New York Jets (5-4) at Denver (4-5)
Week 11 of the NFL Season kicks off on Thursday night at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver as the New York Jets fly out to the Rocky Mountains to take on the Denver Broncos.
The Jets enter the game off of a 37-16 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday night at home and now must fly two time zones away for a game four days later. It was New York’s first loss at home this season and ended a three-game winning streak. The Jets are just 1-3 on the road this season, but won their last road game in Week 9 at Buffalo.
Denver enters the contest winner in three of the last four games with a 17-10 win at the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 10. The Broncos won in spite of completing just two passes, one went for a 56-yard touchdown. Denver ran it for 244 yards and the defense held the Chiefs to 274 total yards of offense. Quarterback Tim Tebow has gone 3-1 in his four starts for the Broncos this year.
The Broncos lead the all-time series 16-15-1 in 32 regular season games. Denver won the lone playoff game, 23-10, in the 1998 AFC Championship Game.
Cincinnati (6-3) at Baltimore (6-3)
A key game in the AFC North race takes place on Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore as the Bengals travel to play the Ravens. The winner of this game will move to 7-3 and tie the Steelers for first place in the division. The Ravens own the tiebreaker over the Steelers, while currently the Steelers own the breaker on the Bengals.
Cincinnati dropped a 24-17 game to the Pittsburgh Steelers this past Sunday at home. The Bengals rallied from 14-0 down to tie it at 17-17 in the fourth quarter, but could not prevent the winning drive by Pittsburgh and had their five-game winning streak snapped. The Bengals lost cornerback Leon Hall for the year with a torn Achilles tendon, a blow to their secondary.
Baltimore could not build off of its momentum of winning in Pittsburgh in Week 9 as the Ravens fell in the Pacific Northwest to the Seattle Seahawks, 22-17. The Ravens were done in by three turnovers and two missed field goals and lost their second game of the season to a 3-6 team, the other being the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 7.
The Ravens hold a 16-14 lead in the all-time series, but the Bengals have won three of the past four.
Tennessee (5-4) at Atlanta (5-4)
Two teams with playoff aspirations will meet in an interconference game on Sunday at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, as the Tennessee Titans travel 250 miles southeast to play the Atlanta Falcons.
Tennessee comes off of a dominant 30-3 win over the host Carolina Panthers in Week 10. Running back Chris Johnson ran for a season-best 130 yards and added a touchdown. The Titans special teams even got into the act as Marc Mariani returned a punt 79 yards for a touchdown to put the Titans up for good, 7-0.
Atlanta comes off of a crushing 26-23 loss to the New Orleans Saints in overtime at home this past Sunday. Many people are questioning a play in overtime, when head coach Mike Smith went for it on 4th and 1 from the Falcons’ 29 yard line. The Saints stopped the play and drove about 20 yards and kicked a 26-yard field goal by John Kasay for the winner.
The Titans lead the all-time series, 7-5, and have won all three meetings since moving to Tennessee from Houston.
San Diego (4-5) at Chicago (6-3)
Two teams going in opposite directions meet in an interconference showdown on Sunday at Soldier Field in Chicago as the San Diego Chargers travel to the shores of Lake Michigan to play the Chicago Bears.
The Chargers dropped their fourth straight game in a 24-17 loss to the Oakland Raiders on November 10. San Diego was gashed for 191 rushing yards and the San Diego offensive line gave up six sacks in the setback. During the four-game losing streak, San Diego has only been outscored by 23 points, and seven of its nine games have been settled by seven points or less.
Chicago won its fourth straight game with a 37-13 blitzing of the Detroit Lions on Sunday at home. The defense was the story of the game for the Bears as they forced six turnovers and returned two interceptions for touchdowns, the first time the Bears returned two picks for touchdowns since 1993. Returner Devin Hester also returned an 82-yard punt for a touchdown, the 12th of his career.
The two teams have split 10 all-time meetings, 5-5, with the Bears winning four of the five meetings in Chicago.
Philadelphia (3-6) at New York Giants (6-3)
After the Philadelphia Eagles staged a comeback for the ages with 28 straight points in the final eight minutes to stun the New York Giants 38-31 last December in New Jersey, the Giants look to send the reeling Eagles one step closer to missing the playoffs and avenge that loss last year on Sunday Night at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ.
The Eagles blew their fifth fourth quarter lead of the year, giving up the winning touchdown with 1:53 left in a 21-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 10 at home. Philadelphia hurt themselves with 11 penalties, 3-for-15 on third down, and two interceptions. The Eagles currently sit three games behind the Giants in the NFC East and three back of the Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions in the Wild Card picture.
New York lost 27-20 at San Francisco on Sunday to the 49ers, and its lead in the NFC shrunk to one game over the Dallas Cowboys. The Giants led 13-12, but gave up 15 unanswered points in a 61 second span of the fourth quarter and could not rally from a 27-13 deficit. The Giants lost despite gaining 90 more yards than San Francisco, but turned it over one more time than the 49ers.
The Giants lead the all-time series in the regular season 81-72-2, while the two squads have split four playoff meetings.