Carolina Panthers at Denver Broncos, Week 1
- The Run-Down: Reunited and it feels so good, the Panthers and Broncos will pick up right where they left off from Super Bowl 50 with nearly all of the same starters. Carolina will try to put its best vengeance plot together after getting smacked around on the biggest NFL stage last February while Denver raises a new banner in hopes that mystery man Trevor Siemian is as good or better than the corpse of Peyton Manning was last year.
- Prediction: Stay tuned for all my Week 1 picks on Thursday:)
New York Giants at Green Bay Packers, Week 5
- The Run-Down: Two NFC playoffs hopefuls that seem destined to improve this year will duke it out at Lambeau Field for some early-season momentum. The Giants are hoping their offseason acquisitions pay dividends for their defense, but will it be enough to slow down Aaron Rodgers and the returning Jordy Nelson?
- Prediction: I’m allowed to change my mind later, but I’m going to take a chance on the Giants’ improved defensive line. I say they disrupt the pocket early and often to keep Rodgers off his usually superb rhythm and steal a tough road game.
Houston Texans at Denver Broncos, Week 8
- The Run-Down: Texans QB Brock Osweiler will pay a visit to his former team in hopes of proving they made a big mistake when they let him walk in free agency. And though this isn’t exactly a divisional rivalry, these teams will also be vying for position to return to the playoffs and stay atop the standings in a topsy turvy, competitive conference.
- Prediction: There isn’t another defense out there that knows Osweiler’s strengths and weaknesses better than the Broncos, so I’m going to give the nod to Von Miller over J.J. Watt here. Too bad, because I'd love to see Brock get to tell John Elway to say goodbye to these one last time.
New England Patriots at Pittsburgh Steelers, Week 7
- The Run-Down: Could this game have all the makings of the AFC Championship preview we’ve been waiting for? With so many speedy skill players and two Hall of Fame-bound quarterbacks reporting for duty at Heinz Field, we could have an excellent shootout on our hands and a big step forward for one of these teams in the playoff seeding down the line.
- Prediction: This may well come down to who gets the ball last, but I like the Steelers getting a big win at home on the strength of the best wideout in the game today.
Indianapolis Colts at Green Bay Packers, Week 9
- The Run-Down: Speaking of great head-to-head quarterback battles, you’ll want to circle the calendar for the [presumably] healthier Andrew Luck and Aaron Rodgers facing off in a rare inter-conference matchup. When these guys last got together, the rookie Luck engineered one spectacular comeback after a 3 – 21 first-half deficit for the win, but I’m guessing the Packers might be a little more vigilant through four quarters this time.
- Prediction: Although Andrew Luck has proven time and again that you can’t count him out until the final whistle blows, he won’t be getting a lot of help from his offensive line or defense in a hostile environment. The Cheeseheads have the upper hand here.
Seattle Seahawks at New England Patriots, Week 10
- The Run-Down: Although it’ll be hard to top that down-to-the-wire goal-line play in Super Bowl XLIX, the Seahawks and Patriots will be playing this one for pride and for jockeying in their respective conference seedings. Although the retired Marshawn Lynch won’t have the chance to punch in a go-ahead redemption touchdown this time, who am I to turn down a title card with Gronk vs. the Legion of Boom?
- Prediction: There’s plenty of talent to go around on both of these teams rosters, but I think Bill Belichick will outfox Pete Carroll in Foxboro again this time.
Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants, Week 14
- The Run-Down: If my preseason win-loss predictions come to pass (ha!), the Cowboys and Giants might be in a dogfight for the NFC East title when Week 14 rolls around. Although New York may get a head start with an easy schedule and a healthier team, there’s a chance Dak Prescott might just be as good as his preseason suggests and/or Tony Romo is able to return in time to regain enough ground to keep this game interesting.
- Prediction: I’ve got to go Big Blue here with better defensive prospects. It’d be a crime for Odell Beckham to go another season without playing meaningful football in December.
Oakland Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs, Week 14
- The Run-Down: And if my other win-loss predictions come to pass over in the AFC West (you can keep smirking, it’s fine), the Raiders and Chiefs might also find themselves in a heated divisional battle for a playoff spot in Week 14. Even if these teams don’t end up equally competitive, there are some matchup goodies here with Amari Cooper squaring off with Marcus Peters and Alex Smith trying to stay upright while Khalil Mack lurks in the backfield.
- Prediction: As good as the upstart Raiders look on paper, just about everybody has a hard time winning at Arrowhead Stadium. The veteran Chiefs still have the edge for now.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals, Week 15
- The Run-Down: Steelers-Bengals has become arguably the nastiest rivalry in football these days, last punctuated by an ugly wild card game with more dirty hits, mind games and personal fouls than you could shake a chili bowl at. So expect the blood and guts to fly in a high-stakes, late-season battle royale in the very place where that insane wild card game took place. And light a candle for poor Antonio Brown to survive this time.
- Prediction: These teams will probably split their series, so let’s go two ruptured spleens, one dislocated knee and an untimely ejection.
Arizona Cardinals at Seattle Seahawks, Week 16
- The Run-Down: Seattle has a ton of other good games on the docket in 2016 including preseason NFC frontrunners like the Packers and Panthers. But they’ve gotten plenty of airtime on this list, and we can’t count out the Cardinals, even if Carson Palmer has looked like wet garbage since the NFC Championship. With deep rosters of playmakers on both sides of the ball, this could be the granddaddy of late-season divisional matchups to watch. Here’s hoping!
Prediction: With Arizona adding Chandler Jones and Robert Nkemdiche to the mix this offseason, Seattle’s offensive line could be in trouble in this one. But I still like the Seahawks in big late-season moments better than the other guys.
More Season Previews!
Win-Loss PredictionsReasons to Love and Hate Every NFL Team This Year
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