Hello readers! Another week of National Football League action is coming upon us yet again. Week 11 brings us that much closer to the playoffs as we have just seven more weeks after this then the regular season ends. The division races are heating up and the playoff picture starts to get clearer. For games this week I'll keep an eye on: Titans-Packers, Browns-Bills, Eagles-Colts, Cowboys-Vikings, and Chiefs-Chargers. In this post I'll do a Playoff Picture section, a Week 11 Preview, my picks for the games, and the Early & Late TV Broadcast pairings. Let's get to work!
Playoff Picture: Week 11
Let's start with the NFC
Seeding:
1st seed: Philadelphia Eagles (8-1)
2nd seed: Minnesota Vikings (8-1)
3rd seed: Seattle Seahawks (6-4)
4th seed: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-5)
5th seed: New York Giants (7-2)
6th seed: Dallas Cowboys (6-3)
7th seed: San Francisco 49ers (5-4)
Wild Card Matchups:
San Francisco @ Minnesota
Dallas @ Seattle
NY Giants @ Tampa Bay
In the hunt:
Washington (5-5), Green Bay (4-6), Atlanta (4-6), Arizona (4-6), Detroit (3-6), LA Rams (3-6), Carolina (3-7), New Orleans (3-7), Chicago (3-7)
No clinch scenarios so far but the Eagles are ahead of the Vikings based on head-to-head (Eagles beat the Vikings in Week 2). Some other notable things is that the first four seeds are division leaders so the Buccaneers would host a playoff game against a team with a better record.
Onto the AFC
Seeding:
1st seed: Kansas City Chiefs (7-2)
2nd seed: Miami Dolphins (7-3)
3rd seed: Tennessee Titans (6-3)
4th seed: Baltimore Ravens (6-3)
5th seed: New York Jets (6-3)
6th seed: Buffalo Bills (6-3)
7th seed: New England Patriots (5-4)
Wild card matchups:
New England @ Miami
Buffalo @ Tennessee
NY Jets @ Baltimore
In the hunt:
Los Angeles Chargers (5-4), Cincinnati Bengals (5-4), Indianapolis Colts (4-5-1), Cleveland Browns (3-6), Denver (3-6), Pittsburgh (3-6), Jacksonville (3-7), Las Vegas (2-7), Houston (1-7-1)
The AFC is a bit of an interesting one. New England is ahead of Los Angeles and Cincinnati based on strength of victory and the Patriots and Chargers have a better conference record than the Bengals. The Jets are ahead of the Bills based on head-to-head. Will have to see how well the AFC turns out in the coming weeks.
Week 11 Preview
The Eleventh week of the National Football League's regular season will start in Green Bay, Wisconsin and finishes up in Glendale, Arizona. The week that is will have a 14-game slate where 28 teams will play. Teams on a bye this week are the Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Week 11 will have a Thursday night game, eight early games, three late games, a Sunday night game and a Monday night game. FOX will have the single, regional game and CBS will have the doubleheader this week. Let's get to the picks!
Week 11 Picks
Note: All game times are in US Eastern. TW is me and CV is Cardinal Viking, my former roommate.
Tennessee (6-3) @ Green Bay (4-6) (Amazon; 8:15 pm): TW: Packers; CV: Titans
The Titans beat the Broncos and the Packers beat the Cowboys last week. The Packers got back on a winning track last week. Not sure if that's going to be enough on a short week. They will have to have a good day on the ground and to keep Derrick Henry off the field. Tennessee is a solid team and they aren't exactly the safest team either. They would beat the Broncos by a touchdown. I don't trust Ryan Tannehill to come up with a win in the Frozen Tundra.
Chicago (3-7) @ Atlanta (4-6) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Bears; CV: Bears
Both teams lost last week as the Bears lost to the Lions and the Falcons lost to the Panthers. Chicago's offense has been on a better footing as their offensive system is geared to having Justin Fields run as much as he passes. Their running game is solid as well. Atlanta has had a decent season compared to what I had thought they'd be. They will need to have a better game running the ball as they really let Marcus Mariota throw the ball a bit too much. Not quite balanced. I'll take the Bears.
