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The Harmon Football Forecast is one of the most highly regarded and widely read sports features in the country, published in over 200 newspapers.
| Harmon Stat Pack | |
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Wk 12: 15 picks
Right: 12 Wrong: 3 Pct: .8 |
YTD: 173 picks
Right: 103 Wrong: 70 Pct: .595 |
| Harmon's archive | |
It all began when Bob Harmon began predicting college and NFL games in 1957. He devised a mathematical formula that picked winners correctly between 72 and 78 percent of the time; most seasons getting almost 75 percent of his picks right.
Today, Jim Harmon and his staff are the only forecasters who predict exact scores and chart every college and pro team.
Sunday's games (12/9/2001):
| *Buffalo 20, Carolina 7 |
| The Panthers have no bright spots on offense or defense, but the Bills pass the ball well and defend against the pass even better. Buffalo's two for two in the series, with wins in 1995 and '98. |
| *Cincinnati 26, Jacksonville 13 |
| A 21-point third quarter helped the Jaguars end a five-game losing streak a month ago against the Bengals, 30-13. This time Jacksonville won't gain nearly as much ground against Cincy's defense. |
| *Denver 24, Seattle 19 |
| Racing to a 17-0 lead over the Broncos in Week Five, the Seahawks beat Denver for only the second time in their last 11 meetings, 34-21. The Broncs' run defense will be the key in the rematch. |
| *Green Bay 21, Chicago 14 |
| With Brett Favre throwing for two TDs, the Packers stopped the Bears last month after six straight Chicago wins, 20-12. G.B., the better team, should complete its first series sweep since '98. |
| *Minnesota 27, Tennessee 12 |
| The Vikings will soon be erased from the contenders list, but even their weak defense will look solid against the Titans' offense. Minnesota won 26-16 the last time they met, three years ago. |
| *New England 19, Cleveland 17 |
| Only once in their last five matchups has one of these teams scored 20 points; in '00 the Browns beat the Patriots 19-11. Almost too close to call, this may turn on who makes the last mistake. |
| New Orleans 21, *Atlanta 20 |
| This shouldn't be almost too close to call -- the Saints are better than the Falcons on both sides of the ball -- but Atlanta showed signs of its '90s dominance of N.O. with a 20-13 Week 6 win. |
| N.Y. Giants 14, *Dallas 7 |
| Down by 17 at the half, the Giants came back to nip Dallas 27-24 last month on Morten Andersen's 42-yard field goal in OT. The Cowboys' strong ground game and defense will keep them close again. |
| *Oakland 30, Kansas City 15 |
| The Raiders and Chiefs beat each other up as usual on Opening Day before Sebastian Janikowski's 31-yard field goal with 15 seconds left gave the Raiders a 27-24 win. This time? Not so close. |
| *Philadelphia 22, San Diego 13 |
| For a while it looked like the Chargers were going to blow away all challengers with their offense, but, like the Eagles, they're struggling. S.D. beat Philly the last time they met, in '98. |
| *Pittsburgh 28, N.Y. Jets 10 |
| Even though the Jets have one of the AFC's most productive running games, you won't know it against the new kings of defense, the Steelers. For reference, see last year: Pittsburgh 20, N.Y. 3. |
| *St. Louis 35, San Francisco 28 |
| Anyone for a shootout? Paced by Kurt Warner's 321 yards and three TDs through the air, the Rams outlasted the 49ers in September, 30-26. St. Louis is gunning for its sixth in a row over S.F. |
| *Tampa Bay 14, Detroit 13 |
| Even at home against the hard-luck Lions, the Buccaneers are no sure thing. Last month it took a Martin Gramatica field goal with four seconds left for T.B. to eke out a win over Detroit, 20-17. |
| Washington 24, *Arizona 17 |
| In the midst of a key four-game run through NFC East opponents, the revitalized Redskins can't afford to let up in Arizona -- especially with an offense still needing work. The teams split in '00. |
Monday Night (12/10/2001):
| *Miami 29, Indianapolis 19 |
| With a big fourth quarter in Week Nine, the Dolphins won their fourth straight in Indianapolis, 27-24. With one of the NFL's weakest defenses, the Colts won't win their third straight in Miami. |
Open date: Baltimore
* Denotes Home Team
* Note: Picks are straight up.
Broadway Joe