Carolina Panthers at New Orleans Saints (– 3): One missed field goal changed everything for Carolina. The Panthers could have been the top seed in the NFC playoffs if John Kasay connected on his 50-yard try against the New York Giants last week. Instead, Carolina has to beat New Orleans in New Orleans or else they will drop to the fifth seed in the conference and lose their chances at a home game and a bye. Life is cruel. So is the NFL. The problem is that the Saints are 5-1 at the Superdome and quarterback Drew Brees is looking to set the NFL record for passing yards in a season. Life is cruel. So is the NFL. Prediction: New Orleans 27, Carolina 23.
Miami Dolphins at New York Jets (– 2.5): New York management thought so little of Chad Pennington that they did not mind him going to a division rival. The Jets could have traded him to Minnesota or shipped him to Siberia, but they figured that a weak-armed quarterback could not do much damage on a 1-15 team. How funny is it that Brett Favre now has just as much trouble throwing the deep ball as Pennington does? Miami is 2-4 against teams with winning records this season, with one of those losses coming against Favre and the Jets in the first week. Get ready for a repeat performance in the last week. Prediction: New York 20, Miami 16.
Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles (– 1.5): Tony Romo is about as reliable in meaningful December games as Santa is skinny. Philadelphia should have won a lot of games that they lost (or tied) this season, and one was early in the year at Dallas when the Eagles had the game under control until Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook badly botched a hand-off. Romo and Marion Barber are banged-up, Roy Williams (the receiver) is still not involved in the Dallas offense, and the Dallas defense cannot stop 270-pound fullbacks from rumbling 82 yards for touchdowns. Look for Philly to end up being the best team not to make the playoffs – again. Prediction: Philadelphia 24, Dallas 17.
Denver Broncos (+ 8.5) at San Diego Chargers: If you wagered a month ago that this would be the final Sunday night game of the season you probably would have made enough money to buy Bank of America. These two teams redefine the word and have screwed over more sports bettors than Tim Donaghy. Normally the Broncos lose games they should win at home (Buffalo last week) and win games they should lose on the road (at Atlanta, at New York Jets). San Diego won two one-point games against 2-13 Kansas City. You think San Diego is going to beat Denver by nine? Prediction: San Diego 23, Denver 21.
