Here are the matchups for this week's Beat the Blogger contest. Please make sure you factor in the point spreads and get your picks in 1/2 hour before the start of the Thursday night game. I'll post my picks Thursday morning so you can see what you're up against. Good luck.

Oakland +10 at San Diego                                     YOU MAKE THE CALL
Jacksonville +6.5 at Chicago
Cincinnati +13.5 at Indianapolis
Houston +6 at Green Bay
Cleveland +13.5 at Tennessee
Minnesota -10 at Detroit
Washington +5.5 at Baltimore
Philadelphia +7 at NY Giants
Atlanta +3 at New Orleans
NY Jets -4 at San Francisco
Buffalo -1 vs. Miami (at London)
Kansas City +9 at Denver
St. Louis +13.5 at Arizona
Dallas +3 at Pittsburgh
New England -5 at Seattle
Tampa Bay +3 at Carolina

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This week's Beat The Blogger contest produced several firsts, including the Blogger failing to reach the .500 mark and a thee-way tie for the top spot. Donald, Art and Sandy each picked 10 of the 16 games correctly to win the week and earn their authentic 8-by-10 signed photos. Meanwhile, The Blogger posted a season-worst 6 correct picks, making it just that much easier to take him down and win the prize.

This week's matchups and points spreads will be posted on Wednesday so make sure you check back to then to see what you're up against and make your selections. Remember to get your picks in a 1/2 before the start of the Thursday night game and good luck.

Also, if you like contests and winning free stuff in general, click here to found out more about our "Expose the Experts" contest we have going on. Simply test your sports knowledge by taking our multiple choice survey and you could win $500 in great prizes. To take the Survey now, click here.

With November in the rear view and December typically flying by, I figured I'd toss out my list of resolutions for the New Year a little early this year. I'm hoping if I establish the resolutions early I'll have a better chance of actually sticking to them and making them a reality.

First off, I vow to stop procrastinating. No more putting off til the last minute what I can get done today. Looks like I'm off to a good start with that one with a resolution list on Dec. 1. Check.

I also vow to never again make a bet based on who my heart tells me to pick. After getting burned time and time again by picking my favorite instead of the "favorite," I'm going to try and take the best team regardless and see if that saves me a few dollars. Took Carolina over my beloved Packers yesterday and an ill-timed jump from Charles Woodson helped make me a winner and a loser at one time. Check.

I also vow to never again bring my gun with me when I go out to the club. While it does make me feel safer than the three bodyguards I typically roll with, it's a bitch getting it by security at the front door, it weighs me down when I'm trying to get my groove on, and I'm tired of trying to explain to the ladies I'm slow dancing with that I'm not that excited to see them and I do actually have a gun in my pocket. Not to mention the city wants me to keep getting it registered every year and sometimes I forget to put the safety on and we all know what can happen when you forget to do that. I also vow to root for a Plaxico-less Giants team and booh that glock-touting idiot every time I see him.

I vow to never again watch a matchup on TNT or ESPN until they start mixing up the teams being featured. I'm well aware that the Lakers, Celtics, Suns, Spurs and Rockets are good teams with stars that help drive ratings but enough already. Last time I checked, there were 30 teams in the league so let's mix it up a little. Don't get me wrong, I'm not holding my breath for a Grizzlies-Clippers, T-Wolves-Wizards doubleheader, but if I turn on TNT and see Ernie Johnson, Kenny "The Jet" Smith and the Chuckwagon previewing yet another Lakers vs. anybody matchup, I'm going to go ballistic.

Speaking of the NBA, I also vow to never again make the argument that Allen Iverson is "more mature" now and thus, ready to finaly get the championship ring he deserves. I've been a huge fan of AI's since his Georgetown days and while I will still argue that he's the best under 6-foot player the league has ever seen, I'm not sure he'll ever truly "get it." I truly believed that upon his arrirval to Detroit, he would welcome a lesser role in the offense, find his niche on the veteran-laiden team and simply blend in with the others. After getting pissed about his coach's decision to have practice on Thanksgiving, Iverson voiced his concerns about the holiday session by skipping it altogether. After his history of practice-related conflicts you'd think AI would do whatever it takes to put those conflicts behind him but his actions prove he still doesn't get it and probably never will.  

And while my actual list of resolutions is as long as the list of teams that qualify for the NHL playoffs, I'll save the rest for another day. Now, get working on your own, we can all find something we need to work on. I would suggest showering more often. I'm not going to get into who should jump on that one, you know who you are.

Here are the Beat The Blogger picks for this week's matchups. Remember to get your selections posted 1/2 hour before the start of tonight's game to be eligible to win. Good luck

Pittsburgh -10.5 over Cincinnati
Houston +3 over Cleveland
Buffalo -3 over Kansas City
Tennessee -5 over NY Jets
New England +2 over Miami
Dallas -10.5 over San Francisco
Detroit +8.5 over Tampa Bay
Philadelphia +1 over Baltimore
Chicago -8 over St. Louis
Jacksonville -2 over Minnesota
Atlanta -1.5 over Carolina
Denver -9.5 over Oakland
Seattle +3.5 over Washington
NY Giants -3.5 over Arizona
San Diego -2.5 over Indianapolis
New Orleans -2.5 over Green Bay