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As the National Football League regular season and the year 2012 conclude, I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved with the Bryan Paul’s Puzzling NFL Predictions posts this season.
Thank you to Chuck Pollock of The Olean Times Herald for letting me compete against you in NFL prognostication this year. Seeing how our methods compared with each other made this project interesting and fun to follow.
Thank you to St. Bonaventure University journalism and mass communication faculty members Michael Jones-Kelley, Chris Mackowski, Carole McNall, Patrick Vecchio and Denny Wilkins for your insight and promotional efforts.
Thank you to my parents, Larry and Deborah Clark, for supporting me in all my pursuits and endeavors. I’m so fortunate and proud to be your son.
And thank you to everyone who has read these posts the past 17 weeks. I appreciate that many of you have allowed me to email you the links to the predictions or have accessed them through Facebook and Twitter. I’m glad to have received so much positive feedback from my friends and colleagues.
Though my predictions method wasn’t always successful, I hope readers have found these posts entertaining and interesting. Research for each pick took a great deal of time and research, but it never seemed like work. Bryan Paul’s Puzzling NFL Predictions will continue into the NFL postseason, concluding with an especially extensive, random and unique Super Bowl XLVII post.
In honor of the climax of the NFL regular season and the year 2012, the Week 17 predictions theme is endings, finales and last times.
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Cleveland Browns (5-10) at Pittsburgh Steelers (7-8)-Dec. 30-1 p.m.-CBS
The Cleveland Indians last won the World Series in 1948. Since 1948, the Browns have won 30 regular season finales. But they are 3-7 against the Steelers in those games.
Bryan Paul’s Pick: Pittsburgh
Pollock’s Pick: Pittsburgh
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Baltimore Ravens (10-5) at Cincinnati Bengals (9-6)-Dec. 30-1 p.m.-CBS
The Indians and Browns both played at Cleveland Stadium until the Indians moved to Jacobs Field, now Progressive Field, after the 1993 season. Brian Mulroney resigned as the Prime Minister of Canada in 1993. The Bengals wish he was still in office. During Mulroney’s administration from 1984-93, Cincinnati was 19-16 in December games.
Bryan Paul’s Pick: Baltimore
Pollock’s Pick: Cincinnati
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Jacksonville Jaguars (2-13) at Tennessee Titans (5-10)-Dec. 30-1 p.m.-CBS
Japan hosted the Group of Seven Summit, a meeting of government leaders of the world’s largest economies, in 1993. The organization, now the Group of Eight, last held its annual gathering in Japan in 2008. The G8 leaders must have decided to curse the Jaguars at the 2008 meeting. Since 2008, Jacksonville is 28-53.
Bryan Paul’s Pick: Tennessee
Pollock’s Pick: Tennessee
Captain Clarky 