Week 10 of the 2016 NFL season is set to begin. This week the Bills, Lions, Colts, and Raiders sit idle on bye weeks. For the other 28 teams I will now attempt to pick the winners of each game based off of the spreads. If you agree of disagree tweet at me @treydaubert to let me know where I’m wrong for my NFL week one predictions. *All spreads are courtesy of oddsshark.com
Thursday Night: Browns At Ravens (CLE +7.5)
At this point I’m pretty sure the Browns are just trying to lose. Not only are the Browns 0-9 but they are only 2-7 against the spread getting points on a weekly basis. Cleveland has a healthy Josh McCown ready to play, the same guy who held a 20-0 lead over the Ravens in week two before getting injured, leaving the game, and watching Cody Kessler lose it. Apparently Cleveland hasn’t learned their lesson and will continue to start Cody Kessler despite the fact that the entire organization knows he stinks. I like the Ravens by 10, they have to win as they sit atop the AFC North.
Ravens defeat Browns 20-10
Sunday 1 ET: Broncos At Saints (NO +3)
I like the Saints in this one. Normally I love picking teams that are coming off of a blowout lose but this is a really bad match up for Denver. The Broncos have 3 losses. Those loses come at the hands of Atlanta, San Diego, and Oakland. Those teams rank 1st, 3rd, and 5th respectively in points per game. Guess where New Orleans ranks? 2nd, (30.9 points per game) Denver struggles with high powered passing offenses. Look no further than the Saints. Give me 3 points on top of everything is just a little thank you for being ahead of the curve.
Saints defeat Broncos 27-19
Sunday 1 ET: Packers At Titans (TEN +2.5)
This one is another no brainer. Green Bay will win this game by a wide margin. Marcus Mariota is a choker who had 3 costly turnovers in a loss to the Chargers a week ago. I can see a couple of interceptions heading to Haha Clinton-Dix in this one. Philip Rivers was able to torch this defense for 34 points last week. There’s no reason Aaron Rodgers can’t do the same. This line should be much higher, I’ll gladly take it being less than a field goal.
Packers defeat Titans 31-14
Sunday 1 ET: Texans At Jaguars (HOU +2)
Well Vegas looks like it gave this one away. The Texans are 5-3 while the Jags are 2-6. Tell me again why the Texans aren’t favored? Oh that’s right Vegas knows something we don’t. Don’t be that sucker that takes the Texans, look for the Jaguars upset in this one.
Jaguars defeat Texans 16-13
Sunday 1 ET: Chiefs At Panthers (CAR +3)
I’ve been on this Panthers resurgence train for the past two weeks. I think it continues. The Panthers know their backs are against the wall and they need to ring off 5-6 wins in a row. Kansas City has also been known to lay some eggs on the road. The Chiefs will be without Jeremy Maclin as well in a game where the Chiefs need to take advantage of some of those young corners for Carolina. I like the Panthers in this one especially at home.
Panthers defeat Chiefs 28-21
Sunday 1 ET: Rams At Jets (LA +2)
This game is truly a toss up. I promise you I want no part of this one. There is a lot of mystery especially at quarterback. How will Case Keenum handle the pressure of possibly being benched in favor of eventually first overall bust Jared Goff? Is Ryan Fitzpatrick even healthy enough to play? We realistically could see Bryce Petty in action. I tend to think it will probably be low scoring as both teams feature great running backs in Matt Forte and Todd Gurley. Both teams bests players are featured on the defensive lines. That award goes to Leonard WIlliams and Aaron Donald. I’ll pick the Jets based off of home field.
Jets defeat Rams 20-17 OT
Sunday 1 ET: Falcons At Eagles (PHI +2)
I know everyone has been an Eagle hater this year but you might want to beware of those words. Philadelphia ranks 3rd in the NFL in points differential despite being 4-4 (+ 57 point differential). In particular they have been a really dominate team at home. Philly is 3-0 at home including a 34-3 win over the Steelers and a 21-10 win over the Vikings. The Eagles also have the one thing that disrupts a high powered passing game, interior line pressure. Fletcher Cox is one of the best in the game and simply posses a bad match up for the Falcons.
Eagles defeat Falcons 35-20
Sunday 1 ET: Bears At Buccaneers (TB +1)
Please do not be fooled by Jay Cutler’s win 2 weeks ago over the Vikings. It has become rather clear that Minnesota is now a fluke. Jameis Winston is emerging as a franchise quarterback and should get the win in this one. