Week 14 NFL Predictions

Good Morning football fans!

Before I start off today, I'd like to apologize for the lack of a post on Tuesday. I seem to have stumbled into one of the busier times of the year and well, honestly, other things took priority. In any case, here I am, and since you're reading this, there you are, so let's get on with it. If you don't know the drill by now, every week in this column, I compare and predict NFL game predictions with ESPN. So far, the running score is as follows:

ESPN: 132-56
Committed Fan: 124-64


And now:

Tampa Bay vs. Jacksonville
ESPN: Jacksonville
Committed Fan: Jacksonville

Houston vs. Cincinnati
ESPN: Houston
Committed Fan: Houston

Minnesota vs. Detroit
ESPN: Detroit
Committed Fan: Detroit

New Orleans vs. Tennessee
ESPN Pick: New Orleans
Committed Fan: New Orleans

Philadelphia vs. Miami
ESPN Pick: Philadelphia
Committed Fan: Miami

New York (Jets) vs. Kansas City
ESPN: New York Jets
Committed Fan: New York Jets

New England vs. Washington
ESPN: New England
Committed Fan: New England

Carolina vs. Atlanta
ESPN: Atlanta
Committed Fan: Carolina

Baltimore vs. Indianapolis
ESPN: Baltimore
Committed Fan: Baltimore

San Francisco vs. Arizona
ESPN: San Francisco
Committed Fan: San Francisco

Oakland vs. Green Bay
ESPN: Green Bay
Committed Fan: Green Bay

Buffalo vs. San Diego
ESPN: San Diego
Committed Fan: Buffalo

New York (Giants) vs. Dallas
ESPN: Dallas
Committed Fan: New York

Pittsburgh vs. Cleveland
ESPN: Pittsburgh
Committed Fan: Pittsburgh

Seattle vs. St. Louis
ESPN: Seattle
Committed Fan: Seattle

Chicago vs. Denver
ESPN: Denver
Committed Fan: Chicago




Awful Decision of the Week: Vikings QB Christian Ponder throws a costly pick inside his own 50 yard line, setting the Broncos up with perfect field position to win the game with a field goal, completing a Viking meltdown of epic proportion.

Player of the Week: Titans RB Chris Johnson, who has essentially be a non factor this entire season, decided to make an appearance on Sunday, rushing for 153 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries, helping Tennessee beat the slumping Bills.



In the Huddle: This week's topic is the alarming and growing trend of fighting in the NFL. Lately, it has become more of an issue, with players stretching the boundaries to see how far they can get without being flagged- or worse.  Yes, seemingly since the now infamous Jim Schwartz-Jim Harbaugh hand shaking incident, players around the league have been going outside the boundaries of fair and ethical play on an alarming basis. Detroit itself has been plagued by a rash of stupid, careless physicality that has seen one of their starters suspended by the league and possibly a few others benched by the coach. Now, I understand the notion of not getting pushed around or intimidated, to show the league you can hit with the best of them and that you aren't going to just lay down. Really, I do, and I'm totally for  Detroit and any other team trying to do just that. However, there is a right and a wrong way to do that.  In this day and age, when the league seeks to help reduce injuries to its players, it is way too soft on fighting. Once guys start taking cheap shots after the play, then the injuries will start to pile up. To stop the fighting from escalating into a bigger problem, the NFL needs to take a stronger stance on fighting now, and suspend and fine every player who throws a punch, pushes a referee, takes a cheap shot after the play or in any way tries to injure another player in any non football way. Football is a physical sport, and thats how its always been meant to be played, but there is no place for fighting in the NFL. Period. Grown men should learn to handle their emotions and their bodies better, or they have no business playing football.