Its Halloween and it could be a spooky night for a few franchises tonight especially for San Francisco who travel to London for the 4th regular season game in England facing the realistic prospect of falling to 1-7 which would in all probability spell the end of their season, had they been in any division bar the NFC West. Early season fancies Dallas & Minnesota will also need to hope that Halloween gives them a treat and not a trick or they could also be in big trouble.
Anyway with only 12 games tonight and one on Monday at least some of the players can have some fun with their families.
The games:
Miami at Cincinnati – The Bengals are far too inconsistent this season and despite being at home its Miami for me by 7 points+
Jacksonville at Dallas – The Cowboys are almost certain to part with Wade Phillips as coach at the end of the season, however despite Jerry Jones assurances a Halloween shocker from Dallas could hasten his departure. The truth is Dallas have not played that badly this year but keep making stupid mistakes. They should beat the Jags and we expect a 10 point+ win.
Washington at Detroit – The Skins are looking good under their new management and Donovan McNabb seems to be quite at home in his new uniform which could indicate a change in the balance of power in the notoriously tough NFC East. The Lions are on the mend too and this is a tough one to call. Because we cant tip a draw we will go with the Redskins by 3-7 points.
Buffalo at Kansas City – The Bills seem to have settled nicely now that their QB situation has been resolved and they gave the Ravens quite a fright last week. The Million Dollar question is whether they can give KC as big a fright tonight? The Chiefs have played a lot better than we expected this year and could just about cling on for the division if the Chargers keep capitulating, however we do feel they have had their fair share of luck and it could run out tonight. We are just siding with the Bills but 7 points +
Carolina at St. Louis – The Panthers finally got off the mark last week but still look too inexperienced to us and it will take a couple of years of early draft picks before they are in the playoff picture again. The Rams seem to have found a QB in Bradford and they have a good running game which should be enough for them to edge home in this one. The Rams by 3-7 points.
Green Bay Packers at NY Jets – The Packersneed to win this one if they are serious about winning the Super Bowl and with The Bears abnd Vikings still within striking distance in the NFC North any loss from now in will be painful. They are pretty beaten up at present and much as we want them to win we cant see it. The Jets to win by 7-10 points.
Denver Broncos at San Francisco 49ers – The 49ers are technically at home in this one but given its being played in London its not much of an advantage, and the way their season is shaping up they need every edge they can get. The Broncos got a drubbing last week against Oakland , but having seen the highlights I feel it was just one of those games which can happen to any team and despite being 2-5 they are a threat on their day. Who ever settles best will win this one and we will just give Denver the edge in what we hope will be a high scoring but close game.
Tennessee at San Diego – The Chargers are either the unluckiest or most complacent team in the NFL , we are not sure which yet and tonight will probably answer a few questions. They can’t afford another loss to a potential playoff team and with KC still picking up the odd win at 2-6 they could struggle to win the division which will now be their only way into the post season. The Titans are looking good and could make the playoffs, however we will give the Chargers another chance and expect them to finally show the world what they have got. San Diego to win by 7-10 points
Tampa Bay at Arizona – Both teams are hughly unpredictable and this is not one to wager on. The Buccsshowed a bit of tenacity last week in their win against the Rams but they will need more than that to get past Arizona who still have a bit of talent bothsides of the ball. We will go with the Cardinals by 7-10 points
Minnesota at New England – The preseason talk of the Patriots demise now looks a bit foolish and although the balance of power in the AFC East might change the Patriots still look capable of at last a playoff berth. The Vikings are on their way back following a poor start and they were a tad unlucky last week against the Packers. They have not had the best of schedules but to win the big one you have to overcome these obstacles. We will just side with the Vikings by 3-7 points.
Seattle at Oakland – Another two unpredictable teams meet in this one and we will go with the Raiders as the Seahawks don’t seem to travel well; lucky for them they are not in the London game.
Pittsburgh at New Orleans – Neither of these sides will want to lose this one and a hard fought battle should ensue. Overall we just fancy the Saints to edge it in a defense dominated game by 3-7 points
MONDAY NIGHT
Houston at Indianapolis – The Colts have some major injury worries but its hard to see them giving up their AFC South crown just yet. We expect them to win by 10 points +
Byes this week : Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Cleveland, NY Giants, Philadelphia
