Part 3

The Titans need some holiday magic against the Chargers

Cough, cough, irkk.  It was a sound heard nation wide last week, as choking on holiday treats came a bit early for many.  The sound was even heard momentarily here at the Hampton Forecast, going a miserable 2-4 last week.  Last week the Analyst suffered, but the football fan had little room for improvement.  Vikings, Packers, Dolphins, Saints, Jets, and the Broncos all rolled over and lost gimme games.  First the Saints as squandered the opportunity Dallas handed them for a little bit of Washington déjà vu, then the Vikings let the chance to catch the Saints slip away allowing 20 points in the 4^th quarter.  The Dolphins were forced to punt in overtime and Bironas buried them.  The Jets and Broncos squandered last minute leads early during the day, and the Packers squander a last second one later that night.   This is only sweetened by another round of victories by the teams on the outside looking in,  as the Titans, Steelers and Texans all pulled to an even 500, placing 6 teams a game out of both wild card spots with 2 games left.  The Heimlich professionals hired by the NFC East powers paid off as the Eagles, Giants, and Cowboys all take victory seemingly with ease.  Enough recap, lets get to the action.

The Game of the Week

San Diego Chargers at Tennessee Titans

Sproles looks to rain on the Titan's Christmas parade.

This year’s Christmas Night Game couldn’t be more important for the Tennessee Titans.  They must win out for a chance at a playoff berth and still need most of the competition to choke a bit.  The Chargers still need a win or a loss by the Bengals and the Patriots to secure a first round bye.  The Chargers have had a bit of trouble establishing the run of late, even being as hot as they are.  The Titans have about the strongest run defense in the league.  Chris Johnson still has Marshall Faulk’s yards from Scrimmage record in his sights, picking up another 159 total yards, and pulling within 252 yards.  Dickerson’s record however is going to be harder to grab at this point almost having to have 200 yards in both of his remaining games, as his 104 on the ground only managed to chisel the amount still required to 376.  If the games close it will be because of Chris Johnson, if it isn’t he’ll get more than his share of opportunities as Johnson’s spot in the record books is all the Titans will have left to play for.  I smell another Music City Miracle in the works as the Titans upset the league’s hottest team without their defensive leader Keith Bullock:

Titans 33 – Chargers 30

Sunday’s Game to Watch

Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers

The Ravens are the hottest team in the AFC North.  They have crushed the teams they were supposed to beat.   The Steelers, who have struggled in that department, are back in the hunt after stealing a game from the Pack with a tremendous catch by Mike Wallace as time expired.  Both teams are known for their powerful defenses, and it will be a defensive struggle with Polamalu coming back from injury.   Big Ben set a personal record last weekend against a wounded Pack secondary, throwing for over 500 yards.  The Ravens control the ball on offense though, establishing the run and throwing check downs until they can lull you to sleep.  With Polamalu back the lulling to sleep won’t happen, however by eating up enough time on offense, the Ravens will keep Roethlisberger from getting more than half of his passing total from the week before.  The Ravens win another squeaker:

Ravens 23 – Steelers 20

Denver Broncos at the Philadelphia Eagles

The Broncos have been fighting for wins.  They also aren’t that good at fighting.  When combined, those two factors place the once 6-0 Broncos at 8-6 after a 2-6 skid.  The Eagles are now the hottest team in the NFC, with losses to the almighty Saints and the Vikings Offensive line struggling as of late.  The Bronco’s couldn’t beat the Raiders as they were led by Jemarcus Russell.  The Eagles are a much better version of what that build was trying to do.  DeSean Jackson is disgustingly productive, and is backed by a solid core of young receivers and backs.  The Eagles roll in Philly:

Eagles 37 – Broncos 24

Houston Texans at the Miami Dolphins

Really?  The Texans and the Dolphins?  The 4^th most important game with 2 weeks left to play?  Really?   The Texans have a chance to finish over 500, if they manage that they might find themselves in the playoffs, for the first time ever.  The Dolphins are almost fighting for a playoff spot and a 9-7 record.  They are working their way through the Wild Card contenders.  They should have gotten the Titans last weekend, and they will get a Texans team that can’t seem to finish out games:

Dolphins 31 – Texans 28

Carolina Panthers at New York Football Giants

Carolina won’t be playing in late January and if they have their way, neither will Eli and the Giants.  They stifled the Vikings last week and almost got the Cheatriots the week before.  However the Giants seem to win late season when they have too.  Its been a pattern for a few years now.  The Giants offense seems to be back on track after a mid-season struggle.  The Giants stay in the hunt:

Giants 27 – Panthers 24

Jacksonville Jaguars at New England Cheatriots

Jacksonville has had a hard time beating good teams this year.  They must win to stay in the hunt for a Wild Card spot and New England needs a win to lock of the East.  No one knows which Patriot offense will show up from week to week.  Jacksonville looked fantastic, only falling just short of upsetting the Manning led Colts last week.  Look for them to build on that and for the offense to come out angry.  However the defense can’t close out:
 

Patriots 33 – Jaguars 28

New York Jets at the Indianapolis Colts

The Jets lost a heartbreaker last week to the Falcons, in a game that only mattered for them.  The blame falls on Rex Ryan however as Thomas Jones received less than 20 carries.  Thomas Jones will get more touches this week, but it won’t matter.   Having the best lock-down corner in the league matters little when Peyton Manning brings his entourage to town.  Peyton throws 4 touch downs (none to Reggie Wayne though) and the Colts crush Gangrene’s playoff hopes:

Colts 38 – Jets 20

Playoff Off Picture as it Stands Now

01.  Colts (14-0) – Home Field Throughout

02.  Chargers (11-3) – Clinched the West

T3.  Bengals (9-5) – Lead North

T3.  Patriots (9-5) – Lead East

T5.  Ravens (8-4)

T5.  Broncos (8-4)

T7.  Jaguars (7-7)

T7.  Dolphins (7-7)

T7.  Steelers (7-7)

T7.  Titans (7-7)

T7.  Jets (7-7)

T7.  Texans (7-7) 

Kinda silly, ain’t it?

01.  New Orleans Saints (13-1) Clinched South Clinched first Round Bye

02.  Minnesota Vikings (11-3) Clinched North

03.  Philadelphia Eagles (10-4) Lead East

04.  Arizona Cardinals (9-5) Clinched West

T5.  Green Bay Packers (9-5)

T5.  Dallas Cowboys (9-5)

07.  New York Giants (8-6)

How will it end?

1.  Colts (16-0)  South

2.  Chargers (12-4) West

3.  Bengals (10-6) North

4.  Patriots (10-6) East

5.  Ravens (10-6)

6.  Titans (9-7)

Runner Up: Miami Dolphins (9-7)

1.  Saints (14-2)

2.  Vikings (13-3)

3.  Eagles (12-4)

4.  Cardinals (10-6)

5.  Packers (11-5)

6.  Cowboys (10-6)

Runner Up: New York Giants (9-7)

Tags: afc, chargers, cheerleader, darren sproles, hampton, nfc, nfl, titans

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 26th, 2009 at 8:29 am and is filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.