Week 12 picks: Steelers won't give up 49 points to Bills

By Jeff

The above statement isn't really a hard prediction to make. The Pittsburgh Steelers are not the Cincinnati Bengals, so of course they won't blow a 31-14 halftime lead and lose 49-31 to the Buffalo Bills.

Zombies would have a feast if they got their
 hands on Fitzpatrick's head and brains.

The Bills are 2-8, but they are playing tough games against teams like the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens. Both teams beat the Steelers earlier this year, so this could be a tough match for the Steelers. Now take a look at how the Steelers lost games to crappy teams like the Kansas City Chiefs, Oakland Raiders and Cleveland Browns last season, and this game can legitimately make Steelers fans worried.

Well, I'm not too worried.

The Steelers have a great pass rush with James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley. Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick is going to under constant pressure. And his safety valve, Fred Jackson, isn't going to run for 116 yards and two touchdowns against the Steelers. The Pittsburgh defense hasn't given up a 100-yard rusher this season and are only allowing 63 yards per game. Jackson won't top 60.

On the other side of the ball, Ben Roethlisberger is coming off his best game of the season and looking good. His young receivers are also stepping up when asked, which is a pleasant surprise. Receiver was supposed to be a position of weakness this year.

Now that we got that sorted out, let's move on to the picks. Don't look now, but I had my first winning record of the season last week. Woo! I went 10-6 to improve (first time this year I could say that) to 69-85-5.

My big miss of the week was predicting the Denver Broncos to cover. It's not that I forgot how bad Josh McDaniels is at coaching, it's just I figured it would be a high scoring affair with both offenses moving the ball. I was half right.

Week 12's pick are below and home teams are in caps.

"Wait, what's my QB's name again?

New England (-6.5) over DETROIT: How is this line only 6.5? The Lions are terrible and don't win on Thanksgiving. If there weren't already one million posts about how stupid it is that the Lions and Dallas Cowboys always get Thanksgiving games, I would write one. Wait, that one million posts excuse didn't stop me from writing a weekly picks column. Check back tomorrow.

New Orleans (-4) over DALLAS: Jon Kitna seems to only be looking for Dez Bryant, and who can blame him? Bryant has been great the past couple weeks. The problem I see here is Kitna will be looking for Bryant downfield when the Saints defense crushes Kitna and knocks him out of the game. Gregg Williams likes to blitz. He's going to bring the heat. At least five sacks for the Saints.

NEW YORK JETS (-9) over Cincinnati: I love how Bill Simmons always says that a team playing really well reminds him of how a Boston team was playing in a year they won a championship. And by love I mean despise. I'm a homer, a much less successful homer, but Simmons takes it to whole other level. But at least he admits it. Anyway, the Bengals have quit on this season. Last Sunday proved that they have zero fight left in them. Of course, that's if they ever had any fight in them this season.

Minnesota (+1.5) over WASHINGTON: Brad Childress is gone, so I'm banking on the Vikings actually trying. Childress' time in Minnesota is a perfect example of how volatile the head coaching market in the NFL can be. The team went 6-10, 8-8, 10-6 and 12-4 in Childress' four complete seasons at the helm. But one disaster season costs him his job. Brett Favre is leading the league in interceptions and turnovers, yet he is going to keep starting. How does that make sense. I like Favre (it's getting harder), but the Vikings' season is over and he's not coming back next year. It's time to let them try and get other people in there that might be a part of the organization next year.

Pittsburgh (-6.5) over BUFFALO: Ryan Fitzpatrick comes down to earth this week. Well, he will probably still have nice numbers because of the garbage time yards. Can we rename garbage time to Carson time? Any objections?

Meet Rusty Smith.
Who names their child Rusty?

HOUSTON (-6.5) over TENNESSEE: Not because the Texans. They've shown they're not for real. This pick is strictly because Tennessee is a mess right now. Randy Moss has no catches in two games, they are starting rookie Rusty Smith at quarterback. Even the Texans secondary should be able to limit his success, right?

NEW YORK GIANTS (-6) over Jacksonville: Did you know both of these teams are 6-4? The Jaguars have had some crazy wins the past few weeks, one of which included at 50-yard Hail Mary touchdown as time expired. How can you pick a team with that kind of perseverance? I don't have a good explanation. I just don't think the Jags can continue this current hot streak.

CLEVELAND (-11) Carolina: The Browns favored by 11? Can someone in research (Mike) look up the last time the Browns were favored by double digits?

Tampa Bay (+7.5) over BALTIMORE: The Ravens didn't pull away from a Brian St. Pierre - led Panthers until the fourth quarter last week. This team is vulnerable.

Philadelphia (-3.5) over CHICAGO: Rick Reilly wrote an interesting column this week saying it's time to forgive Michael Vick. He made it sound like anyone who doesn't like Vick because he killed dogs thinks anyone who likes him supports killing animals. It really bothered me. While I completely supported Vick getting reinstated and having a second chance after paying for his crimes, I don't have to cheer for him and wish for him to succeed on the field. Don't tell me I should forgive him for killing dogs and just enjoy his success this year. Reilly went as far as to say Vick's actions (The dog killing ones) is one of the best things for pit bulls because it opened the public's eyes to the problem. I'm calling BS on that one. Vick is doing well, which is good for him. Just don't tell me I should jump on the bandwagon.

Ryan is laughing because he
is about to ice these guys.

ATLANTA (-2) over Green Bay: Matt Ryan doesn't lose at home. Well, there was this one time...

OAKLAND (-3) over Miami: Tyler Thigpen doesn't win games. Well, there was this one time...

Kansas City (-1.5) over SEATTLE: I still haven't seen a Seahawks game this year. Does that make me a bad person? I would argue it makes me a better and happier person.

DENVER (-4) over St. Louis: Sam Bradford has been good this season, but a rookie QB playing for the first time in Denver is not something I would put money on.

INDIANAPOLIS (-3) over San Diego: The Chargers may have fought back to 5-5 this season, but they still suck on the road.

ARIZONA (+1) over San Francisco: At least I don't have to stay up late Monday.

The Beatles - We Can Work It Out