Sunday Smash- Week 13

Week 13...just typing that is surreal. The football season makes time move at hyper-speed. Halloween, Thanksgiving, and soon Christmas all fly by in a blur as we make our way towards the playoffs. There is a nice platter of games to digest today, but first let's dissect the first game of week 13.

The Jets and Bills were both on the road Thursday night, but Buffalo was considered the 'home team' in Toronto. As you often find in the Thursday games, the play is usually sluggish and messy. After all, New York and Buffalo only had 3 days of rest, and had to make the trip to Toronto during that time. So nobody was to expect an epic, wheelin'-dealin' type game. Here's an excerpt from Thursday's post, where I picked the Jets to win...

It may not be the most captivating game in NFL history, but the Jets are in desperation mode from here on out. No style points; every win is poetic.

Three days (and one Jets victory) later, everyone feels the exact same way. It's a bad cliche, but the Jets quite literally 'lived to play another week.' It's all they can do these days. Win your game, cheer for certain AFC teams to lose, move on to the next week. The Jets did their part for week 13. They can sit back today and know everything is out of their hands. (In case you're curious, the general consensus is that the Jets are rooting for the following today: Dolphins over Patriots, Houston over Jacksonville, and Indianapolis over Tennessee.)

The Jets win wasn't pretty (Braylon Edwards catching a ball with his face.) It was even painful (Sanchez questionable for next week with a knee injury.) But the defense is showing some real signs of going back to the good ol' days of September, and the running game is still a driving force. Yes, the team's been maddening with inconsistency this season. But there's plenty of places that have it worse than the Jets, perhaps even their gotham neighbors.

Seeing as how we got that Giants teaser in, let's get on to the week 13 picks. Just cover, baby.

The Locals
Cowboys (-1.5) over Giants
I have to keep a clean conscience this week. I want the Giants to win today. It would make the NFC playoff picture incredibly compelling. But tomorrow, I can't be staring at my computer screen wondering what I was thinking. Not this week. Keeping all allegiances aside, there is no concrete argument as to why Big Blue wins. So why the tiny spread? Because the Cowboys, despite winning consistently, have had some real nasty wins lately. An offensive dud today would not work out well. But I don't see it. The Cowboys move the ball with relative ease, and the Giants run out of steam at the end.

Around the NFL
Texans (-2) over Jaguars
This has to happen. No, not just because it helps the Jets. Houston was annihilating the Colts last week before, well, they collapsed. The played to their potential and then were afraid to lose. The Jaguars will not put this fear in them. And they don't have Peyton Manning, either. Matt Schaub goes on fire in the Jacnsonville sun.

Broncos (-6) over Chiefs
This one is definitely a trap. But I'm happy to fall into it. The Broncos ripped apart the Giants on Thanksgiving, and had plenty of extra rest to prepare for Kansas City. Denver is not even in first place anymore after starting 6-0, and they will take out some anger on the Chiefs. It will be over early.

Rams (+9) over Bears
Just begging for a cover here. I'm not making this the Upset Perfiction of the Week, because the spirit of that honor is that the underdog is supposed to win outright. But the Bears just anger me. Nobody seems to like each other, Jay Cutler's eyes are always misty, it's all a mess. The Rams have burned me too many times to count. Maybe they come through for once.

Vikings (-3.5) over Cardinals
There's talk everywhere that Kurt Warner's still not right in the head. In a medical sense. His concussion problems make him a gametime decision for tonight's game. Minnesota has made an argument about being the best team in football recently. So 4 points is nothing to fret about. Even if Warner does play, the Vikings defense will mess him up. Favre and the purple people eaters roll on.

Upset Perfiction of the Week
Buccaneers (+4) over Panthers
The Bucs had one of the bigger UPofW success stories when they beat Green Bay earlier this year. Let's hop right back on board. Jake Delhomme isn't starting, and now there's news DeAngelo Williams won't play either. Josh Freeman makes the Bucs watchable, and Cadillac Williams breaks off a few. Tampa shocks them on the road.

Yeah, I just picked six road teams. I gotta feelin, Fergie. Enjoy the games, amigos.