It’s time to make my 2011 NFL week 16 predictions and picks. The week kicks off with another Thursday night game on the NFL schedule. I find it ironic that Houston is the team trying to rebound when the Texans face the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday night. The game, which can be seen on the NFL Network, could be interesting if the Colts show up like they did against Tennessee last week. The Texans need a crucial road win and are trying to avoid what happened against the Carolina Panthers.
What are my predictions and picks for this contest? I’ll take the Texans on the road for a 23-16 win. Houston has way too much fire power in their ground game and the Colts won’t probably be as excited to win game number 2 as they were to win number 1. Arian Foster has 145 yards and 2 scores.
Most of the games will be played on the Saturday NFL schedule since Sunday is Christmas. In fact, there are 13 Saturday games, 1 Sunday game and 1 Monday game in the upcoming week.
Let’s start the full slate of Saturday games with my picks for Oakland at Kansas City. Believe it or not, I’m not going with the Chiefs even though they knocked off Green Bay last week. The Raiders run well and shut down the KC offense. Oakland wins 24-13.
Jacksonville is in Tennessee where the Titans are trying to recover from a loss to the Colts. I think they’ll win here and Jake Locker might get to start. Chris Johnson gets 132 yards and 1 score while Maurice Jones-Drew tallies 106 yards and 2 scores of his own. Titans, though, take the victory 26-23.
Miami gets the tough task of playing at New England. The Patriots get 4 Tom Brady touchdown passes in a 37-17 victory.
Arizona will have a tough time in Cincy. The Bengals get a nice day from Andy Dalton and Cedric Benson on their way to a 27-16 win.
Denver heads to Buffalo to face the Bills. The Tim Tebow show is good on the road here for a 29-23 victory.
I think the Broncos defense will score once or twice in the big win.
The 2011 NFL week 16 predictions and picks continue with St. Louis at Pittsburgh. The Steelers win easily 31-6.
The New York Giants, fresh off a loss to Washington, will play at the New York Jets. Neither team played well last week and both will be looking to rebound. I’ll take the Giants for a 26-24 road win. Eli Manning bounces back with 2 touchdown passes and 247 yards passing.
Minnesota heads to Washington to face the Redskins. While this game is meaningless, it could be very entertaining. The Redskins win a tight one in overtime 23-20.
Tampa Bay gets to try and slow down Cam Newton in Carolina. Good luck with that. Newton runs for 2 and throws for another touchdown as the Panthers win big 33-17.
Cleveland visits Baltimore to face the Ravens. This one could get real ugly real quick. The Ravens win 24-9.
Can San Diego win on the road in Detroit? This game could be very high scoring. My 2011 week 16 predictions and picks say that the Lions will win at home 31-28.
Philadelphia, suddenly hot with Michael Vick, will travel to Dallas. Tony Romo plays spectacular football with 298 yards and 3 touchdowns as the Cowboys win a tight one 33-28.
San Francisco is at Seattle for what could be an interesting and pivotal matchup. The Seahawks have been playing well but I think that will change this week. 49’ers steal one on the road 26-20.
The Sunday night game has Chicago on the road in Green Bay. Will the Packers even play their starters? Probably won’t matter since the Bears don’t have any of their own starters due to injury. Green Bay wins 36-13 if Aaron Rodgers starts and plays. They win 23-13 if not.
The final game on the NFL Christmas week schedule should be a great one on Monday night. Atlanta will be on the road at New Orleans. Drew Brees has been rolling of late and I can’t imagine that will stop much here. Brees tosses 3 touchdown passes in a 27-23 victory.
That’s it for my 2011 Week 16 NFL picks. Have a wonderful Christmas!