Picks of the Week

What an amazing start to the season, going 11-4-1!  Let's see if we can keep that up through this week.

As  a reminder, each pick is using the spread (straight up is for wussies), and the betting line is from the same website each week as of the time of typing the entry. I keep a running tally of my record, plus my winnings/losses. We will "pretend" that I bet $100 on each game, with one game each week going for $250. Winnings/Losses will be calculated including a 10% vig, which just makes the math that much simpler. Now, on to the picks.

Kansas City Chiefs -3 v. Denver Broncos
As I stated last week, a lot of pundits are on the Buffalo Bills bandwagon as the up-and-coming team this year.  For me, that team is the Kansas City Chiefs.  The Chiefs defense had 5 sacks last week, and the Broncos offense gave up 4 sacks.  Justin Houston and company must be licking their chops for this game on a short prep week.

Chicago Bears +2 v. Arizona Cardinals
The Bears, although losers, acquitted themselves well against the Green Bay Packers.  Despite the joyous return of Carson Palmer, the Cardinals are not the Green Bay Packers.

New England pick 'em at Buffalo Bills
Simply, Belicheck has Rex Ryan's number.  The Bills were incredibly impressive in their decimation of the Indianapolis Colts last week, and I suspect, New England will use Buffalo's emotions against them in his game planning.  Plus, LaGarrette Blount returns this week.

Carolina Panthers -3 1/2 v. Houston Texans
The Texans, I fear, showed us exactly who they are last week, which does not bode well for them or their fans.  Cam Newton may ultimately go down as the best quarterback to play with absolutely nobody else of consequence on his own team.  He can carry them to a 3 1/2 victory.

Cincinnati Bengals -3 v. San Diego Chargers
Two of the teams that looked the best last week.  However, west coast teams travelling east and playing in the early games have an extremely difficult time covering.

Detroit Lions + 2 1/2 at Minnesota Vikings
The Lions, well, Ameer Abdullah, looked great last week.  The Vikings defense was absolutely torched by Carlos Hyde last week, and Abdullah is much, much faster than Hyde.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers +10 at New Orleans Saints
Tampa looked horrible, but Jameis Winston is very intelligent, and he will learn from his mistakes.  The Saints will likely win, but that is a big number to start the season.

Atlanta Falcons + 2 1/2 at New York Giants
Both teams had their moments last week, and both teams had stretches where they played poorly.  However, the best player on the field - with all due apologies to ODB fans - is Julio Jones.  He will make a couple of big plays for the Falcons that are key to the outcome of this game.

Pittsburgh Steelers -6 v. San Francisco 49ers
Other than guarding Rob Gronkowski, the Steelers looked fairly well against the defending Super Bowl Champions.  Plus, as stated earlier, San Francisco is a west coast team travelling east and playing in the early game.

St. Louis Rams -3 at Washington Redskins
Once again, the dreaded road favorite, but this Rams team has a ton of talent on defense, and is starting to develop some talent on offense in Tavon Austin and others.  The Redskins played about as well as they could have last week, and they lost.  The Rams should win this one easily.

Miami Dolphins -6 at Jacksonville Jaguars
It's the Jaguars.

Baltimore Ravens -6 1/2 at Oakland Raiders
The Ravens offense was incredibly lackluster last week.  However, the Raiders looked even worse.  It is possible that the cure to the Ravens ills is playing the Raiders defense.

Philadelphia Eagles -5 v. Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys squeaked by a New York Giants team, while the Eagles played what looks like a tough Falcons squad.  The Eagles started to play their game in the second half of Monday night's battle, and I feel they will continue their offensive onslaught.

Green Bay Packers -3 1/2 v. Seattle Seahawks
Kam Chancellor's absence is huge, and even if he comes back before the game, I still wonder if the tremendous togetherness that have shaped Seattle over the past couple of years has been upset.

New York Jets +7 at Indianapolis Colts
Buffalo destroyed Indianapolis by focusing on defense first.  The Jets focused on defense under Rex Ryan, and continue to do so under Todd Bowles.  Brandon Marshall is likely the difference maker.

BIG BET OF THE WEEK

Tennessee Titans -1 at Cleveland Browns
This Cleveland team is absolutely horrible, and although the Titans are young and somewhat untested at a lot of positions, including quarterback, what a bonus the schedule-maker gave them by starting with the Buccaneers and Browns.


Last Week: 11-4-1
Year-to-Date: 11-4-1
Big Bet Last Week: 1-0
Big Bet Year to Date: 1-0
Winnings (Losses) Last Week: $810
Winnings (Losses) Year to Date: $810