2015 NFL Season: Pokorny's Week 14 Picks

Note: This prediction was posted on Thursday; it is re-posted here for record-keeping purposes.

Thursday Night Football: The Cardinals have a sound lead in their division, while the Vikings will be clawing with the Packers for the rest of the season for the top spot. Unfortunately, the Vikings will take a step back this week against one of the top two teams in the NFC. Arizona will put points on the board every week, and if Adrian Peterson is contained again, which receiver is going to step up for the Vikings? Nobody. Cardinals 28, Vikings 14

Perfect Season? It's time to start wondering if the Panthers can pull off a perfect season. They are currently two games ahead for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. The Falcons have lost five straight games, and to make matters worse, they face the Panthers twice over the next three weeks. Facing a team full of confidence won't help Matt Ryan turn things around. With that said, if they could pull off an upset, they are just one game out of a wildcard spot heading in to this game. Panthers 31, Falcons 17

The Revenge Factor: At 6-6, the Bills are one game behind of both wildcard spots in the AFC. At 5-7, the Eagles are in a three-way tie for the division lead in the NFC East. Both teams are pretty similar this year in the sense that they've failed to meet my expectations. I thought the Bills would be a defensive force, with the Eagles being a very tough offense to stop. This game also features the storyline of LeSean McCoy wanting revenge on Chip Kelly, and I think he'll get it as Sam Bradford makes a costly mistake late. Bills 23, Eagles 20

No Margin for Error: Both of these teams are 4-8 and virtually eliminated from playoff contention. Both teams have a relatively soft schedule after this, except for St. Louis' game in Seattle two weeks from now. The Lions suffered a stunning Hail Mary defeat last Thursday and have had extra time to prepare for this game. The Rams have gone to purgatory with poor quarterback play. I don't see either team's momentum changing this week, allowing for a road win for the Lions. Lions 27, Rams 13

Chasing that Sub-.500 Division Crown: First, we must ask: who is more likely to win this week, New England or Houston? Probably New England, so that would make the Texans drop to 6-7. Currently, the Colts are 6-6, while the Jaguars are 4-8. If the Jaguars hand Matt Hasselbeck his second straight loss, Jacksonville will be one game out of the division lead heading into Week 15. This is a really tough one, but I think Hasselbeck has another mediocre game while Blake Bortles continues to put up big numbers, this time in a victory. Jaguars 24, Colts 20

Defensive Woes Keep Killing Saints: The Buccaneers are six games out of the division lead in the NFC South, but are just one game back of a wildcard spot. They might not have the firepower to emerge as the sixth seed from the pack of contenders, but Jameis Winston's success as a rookie has floored me. He's turned them into a fun offense to watch, and things will get easier for him this week against a Saints defense that might be worse than Cleveland's. Buccaneers 31, Saints 20

Game of the Week: The Bengals have to be stunned that the Patriots have fallen to the No. 3 seed, but with Cincinnati, New England, and Denver all having 10-2 records, the margin for error for the Bengals is slim. The Patriots shouldn't lose the rest of the season, and the Bengals take on the Broncos in two weeks. The Steelers are currently tied for a wildcard spot with the Chiefs and Jets, but technically behind them. Both teams want to solidify their playoff positions, and I'll give Andy Dalton the edge due to Pittsburgh's tackling issues. Bengals 27, Steelers 24

Blowout of the Week: The Chargers have no shot at the playoffs, while the Chiefs are currently a wildcard team at 7-5. Kansas City has certainly earned their way there, winning six straight games after starting the year at 1-5. The Chiefs won't catch Denver for the division lead, but they could very well finish the year at 11-5 with a ton of momentum heading into the postseason. Chiefs 34, Chargers 17

No Contest: Teams hoping to catch the Seahawks in the NFC for a wildcard spot are going to be pretty upset by this: they are facing probably the worst two teams in football, Baltimore and Cleveland, in back-to-back weeks. If the Seahawks can't beat the Ravens' second-string team, I'll be stunned. Seahawks 20, Ravens 6

Not Necessarily Pretty, But It's Working: If either the Steelers or Chiefs slip up, the Jets are going to have a big one-game lead on them for a wildcard spot after this week. The Jets impressed me early this season, but then ran into some hiccups. They've worked around their issues and are on their way to 8-5 unless Marcus Mariota has another breakout day. The Jets' defense is much better than the Jaguars' defense, though, so I think we'll see Mariota sacked and ready to turn the ball over. Jets 23, Titans 7

Flip a Coin: Last week, I thought the Redskins would easily take out the Romo-less Cowboys. I also thought the Bears would roll the 49ers. The stakes were high for both Washington and Chicago, and they lost. The Redskins blew an opportunity to take command of the NFC East, while the Bears fell to two games behind the wildcard race. These teams are so inconsistent. In fact, the Redskins are 0-5 on the road, but the Bears are 1-5 at home! Something has to give, so I'm literally flipping a coin here...(flips)...it's Chicago! Bears 20, Redskins 17

Youthful Hope: The Raiders have a rough finish to the season with Denver, Green Bay, and Kansas City. This season isn't about the playoffs for them, though, but rather seeing the continued development of rising stars like Derek Carr, Amari Cooper, and Khalil Mack. Good lord, why couldn't the Browns have drafted that good? The Broncos will have to watch for an upset this week because Denver still isn't putting up a lot of points. Broncos 23, Raiders 20

Igniting the Fire: The fire has been re-lit in Aaron Rodgers. Green Bay and Minnesota will go back-and-forth for the division lead, but you might as well book their Week 17 match for the final game of the season. The Cowboys are alive in the NFC East, somehow just one game out of a division lead at 4-8, but Matt Cassel isn't going to lead a road upset against the Packers. Packers 31, Cowboys 13

Sunday Night Football: It'll be fun watching Brian Hoyer have an opportunity to play in prime time again. The Patriots have lost two games in a row, so maybe they are ripe for the picking. The Texans' defense had been on fire until succumbing to the Bills last week. I think Tom Brady gets off to a fast start, and while DeAndre Hopkins will help make a game of things, the Patriots will pull away near the end of the third quarter. Patriots 31, Texans 21

Monday Night Football: How do these collapses keep happening to the Giants, a team that's won two Super Bowls under their current quarterback and head coach? I still believe Eli Manning can rally his team to win the NFC East. He won't have to do much to get there -- at 5-7, they are still tied for the lead -- but they've got Carolina and Minnesota coming up after this week. Yikes. They'll get Miami out of the way, but after that, they'll need to be on top of their game. Giants 24, Dolphins 17

Dawson's Return: Phil Dawson will be back in Cleveland, this time as a member of the 49ers. Will our former beloved kicker have a chance to pull off some late-game heroics in the stadium, this time sending Cleveland to a loss? My full game preview will be up on Saturday.