Cincinnati at Houston

Both of these teams struggled down the stretch. The Bengals finishing 3-5 and the Texans dropping their last 3 games. The Bengals have been the most disappointing as Cedric Benson has really struggled down the stretch and Andy Dalton seemed to regress in the second half of the season. The Texans really struggled the past 3 games against inferior opponents after they clinched a playoff berth. They have the perfect team to milk the clock and keep the Bengals defense on the field for 37 minutes this game. I think the Texans give a heavy dose of a well rested Arian Foster and a hot runner in Ben Tate. The return of Andre Johnson in week 17 was brief, but he did catch both passes thrown his way and I see no reason why he won't be 100% in this game. Look for Houston to pull out a relatively easy win 24-13.

Pittsburgh at Denver

The Denver Tebows started out 7-1 in Tebows first 8 starts, but really struggled offensively against a terrible New England defense and couldn't muster any offense against Buffalo or Kansas City. If Denver has a prayer in winning this game Tebow needs to complete passes, McGahee needs to have a monster game and Big Ben needs to continue to struggle like he did in the last 2 games he played this year (weeks 15 and 17). Even with Mendenhall out for the playoffs (and likely at least games next season). The Steelers have what I feel are 3 capable running backs in Isaac Redman, Mewelde Moore and Jonathan Dwyer. Expect the Steelers to try and pour it on early to prevent any chance of a Tebow Time comeback in the 4th quarter. Steelers win 27-20 after a later flurry by Tebow comes up short.