Mattie T’s Week 15 NFL Predictions

I officially start my postseason run this weekend as the 3 seed in the Justice (Money) League & am matched up against a team that leads the league in points scored. I crushed this same manager last season by 40-50 points in the 1st rd despite him having studs such as LaDainian Tomlinson, Terrell Owens & Randy Moss. So it’s all about matchups & execution at this time of the season and i’m confident that my team will come through on Sunday.

Week 14: 12-4
Overall: 128-79 (.618)

Saints/Bears: For the 3rd consecutive season, Chicago will have a chance to end New Orleans’ Super Bowl hopes. Drew Brees has among one of the league’s best ratings at home, but it’s a different story once he steps outside of the Superdome. The Saints are just 1-5 on the road this season, while Brees has a rating of 76.7 with 7 touchdowns & 10 interceptions. As long as Pierre Thomas & Lance Moore are contained, then the Bears should win this game & put pressure on Minnesota to win Sunday.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Buccaneers/Falcons: Despite their Monday night loss, Tampa Bay looks to be in good position to land a Wild Card spot as they currently hold the 5 seed in the NFC. With that being said, this is a must-win game for Atlanta, who is tied with Dallas for the 6th & final NFC playoff spot. I would suggest for the Falcons to use plenty of Michael Turner & Jerious Norwood on Sunday, especially after seeing the Bucs’ run defense giving up over 300 yards to Carolina.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Redskins/Bengals: After a much-publicized spat by Clinton Portis earlier this week against his head coach Jim Zorn, Portis has a chance to really make things up by punshing Cincinnati’s 23rd ranked run defense. I think that the Bengals have officially quit on the 2008 season after being outscored 69-6 over their last 2 games.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Titans/Texans: I smell a Texas-sized upset! Unless the Titans falter late, they should be able to lock up the 1 seed & homefield advantage throughout the AFC Playoffs. But i feel like this will be a trap game for Tennessee with a possible playoff matchup looming next week against Pittsburgh. Texans rookie back Steve Slaton had his coming-out party back in Week 2 against the Titans when he ran for 116 yards on just 18 carries & even broke off a 50-yard run against the league’s 7th ranked run defense. I think Slaton will come up with another big game as he will be matched up against another excellent rookie back, Chris Johnson of Tennessee.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Lions/Colts: This one is going to get very, very ugly. Joseph Addai looks like he could be iffy for Sunday with a shoulder injury, so look for Dominic Rhodes to explode with his best game of the season against Detroit’s league-worst run defense. Peyton Manning will be going up against a Lions secondary that has just FOUR interceptions to this point, so you fantasyheads need to start as many Colts as you can for your playoff game..which includes their defense! Detroit could possibly be held out of the end zone, but my feelings are that they’ll get a late cheap TD to make some fantasy owners happy.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Packers/Jaguars: Green Bay sure picked a perfect opponent to take their frustrations out on. Jacksonville is a dismal 1-5 at home & lost Fred Taylor for the season, who recently passed Corey Dillon & O.J. Simpson on the NFL’s all-time rushing yardage list. Despite the Packers’ recent defensive struggles, i don’t think this will be a shootout as the Jaguars are averaging just 13.3 PPG during their current 4-game losing streak.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Chargers/Chiefs: For the first time since their Week 3 win over the Jets, San Diego won a game in dominating fashion….ok, i may be egging them on a bit too much since it was against the Raiders. I actually think this game can turn into a wild shootout with two bad pass defenses going against eachother. But the big difference here is the run defense…San Diego’s is still solid (providing that Jamal Williams doesn’t get hurt), while Kansas City can’t stop anybody. Boy, i’m sure the Chiefs really do miss Jared Allen. I say this because their non-existent pass rush has generated just SIX sacks all season, which is on pace to becoming an NFL record.

Mattie T’s Pick:

49ers/Dolphins: Ok, so San Francisco killed the West Coast teams traveling East for an early start theory for at least one week with their recent win over the Bills. But Miami is for real & looking to  grab a share of the AFC East lead. The 49ers can make this interesting if Frank Gore plays, but i have a feeling that the Dolphins will squeak out a close win.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Bills/Jets: The Jets need to get themselves in order after back-to-back disappointments against the Broncos & 49ers. Couldn’t of picked a better opponent to crush in the free-falling Bills, who have lost 6 of their last 7 games after starting 4-0. With 6 combined points in their last 2 games, don’t expect for Buffalo to put up much of a fight.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Seahawks/Rams: In a matchup between two terrible teams, i tend to favor Seattle more especially with the emergence of rookie TE John Carlson. But this week, the Seahawks should have plenty of success running the ball against a Rams team that simply cannot score, nor stop anyone on defense…but yet they want Jim Haslett back for ‘09?

Mattie T’s Pick:

Vikings/Cardinals: Bears fans will be very interested in this game, as Minnesota needs to win to stay atop the NFC North. Good luck trying to do that against an Arizona team that is 5-1 at home this season. Kurt Warner has thrown just 3 interceptions (with 1 of them coming last week against the Rams) all season at home, so look for the Cardinals to air it out plenty & have big success. The Vikings will most likely start Tavaris Jackson, who hasn’t won a start in nearly one calendar year. (Last win was against Chicago on December 17th, 2007.)

Mattie T’s Pick:

Steelers/Ravens: This will be a very physical & low-scoring game, as a Baltimore win would create a 2-way tie for the AFC North division title with 2 weeks to go. I am convinced that Pittsburgh has the best defense in the league after their unbelievable display against Tony Romo & the Dallas offense in a great comeback Week 14 win. It will be close, but the experience of Ben Roethlisberger should trump a young but impressive Joe Flacco.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Broncos/Panthers: DeAngelo Williams may be the hottest back in football right now after his amazing 186 yard game on Monday night against Tampa Bay. The Panthers should have more success running the ball on Denver’s 26th ranked run defense in an attempt to keep Jay Cutler off the field, who is 3rd in the league in pass attempts. Carolina has a chance to become the first NFC team since the ‘05 Seattle Seahawks to finish the season undefeated at home. By the way, that Seattle team reached the Super Bowl.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Patriots/Raiders: Condolences go out to Matt Cassel, who lost his father earlier this week & is unsure on whether he’ll play against Oakland. Even if Cassel can’t go, Sammy Morris & Kevin Faulk should be able to punish a Raider defense that is 30th against the run.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Giants/Cowboys: A Giants loss on Sunday could make things very interesting in the NFC, as Carolina sits just 1 game back for the top seed & homefield advantage throughout the playoffs. Look for Dallas to come out in desperation mode after blowing a 10-point 4th quarter lead against Pittsburgh in Week 14. Tony Romo missed the earlier season meeting at the Meadowlands, but has won his last 3 regular-season starts against the Giants.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Browns/Eagles: It seems as if the Donovan McNabb benching fiasco in Baltimore a few weeks ago has kept Philadelphia’s season alive, as Brian Westbrook has finally come to form with back-to-back 100-yard games for the first time all season. Make it 3 in a row after the Eagles destroy a hapless Browns team that has scored a whopping total of 21 points during their current 3-game losing streak.

Mattie T’s Pick:

Until then,

Mattie T

Sports Writer for BMS Radio Chicago

www.BMSRadioChicago.com

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