Travis Thomas: Predicting NFL Games Is Mission Impossible
Like many other great American citizens I participate in an office football pool every week. I'm the defending champ of the pool but this season is looking like there could be a new champion.
The reason: Forget Tom Cruise! NFL Games are literally Mission Impossible to predict. With the new rule changes it's so much easier for teams to come back from insurmountable odds. Quarterbacks are more valuable than ever and impact the outcome of games seemingly every time in a big moment.
Look around! The Defending Super Bowl Champion Seattle Seahawks are struggling big time at just .500.
The Bears are underachieving and haven't won a game at home.
For five minutes we actually entertained the idea that the Cleveland Browns were contenders. Against Jacksonville this week they looked like The Browns we have come to know and love making fun of.
Has anybody noticed how awful the New Orleans Saints are this season? Scratch that. Has anybody noticed how awful the NFC South is this season?
As far as The Ravens are concerned, I'm not surprised that the defense has looked better than anticipated; I'm not surprised Steve Smith has looked awesome, I'm not surprised the Ravens sit atop the division at the moment.
My only question is will the real Joe Flacco please stand up? After he tossed five touchdowns against the lowly Bucs, I was disappointed with his encore performance against the equally lowly Falcons. Statistically Flacco is a top ten QB this season, but there are games this season where I am left feeling like I didn't just witness one.
Nevertheless, the Ravens continue winning and are one of the only teams that I can count on in my quest to repeat as office pool champion. In the current futile world of picking games, that's saying a lot.
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