My NFL Week 11 Picks

My picks for this week (with the spreads from ESPN.com’s Pigskin Pick ’em):

(6-3) Chicago Bears** at

(5-4) Miami Dolphins -1.5

The Bears are 2^nd in the NFL in points against this season. With Miami starting their third string quarterback, don’t expect the Bears to give up much.

(1-8) Buffalo Bills at

(2-7) Cincinnati Bengals** -5.5

Both teams are struggling this season, but there's no question that the Bengals are much more talented than the Bills. 

 (2-7) Detroit Lions at

 (2-7) Dallas Cowboys** -6.5

Again, a battle of two struggling teams, but the Lions looked very weak against the Bills and I wouldn't expect any better against Jason Garrett's revamped Cowboys. 

(6-3) Baltimore Ravens** at

(1-8) Carolina Panthers +10.5

Brian St. Pierre is starting for Carolina, John Fox's desperate attempt to save his job. Not very likely. The Ravens are too good. 

(3-6) Cleveland Browns** at

(5-4) Jacksonville Jaguars -1.5

With how well the Browns have plate lately, I'd expect them to bounce back strong after their last second loss to the Jets. Peyton Hillis can have a big game. 

(5-4) Oakland Raiders** at

(6-3) Pittsburgh Steelers -7.5

The Steelers haven't played their best football as of late, but the Raiders have. This will be closer than the spread. 

(4-5) Washington Redskins** at

(5-4) Tennessee Titans -7.5

Donovan McNabb got that potentially big contract for a reason. He'll bounce back and at least keep the Redskins in this one. 

(3-6) Arizona Cardinals at

(5-4) Kansas City Chiefs** -7.5

Arizona's defense has been nothing but inconsistent, and with how well Matt Cassel and Dwayne Bowe have played lately, they'll have a tough time keeping the Chiefs off the board. 

(6-3) Green Bay Packers** at

(3-6) Minnesota Vikings +3.5

Fresh off their much needed bye week, the Packers look to sweep the ailing Brett Favre and his Vikings after being swept by them last season. 

(4-5) Houston Texans at

(7-2) New York Jets** -6.5

The Jets match up extremely well with the Texans, especially if Revis can make Andre Johnson a non-factor. 

(7-2) Atlanta Falcons** at

(4-5) St. Louis Rams +3.5

Matt Ryan's confidence must be off the charts after last week's win over the Ravens. Especially after a long week, they'll pick apart the Rams' shaky secondary. 

(6-3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at

(3-6) San Francisco 49ers** -3.5

The Niners are reborn under Troy Smith's leadership and have a chance to get back in the NFC West hunt. The Bucs streak against teams with losing records ends this week. 

(5-4) Seattle Seahawks at

(6-3) New Orleans Saints** -11.5

The Seahawks play terribly on the road. The return of Reggie Bush will help Brees and the Saints overpower Seattle. 

(6-3) Indianapolis Colts at

(7-2) New England Patriots** -3.5

These games are always a toss up, but the Patriots have the running game that the Colts do not and that should be enough to win it for them. 

(6-3) New York Giants at

(6-3) Philadelphia Eagles** -3.5

Michael Vick is playing better than anyone in the NFL right now and will take advantage of a Giants team coming off a shocker on their home turf. 

(3-6) Denver Broncos** at

(4-5) San Diego Chargers -9.5

I do expect a Chargers win, but closer than this spread. Kyle Orton and the Broncos will be confident after last week's big win and will be able to play this one down to the wire, but Philip Rivers always seems to be able to lead his team downfield when he needs to. 

My NFL Power Rankings: Week 11

Rank	Team	Record	Comments
1	Jets	7-2	The best teams always find ways to win, and they keep doing that.
2	Patriots	7-2	One week they get embarrassed by the Browns, the next, they embarrass the Steelers. Playing up to the competition?
3	Falcons	7-2	Matt Ryan looks very confident in his third season, which is easy with a target like Roddy White.
4	Eagles	6-3	The Michael Vick Show will be here for a long, long time.
5	Ravens	6-3	Tough loss in Atlanta, but Flacco is running a very efficient offense.
6	Steelers	6-3	Seemed confused on both sides of the ball against New England. 1-2 in their last 3 games now.
7	Packers	6-3	After some much needed rest, the Packers look to take back their division.
8	Giants	6-3	They couldn’t handle Jon Kitna on Sunday. How will they handle Vick?
9	Colts	6-3	Manning is running out of healthy receivers and running backs. Their defense needs to step up every week like they did on Sunday.
10	Saints	6-3	The return of Reggie Bush should give the Saints their much needed ground game back.
11	Raiders	5-4	They got to sit back and watch the lead in the AFC West fall into their laps. Can they hold off the Chargers late surge?
12	Buccaneers	6-3	Their record against teams under .500: 6-0. Their record against teams over .500: 0-3. Which streak will end first?
13	Titans	5-4	They lost to Miami after knocking out their top two quarterbacks. Randy Moss will need more than 1 catch to make an impact.
14	Bears	6-3	Won a big game over Favre and the Vikings. Maybe they are for real. They get Thigpen and the Dolphins on Thursday night.
15	Chiefs	5-4	Their 1-2 record in the AFC West may haunt them for the rest of the season. Their playoff run may be over just like that.
16	Chargers	4-5	Had a strong bye week thanks to the Broncos beating down the Chiefs. Only 1 game out of first and already mid-surge.
17	Dolphins	5-4	Lost both Chad’s on Sunday. They are in too tough of a division to win with a third string QB.
18	Jaguars	5-4	Better to be lucky than good? Well that’s exactly what they were against the Texans.
19	Seahawks	5-4	They hold the only winning record in the NFC West. They may not need one to win it.
20	Texans	4-5	They have suddenly gone from powerhouse to overpowered. These guys can’t catch a break.
21	Browns	3-6	Their impressive mini-streak is over, but they are a team that no playoff contender will want to see in the second half.
22	Rams	4-5	Without any road wins, they will not be able to win this division.
23	Redskins	4-5	McNabb will need to have a strong finish this season if he wants to earn that big contract. It could help if he had some healthy running backs.
24	49ers	3-6	Troy Smith is now 2-0. In the weak NFC West, they are still very much alive.
25	Broncos	3-6	Who could have seen them scoring 49 points after giving up 59 two weeks ago?
26	Vikings	3-6	It’s about time to give up, Brett. His body is breaking down and so is his team.
27	Cardinals	3-6	Their defensive woes are starting to overshadow their lack of quarterback consistency.
28	Bengals	2-7	They have lost 6 games in a row. At least the T.Ocho show is a hit!
29	Cowboys	2-7	Jason Garrett rallied turned the ‘Boys into men in the Meadowlands. Can they keep it up all season?
30	Bills	1-8	After losing 3 straight by 3 points, can they win 2 in a row by 2 points?
31	Lions	2-7	Without Stafford again, the Lions no longer seem like a threat to anyone.
32	Panthers	1-8	DeAngelo Williams’ season is done. Jimmy Clausen is concussed. Jonathan Stewart still is not ready to return. There is no hope here.