamal Adams. AJ Dillon would provide all the offense in this game as he rushed for 66 yards with two touchdown trips on 21 carries. Aaron Jones would play but would leave the game due to an MCL sprain that will keep him out for at least 1-2 weeks. Jones would have 25 yards rushing on seven carries. Interesting fact: Russell Wilson had never been shutout in his NFL career prior to this game. 

TW: 5-6-1; CV: 5-6-1

Next week:
Seattle: vs Arizona
Green Bay: @ Minnesota

Kansas City 41, Las Vegas 14: TW: Raiders; CV: Raiders
So I guess the sleeping giant woke up. Patrick Mahomes returned to his old form and threw 35 completed passes out of 50 and had 406 yards passing. Tyreek Hill would be the one that would get the football the most to the endzone with two touchdowns, while Damien Williams, Byron Pringle and Noah Gray would get one. Damien Williams rushed for 43 yards on 11 carries with a 21-yard run being his longest in the game. Derek Carr would complete 25 of 35 passes with 261 yards and had two touchdown passes but also threw an interception to Daniel Sorenson. Carr would add 18 yards rushing to his total. Josh Jacobs would account for only 16 yards in the game. The game was close relatively going into the 3rd quarter but the Chiefs just went on a tear and the Raiders just had no answer to it. Las Vegas was 1 for 9 on 3rd down conversions. You would have to cast blame on DeSean Jackson for that fumble as he had a clear way to the endzone and for him to turn around and fumble the football is inexcusable. 

TW: 5-7-1; CV: 5-7-1

Next week:
Kansas City: vs Dallas
Las Vegas: vs Cincinnati

LA Rams 10, San Francisco 31: TW: Rams; CV: Rams
The football gods hate me. There's no other reason. Matthew Stafford threw the ball well completing 26 of 41 passes for 243 yards with a touchdown pass to Tyler Higbee. He would have two passes intercepted by Jimmie Ward during the game when the Rams looked overmatched and outcoached. Darrell Henderson rushed for 31 yards with a 11-yard run being his longest. Los Angeles wouldn't convert 3rd down opportunities a lot as they would be 3 of 10 on those conversions. What ultimately proved to be the key play in the game was a fake field goal attempt in the early part of the game. Jimmy Garoppolo was efficient in passing as the quarterback completed 15 of his 19 passes for 182 yards with two touchdowns. One of the bigger questions is if San Francisco could find success in running the football and they did. Elijah Mitchell rushed for 91 yards on 27 carries with a 17-yard run being his longest. Deebo Samuel saw some action in the ground game as he had 36 yards with a touchdown run. San Francisco had the football for close to 40 minutes of time of possession. They really kept the Rams offense from really firing on all cylinders. That and turnovers can be key. 

TW: 5-8-1; CV: 5-8-1

Next week:
LA Rams: Bye
San Francisco: @ Jacksonville

Birthday

So yours truly had a good birthday. I worked today and had dinner over at a restaurant that had a free entree if it was your birthday. Had that and watched football and it was a good time by all. I turned 33 years old this year. 

2021 Pick'em Records:

My record:

Week 1: 7-9
Week 2: 10-6
Week 3: 10-6
Week 4: 9-7
Week 5: 12-4
Week 6: 11-3
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 7-7
Week 10: 5-8-1

Total: 88-61-1

Cardinal Viking's record:

Week 1: 6-10
Week 2: 12-4
Week 3: 13-3
Week 4: 10-6
Week 5: 10-6
Week 6: 12-2
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 8-6
Week 10: 5-8-1

Total: 93-56-1

Previous Picking Records:

Cardinal Viking:

2017: 167-89
2018: 156-98-2
2019: 151-104-1
2020: 163-92-1

My record: 

2012: 164-90-2

2013: 162-92-1

2014: 172-83-1

2017: 164-92

2018: 156-98-2

2019: 161-94-1

2020: 167-88-1 

See you all on Wednesday for the Week 11 Picks post! Enjoy your week until then!

-Tom

NFL 2021 Week 10 Picks

Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action will soon be here and if it was anything like Week 9, underdogs could be a thing again in Week 10. The games I'll keep an eye on are the Browns-Patriots, Saints-Titans, and Chiefs-Raiders games this week. In this post, I'll do a preview of the week, my picks for the contests and the early and late game broadcast pairings. Let's get to work!

Week 10 Preview
The tenth week of the NFL's regular season will start in Miami, Florida and finish up in Santa Clara, California. Week 10 features a 14-game slate that will have 28 teams playing in those games. Chicago Bears, Cincinnati Bengals, Houston Texans, and New York Giants will be on a bye this week. There will be a Thursday night game, seven early games, four late games, a Sunday night game and a Monday night game. FOX will have the single, regional game and CBS will have the doubleheader. Let's get to the picks!

Week 10 Picks

Note: TW is me and CV is Cardinal Viking, my former roommate. All game times are in US Eastern Time.

