This Pigskin is Not Kosher - Week 11

This is a quiz to test your NFL knowledge.
When did you first hear about Samkon Gado?
A) I've known about him longer than 3 weeks
B) When the news broke he was Green Bay's starting running back
C) After last week's 3 touchdown performance
D) 12 seconds ago when you mentioned his name in this question

If you answered A, you are biologically related to Samkon Gado.

A response of B means that you are a very astute Green Bay fan or an obsessive fantasy football addict.

Choosing C tells me that you're a casual NFL fan who probably watches SportsCenter.

D just means you're along for the ride.

But these are the types of things happening by Week 11, guys named Samkon Gado are making headlines about playoff hopes. Just when you think you know how a team's going to do, you have one scoring on an interception, kickoff and punt return-- which constitute their only touchdowns of the game.

Makes this week's picks tougher than they seem. Oh well. Last week's record was 10-4 straight up and 8-6 against the spread (including two narrow one-point losses).

JACKSONVILLE at Tennessee (+4)
The Jaguars might finally be coming together, putting up 30 on a solid Ravens defense last week. That they only let in 3 might be misleading, as the Ravens offense has the potency of a 79 year-old prostate surgery outpatient.
Straight-Up: Jax
Spread: Jax
Final: JAX 31 TEN 28. Another one point spread loss? Damn.

Miami at CLEVELAND (-2)
The Dolphins might be without their starting QB this week. Which shouldn't really mean much because he doesn't do much when he's in the game anyway. They have two solid, underworked running backs who should be able to poke holes in Cleveland's defense.
And did I miss something? The Fins played tough against the defending champs last week, while the Browns were clobbered in Pittsburgh while their leading rusher was held to under 60 yards and their defense couldn't manage an interception against 2 crappy backup quarterbacks. So why are the Browns giving points here?
Whatever.
Straight-Up: Miami
Spread: Miami
Final: MIA 0 CLE 22. Apparently, I did miss something. And a lot of it at that.

New Orleans at NEW ENGLAND (-9)
This is a game New England wins, but I have this nagging feeling that the Saints are looming as a spread spoiler in this game. They're coming off a bye week, while the Patriots are coming off a hard faught game in Miami. The Saints have lost by 49 against Green Bay but by slim margins against Chicago and Atlanta, two playoff teams.
Straight-Up: New England
Spread: New Orleans
Final: NO 17 NE 24. Good call. Good call.

Oakland at WASHINGTON (-6)
Again, should be an easy game to call, but with the Skins giving up 6 points? Yikes. I mean, Oakland's not exactly satisfying Raider nation lately with the team running Kerry Collins out of town (as everybody in New York and Carolina already knew to do) and Randy Moss hampered by injuries and an apparent tightness of the lip that's developed in the Northern California air. But then again, the Redskins have given up 36 points in two of the last three games.
Straight-Up: Washington
Spread: Washington
Final: OAK 16 WAS 13. I knew this whole Redskins playoff talk was a hoax.

Philadelphia at NEW YORK GIANTS (-7)
Ooooooh, a big NFC East showdown. If Tom Coughlin beats some sense into the Giants special teams unit, they should be able to snap back and handle the floundering Eagles. Philly currently has no offense to speak of.
Straight-Up: Giants
Spread: Giants
Final: PHI 17 NYG 27. Brings the NFC East race down to two teams.

Tampa Bay at ATLANTA (-6)
You know what, I'm just going to go ahead and predict a huge upset here. I'm going for it. Right now. Watch me.
Straight-Up: Bucs
Spread: Bucs
Final: TB 30 ATL 27. Nice.

Arizona at ST LOUIS (-9.5)
St Louis is not a good team. So the spread should tell you something about Arizona's hopes right now. I think Kurt Warner might have a nice return in the dome though.
Straight-Up: Rams
Spread: Cards
Final: ARI 38 STL 28. Just to recap for bookies, this counts as a 19.5 point loss for the Rams.

CAROLINA at Chicago (+2.5)
If the weather in the Windy City is anything like last week, this is bound to be another low-scoring game. By the way, if you were keeping score, the Bears' offense scored one touchdown in that game. The two teams combined for four field goals, none longer than 37 yards. Nice day for Adrian Peterson though (120 yds, 1 TD).
And should anybody be worried about Carolina's 220 total yards on offense last week? In Carolina?
Straight-Up: Carolina
Spread: Carolina
Final: CAR 3 CHI 13. The answer to my question there was 'Yes. Yes, everybody should be worried.'

Detroit at DALLAS (-7.5)
Why? Because Joey Harringon always does well against the Cardinals, that's why. So there's plenty of reason to doubt him on the road in big D this week. Of course, Dallas has had just two games this year separated by more than 6 points.
Straight-Up: Dallas
Spread: Dallas
Final: DET 7 DAL 20

PITTSBURGH at Baltimore (+3.5)
Hmm... Tommy Maddox as an NFL quarterback... sounds familiar, but the idea hasn't crossed anybody's mind in years. And that includes the one start he's had this year.
On the other hand, rumor has it that Baltimore season ticket holders are selling their seats this week in protest to their team's ugly performance, meaning Pitt might have a home away from home for a tough divisional game.
Not that any of that should matter. Pitt's running game is what we should be focused on here.
Straight-Up: Pittsburgh
Spread: Pittsburgh
Final: PIT 13 BAL 16 OT. When does Big Ben come back?

SEATTLE at San Francisco (-12.5)
Is Seattle for real? Like, really real? I still can't tell. We know they can run the ball, but what's left after that? And yet, they keep on winning.
I'm not betting the spread against San Fran two weeks in a row, they're too unpredictable. Not that they'd win though.
Straight-Up: Seattle
Spread: San Fran
Final: SEA 27 SF 25.

Buffalo at SAN DIEGO (-11)
Aside from big wins against NY and NE, the Chargers haven't really been blowing teams out of the water like they should. They've turned into more of a gritty run team than last year, when they had a full compliment of a passing game. Brees doesn't seem as motivated this year to do anything other than let LT run it. A wide receiver has been tops in reception yardage just twice in 9 games.
And the Bills played a pretty good game last week.
Straight-Up: San Diego
Spread: Buffalo
Final: BUF 10 SD 48. A real nail biter.

New York Jets at DENVER (-13.5)
Um... yeah. Sure. I'll go with that.
Straight-Up: Denver
Spread: Denver
Final: NYJ 0 DEN 27

INDY at Cincinnatti (+5.5)
Do I think the Colts can turn it up a few notches tonight to top an over-achieving Bengals team? Yes, I do.
Although I really wouldn't be surprised if this turned into an upset either. Coin flip time.
Straight-Up: Indy
Spread: Indy
Final: IND 45 CIN 37

KANSAS CITY at Houston (+6.5)
Am I done with these yet? What? One more game after this?
Straight-Up: KC
Spread: KC
Final: KC 45 HOU 17

Minnesota at GREEN BAY (-4.5)
I've been incredibly persistent in guessing incorrectly on Minnesota all year. I actually think they have a chance against Green Bay though. Which means I'm betting the Packers.
Straight-Up: Green Bay
Spread: Green Bay
Final: MIN 20 GB 17. Damn damn damn.

The week's tally:
Straight-Up: 10-6
Against the spread: 9-7
On the season:
SU: 20-10
Spread: 17-13

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