Carolina (3-7) @ Baltimore (6-3) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Ravens; CV: Ravens
The Panthers beat the Falcons and the Ravens were on a bye last week. Carolina made a surprise last week as they beat the favored Falcons. D'Onta Foreman was the catalyst in that win for Carolina. Their defense was also key in that game. What they face is a very good Ravens team. Lamar Jackson has had a rebound of a year and has been playing as well as he can. With a plethora of running backs I think it's going to be a tough matchup for the Panthers to win.
Cleveland (3-6) @ Buffalo (6-3) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Bills; CV: Bills
The Browns lost to the Dolphins and the Bills lost to the Vikings last week. The game could be a bit white outside as there's supposedly a Lake Effect storm during this weekend. What that means is that the game could be postponed or moved or there's a possibility of a SNOW GAME! Cleveland might have to rely on their running game a bit more if that happens so I would lean on them to use Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt in the game. For the Bills, I would have to come out angry and just play with controlled emotion and get back on track. Devin Singletary needs to have a monster game. I'll take the Bills as the home team.
Detroit (3-6) @ NY Giants (7-2) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Giants; CV: Giants
The Lions beat the Bears and the Giants beat the Texans last week. The Lions really had a rebound to their season in the last couple of games. With their offense leading them, they've done well and gotten back to their high scoring offense earlier in the year. New York had a bit of a trouble in their game against the Texans as they won by eight points. I'll take the Giants but this game could be a scoring bonanza.
LA Rams (3-6) @ New Orleans (3-7) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Rams; CV: Rams
The Rams lost to the Cardinals and the Saints lost to the Steelers last week. Matthew Stafford should be available to play as he passed concussion protocol. He will be without his top target Cooper Kupp in this game. The Rams will have to rely on their defense to keep it close if they want to win. New Orleans has been rather of a disappointment this season and their running game has been lackluster. I think it could be a Saints win but I'll go with the Rams in a must win for them.
NY Jets (6-3) @ New England (5-4) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Patriots; CV: Patriots
The Jets and Patriots had a bye last week. The last time these two teams met, the Patriots defense made Zach Wilson see ghosts as he was intercepted four times. The Patriots offense however has been a bit lackluster with a new system for Mac Jones. I would hope that he throws a bit more but stay in control of this game. I have to expect that the Jets defense will look to contain Rhamondre Stevenson and force Mac Jones to beat you. With a shaky offensive line, the Patriots will have their hands full. I'll take the Pats by a close one.
Philadelphia (8-1) @ Indianapolis (4-5-1) (CBS; 1:00 pm): TW: Eagles; CV: Eagles
The Eagles lost to the Commanders and the Colts beat the Raiders last week. The unbeaten streak is over for Philly. With that they can get back to more focused and concise football. Indy made heads turn as they beat the Raiders in Jeff Saturday's NFL debut as interim head coach. The team seemed to react well to him and the playcalling was better than expected. I think the Eagles will win but if the Colts can get it going on the ground and keep the Eagles offense off the field, it could be win #2 for Saturday.
Washington (5-5) @ Houston (1-7-1) (FOX; 1:00 pm): TW: Commanders; CV: Commanders
The Commanders beat the Eagles and the Texans lost to the Giants last week. Washington won their Super Bowl in beating the Eagles. They had a defense that took advantage of giveaways that made you think they were taking advantage of coupon books. Taylor Heinicke the folk hero has been a solid choice at quarterback in the stead of Carson Wentz who has been out with injury. They also have a good tandem of running backs. Houston has been a consistently bad football team this year. They did have a decent chance to win against the Giants as they lost by eight points. They will really have to have the game of their lives and get Dameon Pierce the ball 50 times to win this game.
Las Vegas (2-7) @ Denver (3-6) (FOX; 4:05 pm): TW: Raiders; CV: Broncos
Both teams lost last week as the Raiders lost to the Colts and the Broncos lost to the Titans. The last time these two teams met was the last time the Raiders had beaten a team. That was back in Week 4. Denver has been also a disappointment this year and the blame has been in the shoulders in Russell Wilson. Their offense is not great and their defense is probably the better defense in the league. I don't like either team but I'll take the Raiders in a squeaker.