Baltimore (6-2) @ Miami (2-7) (FOX/Amazon/NFL Network; 8:20 pm): TW: Ravens; CV: Ravens
Both teams won last week as the Ravens beat the Vikings and the Dolphins beat the Texans. Baltimore would eventually win their matchup against Minnesota despite being down by a lot. What they face is a Dolphins squad that beat the Houston Texans. Miami had five of that game's nine turnovers. Baltimore somewhat feels some heat as the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns are creeping up behind them. I think the Ravens will take care of business despite the short week. If there's Miami turnovers in the game, I'd say the Ravens will have a good shot to win.

Atlanta (4-4) @ Dallas (6-2) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Cowboys; CV: Cowboys
The Falcons won against the Saints and the Cowboys lost to the Broncos. Atlanta pulled off a squeaker over the Saints. While I give them props for winning that game they are facing off against one of the better teams in the NFC in Dallas. Dak Prescott didn't look particularly well against Denver and possibly it was because of him not being fully healthy. With some extra time to watch film and get over last week I think the Cowboys will get back on a winning track.

Buffalo (5-3) @ NY Jets (2-6) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Bills; CV: Bills
Both teams lost last week as the Bills lost to the Jaguars and the Jets lost to the Colts. Buffalo really couldn't get a lot of offense going against a fairly okay defense in Jacksonville. I keep saying that Josh Allen can't do it all on his own. He needs to have a better productive running game. Mike White will get the start for the Jets in this game and has done well in his stead over the injured starter Zach Wilson. I don't see the Jets taking this game as the Bills defense has to be better than the Jets right? I think Buffalo rebounds. 

Cleveland (5-4) @ New England (5-4) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Patriots; CV: Patriots
Both teams won last week as the Browns beat the Bengals and the Patriots beat the Panthers. Cleveland finally got rid of Odell Beckham Jr and played out of their minds against their Ohio rival Cincinnati. Doesn't seem surprising as the Browns won a lot of games when OBJ was injured. New England finally got above .500 and has done it with their defense and some stability in the quarterback position in Mac Jones. They have had a lot of hype surrounding them perhaps but sometimes momentum helps these sort of teams. I think it'll be a good contest but I think New England will take care of business. 

Detroit (0-8) @ Pittsburgh (5-3) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Steelers; CV: Steelers
The Lions lost to the Bye and the Steelers beat the Bears last week. Detroit just can't seem to get it together and win a game this year. Dan Campbell seems like a good coach that I'd want to play for but the sad thing is that the team that he has just isn't that scary. What is scary is the Steelers defense. Pittsburgh's offense has at times looked not so scary. A lot of faith is being put on Ben Roethlisberger on my fantasy team if Kyler Murray can't go. I feel the faith is being well put but any given Sunday. 

Jacksonville (2-6) @ Indianapolis (4-5) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Colts; CV: Colts
Both teams won last week as the Jaguars beat the Bills and the Colts beat the Jets. Jacksonville raised a few eyebrows and shut down the Bills offense. The real question is will they replicate the same success against a Colts team that has played better when Carson Wentz doesn't give freebies to opposing jerseys. Jacksonville has the 12th best rush defense and the Colts have the 5th best rush offense. Something is going to have to give. I don't trust Trevor Lawrence to become god with the offense that he has. If he gets better offensive weapons I'd trust him a bit more. I'll take the Colts.

New Orleans (5-3) @ Tennessee (7-2) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Saints; CV: Saints
The Saints lost to the Falcons and the Titans beat the Rams last week. New Orleans despite the near comeback almost won a game against an okay Falcons team. Trevor Siemian or Taysom Hill could start in the game and very well do well against the Titans. Tennessee hasn't had the respect they definitely deserve. The loss of Derrick Henry didn't really hurt them a lot against the Rams as they had a defensive showcase and Ryan Tannehill did damage to the Rams. I just have a gut feeling that could end up fucking me hard but I have a good hunch. 

Tampa Bay (6-2) @ Washington (2-6) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Buccaneers; CV: Buccaneers
Both teams had a bye last week. Last time we saw the Buccaneers was a bad loss against their kryptonite: the regular season Saints. For Washington, they lost to the Broncos in a game they really should've done better in. This game is also a NFC Wild Card rematch where the Buccaneers beat the Football Team by a touchdown. Washington really is in for a bad matchup against Tampa as I don't really think there's one advantage that the Football Team has over Tampa. I think the Buccaneers rebound. 

Carolina (4-5) @ Arizona (8-1) (FOX; 4:05 pm): TW: Cardinals; CV: Cardinals
The Panthers lost to the Patriots and the Cardinals beat the 49ers last week. Sam Darnold will be out for this game and backup PJ Walker will likely get the nod to start. In limited action that Walker has been in with the Panthers he was 3 of 15 for 33 yards with two interceptions. Just doesn't seem like a stellar sample size. Kyler Murray could start if he goes through practice and stays well. Colt McCoy would get it if he can't go. Safe to say the Cardinals should have good signs going into this one with either quarterback. 

