Friday 17 November 2017 07:28, UK
England Netball's Jade Clarke is the challenger taking on Sky Sports News' NFL reporter Richard Graves in Week 11 of NFL predictions...
Graves is 5-4-1 on the season after a first tie of 2017, sharing bragging rights with Laura Woods after both recorded 9-5 marks in Week 10.
His opponent this week is England midcourt defender Clarke, who is currently in training preparing for England's upcoming three-match international series against Malawi, live on Sky Sports.
The Roses take on No 6 in the world Malawi at the Copper Box (November 24 and 26) and Genting Arena (November 29) as preparations step up before the Commonwealth Games in April next year, with England searching for a first ever gold medal.
"Malawi are six in the role for a reason and they gave New Zealand a massive run for their money at the last Commonwealth Games," said Clarke.
"They are getting better and better, and they are in our group at the Commonwealths, so it's a really good test for us, especially as they have a really contrasting style to ours.
"People are now really talking about us as gold medal contenders, which is great, but it has been a long time coming."
Oakland Raiders fan Clarke first faces the challenge of Graves in our NFL predictions, though admits to getting a tiny bit of help.
"I may have had my team-mate Sara Bayman help me a little," said Clarke.
Graves: Game of the week. The Eagles are said to be the best team in the NFC, having lost just one game all season, but these two are snapping at their heels - both with a 7-2 record.
What a turnaround it has been for the Rams, with the NFL's youngest head coach, Sean McVay, at the helm. They boast the NFL's top scoring offense, averaging 32.9 points per game. Their defense is on the up as well with veteran defensive coordinator Wade Phillips running the show - they've given up no more than 17 points in any of their last five games.
Talking of defense, you'll be hard pressed to find one better than that in Minnesota. They rank fourth overall and give up an average of only 18.3 points per game. While on offense, only a year ago Case Keenum was being benched by the Rams - he has now led the Vikings on a five-game winning streak.
PICK: VIKINGS
Clarke: Another two teams playing great football, and another tough one to call. I'm going to slightly favour the home team - Vikings win.
PICK: VIKINGS
Graves: Remember back in September when teams were cutting through New England's defense like a knife through butter and their play-off credentials were being questioned? Well, stop me if you've heard this before but the Patriots are now once again Super Bowl contenders with a defense which has found its feet - in their last five games, they've conceded 13 points per game.
By contrast, the hyped Raiders offense has been worryingly inconsistent in 2017. With a 4-5 record, every game now feels like a must win - the good news for Oakland fans, they have had a bye week to iron out their issues and are coming off a road win in Miami.
PICK: PATRIOTS
Clarke: The Raiders are my team. I like their quarterback Derek Carr and they have a really exciting young roster - Amari Cooper was awesome at wide receiver last year - plus, they have the craziest fans in the NFL!
After a faltering start to the season by the Patriots standards, they look to be back to their best, with Tom Brady as dominant as ever. However, I'm sticking with my Raiders to win.
PICK: RAIDERS
Graves: A week ago, the Cowboys were being talked about as Super Bowl contenders again. Seven days on and the world appears to be caving in on their season. The loss of Ezekiel Elliott isn't actually the problem here - without left tackle Tyron Smith, Atlanta's Adrian Clayborn had a career day, sacking Dak Prescott 6 times. And having Smith to protect Prescott's blind side is essential, as is having linebacker Sean Lee on the field - he left in the second quarter of the Falcons loss with a hamstring injury. Without Lee, opponents have scored on 19 of their last 23 drives.
That statistic must be music to the ears of the Eagles with their NFL-best 8-1 record. They've also had a bye week to get healthy and strengthen their hold on the NFC East following the Dallas Week 10 defeat. QB Carson Wentz leads the NFL with 23 TD passes and their offense is ranked fourth overall, trailing only the Rams in points scored at 31.4 per game. Also, expect Jim Schwartz's defense to pin their ears back and get after Prescott after what they saw last week.
PICK: EAGLES
Clarke: The Eagles look the best team in the NFL right now and, after picking up what could be the bargain of the season in Jay Ajayi via a trade from Miami, their offense looks even more potent. I fancy them to win this NFC East divisional match-up comfortably, given who the Cowboys are missing.
PICK: EAGLES
Graves: The Seahawks have had 10 days to prepare for this after winning in Arizona last Thursday, but that success came at a cost with cornerback Richard Sherman being lost for the season to an achilles injury. They have problems on their offensive line as well, although it would be a surprise if Clayborn is able to repeat his career-best six-sack outing against Dallas.
It appears unlikely that Atlanta will have running back Devanta Freeman (concussion) available. Even though Seattle lost to the Redskins the last time they played at home, that was an error-strewn performance by the Seahawks, and if Atlanta are unable to run the ball, they become one dimensional - ideal for a hungry Seattle defense.
PICK: SEAHAWKS
Clarke: The Seahawks are always tough to play in Seattle. Atlanta were much-improved in beating the Cowboys last week, with their defense particularly destructive, but I fancy Seattle to have the edge.
PICK: SEAHAWKS
Graves: The top seed in the entire AFC host the top team in the AFC South to kick-off Week 11. The Steelers have been anything but the offensive juggernaut we expected them to be, with some questioning the play of veteran QB Ben Roethlisberger. But, as Roethlisberger points out, the name of the game is winning and with a 7-2 record, the Steelers have been doing plenty of that.
The Titans are riding a four-game winning streak themselves but are under intense pressure from their divisional rival Jacksonville Jaguars - tied at the top with a 6-3 record. With DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry in the backfield, they certainly have a game which can hold its own on the road but, this week, they go up against a Steelers team who have the No 2 ranked defense.
PICK: STEELERS
Clarke: Both teams have started the season well, so this is a tough one to call. I'm going with the Steelers - they have home field advantage.
PICK: STEELERS
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