2022 NFL picks, score predictions for Week 14

Now that is more like it. After a couple of really brutal weeks in a row of NFL picks and predictions, we got back on the saddle for our best week of the 2022 season so far. In Week 13, our game picks record was a stellar 12-3 if you consider the tie between the Commanders and Giants a loss in terms of pick-em. If you call that game a wash in terms of picks, we’re 12-1 this week with the only blemish being predicting a three-point Falcons win at home over the Steelers (the Steelers won by 3).

With that kind of week of picks, confidence is brimming heading into Week 14. It felt like the Week 13 slate of games was pretty loaded in terms of matchups but Week 14 is kind of the opposite. Part of it is the fact that six teams are on a Week 14 bye (sorry to you fantasy football players) but part of it also is that there are just a bunch of uninteresting divisional matchups this week.

Without further ado, let’s see how we can build off of an outstanding Week 13 and make our NFL picks and predictions for Week 14.

Teams on Week 14 bye: Packers, Falcons, Bears, Colts, Saints, Commanders

2022 NFL picks, score predictions for Week 14

Las Vegas Raiders (5-7) at Los Angeles Rams (3-9)

Thursday, December 8, 8:15 PM ET

The Las Vegas Raiders are suddenly winners of three straight games and they look like one of the hottest teams in the NFL right now. Why?

Well, to put it simply, Davante Adams has been nothing short of dominant these last few weeks. We all know that Adams is a great and dominant player on a regular basis, but the Raiders force-feeding him hadn’t resulted in team success as the team faltered to a 2-7 start this season. Then, a matchup against the Denver Broncos three weeks ago sparked something for this Raiders team. Adams walked it off with an epic route against Pat Surtain II in overtime, and the Raiders once again walked off the following week on an 86-yard run by Josh Jacobs.

This past weekend, the Raiders won in a bit more straightforward manner against the Los Angeles Chargers, and we finally saw a dominant performance from Chandler Jones. Can the Raiders extend their streak to four games against the Rams on Thursday?

This is as good of a chance as any to beat the Rams. The Rams don’t have Matthew Stafford. They don’t have Cooper Kupp. They don’t have Allen Robinson. I’m not sure how you expect anything but a Raiders win here unless John Wolford plays out of his mind.

Prediction: Raiders win 27-19

New York Jets (7-5) at Buffalo Bills (9-3)

Sunday, December 11, 1:00 PM ET

The Buffalo Bills are coming off of a convincing victory last week against the New England Patriots, and the win was all the more impressive considering the Patriots were wearing those glorious throwback uniforms. All kidding aside, the Bills do seem to be hitting something of a stride lately. They have won three in a row dating back to their two wins in Detroit, one of which was a “home” game against the Browns.

After beating the Lions on Thanksgiving and following it up with a win against the Patriots this past week, the Bills are rolling again after that stunning overtime loss to the Vikings about a month ago now.

The Jets, meanwhile, are one of the hardest teams in the league to figure out right now, at least as far as NFL picks are concerned. Do I buy into Mike White and his apparent chemistry with this very talented young wide receiver corps? Do I buy into the Jets defense coming up huge on the road against the Bills?

I think there’s a good chance, with the way this NFL season has gone, that we will see the unexpected in Buffalo but I’m going to ride the wave the Bills are on with their three straight wins and say they come out on top in this one.

Buffalo is simply too good for the Jets right now, unless New York gets a herculean road performance from Mike White. The Jets did have the Vikings within an inch of their lives this past week and they have put up nearly 500 yards of total offense the last couple of games with White at the helm. It’s not out of the question that the Jets defense could step up in a big way against the Bills and the offense can win a shootout, but I’m taking the Bills either way.

Prediction: Bills win 29-24

Cleveland Browns (5-7) at Cincinnati Bengals (8-4)

Sunday, December 11, 1:00 PM ET

I guess playing quarterback in the NFL isn’t quite like riding a bike, is it? Deshaun Watson made his return to the field after missing the entire 2021 season and the first 11 games of the 2022 season, but the Houston Texans are so bad that it didn’t even matter.

As the season has worn along and Houston has gotten worse, they’ve become an easy out for teams. That’s partly how the Browns were able to outlast Houston despite Deshaun Watson completing 54.5 percent of his passes with no touchdowns and an interception. Cleveland’s defense came up big, forcing four turnovers, but can they expect any sort of repeat performance here in Week 14 against the Cincinnati Bengals?

The Bengals are looking like one of the most dominant teams in the NFL right now. Joe Burrow is playing out of his mind, the Bengals’ receivers are making (almost) every play, and Cincinnati is riding high after a great performance in all phases at home against the mighty Kansas City Chiefs.

Joe Burrow has never lost to Patrick Mahomes, which is absolutely wild. He and the Bengals have beaten the Chiefs three times in the calendar year of 2022. It’s pretty stunning actually.

When you consider where these two teams are at as of this past weekend, I think the Bengals are a pretty easy pick on paper. Cincinnati is playing at home, they are playing dominant offensively, and their defense is much better than anyone is really giving them credit for. Now sitting at 8-4 and fighting with the Ravens for position atop the AFC North, every game is crucial for Cincinnati.

They can’t let this week be the week that Deshaun Watson has his “comeback” game, if that’s on the horizon at all. I think Cincinnati is a truly good team, which means I think they’re going to take care of business at home, even as good as the Browns have been in spurts this season, especially running the ball.

Prediction: Bengals win 31-23

Houston Texans (1-10-1) at Dallas Cowboys (9-3)

Sunday, December 11, 1:00 PM ET

The battle of the two Texas teams might not be much of a “battle” on Sunday the way these two teams have been playing lately.

Over the course of their last five games, the Dallas Cowboys have been absolutely whacking teams across the face. They have scored nearly 200 points over their last five games and it’s not just the offense that’s scoring points anymore. The defense has been getting in on the action. As of right now, the only worry that Dallas Cowboys fans might have is whether or not the team is peaking too early.

With the way the Cowboys have played in November and now the start of December, this team looks like a legitimate Super Bowl contender. And they might soon add Odell Beckham Jr. into the mix?

Watch out.

The Cowboys look like legitimate Super Bowl contenders in the NFC while the Houston Texans have lived up to their preseason prognosis as one of the worst overall teams in the NFL. And they are seemingly getting worse by the week. The Texans rightly gave Davis Mills a shot to be the future of the team after he showed some nice things late in the 2021 season, but it doesn’t appear as though he’s the future they are going to build around.

Armed with a ton of draft picks the next couple of years, the Texans are in evaluation mode and dare I even say “tank” mode, though they would certainly never admit that.

The Cowboys are going to win this game, by a lot, easily. However you want to put it, this feels like the gimme of the week for NFL picks.

Prediction: Cowboys win 35-14

Minnesota Vikings (10-2) at Detroit Lions (5-7)

Sunday, December 11, 1:00 PM ET

Believe it or not, the Detroit Lions open up this week as one-point favorites over the Minnesota Vikings, despite the Vikings having won five more games to this point in the 2022 season. This is the world we live in.

The world we live in is one in which the Detroit Lions are good at scoring points. Jamaal Williams alone has as many touchdowns this season as the entire Denver Broncos team. That’s both impressive and sad, no matter what way you slice it.

The Lions can score seemingly at will, and the Vikings have been susceptible this season on defense, to say the least. The Lions being favored by one point at home in a matchup where they are going up against a Vikings team that has been one of the better stories of the season is really quite something. Although their records don’t indicate that this is the matchup of the week, you can’t help but feel like this will turn out to be one of the best games on the Week 14 slate.

Justin Jefferson has been the best receiver in the game in 2022. The Lions have a dynamic offense which just got its prized first-round pick — former Alabama star Jameson Williams — into the fold this past week. They were going to utilize him as a gunner on punts, but the Lions didn’t punt in their victory this past weekend over the Jaguars.

I actually kind of like the idea of the Lions by one in this game. They have a couple of wins in a row. They gave the Buffalo Bills all they could handle on Thanksgiving. They are consistently one of the best offenses in the league this season and even if they get into a shootout with the Vikings, this is a matchup that Detroit can win.

