PML Pick Ems’ is going to be a weekly segment featuring Greeny, Arod, Cammy, Burn, and I where we predict the winners for every PML game. We will also have excerpts each week from each of us, but these excerpts will feature different topics each week. This week we are focusing on each matchup and discussing around the league in the PML.
Week 18 Matchups –
Buffalo pulled off the upset over the Patriots, the Colts pulled off the upset over the Raiders, and the Denver Broncos pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the week. The Broncos are probably the league’s hottest under .500 team heading into season 2. I think that Greeny has a big enough lead that unless he completely bombs picks this week, he’s going to have the most correct picks this season.
Greeny –
Jacksonville 35 – Tennessee 24:
Jax is fighting to build momentum for next year. The Titans are fighting for their playoff lives. A seemingly meaningless game for the Jaguars but when you look at the fact, they can help eliminate a divisional rival I think they try to lock in. T- Booty has T-Law going crazy recently and I think they ride the hot hand to a victory.
Denver 42 – Las Vegas 21:
This was supposed to be a marquee matchup of the year. This was supposed to be a winner gets the 1 seed type game. Instead, we get a battle of two coaches who have been accused of ranking throughout the year. The Broncos have been playing better recently and there are rumors of 79 throw power Aiden O’Connell getting the start to finish the tank I mean season for the Raiders. Gimme the broncos here by 21
Pittsburgh 31 – Baltimore 28:
Another division game with one team out of the playoffs and another fighting to clinch. The Ravens have absolutely nothing to play for. If they lose, they get the first pick, if they win, they probably fall to pick 3. The only thing a win does for them is help their pride. I think we see Lamar’s best game of the season, but the ravens fall short at the end as Kenny Two gloves leads a GW drive.
Burn –
Minnesota 38 – Detroit 35:
Both of these teams are out of the playoffs, but it is an important divisional game to see who will be at the bottom of the district. The Lions won a close game the last time both of these teams played. They were still without Goff; however, they have been scoring points without him. The issue has been their defense which has given up at least 30 points in the last eight weeks. When your offense has to score at least 30 points per game, it’s tough to win games that way. The Vikings season hasn’t gone as well as they would have thought at the start of the season. They were predicted as a team who was going to make the playoffs, and not only are they not going to make the playoffs, but they may be last in the division. In the last 4 weeks they have given up over 38 points per game. The offense is one of the best in the league, but a great offense doesn’t matter if the defense is giving up touchdowns ever drive. Whichever team loses will be fourth in the division. I think that the Vikings aren’t going to let Bridgewater beat them twice in one season. I think it will be a close game with the Vikings winning 38-35.
Green Bay 31 – Chicago 24:
Someone is going to be the odd man out in the NFC Playoffs. Currently, that is the Bears at 10-6. They had a perfect opportunity to get the head-to-head win over the Falcons last week but blew it by losing. Now they have to face a tough Packers team to even have a shot at the playoffs. Ironically, if they don’t make the playoffs, they will look back at that Falcon loss as the reason why. The Packers have the division sealed; however, they are still in contention for the number one seed at the moment. Both they and the Saints are 12-4, however, the Saints beat them earlier this season. If they win and the Saints lose then they will be the one seed and get the bye. The Packers with a win, could get the on seed while knocking out a divisional rival from the playoffs. They will need to determine if this is enough to risk a potential game breaking injury or not. We just saw the Chargers lose Herbert for the playoffs, do the Packers want to risk the same thing with Jones? The Packers beat the Bears week 1, and I think that they are all in on the one seed and do the same thing this week. Packers win 31-24.
Buffalo 27 – Miami 20:
You have 9 teams in the fight for the AFC Playoffs at the moment. The Bills are clinging on to the 7th spot at the moment, while the Dolphins sit outside of the playoffs. Both teams need to win this game in order to have a shot at the playoffs. If the standings stay the same, and the Dolphins win, they will jump the Bills due to a better division record but would still be out of the playoffs due to losing to the Titans earlier this season. They would need a Titan loss in order to make the playoffs. The Bills on the other hand just need to win this game and they would be in. The Titans would only have 10 wins if they won and couldn’t jump them due to the Bills having 11 wins. Josh Allen is hanging on by a thread right now with 27 interceptions. The best outcome is for the Bills to have an efficient game throwing the ball, while also getting the win. The worst-case scenario would be for Aleen to throw three interceptions, while also losing the game. The Bills control their destiny and I believe they will play smart and get the win while keeping Allen’s abilities intact. Bills win 27-20.
