I’m refraining from calling this a “prediction” piece this season. Predictions indicate one firmly believes something will happen and isn’t afraid to stand behind that judgment. In the NFL, nothing is certain except Roger Goodell’s poor judgment. That said, I’ll offer some form of prognostication, even if it’s lighthearted and not entirely backed up by evidence, but I really have no interest in how “correct” I’ll be.
As usual, these picks are for fun and should in no way be used for actual wagering purposes. That is, unless you want to make a ton of money in a legal forum, because we know more stuff and things about football than you do or something.
On to the games!
Cincinnati Bengals (1-13) @ Miami Dolphins (3-11)
Sunday, December 22, 1:00 pm, CBS
Oy vey. If the stadium’s half full for this one, it’ll be a bit of a surprise. The openly-tanking Dolphins welcome the quietly-tanking Bengals. The Bengals have already clinched the #1 pick in the 2020 draft thanks to their ingrown ineptitude while the Dolphins had to make several maneuvers to be this awful. Kudos to the Bengals for doing it right, I suppose. Anyway, I’ll go with the visiting team here; although most of the on-field matchups in this game are a wash, the Bengals sport the better skill position players at RB (Joe Mixon) and WR (Tyler Boyd) and should have little trouble moving the ball against the generally-absent Miami defense. Yeah, I’m picking the Bengals (stares bleakly into coffee cup).
Bengals 24, Dolphins 16
Pittsburgh Steelers (8-6) @ New York Jets (5-9)
Sunday, December 22, 1:00 pm, CBS
Despite their offensive shortcomings last week, the Steelers remain in position to solidify their wild card berth by beating the disappointing Jets in the Meadowlands. Pittsburgh will again turn to rookie QB Devlin Hodges, who should have an easier time moving the ball against a suspect Jets’ secondary than he did against a good Bills front. The Jets will counter with a (supposedly) balanced attack featuring mercurial RB and former Steeler Le’Veon Bell, who may provide a little emotion in this game if he chooses to perform well against his old team. Jets’ QB Sam Darnold will have a difficult time against an excellent Steelers pass rush and good secondary. Like most Steelers games since starting QB Ben Roethlisberger went down after Week 1, this one will be low-scoring, ugly, and will probably result in a Pittsburgh win.
Steelers 20, Jets 12
Baltimore Ravens (12-2) @ Cleveland Browns (6-8)
Sunday, December 22, 1:00 pm, CBS
Revenge? Payback? Just another game? The AFC-leading Ravens will probably go with the latter, but one has to remember their last loss came at home to these same Browns; that has to provide some extra motivation somewhere, right? Regardless, the Ravens have undoubtedly been reviewing tape of that loss and have been scheming ways to compensate, while the Browns have been navigating yet another real or imagined controversy – a weekly happening this season in Cleveland. Despite their distractions, the Browns stand a good chance of winning this game; they’re sure to emphasize their rushing attack with NFL rushing leader Nick Chubb getting the bulk of the work, as the Ravens struggled to stop Chubb in their last meeting, particularly on off-tackle runs. Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield will hope for good protection to allow him time to find holes in a very good Ravens secondary, while Ravens QB and NFL MVP favorite Lamar Jackson will “do his thing”, employing his feet and arm interchangeably and without warning to keep opposing defenses guessing. The Browns’ defense held Jackson mostly in check in the last meeting by holding the edges and limiting the space for Jackson to run; given some time to prepare, it’s going to be interesting to see if the Browns can replicate that success. This one will be close, but the Ravens should exact some measure of revenge.
Ravens 30, Browns 24
Eat, drink, watch. Enjoy!
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