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Our FREE NFL picks versus the spread are purely for entertainment purposes only. But, let's face it, being right (winning) is more fun than being wrong (losing).
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Every week, the three "handicappers" at The Weekly Blitz will pick their three best NFL games against the spread (ATS).
Final results: Through Week 17, we have a combined record of 84-56-13 (60.0 percent) ATS.
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See also: - Weekly Fantasy Football Rankings: QB - RB - WR - TE - NFL Schedule - Tickets - CFB Schedule - Tickets - 2012 Mock Draft Databases: NFL - NBA
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DAILY WEEK 8 LINES FROM SPORTSBOOK.COM
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SUMMARY OF PICKS BY CONTRIBUTORS
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Week: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17
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Picks are for entertainment purposes only.
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Picks and spreads are as of Saturday, October 29th at 1:27 p.m. ET
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Lines used are always as of the time the pick was made.
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Date/Time (ET)
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Favorite
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Spread
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Underdog
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Kevin
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Dan
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Sean
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Sun, Oct 30 at 1:00 p.m.
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TITANS
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9.0
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Colts
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Sun, Oct 30 at 1:00 p.m.
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TEXANS
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9.0
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Jaguars
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JAX +9
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Sun, Oct 30 at 1:00 p.m.
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PANTHERS
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3.5
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Vikings
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Sun, Oct 30 at 1:00 p.m.
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Saints
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13.5
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RAMS
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Sun, Oct 30 at 1:00 p.m.
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RAVENS
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12.5
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Cardinals
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BAL -12.5
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BAL -12.5
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Sun, Oct 30 at 1:00 p.m.
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GIANTS
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9.5
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Dolphins
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MIA +9.5
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Sun, Oct 30 at 4:05 p.m.
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BILLS
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5.0
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Redskins
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BUF -5
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Sun, Oct 30 at 4:05 p.m.
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Lions
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2.5
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BRONCOS
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DET -2.5
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Sun, Oct 30 at 4:15 p.m.
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Patriots
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2.5
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STEELERS
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NE -2.5
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Sun, Oct 30 at 4:15 p.m.
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49ERS
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9.0
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Browns
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Sun, Oct 30 at 4:15 p.m.
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Bengals
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1.5
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SEAHAWKS
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Sun, Oct 30 at 8:35 p.m.
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EAGLES
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3.0
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Cowboys
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PHI -3
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Mon, Oct 31 at 8:40 p.m.
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Chargers
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3.5
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CHIEFS
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SD -3.5
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Note: Atlanta, Chicago, Green Bay, NY Jets, Oakland and Tampa Bay are on bye in Week 8.
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CONTRIBUTOR
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GAME 1
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GAME 2
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GAME 3
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Kevin 2011 Record: 33-14-4 (70.2%)
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Cardinals at Ravens (-12.5)
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Lions (-2.5) at Broncos
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Cowboys at Eagles (-3)
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Ravens -12.5
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Lions -2.5
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Eagles -3
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To say that the Ravens' offense sputtered in Week 8 would understate how badly it performed. The offensive playcalling and performance left Terrell Suggs and everyone else "baffled." Not only did quarterback Joe Flacco throw for a season-low 137 yards, Ray Rice, the team's do-it-all back and most explosive offensive player, had only eight carries. The last time he had fewer carries was his rookie season when he backed up Willis McGahee. And the Ravens did not get their first first down until the third quarter. There is no doubt that Rice will see a boost in his workload in Week 8. While the Cardinals are allowing only 3.8 yards per carry, they also have allowed eight rushing touchdowns -- only three teams have allowed more. As far as Flacco's performance goes, he has alternated from solid to poor performances throughout the season. Here are his yardage totals from Weeks 1 to 7, respectively: 224, 197, 389, 163, (bye week), 305 and 137. Against a pass defense that ranks in the bottom five in the NFL, Flacco should bounce back this week. From a defensive standpoint, the Ravens are as good as it gets as they rank first in defensive scoring (13.8 points allowed per game) and have created 19 turnovers (six interceptions and a league-high 13 forced fumbles). After last week's disappointing loss in prime time, the Ravens will take out their frustrations all game long on the Cardinals and this game will turn into a laugher. When the Ravens are big home favorites (10.5 points or more), they typically take care of business: 11-4 against the spread.
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Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow led the Broncos to an amazing come-from-behind victory as he worked his magic last week on "Gator Day" in Miami. Regardless of what tricks Tebow may have up his sleeves at home this week, a repeat performance is unlikely. While I admire his determination and will and he makes plays as a runner, there is little debate when it comes to Tebow's accuracy. Several of his throws last week weren't even close to their intended receiver. The Lions rank ninth in the NFL in pass defense (204.6 yards allowed per game), have sacked the quarterback 17 times and are one of five teams to intercept double-digit passes. It appears as though quarterback Matthew Stafford, who has a sprained ankle, will play on Sunday. While it would be hard to not have good chemistry with Calvin Johnson, Stafford and Megatron have connected on a league-high ten touchdowns through their first seven games. Johnson has 100-plus yards in three straight games and in four of his past five games. The Lions are 4-0-1 ATS in their past five road games and the Broncos are 5-12-1 ATS in their last 18 games overall.
