NFL AFC West Week 16 Preview
The season is just about over, and Week 16 of the 2010-11 NFL AFC West gives us a couple of interesting match ups. Among them is my pick for Game of the Week, Indianapolis at Oakland.
Both teams are in must win situations to keep their playoff hope alive. It’s a matchup of air supremacy versus ground supremacy. The Colts rank first in passing while Oakland is second in rushing yards. Two opposing styles are going head to head, and both will be playing to win.
Before we jump into this week’s previews, let’s look at this week’s AFC West leaders.
San Diego’s Phillip Rivers still remains the division’s passing leader with 4,141 yards, while Kansas City’s Jamaal Charles leads all running backs with 1,303 rushing yards, and Denver’s Brandon Lloyd with 1,264 yards receiving. Chiefs’ WR Dwayne Bowe leads the division with 14 touchdowns.
Defensively, the Broncos’ D.J. Williams has a division leading 112 total tackles, while the Chiefs’ Tamba Hali and San Diego’s Shaun Phillips have eleven sacks. San Diego’s Antoine Cason has a division leading four interceptions.
Here I take a look at the matchups, giving you some early insight that will help make your 2010 NFL wagers winners.
Click Here for more Free Expert NFL Football Picks
SUN, DEC 26 TIME (ET)
Houston at Denver 4:05 PM CBS – Denver lost to Oakland last week 39-23. The game was meaningless to the Broncos since they have long been eliminated, but Oakland was playing for the playoffs. They stumbled early on, and Tim Tebow took advantage of some turnovers in his first NFL start. The Raiders would rally in the fourth for 16 points to break the game open and secure the win. Tebow finished with a touchdown on eight completions, as Denver was out yarded 502-235. Houston had its own troubles against Tennessee, losing its third straight and ninth overall 31-17. The win kept playoff hopes alive for the Titans as Kerry Collins threw two touchdowns on 237 yards. Matt Schaub puts everything he has into it, but doesn’t have the supporting cast. He completed 35 of 54 for 325 yards. Arian Foster didn’t finish the game saying he had a muscle spasm, but there have been a rash of injuries for him lately, which makes one wonder if he has given up just like the rest of the team. This is a matchup of bottom feeders, but at least Denver comes to play.
PREDICTION: Denver
Tennessee at Kansas City 1:00 PM CBS –Tennessee beat up on Houston last week, 31-17. Kansas City should prove to be more of a challenge having won four of their last five, and are ranked 1st in the AFC west. The Chiefs beat St. Louis last week 27-13 by out rushing the Rams 210 yards to 69. That rushing attack is ranked first in the NFL with almost 169 yards a game. While the losses have been embarrassing (San Diego 31-0, Houston, Denver) the Chiefs have yet to hit a real cold spell, and their consistency has carried them throughout the season. They don’t pass often, but when they do, Matt Cassel hits his man more often than not, completing 227 of 383 for 24 touchdowns. Tennessee meanwhile, is near the bottom in preventing the pass, and only so-so against the rush. The Chiefs may have to go to the air a bit more, but should still win their tenth of the season.
PREDICTION: Kansas City
San Diego at Cincinnati 4:05 PM CBS – San Diego continued its march to the playoffs, beating San Francisco last week 34-7, and came within minutes of consecutive shutouts for the 1st time in team history. Phil Rivers broke the 4,000 yard mark for the third straight season, and all the Chargers need is a loss from the Chiefs to secure a division crown. The defense is doing its part, ranking first in opponent passing, and second in opponent rushing. Rookie RB Ryan Mathews was the team’s leading rusher for the game, carrying 17 times for 56 yards. As for Cincinnati, it broke a 10 game losing streak by beating the Browns 19-17 in what will probably be its last win of the season- they face Baltimore to end the year. The Bengals tried something different this game and it worked as they relied on a run-based attack led by Cedric Benson who responded with 150 yards and a touchdown. Why they waited until this point in the season to try something new is beyond me, but it’s too little too late for Cincinnati.
PREDICTION: San Diego
Indianapolis at Oakland 4:05 PM CBS – The Colts beat Jacksonville last week 34-24 on the strength of two touchdowns from Peyton Manning. It was a must win, as is this week’s game against Oakland. The win put them in a tie with the Jaguars for the AFC South title, and Manning was in excellent form, completing 29 of 39 for 229 yards. Everyone knows the Colts can pass, but the surprise of the game was from the ground, as they finished with 155 yards from their last ranked rush attack. Donald Brown was responsible for a major chunk of those yards, running for the first 100-yard game of his career, finishing with 129. Meanwhile, Oakland beat Denver last week 39-23. The game wasn’t pretty, but things came together in the second half as the Raiders out gained the Broncos and kept possession of the ball until they could strike. Indianapolis just might see its hopes dashed this week, as Oakland has been a surprise all year. The Colts rank 28th in opponent rushing, while the Raiders rank 5th in opponent passing yards. That sounds like a favorable matchup for Oakland who relies almost entirely or exploiting holes on the ground, and does a great job of keeping good QB’s like Manning in check. Peyton better bring his A-game and hope his receivers can out dash the Oakland secondary.
PREDICTION: Oakland
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.