Prediction: Lions win 37-36

Jacksonville Jaguars (4-8) at Tennessee Titans (7-5)

Sunday, December 11, 1:00 PM ET

It seems like the Jacksonville Jaguars avoided certain disaster this past weekend against the Lions after Trevor Lawrence suffered a seemingly serious injury. He came back into the game after leaving and going to the locker room, and Jaguars fans breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Lawrence has been making some great throws in recent weeks and playing like he’s “arrived” as one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL. The Jaguars may be 4-8 at this point, but they are going to be a tough team for the Titans to try and get out of their funk against this weekend.

The Titans were winning ugly all the way to a 7-3 record, but they have lost two straight and now sit at 7-5 with just about a quarter of the season left to go. As far as the AFC South is concerned, the Titans probably don’t have anything to worry about…do they?

Mike Vrabel’s team is likely to win nine or 10 games, make it into the playoffs as the AFC South champs, and be quickly dismissed by somebody else, right? That’s where this is headed?

What would certainly be more interesting than the Titans in the playoffs is the Jaguars — and specifically, Lawrence — in the playoffs. Although the odds of that happening are low and extremely unrealistic, you can’t help but hope to manifest the possibility and keep it alive for another week. If the Jaguars can beat the Titans here, they will be 5-8 with the Titans sitting at 7-6. It would require a major collapse on the part of the Titans but it’s certainly not impossible.

Prediction: Jaguars win 23-20

Philadelphia Eagles (11-1) at New York Giants (7-4-1)

Sunday, December 11, 1:00 PM ET

The Philadelphia Eagles look like one of the NFL’s most well-oiled machines here 12 games into the 2022 season. They are clearly the front-runners right now in the NFC with their division rivals in Dallas right on their heels. Although the New York Giants were also once in that conversation, they have had a huge reality check over the last month and have struggled to gain any ground in the win column.

After starting the season 7-2, the Giants have stumbled in their last three games, losing two and tying this past weekend against the Commanders.

Side note: Does that mean Taylor Heinicke still gets Jordans? Or no? Probably not.

Although they technically didn’t “lose” to the Commanders, the Giants also lost ground with the Cowboys winning this weekend. Thankfully, there aren’t a bunch of powerhouses across the NFC this season, so the Giants’ playoff chances are still intact. And how often can they wear the uniforms we saw them in this past weekend? Those are clean.

Even though the Giants are playing at home in this one, the Philadelphia Eagles seem like a huge mismatch. The Eagles can seemingly toy with opposing defenses given how many ways they can win offensively. Is the Giants’ stellar defensive front up to the task here? If the Eagles start scoring points in bunches, can the Giants keep up in a shootout?

As great of a story as the Giants have been most of the season, there’s no way I’m taking them over the Eagles right now with the way the Eagles have been playing. That’s not to say the Giants have no shot in this one, it’s simply got everything to do with how complete of a team the Eagles have been and how they are seemingly getting better as the season goes along.

Prediction: Eagles win 30-21

Baltimore Ravens (8-4) at Pittsburgh Steelers (5-7)

Sunday, December 11, 1:00 PM ET

All of a sudden, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2022 season isn’t looking as dismal as it was a couple of weeks ago. Two wins in a row have put the Steelers back in the “in the hunt” category of the AFC playoffs. After starting off the year with Mitchell Trubisky in the driver’s seat of the offense and a 2-6 record, you’ll take it.

There’s a plethora of reasons why Mike Tomlin is a great coach, and the way the Steelers have been able to rally in the last month, winning three of their last four games and at least putting the ball back in their court, is Exhibit A.

Although the Steelers scored just three points in the second half of their victory this past weekend in Atlanta, that was all they needed to come away with the W. Pittsburgh got off to a 16-6 lead at the half and quickly shut down the Falcons’ bid to tie or win in the 4th quarter with a Minkah Fitzpatrick interception.

Are the Steelers the most exciting team in the NFL? No. Does their offense score points in bunches like it did with Ben Roethlisberger back in the day? No. But that doesn’t mean this team is going down without a fight. Right now, the Bengals look like they’ll emerge as the top team in the AFC North, so the Steelers desperately need to gain this ground against the Ravens, who are fresh off of a 10-9 win against the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

Lamar Jackson is considered week-to-week, and may not be available for this game, which obviously affects our NFL picks. I’m going to play it conservative and say that Jackson doesn’t play, giving way for Tyler Huntley to start. The Ravens simply don’t have the dudes offensively right now to beat Pittsburgh’s talented defense on the road, in my opinion, at least not without Jackson in the lineup.

