NFL Rankings - 28 Nov

The top teams proved it this week, taking care of their foes in impressive fashion to maintain the top spots in the rankings, and the bottom teams did likewise, showing exactly why they've been sitting in the cellar for weeks. Houston and Atlanta each improved to 10-1, although neither is ranked in my top 4 due to the weakness of most of their recent wins. Here are my current rankings for each team, with teams grouped by similar levels of performance and ESPN's Power Rankings in parentheses.

TW. (LW) Team (Record) Result (ESPN)
1. (1) New England (8-3) W (5)

2. (2) San Francisco (8-2-1) W (3)

3. (7) Chicago (8-3) W (6)
4. (3) Denver (8-3) W (7)
5. (4) Houston (10-1) W (1)
6. (11) NY Giants (7-4) W (8)

7. (6) Seattle (6-5) L (14)

8. (8) Baltimore (9-2) W (4)
9. (9) Atlanta (10-1) W (2)

10. (5) Green Bay (7-4) L (9)
11. (10) Tampa Bay (6-5) L (12)

12. (12) Cincinnati (6-5) W (11)
13. (19) Washington (5-6) W (17)

14. (14) New Orleans (5-6) L (15)
15. (13) Minnesota (6-5) L (16)
16. (15) Dallas (5-6) L (19)
17. (17) Detroit (4-7) L (20)
18. (20) Pittsburgh (6-5) L (14)
19. (16) San Diego (4-7) L (22)

20. (23) Saint Louis (4-6-1) W (21)
21. (24) Carolina (3-8) W (28)
22. (21) NY Jets (4-7) L (23)
23. (28) Miami (5-6) W (18)
24. (25) Cleveland (3-8) W (27)
25. (18) Arizona (4-7) L (25)

26. (22) Buffalo (4-7) L (24)

27. (27) Tennessee (4-7) L (26)

28. (26) Indianapolis (7-4) W (10)

29. (30) Jacksonville (2-9) W (31)
30. (29) Philadelphia (3-8) L (30)

31. (31) Kansas City (1-10) L (32)

32. (32) Oakland (3-8) L (29)

The Washington Redskins have won two in a row against division foes after outlasting the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day, and it was the second quarter that made the difference. Down 3-0 at the end of the first period, Washington scored on a 68-yard pass just over a minute into the second, then scored 3 more touchdowns in the period, with the final one coming 5 seconds before halftime. Not only did they put up 28 points in that period, they held the home team scoreless, giving the Skins a 28-3 halftime advantage on the road. The Cowboys did make a run, but it was too little, too late.

The team trying to prevent the Redskins from earning 3 straight division wins was just as good on Sunday, maybe better. The New York Giants dominated the Green Bay Packers, doing it with offense in the first half and defense in the second half, finishing up with a nice 38-10 victory over a team fighting for its division lead. The losses to Pittsburgh and Cincinnati weren't pretty, but it looks like the Giants can turn it on when they need to, which is how they won the Super Bowl.

What made New York's victory even more impressive was the fact that Green Bay had been on a 5-game winning streak, which started with Houston's only loss of the season. The Packers seem to be able to beat anybody the want except for the Giants, which is something they will have to address before the playoffs if they don't want a repeat of last season's disappointment.

The Arizona Cardinals just lost their 7th straight game, making their 4-0 start only a distant memory, and they are looking at the potential of a 12-game losing streak to end the season. The only remaining game where they may be favored is December 16th, when they host the Detroit Lions, but if they are on a 9-game losing streak at that point, as expected, the oddsmakers will probably go with the visiting team that weekend.

Predictions

Upset picks are in italics.

Thursday

New Orleans at Atlanta - Falcons by 8

Sunday

Jacksonville at Buffalo - Bills by 9
Seattle at Chicago - Bears by 6
Indianapolis at Detroit - Lions by 9
Minnesota at Green Bay - Packers by 7
Houston at Tennessee - Texans by 9
Carolina at Kansas City - Panthers by 7
San Francisco at Saint Louis - 49ers by 11
New England at Miami - Patriots by 16
Arizona at NY Jets - Jets by 5
Tampa Bay at Denver - Broncos by 8
Cleveland at Oakland - Browns by 7
Cincinnati at San Diego - Chargers by 1
Pittsburgh at Baltimore - Ravens by 9
Philadelphia at Dallas - Cowboys by 13

Monday

NY Giants at Washington - Giants by 2

NBA

Portland at Washington - Trail Blazers by 4
San Antonio at Orlando - Spurs by 9
Phoenix at Detroit - Pistons by 1
Brooklyn at Boston - Nets by 2
Charlotte at Atlanta - Hawks by 15
Dallas at Chicago - Bulls by 7
New York at Milwaukee - Knicks by 4
Toronto at Memphis - Grizzlies by 15
Utah at New Orleans - Hornets by 1
Houston at Oklahoma City - Thunder by 6
Minnesota at LA Clippers - Clippers by 9

College Basketball

(4) Ohio State at (2) Duke - Blue Devils by 4
Northern Arizona at (9) Arizona - Wildcats by 11
Boise State at (11) Creighton - Bluejays by 18
(13) Michigan State at Miami - Spartans by 2
Georgia Tech at (22) Illinois - Fighting Illini by 11
UC-Irvine at (24) UNLV - Rebels by 29
Mercer at (25) New Mexico - Lobos by 21
Virginia at Wisconsin - Badgers by 15
Saint Bonaventure at Ohio - Bobcats by 18
Tulsa at Wichita State - Shockers by 22

Prediction Results

NFL: 10-6 (.625) 111-64 overall (.634)
Upsets: 2-1 (.667) 16-14 overall (.533)
NBA: 2-3 (.400) 135-73 overall (.649)
Upsets: 0-2 (.000) 28-20 overall (.583)
College Basketball: 4-2 (.667) 166-39 overall (.810)
Upsets: 0-1 (.000) 12-17 overall (.414)