Week 9 Picks n' Things

Some quick week 9 picks this week. I was a dominant 9-4 last week, so I just might be getting the hang of this league. Maybe I just got lucky. Anyway, here are this week's picks for those other 13 games occurring this week:

TAMPA BAY (-3.5) over Arizona
DETROIT (-3) over Denver
TENNESSEE (-4) over Carolina
Green Bay (+2.5) over KANSAS CITY
San Diego (-7) over MINNESOTA
NEW ORLEANS (-3) over Jacksonville
ATLANTA (-3.5) over San Francisco
Washington (-3.5) over NY JETS
BUFFALO (+1) over Cincinnati
Seattle (+1.5) over CLEVELAND
OAKLAND (-3) over Houston
Dallas (-3) over PHILADELPHIA
PITTSBURGH (-9) over Baltimore

And now, the one, you've all been waiting for: Patriots vs. Colts.

The last time these teams met, the Colts trailed 21-3 at halftime and miraculously rallied to win the game 38-34. It was one of the greatest conference title games ever. This time around, the NFL boasts the first-ever matchup between teams 7-0 or better. Chris Berman dubbed it Super Bowl 41 1/2. The two teams are unequivocally the best two teams in the league, and they showed it last week as both defeated pretty good NFC teams by ridiculously wide margins: 31-7 for the Colts over Carolina and 52-7 for the Pats over Washington.


The Patriots boast the better offense statistically speaking this year, as it's been the Tom Brady show. The man has tossed 30 TDs to 2 INTs, an absurd, "Madden on Rookie mode" type season. He's done it all without the services of Laurence Maroney most of the season.

On the other hand, the Colts defense has had to carry more of the load than the Pats' has, and they've worn the cap pretty well. Only once have the Colts given up more than 20 points in their seven games. They can also boast of playing a much better schedule than the Patriots have: while NE has played - and dominated - San Diego and Dallas, the Colts have played New Orleans, Tennessee, Tampa Bay, Jacksonville and Carolina. The worst team the Colts played this year so far is Houston, and even the Texans were 2-0 when Indy matched up with them.

Despite all of this - and despite the fact that I would rather have Peyton Manning as my two-minute drill QB than Tom Brady - I'm still taking the Patriots (-5) to beat the Colts rather handily. This may well be the best Colts team yet - but New England is simply in a league of their own.

New England 34, Indy 20.

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