Just like that, we are into the final month of the regular season. Four weeks from now, we will know the identities, and the seedings, of all 12 playoff teams. More importantly, we will also be ready to crown our new Pick Six champion. Updated standings will be posted below the line shortly, but I can tell you that DevonGiant stole a march at the top of the table in week 13.
But even those of you not in the running for the overall title can still continue to chase that elusive perfect week. The Jaguars’ upset of the Giants helped to ensure that nobody predicted all six games correctly last time out, but a fresh week brings fresh opportunities:
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Cincinnati Bengals (Sunday 1pm ET/6pm GMT)
How can it be that every team in the AFC North has a winning record, yet none of them look remotely convincing? Two defeats in three weeks have put the Steelers’ playoff prospects in jeopardy, and a loss on Sunday could be fatal. Cincinnati lead the division at 8-3-1, and arrive at this game on the back of three straight road wins, but they barely scraped past a terrible Tampa Bay team last weekend. It is only fair to acknowledge that Andy Dalton was playing with a flu against the Bucs, and reportedly vomited “at least 20 times”, but even if he is healthy and on top of his game this Sunday, I would still have concerns for a Cincinnati defense that has given up 125.1 rushing yards per game, and now must seek to contain Le’Veon Bell. Steelers to win
Baltimore Ravens @ Miami Dolphins (Sunday 1pm ET/6pm GMT)
It has been a startlingly efficient few weeks for Ryan Tannehill, completing 70% of his passes in five consecutive games. He has a fine opportunity to keep that run going against against a Ravens defense that has been torched for a combined 803 yards through the air by Drew Brees and Philip Rivers over the last fortnight (and that was before Haloti Ngata was suspended for the remainder of the regular season (http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/dec/04/baltimore-ravens-haloti-ngata-suspended-over-ped-use)). The Dolphins’ offense is not built to put up such eye-popping numbers, but their quarterback should nevertheless thrive against a weak secondary, even if Baltimore are hoping to get cornerback Asa Jackson back from a toe injury this weekend. Although the Ravens remain in the thick of the AFC playoff race, the truth is that they have only beaten two teams this season who presently hold winning records. The most recent of those was Cleveland, all the way back in week three. Dolphins to win
New York Giants @ Tennessee Titans (Sunday 1pm ET/6pm GMT)
Oh boy. The Giants made clear the extent of their dysfunction in week 13, losing to Jacksonville after jumping out to a 21-0 lead. As difficult as it is to get behind Tom Coughlin’s team right now, though, is it really any easier to back Tennessee? New York might be riding a seven-game losing streak, but the Titans have suffered six straight defeats of their own, and only had one out of five offensive line starters healthy enough to participate in practice on Wednesday. As much as I want to pick against the Giants after being let down by them last week, I do still think they are the better team. Giants to win
St Louis Rams @ Washington (Sunday 1pm ET/6pm GMT)
After spending the last week embroiled in a quite ludicrous off-field dispute regarding hand gestures and non-apologies with the St Louis Police Officers Association, the Rams might be relieved to get back to playing football. Lately, they have been pretty good at it. Jeff Fisher’s team are 4-3 over the last seven weeks, with wins over the Seahawks, 49ers and Broncos – as well as last week’s 52-0 rout of the Raiders. The emergence of Tre Mason at running back has delivered a huge boost on offense, but the fact remains that the Rams are yet to string together consecutive wins this season. With Colt McCoy bringing a little more stability on offense, could Washington bring them back to earth? I will say no, but I expect it to be a close run thing. Rams to win
Kansas City Chiefs @ Arizona Cardinals (Sunday 4.05pm ET/9.05pm GMT)
Bruce Arians insists that “the sky has not fallen yet” for Arizona, but in the wake of consecutive defeats, dark clouds are certainly gathering. What was a three-game lead in the NFC West has now been trimmed down to just one, and the Cardinals still have rematches against all three of their division rivals to look forward to. A win here is imperative, and Arians might be heartened by the Chiefs’ own struggles over the last fortnight. Both teams’ starting tailbacks have missed practice time due to injuries this week, but Jamaal Charles seems to be in better shape than Andre Ellington, and besides, Kansas City are capable of running the ball pretty well without him. The Chiefs also still have their starting quarterback under center. For all Alex Smith’s limitations, he remains a far better bet than Drew Stanton. Chiefs to win
Seattle Seahawks @ Philadelphia Eagles (Sunday 4.25pm ET/9.25pm GMT)
After both played on Thanksgiving, the Seahawks and Eagles have had plenty of time to prepare this game. Some of the main protagonists already knew each other quite well. Pete Carroll and Chip Kelly were college coaching rivals in the Pac-10 (as it was back then). Carroll also had Eagles quarterback Mark Sanchez on his team at USC. It is hard to know how much Sunday’s game will be influenced by the insights that each man gained in those times. What we do know, is that Seattle’s defense has been playing at an elite level over the last couple of weeks, holding the 49ers and Cardinals to just three points each. For all Kelly’s offensive innovation, I doubt Sanchez has the wits to unpick them. Seahawks to win
And the rest
Here are the remainder of this weekend’s games. These are not included in the Pick Six, but feel free to post your winners for them as well. If you do so, please keep them separate from your Pick Six predictions, as it will make life a lot easier when adding up your scores.
Sunday
1pm ET/6pm GMT
Carolina Panthers @ New Orleans Saints
New York Jets @ Minnesota Vikings
Indianapolis Colts @ Cleveland Browns
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Detroit Lions
Houston Texans @ Jacksonville Jaguars
4.05pm ET/9.05pm GMT
Buffalo Bills @ Denver Broncos
4.25pm ET/9.25pm GMT
San Francisco 49ers @ Oakland Raiders
8.30pm ET/Monday 1.30am GMT
New England Patriots @ San Diego Chargers
Monday
8.30pm ET/Tuesday 1.30am GMT
Atlanta Falcons @ Green Bay Packers
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