The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

IF YOU recall, a few weeks back I completely packed in my picks segment and dedicated myself to my Patriots.

Well, in the last five weeks, my picks have somehow rebounded to the point that I can climb to third place with a good week 14.

I turned in a great day at the office last week, finishing 10-6 and moving to 106-86 on the season. For those keeping score at home, I am now two games behind Renaldo, four games behind Naughty and, surprisingly, only seven games behind our resident NFL picks wizard, Sannie Brown.

Four weeks remaining and, like Johnny Manziel will be this weekend, I am getting ready to make a run for it.

Minnesota Vikings (8-4) @ Arizona Cardinals (10-2)

So Adrian Peterson has an “issue” with the amount of touches he is getting; he is also “up in arms” over coaching decisions last week against the Seahawks.

It should be noted that the entire league is “up in arms” and does have an “issue” with just how great the Cardinals have been on both sides of the ball this season.

The Vikings truly need this game to remain on par with the Packers for the division lead, but there is just to much to overcome in Arizona.

CARDINALS

Buffalo Bills (6-6) @ Philadelphia Eagles (5-7)

Eagles stunned my Pats last week in Foxboro and while I haven’t gotten over it, it is really important that we take this game for what it is - two tough teams fighting for a wildcard spot.

Shady will go up against the coach that gave up on him and the Bills look to prove that defence is for real.

BILLS

San Francisco 49ers (4-8) @ Cleveland Browns (2-10)

Johnny is back baby! Hope you are ready to see some good football!

49ERS

Detroit Lions (4-8) @ St Louis Rams (4-8)

I am interested in seeing how the Lions bounce back after that gut-wrenching loss to the Packers last Thursday.

There is a lot of offence to go around for the Lions but the Rams have the defensive front to slow down that attack.

Look for a big game from Golden Tate down the seams of the field.

LIONS

New Orleans Saints (4-8) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-6)

Why haven’t I picked the Buccaneers once over their four-game streak? Nope, not even once. Maybe it would make sense to pick them this week. Nope!

SAINTS

Tennessee Titans (3-9) @ New York Jets (7-5)

JETS

Seattle Seahawks (7-5) @ Baltimore Ravens (4-8)

Seattle have more talent on both sides of the ball at this point in the season. Looks like Lynch is expected to return this week.

SEAHAWKS

Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5)

@ Cincinnati Bengals

(10-2)

I had good feelings about two teams coming into this week, the Steelers and the Panthers.

STEELERS

Indianapolis Colts (6-6)

@ Jacksonville Jaguars

(4-8)

The Colts ran in to a better team last week in the Steelers.

This week they are the better team, they are on the road, but one thing that travels well in this league is talent.

The Colts have more talent this week.

COLTS

San Diego Chargers (3-9) @ Kansas City Chiefs (7-5)

Logic says the Chiefs dominate here.

Logic wins out.

CHIEFS

Washington Redskins (5-7) @ Chicago Bears (5-7)

Both teams got stunned in the closing moments of their respective games last week.

Redskins are still competing for a division title, while the Bears are technically still alive in the wildcard conversation.

BEARS

Atlanta Falcons (6-6) @ Carolina Panthers (12-0)

The Falcons have fallen apart completely and have shown absolutely no fight over the last half of the season.

Strangely, they have the right mix of players to show-up the Panthers.

Keep your eyes peeled for an upset here, but as I said earlier, I have a good feeling about the Panthers.

PANTHERS

Oakland Raiders (5-7) @ Denver Broncos (10-2)

I expect the Broncos to come out and play their brand of football - tough, gritty, defensive football.

Raiders will keep it tight but the Broncos have too much talent on both sides of the ball.

BRONCOS

Dallas Cowboys (4-8) @ Green Bay Packers (8-4)

It wasn’t like the Packers dominated the Lions last Thursday. This game is a lot more even than one would think.

Matt Cassel has the skill: paired with a hot Dez Bryant, we could be looking at back-to-back wins for the Cowboys.

PACKERS

New England Patriots (10-2) @ Houston Texans (6-6)

No way the Patriots drop three straight.

That’s not Brady-like and it’s definitely not the Patriots way.

PATRIOTS (big margin)

New York Giants (5-7) @ Miami Dolphins

I think Eii Manning could struggle in this match-up ... just not enough to drop one in Miami.

GIANTS