NFL Picks: Week 8

Now that’s what I’m talking about! So what if some of my categories didn’t pan out --- I’ll take 10-2-1 any time! Let’s see if we can keep it rolling this week. Of course with the way that the Browns, Raiders and Rams are playing, it’s like being spotted 3 wins each week. Having spent quite a bit of time out there, I do feel bad for the fans in Cleveland --- they deserve better than they got.

Now, on to the picks ...

Sunday, November 1st

Take the points and run ...
San Francisco (+12.5) at Indianapolis --- San Francisco
Seattle (+9.5) at Dallas --- Seattle
Atlanta (+10.5) at New Orleans --- Atlanta [Monday, November 2nd]

These guys won’t even need the points …

Denver (+3.5) at Baltimore --- Denver
Miami (+3) at NY Jets --- Miami
Jacksonville (+3) at Tennessee --- Jacksonville
NY Giants at Philadelphia (+1) --- Philadelphia

Mortal locks …
Cleveland (+13.5) at Chicago --- Chicago
Oakland (+16.5) at San Diego --- San Diego

Won’t even be close (trust me this time) …
Houston at Buffalo (+3.5) --- Houston
Minnesota (+3) at Green Bay --- Green Bay
St. Louis (+4) at Detroit --- Detroit
Carolina (+10) at Arizona --- Arizona

Last Week’s Record: 10-2-1

Season Record: 61-41-1

Referee Safety

When I touched on this subject in a previous post, I didn't spend much time focusing on the referees in the NFL. Part of my reasoning was that it seemed to be an obvious example of a sport in which the officials are ridiculously vulnerable to injury. After reading an article by Adam Schefter on ESPN.com, I'm glad to see that something might be happening to correct this situation.

Players have gotten much faster and stronger in the years since officiating as we know it came into play. I'd wager that for the most part, referees (with some exceptions) have pretty much retained an average body-type. It's time to make an adjustment.

My question is this --- why does the league need to wait until the season is over to, at the very least, require the referees to wear helmets? It seems to me that this should not be considered a major initiative. A faceless helmet, possibly with a visor, should have minimal (if any) impact on the refs ability to officiate the game as current rules dictate. More sweeping changes, such as positioning on the field, can (and should) be hammered out in the off-season. In the meantime, the NFL should step-up and make every possible effort to protect the officials, immediately.

NFL Picks: Week 7

That was about as ugly an 8-6 as you can get, fortunately some of my underdog picks came through. To make it a bit more interesting this week, I’ve broken the games down into categories (obviously setting myself up for the wrath of the betting gods). I’m not ranking the Monday night game, because I’m pretty sure that with the Phillies in the World Series no one would notice if the game weren’t played.

Now, on to the picks ...

Sunday, October 25th

Take these to the bank ...
Green Bay at Cleveland (+9) --- Green Bay
New England at [LONDON] Tampa Bay (+15) --- New England
New Orleans at Miami (+6.5) --- New Orleans

It’s a crime to be getting points on this one ...
Atlanta (+4) at Dallas --- Atlanta

These games will not be as close as people think ...
Minnesota (+5.5) at Pittsburgh --- Pittsburgh
Arizona (+7) at NY Giants --- Arizona
San Francisco (+3) at Houston --- San Francisco

Could go either way ...
San Diego at Kansas City (+5) --- San Diego
Indianapolis at St. Louis (+14) --- Indianapolis
Chicago at Cincinnati (PK) --- Cincinnati
NY Jets at Oakland (+6) --- NY Jets
Buffalo (+7) at Carolina --- Carolina

Monday, October 26th
Philadelphia at Washington (+7) --- Philadelphia

Last Week’s Record: 8-6

Season Record: 51-39

NFL Picks: Week 6

Well, it appears that the sleep deprivation did wreak a bit of havoc on my picks. That being said, there’s no shame in going two games over .500. Let’s see if I can get the mojo back.

Now, on to this week's picks ...

Sunday, October 18th

Kansas City at Washington (+6) --- Kansas City
Houston (+5.5) at Cincinnati --- Houston
Cleveland (+14) at Pittsburgh --- Pittsburgh
Baltimore (+3) at Minnesota --- Minnesota
St. Louis (+9.5) at Jacksonville --- Jacksonville
NY Giants (+3) at New Orleans --- New Orleans
Carolina at Tampa Bay (+3) --- Carolina
Detroit (+13.5) at Green Bay --- Detroit
Philadelphia at Oakland (+14) --- Philadelphia
Arizona (+3) at Seattle --- Seattle
Buffalo (+9.5) at NY Jets --- Buffalo
Tennessee (+9) at New England --- New England
Chicago (+3) at Atlanta --- Atlanta

Monday, October 19th

Denver (+3.5) at San Diego --- Denver

Last Week’s Record: 8-6

Season Record: 43-33

NFL Picks: Week 5

Two pretty good weeks in a row --- let's see if the sleep deprivation (thank you to the newest little D'Entremont) of the past week has any effect on this week's outcome.

Now, on to this week's picks ...

Sunday, October 10th
Minnesota at St. Louis (+10.5) --- Minnesota
Dallas -7.5 at Kansas City (+7.5) --- Kansas City
Washington (+4) at Carolina --- Carolina
Tampa Bay (+15) at Philadelphia --- Tampa Bay
Oakland (+15.5) at NY Giants --- NY Giants
Cleveland (+6) at Buffalo --- Buffalo
Cincinnati (+8.5) at Baltimore --- Cincinnati
Pittsburgh at Detroit (+10.5) --- Pittsburgh
Atlanta (+2.5) at San Francisco --- Atlanta
New England at Denver (+3) --- New England
Houston (+5.5) at Arizona --- Houston
Jacksonville (+1.5) at Seattle --- Seattle
Indianapolis at Tennessee (+4) --- Indianapolis

Monday, October 11th
NY Jets at Miami (+2) --- Miami

Last Week’s Record: 9-5

Season Record: 35-27

Pepsi ads

A propos of nothing, I couldn't help but notice that Pepsi's MLB Refresh ad is NY skewed. The count of places associated with the clips they show:

Boston: 1
Kansas City: 2
Los Angeles: 1
New York: 10
Philadelphia: 1
Seattle: 1

(And why Kansas City? There's a far more notable baseball team in the same state.)

Compare it to the Pepsi NFL Refresh ad:

Boston: 2
Cleveland: 1
Dallas: 4
Miami: 2
Oakland: 1
New York: 2
San Diego: 2

Perhaps football is in fact the American sport. And baseball is the national sport of New York.