Maybe I’ll eat crow on that later. For now, I’m riding this wave with Pittburgh.

Prediction: Steelers win 17-13

Kansas City Chiefs (9-3) at Denver Broncos (3-9)

Sunday, December 11, 4:05 PM ET

This game was infamously flexed out of the Sunday Night Football slot recently, given the fact that the Denver Broncos are historically bad on offense this season and the league is sparing the general population of NFL viewers of having to watch any of that.

Even with Patrick Mahomes playing in this game as the main draw, the Broncos are so bad that they got this game flexed out of prime time. Think about that.

Averaging less than 14 points per game offensively this season, the Broncos’ offense under head coach Nathaniel Hackett and quarterback Russell Wilson has been so bad that fans have no idea where any sort of quick fix is going to come from. Nobody anticipated there would be more conversations about the Broncos needing to enter the head coach cycle again in 2023, and certainly nobody expected Russell Wilson to only have eight touchdowns through this point of the season.

The Broncos are one of the most depleted rosters in the NFL right now when it comes to injuries, and the offense has suffered horribly as a result. Wilson himself has played hurt throughout the season and some of that has affected his accuracy and ball placement at times. He simply doesn’t look like the “Russ” everyone has come to know over the last 10 years.

The Chiefs are coming off of a tough loss to the Cincinnati Bengals but that’s nothing to be overly ashamed about. There are areas the Chiefs certainly need to improve if they are going to get by their apparent kryptonite in Cincinnati during the playoffs, but there’s nothing like a good “get-right” game to get back on track.

The Broncos have been exactly that for most of their opponents this season. Although the Broncos’ defense is not going down without a fight in this game, I don’t have the faith in that offense right now to predict they will pull off any sort of upset, even playing at home, against the Chiefs.

Prediction: Chiefs win 23-16

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-6) at San Francisco 49ers (8-4)

Sunday, December 11, 4:25 PM ET

The San Francisco 49ers really have themselves quite the pickle, don’t they?

On the one hand, there’s no need to worry about this team whatsoever for the time being. John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan were extremely lucky to be able to bring Jiimmy Garoppolo back to their program before knowing that Trey Lance was going to miss any sort of significant time with injury this season. When Lance went down, the decision not to trade Garoppolo for pennies on the dollar looked like the smartest move any team made all year.

Then as the 49ers saw they had one of the best defenses in the league (and seemingly one getting better every week), they pulled off a trade for Christian McCaffrey which has given this team so many unique weapons on that side of the ball. With Garoppolo now going down with a season-ending broken foot, how are the 49ers going to adjust?

Can Brock Purdy really keep this team in contention? Can Josh Johnson, recently signed off the Broncos practice squad, keep the ship afloat? Should the 49ers try to get Baker Mayfield?

No matter what happens from this point forward, the 2022 49ers might end up being one of the best teams that could have been. If only Garoppolo had stayed healthy, I think this team was poised for it’s third final four appearance in the last four years. They might still be.

With Tom Brady and the Buccaneers coming to town, it’s Todd Bowles and his crew going up against the Purdy-led 49ers. Everyone knows that NFL matchups aren’t just battles between quarterbacks, but even as good as the 49ers have been defensively this season, I’m not sure they can overcome Tom Brady and the Bucs with their third option at QB. For NFL picks purposes, you’ve got to go with Brady, right?

Prediction: Buccaneers win 22-20

Carolina Panthers (4-8) at Seattle Seahawks (7-5)

Sunday, December 11, 4:25 PM ET

Since the Carolina Panthers fired Matt Rhule, this team has actually been playing some decent football despite their circumstances. Most recently, the Panthers beat the Denver Broncos at home before going on their bye week.

Now, coming out of the bye, it will once again be Sam Darnold leading the Panthers against the Geno Smith-led Seattle Seahawks. This matchup is going to be interesting because, as bad as the Panthers’ record is this season, their defense doesn’t really get enough credit for wrecking games and at times, showing downright dominance.

In their last three games, the Panthers have allowed just 38 points to the Broncos, Ravens, and Falcons. As impressive as that is, the Seahawks prevent a unique challenge in that, they’ve seemingly been able to score 38 points at will this season. They average 26.5 points per game this season and Geno Smith has been making his case for Comeback Player of the Year or whatever award you want to give him for coming out of absolutely nowhere to be one of the best, most efficient QBs in the league.

The biggest problem with the Seattle offense this season? They turn the ball over quite a bit. Although they have been scoring points better than most teams in the league, the Seahawks have 17 turnovers this season and the Panthers have forced at least one turnover in three straight games.

Is this shaping up to be the upset pick of the week? Can Sam Darnold out-duel Geno Smith? Seattle’s defense has been opportunistic this season (2nd most turnovers forced in the league) but mostly bad (28th in points allowed, 30th in yards allowed).

This is all very weird. Nobody thought they would be typing these sentences four months ago, yet here we are.

Prediction: Panthers win 27-24 (upset of the week for NFL picks)

Miami Dolphins (8-4) at Los Angeles Chargers (6-6)

Sunday, December 11, 8:20 PM ET

The high-flying Miami Dolphins were more like a happy-go-lucky bird this past weekend against the San Francisco 49ers. A happy-go-lucky bird that flew right into a window. For the majority of the season, when Tua Tagovailoa plays for the Dolphins, their offense is unstoppable.

Unless you’re Demeco Ryans and the San Francisco 49ers. Nick Bosa took advantage of the Dolphins not having Terron Armstead and absolunit.tely took the game over. The 49ers had their way with Miami’s offense and Mike McDaniel pulled Tagovailoa from the game in the fourth quarter and gave some reps to Skylar Thompson…who promptly threw an interception to Fred Warner.

Although the Dolphins got beat so bad against the 49ers that they waved the white flag late, there’s no reason to think they won’t be able to bounce back in Week 14 against the Chargers and their (checks notes) 30th ranked defensive unit.

The Chargers have been bad all year defensively. They are once again 6-6 and it’s looking more and more likely by the week that Justin Herbert is going to be on the outside looking in of the playoff picture. Three years into his career, how crazy would it be if he missed out all three years?

This matchup is going to be somewhat personal for the Dolphins. They have been heavily criticized in recent years for passing on Herbert to select Tua instead, and this year, it looks like their investment and belief in Tua is paying off. Tua has played like an MVP, the Dolphins defense has been really good since Bradley Chubb got there, and this team has the types of weapons to make a major run in the postseason.

Although the Chargers can’t be counted out, I think this one will belong to the Dolphins, who bounce back after their loss to the 49ers.

Prediction: Dolphins win 33-28

New England Patriots (6-6) at Arizona Cardinals (4-8)

Monday, December 12, 8:15 PM ET

We close out this week’s installment of NFL picks and predictions with a rather dull matchup for Troy Aikman and Joe Buck to be calling on Monday Night Football. At any rate, it’s the game that NFL fans get to cap off Week 14 of NFL action, and there are at least some playoff implications as far as the New England Patriots are concerned.

The Patriots are kind of the perfect embodiment of a .500 team at this stage of the season. There are weeks this team plays extremely well and they look like they should be in the playoffs, and there are other weeks the Patriots leave you scratching your head or wondering how they are possibly in the playoff picture. Not that they are a bad team masquerading as a good one, though. Bill Belichick’s defense is legit (surprise to no one) and they get a decent matchup this week in Arizona taking on the Cardinals, who are kind of a mess at the moment.

The Cardinals have lost two games in a row, and four of their last five overall. The bye week came at a great time for Arizona to hopefully stop some of the bleeding but there’s really no reason to think this team will be any less frustrating coming out of the bye week against a Bill Belichick-coached team.

The Patriots have also dropped two in a row, however, and they are coming off of an unimpressive loss against the Buffalo Bills despite wearing their best possible uniforms. What this matchup comes down to is whether or not the Cardinals’ offense can make enough plays and find balance against the Patriots’ 7th-ranked scoring defense.

Even coming out of a bye week, I’m not banking on that happening. I’m taking the Patriots to close out Week 14 action.

Prediction: Patriots win 20-16