This week I find myself stuck in a prediction slump. Another handful of wrongly picking the winners as my season record takes another hit. The NFL has been wildly unpredictable this season and very few teams are standing far above the rest. Week 10 has plenty of upsets and teams that flat out blew opportunities to win.
Before I take another shot at trying to figure out who will prevail in week 11, a look back at last week’s action.
Week 10 Knee Jerks
Denver 10 Las Vegas 7 (Harv’s score: Broncos 35 Raiders 13). The dominoes keep falling for Pete Carroll on his return to the NFL. While Denver’s defense appears to be one of the best, their offense is going backwards.
Indianapolis 31 Atlanta 25 (Harv’s score: Colts 27 Falcons 16). Indianapolis bounces back after a six-turnover game in Pittsburgh while the Falcons just can’t seem to find a consistency.
New Orleans 17 Carolina 7 (Harv’s score: Panthers 31 Saints 17). The Panthers pull an upset of the Packers then this? The Saints are one of the worst teams in the league. It’s hard to wrap your head around such results.
Chicago 24 New York Giants 20 (Harv’s score: Bears 28 Giants 13). The once promising season the Giants thought they were heading for was short lived. After this one their head coach was canned. The Bears are a much-improved team and might even make the playoffs.
Houston 36 Jacksonville 29 (Harv’s score: Jaguars 23 Texans 17). The Jaguars pulled off the most embarrassing loss of the season and in most opinions in their franchise history by blowing a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter. This is about as bad as the Patriots/Falcons Super Bowl that saw Atlanta blow a big halftime lead to losing the title. This is the kind of loss that can break a team.
Miami 30 Buffalo 13 (Harv’s score: Bills 41 Dolphins 10). WOW. Just wow. No one could have predicted this one. Buffalo players and their head coach need to take a long look in the mirror to find out who they are. How they lost will be questioned by all Bills fans.
Baltimore 27 Minnesota 19 (Harv’s score: Vikings 20 Ravens 17). If you are a Pittsburgh Steelers fan like me then you must be nervous after this result. The Ravens are probably the scariest team in the league right now and their remaining schedule is cake. After impressively winning this game, Baltimore is on track to blow past the Steelers and win the AFC North. The Vikings are still a serious competitor.
New York Jets 27 Cleveland 20 (Harv’s score: Jets 25 Browns 20). Another team that blew an opportunity to win. The Jets had two special teams’ touchdowns of a kick and punt return. That doesn’t happen often. Justin Fields had another bad game, but he played to the end.
New England 28 Tampa Bay 23 (Harv’s score: Buccaneers 30 Patriots 28). The Patriots continue to roll and impress. That would be something if they reach the Super Bowl…without Tom Brady. The Bucs cut it close but New England’s Mike Vrabel should be Coach of the Year.
Seattle 44 Arizona 22 (Harv’s score: Seahawks 23 Cardinals 18). Three 40 plus point games by separate teams on the same day and two were from NFC West. In this one, the Seahawks and Sam Darnold smoked the Cardinals winning by 22. Kyler Murray missed another game, and it could be the beginning of the end for him in Arizona.
Los Angeles Rams 42 San Francisco 26 (Harv’s score: Rams 27 49ers 21). The second of three blowouts with an over 40 score as the Rams offense is beginning to remind some of the old Rams “greatest show on turf” offense.
Detroit 44 Washington 22 (Harv’s score: Detroit 37 Washington 13). Yet another mismatch during week 10 and the Lions wipe out the Commanders who did not have Jayden Daniels in the lineup.
Pittsburgh 10 Los Angeles Chargers 25 (Harv’s score: Steelers 30 Chargers 27). I really thought after the performance against the Colts, the Steelers would win this one too. No one knew Aaron Rodgers was going to have one of his worst performances ever. Justin Herbert is a special quarterback however and he made Rodgers look like an amateur.
Philadelphia 10 Green Bay 7 (Harv’s score: Packers 17 Eagles 14). We now know who really the team is to beat in the NFC, and it is the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles. It seems the trade for Micah Parsons has not lifted the Packers far.