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Based on expectations entering the season, both the Cowboys and Eagles enter their Sunday Night Football matchup as two teams not living up their potential. Not only do the Eagles have a worse record (2-4) than the Cowboys (3-3), but the "Dream Team" entered the season as the Super Bowl pick for many. Coming off the bye, betting against Eagles coach Andy Reid has been a losing proposition. In the game immediately after the bye in his 12 seasons as head coach of the Eagles, Reid is 12-0. Led by the league's top-running quarterback, the Eagles rank first in the NFL in rushing offense (170.0 YPG). Meanwhile, the Cowboys rank first in the NFL in rushing defense (69.7 rushing yards allowed per game). The Cowboys have waived running back Tashard Choice to activate linebacker Bruce Carter, their second-round pick, from the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list. That said, I expect the Eagles to use LeSean McCoy more in the passing game than they have this year. McCoy, who led running backs in receptions (78) last year, has only 21 receptions for 123 yards, but McCoy is averaging a career-high 94.8 rushing yards per game (fifth in the NFL) through six weeks. Philadelphia, who has yet to allow a 300-yard passer this season, picked off Rex Grossman four times in their last game. For the Cowboys, Tony Romo is prone to mistakes in key moments as evidenced by the team's historic blown leads to the Jets and Lions. In a must-win situation (falling to 2-5 would be a nearly insurmountable hurdle), the Eagles continue their game-after-bye winning streak under Reid.
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Dan 2011 Record: 24-21-6 (53.3%)
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Jaguars at Texans (-9)
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Redskins at Bills (-5)
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Patriots (-2.5) at Steelers
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Jaguars +9
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Bills -5
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Patriots -2.5
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So we have arrived at the halfway point, and I still think that the AFC South is up for grabs. Sure, Jacksonville's offense hasn't lit anything on fire, but their defense is certainly firing on all cylinders. The Texans walloped the Titans last week, and will return back home a team that bested the Ravens on Monday night. The historical numbers certainly favor the Jags in this matchup, as they have gone 3-1 against the spread in their last 4 against the Texans. The Texans have already announced that they will be without Andre Johnson, and they are a rough 1-2 against the number when he does not play. Jacksonville checks in with the 10th-best defense, and they only allow 19 points per game. I love the big number in division games, so I will take the 9 as Houston is good, but not 9 points better.
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The Bills have great news, and not-so-great news, as they have signed Ryan Fitzpatrick to a long-term extension, however, they placed Shawne Merriman on IR to close out another sad year of his career. The Redskins will start John Beck again, and were dealt a crushing blow as sometimes first string running back Tim Hightower has been lost for the year. The Bills will have home cooking of sorts, as they will play in Toronto for their yearly revenue grab across the border. The Bills are an impressive 5-2-1 in their last 8 at home against the spread, and have dominated Washington in the past going 5-0 against the number when playing the 'Skins, going all the way back to 1993. I just don't trust a John Beck offense missing Hightower, Cooley, and their best wideout in Santana Moss to hang with the Bills. Lay the 5.5 for the Bills in Canada, eh?
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I am a pretty blatant Patriots homer, and I usually try to stay away from predictions on my home team, but the Patriots just seem to always have the Steelers number. The Patriots have gone 4-1 vs. the Steelers against the number, and Pittsburgh has been average this year posting a 3-4 record against the spread. Tom Brady is an impressive 6-1 against the Steelers in his career, and even though Pittsburgh has the best passing defense in the league, the Patriots have always been able to exploit them with the spread offense. I still don't buy the Steelers this year, due to the fact that most people were burying them 3 weeks ago, and they still have that opening day stinkbomb to own up to. I like the Pats by 10, as they always play well at Heinz Field.
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Sean 2011 Record: 27-21-3 (56.3%)
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Dolphins at Giants (-9.5)
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Chargers (-3.5) at Chiefs
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Cardinals at Ravens (-12.5)
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Dolphins +9.5
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Chargers -3.5
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Ravens -12.5
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Way too many points here: Don't let the Dolphins record fool you. They are not this bad. Miami still has a pretty solid defense, and playmakers on the offensive side of the ball. I think Daniel Thomas & Reggie Bush can have a pretty good game against the Giants. New York has had some issues themselves, mainly injuries but they are getting healthy at the right time. I think the Giants win this game, but I don't think they have the killer instinct to put anyone away, and Eli Manning still makes too mamy mistakes. This game will be closer then people think. Giants win 23-16.
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It's tough to come back to San Diego after last week's meltdown versus the Jets, but I guess I am a sucker. I look at Kansas City and San Diego and I see a legit Super Bowl contender on one side, and a team who should be picking in the Top 10 next year on the other side. Kansas City is on a 3- game winning streak after a terrible start, but they beat Oakland who started Kyle Boller and was without Darren McFadden most of the game, the worst team in the league in the Colts, and the Vikings who were awful with Donovan McNabb at QB. Playing in Arrowhead is tough, but Kansas City is just too banged up and San Diego is too good to let a team this bad beat them. San Diego wins easily here 31-13.
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I absolutely love the Ravens in this spot, after an absolute stinker Monday night versus the Jags. The Ravens are back for some home cooking. They are 3-0 this season ATS at home, and all 3 games they have won by a big margin. (28,17 and 15). All three of those games were against legit playoff contenders (Pit, NYJ and Hou). Arizona is nowhere near a playoff contender, in fact, they are a mess right now. Kevin Kolb has not worked out so far as expected by me. Their top running back "Fragile" Beanie Wells is out with another injury. There will be an Alfonso Smith sighting this week. Arizona is in the bottom 1/4 in pretty much every defensive stat. I expect Ray Rice to have an Arian Foster vs Tennessee big game this week and the Ravens will blow out the Cardinals 41-10
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