The Sports Brief's Week 16 NFL picks

Well, this is the week we’ve all been waiting for. It’s Championship Week for The Gentlemen’s Club of the NFL.com fantasy football variety, and Keefe and I will lock horns for the league title. There are a couple reasons we’re excited about this matchup…first and foremost is the fact that we’ve always discussed the excitement that would surround the two founders of The Sports Brief competing head-to-head for a league title. Second is the fact that the plaque will no longer be owned by Woody (which was despicable and embarrassing for The Brief) and will now be mounted in the Keefe or Besse household.

And we’re going to have ourselves a fairly competitive match. I’ve listed the starting lineups for this week’s final and would love to hear your input as to who you think will have the upper hand in this matchup. Obviously by Monday night we’ll have crowned a new champion.

And now for the introductions, let’s go to the voice of UFC, Bruce Buffer…

Introducing first, in the red corner, Arkham Asylum (Keefe):

QB: Kurt Warner v. Patriots
RB: Chris Johnson v. Steelers
RB: Michael Turner v. Vikings
WR: Braylon Edwards v. Bengals
WR: Randy Moss v. Cardinals
WR: Eddie Royal v. Bills
TE: Tony Gonzalez v. Dolphins
K: Matt Bryant v. Chargers
DEF: Colts (13 points during last night’s game against the Jaguars)

And now introducing, the former, undisputed champion of the Gentleman’s League, A-Rod Still Has Meat Curtains (Besse):

QB: Drew Brees v. Lions
RB: Ronnie Brown v. KC
RB: Pierre Thomas v. Lions
WR: TJ Houshmandzadeh v. Browns
WR: Terrell Owens v. Ravens
WR: Kevin “Don’t call me Ken” Walter v. Raiders
TE: Greg Olsen v. Packers
K: Kris Brown v. Raiders
DEF: Texans v. Raiders

A couple interesting things to note with this matchup, as well. Earlier this season I traded Kurt Warner and Tony Gonzalez for Ronnie Brown and a bag of chips. I think there was a TE involved, but I can’t remember if it was Olsen or not and I don’t feel like looking it up. But the trade worked out well for all of us. Bush was injured at the time and Pierre Thomas had yet to evolve into a significant fantasy force. I literally did not have an accomplished running back, so I was in dire need. Meanwhile, Keefe needed a QB after JT O’Sullivan hit the crapper and he picked up a solid TE in the process. Both our teams got over slow starts and were able to land ourselves a berrth in the final. Great stuff.

Also, I have had the Ravens defense all season, but this week I’m going to go with the Texans. Houston has played solid football as of late, and I actually think the Ravens will turn in a stinker like they did against the Colts earlier this year. And I’m pulling for Romo and Owens to have solid outings as well, as I have Owens going in this league and Romo starting two Yahoo leagues, both of which I made the final in. For the record, of my six leagues this year, four made the playoffs and all four made the final. I already won a title last week in my ESPN league, so it’s been a satisfying season thus far. It’d certainly be nice to add some more hardware to the shelves.

Onto the picks…

Keefe’s picks:

Last week: 4-12; overall: 108-116

Colts -6.5 over Jaguars
Ravens +4.5 over Cowboys
Browns -3.5 over Bengals
Saints -6.5 over Lions
Titans +1.5 over Steelers
Dolphins -3.5 over Chiefs
Rams +5.5 over 49ers
Cardinals +7.5 over Patriots
Chargers +3.5 over Buccaneers
Seahawks +4.5 over Jets
Texans -7.5 over Raiders
Bills +6.5 over Broncos
Redskins +4.5 over Eagles
Falcons +3.5 over Vikings
Panthers +3.5 over Giants
Bears -4.5 over Packers

Besse’s picks:

Last week: 6-10; overall: 123-101

Colts -6.5 over Jaguars
Cowboys -4.5 over Ravens
Bengals +3.5 over Browns
Saints -6.5 over Lions
Steelers -1.5 over Titans
Dolphins -3.5 over Chiefs
Rams +5.5 over 49ers
Patriots -7.5 over Cardinals
Chargers +3.5 over Buccaneers
Seahawks +4.5 over Jets
Texans -7.5 over Raiders
Broncos -6.5 over Bills
Eagles -4.5 over Redskins
Falcons +3.5 over Vikings
Panthers +3.5 over Giants
Packers +4.5 over Bears

Random Rob’s picks:

Last week: 12-4; overall: 128-96

Jaguars +6.5 over Colts
Ravens +4.5 over Cowboys
Browns -3.5 over Bengals
Lions +6.5 over Saints
Steelers -1.5 over Titans
Dolphins -3.5 over Chiefs
Rams +5.5 over 49ers
Cardinals +7.5 over Patriots
Buccaneers -3.5 over Chargers
Jets -4.5 over Seahawks
Texans -7.5 over Raiders
Bills +6.5 over Broncos
Eagles -4.5 over Redskins
Vikings -3.5 over Falcons
Panthers +3.5 over Giants
Packers +4.5 over Bears

Enjoy the games this weekend and we’ll check in next week before the holiday.

-Bess