AROD –
Tampa Bay 42 – Carolina 21:
I expect Cammy and the league leading passing attack to have some fun in this one and let the ball fly. Cammy is coming off a very impressive victory against the Saints so I don’t see them dropping this one here. JT will look to move the Bears a bit back in the draft but must also protect Bryce Young, returning from injury, from the interception threshold. Good possibility we see Tyree Jackson get the ball 1 more week to close out the season. Give me the Buccaneers to close out the season on a high note.
Cleveland 17 – Bengals 9:
The Bengals will be utilizing some load management as they look to protect Joe Burrow from a similar fate his buddy over in Baltimore met. The Bengals took the ball out of Burrows’ hands and gave backup Jake Browning almost an even among of pass attempts. The Browns on the other hand must win this game and hope for a Steelers loss to clinch a playoff berth. I like the Browns chances in what should be a low scoring griddy AFC North match-up to close out the season.
Houston 41 – Indianapolis 24:
Keraun is playing for the top seed in the AFC. The Texans are now on a 3-game win streak and I expect it to get to 4 by the close of week 18. Indy isn’t playing for much, so they may use this game to try some new things without exposing too much to their division rival. It is with confidence I have the Texans winning by a couple of scores.
Cammy –
Dallas 42 – Washington 17:
The last time these two teams played the Cowboys completely destroyed the Commanders and even though the Cowboys have their playoff spot locked up I think this is a very important game for them to win. You want to be able to carry momentum into the playoffs and that’s exactly what the Cowboys are going to do with this game.
Kansas City 35 – Los Angeles Chargers 28:
Without Herbert coach codes is still an excellent user when it comes to the passing game no matter who his quarterback is. The problem is the Chargers lost their leader in Derwin James and I imagine the morale is super low right now. Look for Matigy and the Chiefs to try to take advantage of a low morale Chargers locker room in week 18 to solidify a sweep over them this season.
Los Angeles Rams 28 – San Francisco 21:
This is going to be a super tight game and a very slow-paced game involving both teams defenses going at each other’s throats. I cannot wait to watch this game because It’s going to be close the whole game until the final few minutes of the game like their last game. I have the Rams edging out the 49ers once again because I think the Rams defense is just too good for that stagnant 49ers offense.
Arizona 35 – Seattle 28:
With Seattle having nothing to play for and the Cardinals wanting to prove to themselves that the future has a bright spot by being able to beat everyone in their division once I have the Cardinals pulling out with a victory. This will be a very interesting game to watch make sure to tune in and keep and eye out for Arizona rookie running back to see if he can hold onto those three awards in the NFC.
Fallen –
New Orleans 21 – Atlanta 20:
In their first matchup, the Saints won that game 24-14. The Saints didn’t have Chris Olave in their first matchup either, but Atlanta is going to give New Orleans the fight of a lifetime. The Saints are going to be ready for Pitts and Waddle over the top, so the Falcons are going to have to d*** and dive in order to get the ball down the field. The Saints have one of the best offenses in total yards per game and the Falcons have one of the best defenses in general, so expect to see a low scoring game with a lot of punting, or a high scoring game that features both teams splitting time of possession.
New Yorks Jets 21 – New England 13:
Aaron Rodgers understands that this is an important game for his career, so he is going to play lights out. Rodgers has expressed some potential interest in coming back for another season, but he’s ready for a Super Bowl run. Despite losing their first matchup, the Jets are going to pressure Mac Jones into throwing into coverages that his noodle arm cannot navigate.
Philadelphia 52 – New York Giants 45:
Jalen Hurts was just a few yards too short from eclipsing the record for most passing yards in a game. Both of these teams have a Swiss cheese kind of defense, and this game is going to come down to which quarterback turns the ball over more. I think the Eagles have the better team on paper, so they should rightfully win, but with their first round pick out of the equation, HD is going to come out with more confidence.
