FRIDAY FOOTBALL PICKS!

Last week, I was 9-7.
My record for the season:  49-35.  Got to do better!

NFL PICKS

Washington at NY Jets.  My pick:  JETS  24-14.  That Jets defense is really good.  Look for Kirk Cousins to have a rough time.

Arizona at Pittsburgh.  My pick:  CARDINALS  26-21.  Always tough to pick against the Steelers at home.  But--Big Ben likely will not play; and the Steelers' offense still struggles under Mike Vick...the two late TDs to win at San Diego should not obscure how ineffective it was for much of the game.  And the Cardinals are good.

Kansas City at Minnesota.  My pick:  VIKINGS  27-17.  The Vikings play well at home.  And they have Adrian Peterson; the Chief will not have Jamaal Charles.

Cincinnati at Buffalo.  My pick:  BILLS  21-18.  I think Cincy is the better team.  BUT--this is a classic trap game for the Bengals.  They beat Seattle last week in a big game with a big comeback; but now they have to go on the road against a capable opponent.  Mentally, that's tough.  And the Bills defense is good enough to help spring the upset.

Chicago at Detroit.  My pick:  BEARS 24-17.  I can't believe the Lions are favored in this game.  The Bears have won 2 in a row and feel confident.  The Lions are a mess and the atmosphere in Detroit is not just negative, its toxic.

Denver at Cleveland.  My pick:  BRONCOS  24-20.  The Browns are a young, improving team on offense.  But historically they have had a hard time putting 2 good games together; and that will be even tougher here against the very good Denver D, plus against Peyton Manning, who knows a thing or two about winning on the road.  Plus the Browns have a hard time stopping the run; which is exactly what the Broncos like to do.

Houston at Jacksonville.  My pick:  TEXANS 20-17.  Very hard game to pick; both teams with problems--the Texans at QB, the Jags with limiting the mistakes of their young player.  I'm guessing here that J.J. Watt will make a big defensive play that will put Houston over the top in this one.

Miami at Tennessee.  My pick: DOLPHINS  24-22.  Miami does have some talent; and now they have a new coach, and all of that I suspect will give them a lift.

Carolina at Seattle.  My pick:  SEAHAWKS  21-10.  The Seahawks just have too much talent to continue to struggle; and the Panthers, while an improved team, still have had trouble executing on offense.  That can be trouble vs Seattle.

San Diego at Green Bay.  My pick:  PACKERS  34-21.  Some of the Chargers' defensive woes were exploited big-time late in the game vs the Steelers this past Monday night.  You don't think Aaron Rodgers will exploit them too?  Philip Rivers will try to use the short-passing game to keep the ball away from the Pack, but the Green Bay defense is improved, too.

Baltimore at San Francisco.  My pick:  RAVENS  31-27.  So often this season the Ravens have had late leads; only to have their defense unable to hold it.  Joe Flacco has not played poorly.  Well, this week look for Flacco to again give his team the lead; and this time they will find a way.

New England at Indianapolis.  My pick:  PATRIOTS  34-24.  I bet Andrew Luck will play; but this Patriot team is very good...and the eye test suggests that they are certainly better than the Colts at this point.  Not to mention the fact that Brady will be highly motivated for the game, don't you think?

NY Giants at Philadelphia.  My pick:  GIANTS  28-27.  Just a feeling here, based on 2 things:  1] the Eagles have had a hard time so far putting 2 good games together; and 2] I suspect Eli Manning will use the short passing game, as he did last week, to get his offense moving again.

COLLEGE PICKS

Alabama at Texas A&M.  My pick:  CRIMSON TIDE.  Alabama perhaps is on its way to fixing some of its problems.  Bad news for the rest of the SEC.  Plus:  the Aggies have yet this year to play a team of Bama's caliber.  Its hard to make that step up so quickly.

Michigan State at Michigan.  My pick:  SPARTANS.  Man!  I love Michigan and I hate to pick against them.  But here's what worries me:  yes, Michigan is much improved, and its great.  But suddenly so many have anointed them as practically Big Ten champs.  Yet they have not played a team of MSU's caliber yet, plus now the Spartans can play with a chip on their shoulder claiming to have been disrespected.  That can give State a mental edge.  State has beaten U-M something like 6 of the past 7 times.  They might do so, just barely, again.

Florida at LSU. My pick:  TIGERS.  Florida is much improved.  But--this game is in the Tigers' home bayou, and they have the great running back Fournette.  Hold that Tiger...