Each week I pick the winners of all the NFL games (or try to, anyway) without point spreads and without bias, either.
A few more unforeseen upsets reared their ugly heads last week and that dropped my season’s record to 50-41 (.550). But I’ll get back on track this week. There are more games to choose, too. The schedule fattens up to 15 games as only Detroit and Houston are off.
(NOTE: All games are scheduled for Sunday afternoon unless otherwise noted.)
Kansas City 31, Oakland 21 (Thursday Night): Even the return of Derek Carr couldn’t stop the Raiders’ losing streak, as they fell at home to the Chargers. The Chiefs are coming off their first loss, but they should prove to be the better team in this one.
Los Angeles Rams 27, Arizona 24 (played in London): This won’t be one of those 9:30 a.m. London games because two West Coast teams are competing. But it won’t matter. These good offenses can play anywhere. I’m taking the younger quarterback.
Minnesota 26, Baltimore 13: The Ravens are so up-and-down and injury-prone you can’t even rely on them to win at home anymore. They usually struggle on the road, too. They’ll have their hands full with the well-rounded Vikings. Making matters worse, Baltimore is 2-10 in its last twelve October games.
Tennessee 40, Cleveland 6: Whenever the Browns are involved, it’s like shooting fish in a barrel. Despite a short week, the Titans are healthy again and should roll to an easy road win.
Buffalo 20, Tampa Bay 13: The Bucs showed great heart and fight in a comeback at Arizona last week. But they still lost. They now play a deceptively-good home team in the Bills — and with Jameis Winston’s health a question mark.
Carolina 30, Chicago 20: The Bears have to feel good about their unexpected road OT win in Baltimore. But even at home, they can’t be expected to beat the resurgent Panthers.
New Orleans 21, Green Bay 19: This is my hunch play of the week. The Packers’ first game without Aaron Rodgers–even at Lambeau Field–should result in a loss. The Saints’ defense is better than many think.
Jacksonville 24, Indianapolis 17: Just when you think the Jaguars are ready to take over the AFC South, they throw in clunkers against bad teams. The Colts are coming off a Monday-night loss and — I can’t believe I’m typing these words — I trust Blake Bortles more than Jacoby Brissett.
New York Jets 16, Miami 8: That Dolphins’ win in Atlanta last week had to be a fluke. The Jets hung tough with New England for more than a half, so I’ll take the Jets to win.
Pittsburgh 27, Cincinnati 26: This game got moved to 4:25 p.m. and it’s easy to see why. The Bengals are resurrected under new offensive coordinator Bill Lazor and the host Steelers are coming off a huge road win in Kansas City. Pittsburgh is my pick.
Dallas 30, San Francisco 10: Maybe I’m just stubborn but it shouldn’t matter whether Ezekiel Elliott is suspended. The gap in quality is obvious. Besides, the Cowboys are coming off their bye week.
Denver 20, Los Angeles Chargers 17: This could be a very tricky game for a Broncos team that didn’t expect to lose at home to the then-winless Giants. The host Chargers, who have righted themselves, should do just enough to lose.
New York Giants 23, Seattle 16: Many still don’t know how the Giants won in Denver last week. Now New York is at home against a Seattle team that has to travel across the country. In another hunch play, I’m taking the home team.
New England 31, Atlanta 22 (Sunday Night): It looks as though the Falcons’ brand-new stadium doesn’t provide an intimidating environment. Besides, the Patriots have gotten back to Super Bowl form faster than the Falcons have.
Philadelphia 34, Washington 17 (Monday Night): Surprisingly, Philadelphia has proven to be the NFC’s best team. They’ll be at home and should complete the sweep over a Redskins team that, unsurprisingly, struggled at home game against sorry San Francisco.
