As much as I love watching the Dolphins play prime time games, it's always a downer when there isn't any Dolphin football to watch on a Sunday afternoon. But there are plenty of other games to talk about. So I figured I'd post my usual "locks" - which have been anything but locks this season. Oh that tricky point spread.
But first, two quick Dolphin notes. One - we'll know by Tuesday whether or not NBC has decided to use "flex scheduling" to kick the Week 13 Dolphins/Patriots game out of the Sunday night slot. Just looking at the schedule that week, there aren't really too many games to choose from for NBC. Now CBS and FOX can protect games from being "flexed" into the Sunday night slot and they have done just that in week 13. The Cowboys/Giants and Titans/Colts games have been protected. So the only possible game that could be switched into prime time is probably the Vikings/Cardinals game with two high-scoring offenses and Hall of Fame quarterbacks going head to head.
But even so, the AFC East could be on the line in this week 13 game between Miami and New England and the Pats always draw good ratings. So I'd bet on this game remaining the Sunday night game. And I hope it is. I hate 4 pm starts and if it gets taken out of that night slot, it would almost definitely get placed as a 4:15 game.
The other Dolphins note is just a simple little fun fact. In 21 of the past 22 seasons, a team with a 5-5 record (or worse) after 10 games has made it to the playoffs. I'm just sayin'...
My Week 11 Locks
Colts -2 over Ravens - I'm surprised the line is so low here. This isn't the same Ravens' defense as years past and Indy's offense is as explosive as ever. I'll take my chances and lay the points on the road.
Chargers -2.5 over Broncos - It turns out that the Broncos are indeed who I thought they were. It just took some time for them to come back down to Earth. San Diego will retake the division lead as they continue to look better and better each week.
Saints -11.5 over Bucs - Tampa has impressed me with their fight despite their poor record. But New Orleans is just going to light up Tampa's defense.
Lions -3.5 over Browns - In the worst game of the day, I really like the Lions here. Cleveland is the worst offensive football team I've seen in a long while. The Lions will also win one for Chris Spielman's wife, who lost her long battle with cancer.
Last Week: 1-2
Season: 15-16