Cincinnati (5-4) @ Pittsburgh (3-6) (CBS; 4:25 pm): TW: Steelers; CV: Steelers
The Bengals had a bye and the Steelers beat the Saints last week. A classic AFC North matchup. The last time these two teams met was a bleak one for the Bengals as they gave up a lot of turnovers. Joe Burrow was definitely to blame for the loss in Week 1. The game won't be any easier for the Bengals as TJ Watt is back. The Steelers offense has been meh as they have a rookie quarterback in Kenny Pickett who has been playing like a rookie. Eventually he will have to mature. He will need to have a running game get back to the classic Steelers running the football style of game. I'll take the Steelers in an upset.
Dallas (6-3) @ Minnesota (8-1) (CBS; 4:25 pm): TW: Vikings; CV: Vikings
The Cowboys lost to the Packers and the Vikings beat the Bills last week. Classic NFC matchup on CBS! Dallas really had a letdown of a game and further proved that they can be quite the chokers when it matters most. They will need to play better and not play conservatively. Minnesota played in one of the best regular season games in recent memory. The emotions of such a win could be a factor in this game. They could be a letdown. Suffice to say I don't like the Cowboys in this game as they really seem to shoot themselves in the foot. I'll take the Vikes.
Kansas City (7-2) @ LA Chargers (5-4) (NBC; 8:20 pm): TW: Chiefs; CV: Chiefs
The Chiefs beat the Jaguars and the Chargers lost to the 49ers last week. The Mahomes-Herbert rivalry continues! Patrick Mahomes has been playing like himself so far in 2022. The Chiefs have a good supporting cast around their quarterback who can help win games. The loss of JuJu Smith-Schuster could play into this game. The Chargers are a bit of a question mark. They have one of the better talented teams in the league. An offense that should be a lot better than they are. I have to imagine there will be more red in the stands than powder blue as the Chargers don't find a lot of fans in Los Angeles compared to let's say... San Diego. I don't trust head coach Brandon Staley to get a win. I'll take KC.
San Francisco (5-4) @ Arizona (4-6) (ESPN; 8:15 pm): TW: 49ers; CV: 49ers
The 49ers beat the Chargers and the Cardinals beat the Rams last week. Christian McCaffrey has been a solid addition for the 49ers. Granted it has been a solid addition as the 49ers gave up a ton of draft capital to get him. San Francisco should be a lot better than they are yet they're 5-4. What they face is a Cardinals team that is very inconsistent but that was more along the lines of earlier in the year. They pulled off an interesting win against the defending champion Rams. They had a good game from James Conner who had scored two touchdowns. I'm not sure what to think about the Cardinals and I feel the safer bet in the 49ers.
Early & Late TV Broadcast Pairings
Note: games in bold are games being shown in my area. Check local listings for yours.
CBS Early
Philadelphia @ Indianapolis
Ian Eagle, Charles Davis
NY Jets @ New England
Kevin Harlan, Trent Green
Cleveland @ Buffalo
Andrew Catalon, James Lofton
CBS Late
Dallas @ Minnesota
Jim Nantz, Tony Romo
Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh
Greg Gumbel, Adam Archuleta
FOX Single
Detroit @ NY Giants
Kevin Burkhardt, Greg Olson
Chicago @ Atlanta
Joe Davis, Daryl Johnston
LA Rams @ New Orleans
Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma
Washington @ Houston
Chris Myers, Robert Smith
Carolina @ Baltimore
Kevin Kugler, Mark Sanchez
Las Vegas @ Denver (Late)
Adam Amin, Mark Schlereth
For more information on which game(s) are being shown in your area, check out: NFL 2022: Week 11 Maps
2022 Pick ‘Em Records
My record:
Week 1: 8-7-1
Week 2: 8-8
Week 3: 5-11
Week 4: 11-5
Week 5: 10-6
Week 6: 8-6
Week 7: 9-5
Week 8: 12-3
Week 9: 11-2
Week 10: 8-6
Total: 90-59-1
Cardinal Viking's record:
Week 1: 6-9-1
Week 2: 11-5
Week 3: 5-11
Week 4: 6-10
Week 5: 9-7
Week 6: 9-5
Week 7: 8-6
Week 8: 9-6
Week 9: 9-4
Week 10: 8-6
Total: 80-69-1
Previous Picking Records:
2017: 167-89
2018: 156-98-2
2019: 151-104-1
2020: 163-92-1
2021: 167-104-1
2019: 161-94-1
2020: 167-88-1
2021: 173-98-1
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