Minnesota (3-5) @ LA Chargers (5-3) (FOX; 4:05 pm): TW: Chargers; CV: Vikings
The Vikings lost to the Ravens and the Chargers beat the Eagles last week. Minnesota can't seem to get out of their own way and not have an overtime in a game that they're playing. The Chargers had a good game and back and forth affair with the Philadelphia Eagles. Justin Herbert could take advantage of the weak Vikings defense as long as he plays well within himself. Los Angeles should take advantage of their plethora of running backs and keep the Vikings defense on the field. I'll take the Chargers. 

Philadelphia (3-6) @ Denver (5-4) (CBS; 4:25 pm): TW: Broncos; CV: Broncos
The Eagles lost to the Chargers and the Broncos beat the Cowboys last week. Philadelphia played a good back and forth game against one of the better teams in the AFC. Denver made a Dallas team its plaything last week. Teddy Bridgewater threw very well even though his team's defense really made a statement and shut down the Cowboys for a good part of the game. Will the Broncos have a repeat performance against one of the better passing games in the NFL in the Eagles. Jalen Hurts has done damage in his legs and not necessarily just his throwing arm. I think the Broncos will have a tough task in slowing him down but I feel they'll pull it off. 

Seattle (3-5) @ Green Bay (7-2) (CBS; 4:25 pm): TW: Packers; CV: Seahawks
The Seahawks had a bye and the Packers lost to the Chiefs last week. Seattle had a convincing win against the Jaguars in Week 8. Russell Wilson won't likely play and Geno Smith will likely get the nod. Green Bay was without Aaron Rodgers due to him going through COVID protocol. If he is cleared on Saturday he will likely get the start. If he doesn't then obviously it would be Jordan Love that would get the nod. I'm banking on the thought that Rodgers will be cleared to play. In the scope of things a Geno Smith vs Aaron Rodgers matchup seems to be a mismatch in any slight. Green Bay is gunning for a homefield advantage position at the #1 seed. I think they'll win.

Kansas City (5-4) @ Las Vegas (5-3) (NBC; 8:20 pm): TW: Raiders; CV: Raiders
The Chiefs beat the Packers and the Raiders lost to the Giants last week. Its an old school AFC matchup on NBC! Patrick Mahomes didn't play spectacular but didn't turn the ball over against Green Bay. Las Vegas really let the game against the Giants float them by. Turnovers really kill you when it matters most. Kansas City hasn't looked at all great for over a month. Las Vegas had a good thing going since Jon Gruden's resignation winning two of their last three games. Derek Carr can play well when he doesn't throw the ball to opposing jerseys. The game could be a tossup but I'll take the home team. 

LA Rams (7-2) @ San Francisco (3-5) (8:15 pm): TW: Rams; CV: Rams
Both teams lost last week as the Rams lost to the Titans and the 49ers lost to the Cardinals. Week 10 finishes up with a matchup that had been looking to be a fun one. Los Angeles has had a fun season with a Matthew Stafford having a rejuvenated season. The Rams had a bad loss against the Titans whom were down their best player in Derrick Henry. San Francisco confuses me a lot. They can be good and play well one week and then go shit the bed the next. I feel the Rams will have a bounceback week and reflect on last week's loss and get back to work. San Francisco could win but they will need to get a better game from their defensive line and passing game from Jimmy Garoppolo. 

Early & Late TV Pairings (courtesy of 506sports.com):

Note: Games in bold are being shown in my area. Check local listings as they do get updated reguarly.

CBS Early

Cleveland @ New England
Ian Eagle, Charles Davis

New Orleans @ Tennessee
Kevin Harlan, Trent Green

Buffalo @ NY Jets
Spero Dedes, Jay Feely

Jacksonville @ Indianapolis
Andrew Catalon, James Lofton

CBS Late

Seattle @ Green Bay
Jim Nantz, Tony Romo

Philadelphia @ Denver
Greg Gumbel, Adam Archuleta

FOX Single

Atlanta @ Dallas
Kevin Burkhardt, Greg Olson

Tampa Bay @ Washington
Adam Amin, Mark Schlereth

Detroit @ Pittsburgh
Chris Myers, Daryl Johnston

Minnesota @ LA Chargers (LATE)
Kevin Kugler, Mark Sanchez

Carolina @ Arizona (LATE)
Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma

2021 Pick'em Records:

My record:

Week 1: 7-9
Week 2: 10-6
Week 3: 10-6
Week 4: 9-7
Week 5: 12-4
Week 6: 11-3
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 7-7

Total: 83-53

Cardinal Viking's record:

Week 1: 6-10
Week 2: 12-4
Week 3: 13-3
Week 4: 10-6
Week 5: 10-6
Week 6: 12-2
Week 7: 10-3
Week 8: 7-8
Week 9: 8-6

Total: 88-48

Previous Picking Records:

Cardinal Viking:

2017: 167-89
2018: 156-98-2
2019: 151-104-1
2020: 163-92-1

My record: 

2012: 164-90-2

2013: 162-92-1

2014: 172-83-1

2017: 164-92

2018: 156-98-2

2019: 161-94-1

2020: 167-88-1 

Expect to see the Week 10 recap post sometime after the Monday night game or Tuesday. Enjoy the games!

-Tom

UPDATE #1 (11:50 pm on 11/10/2021): Forgot to add Cardinal Viking's picks, so added them.