Katie's Past Picks
This game has virtually no meaning for either team, the Niners locked up the #1 seed and the Rams are firmly in the playoffs. No CMC, Purdy or Stafford makes both offenses less appealing. However, these teams still hate each other and I expect both (back up) defenses to play a bit of bully ball.
This one is simple, the Jags need a win to lock up division (they hold the tie breaker over the Colts and Texans). Tannehill is likely to start for Levis, which is bad news for Titans fans and I'd be surprised if Lawrence misses another game. Tennessee's secondary has been awful, rank 25th against the pass so even if it is Bethard who starts for Jacksonville, my money is still on the Jags to cover.
Minnesota still has a slim chance to make the playoffs and the Lions can possibly move up to the no 2 seed by the end of the week, so I expect both offense to be firing on all cylinders. Nick Mullens is back, which means the Vikings will actually be able to move the ball against shoddy Detroit defense, especially against NFC North rivals. The Lions are 4-1 to the over in divisional games this season. Minny's defense isn't much better either, they've been among the leagues worst with 3 straight Overs hitting. The Lions are good offense at home, averaging almost 31 points at Ford Field. This one could be a shoot out.
The Buccaneers are the NFC South champions with a win and Baker could clinch Comeback Player of the Year with a solid performance (if they choose to give it to someone who actually played this year). On the other hand, Carolina has officially clinched the worst record in the NFL. The Panthers basically quit in a 26-0 loss to the Jaguars last week and have lost 11 of 12 against the NFC this season. I don't see any fight left in this team, Bucs are also10-6 ATS.
Colts defense has been getting better against the pass, so even with Stroud back, Houston will want to utilize their run game this week. Singletary is coming off a big performance against the Titans: 16 carries and 80 yards. While he only has 3 TD's recorded this year, there are some incentives for him. Singletary will receive $125,000 for playing 50% of the snaps and can garner another $125,000 for 55% of the snaps. He is currently at 52%. 3% more and he gets Another $125K. Look for Stroud to feed him the ball and why not at the goal line?
The only the Niners scored fewer than 28 points this season at Levis =was against the Bengals (the last time they lost and the game before the bye).
Raheem Mostert seems to get betting all the Lead back work, however, Achane has a growing role in the passing game (especially with Tyreek Hill not 100%). In fact, over the last 3 games Achane has accumulated over half of his total receptions on the year (11-21). Additionally, Achane has reached at least 24 receiving yards in each of the last three games and the high total of 51.5 points suggests a lot of passing.
This line was 50 earlier this week, not sure why it jumped 10 yards but I still like the under. It's true, Conner has been balling out recently and has hit over this number in 4 of his last 5 games. However, the Bears rush defense has been stingy, currently ranked 4th in yards per attempt at 3.6. Additionally, Chicago is a moderate 4.5 favorite here, Arizona will likely be playing from behind, which lends itself more pass heavy approach. Take Conner to cool off a bit this week based on the matchup.
The Seahawks have all the momentum coming off a huge upset win over Philly on MNF and they should be getting Geno Smith back. Meanwhile, Will Levis is expected to miss the game and the Titans secondary has resembled swiss cheese all season. The Seahawks’ pass defense hasn’t been great, but their front four can get pressure and should be able to limit Derrick Henry just enough to cover.
Jake Browning is like Joe Cool 2.0, averaging over 300 yards passing over the team's three-game winning streak. The Steelers won the first matchup 16-10, however that was their last win. Pittsburgh has now lost 3 in a row and this could be Mike Tomlin's first losing season. Bengals will be without Ja’Marr Chase but they still have weapons. In Chase's absence, Tee Higgins had a couple of scores and Tyler Boyd should get more targets. Doesn't matter who is at QB, I don't trust the Steelers offense to produce.
This is a very high total for two teams coming off their biggest wins of the season. Dallas held the Eagles to just 13 points last week and Buffalo held the Chiefs to 17. The math aint mathin' here… take the under.
I bet the over on the Niners TT every week. We lost by the hook against Seattle but this bet has hit in 69% of games this season. The books have finally caught on and put SF's team total over 30 against Arizona. It's high but like the title says, No Sundays Off. I am riding this one until the wheels come off.
The Saints offense under Carr is a mess and the defense has struggled to stop the run, allowing both Carolina and Detroit 200+ rush yards in those matchups. The NY Game plan should be simple- feed your big dog in Saquon Barkley. Tommy Cutlets and the Giants could squeak out another upset but I'll take the points.
The Lions have one of the most potent offenses in the league, they can certainly outpace Denver. The problem is the defense can't stop anything. Detroit has given up 28 points in two straight games! On the other hand, the Broncos have won six of their last seven and have covered five of those. Russell Wilson has looked pretty dang-russ since week 8, especially paired with Courtland Sutton who has 10 TD's on the season. Take, er, Ride with the points on this one.
The Dobbs fairytale is over, Rocket Man has come back down to earth and Nick Mullens is in to be the Vikings 4th QB this season. We've all seen the Mullens movie and it's not that exciting either. Jake Browning, on the other hand, is no fluke— Cincy has dropped 34 pts in each of his two starts after the burrow injury. The Bengals are ninth in EPA per play and 11th in success rate under Browning. Brian Flores is going to try and blitz the life out of Browning but I am backing Purdy 2.0 to keep winning and cover the FG.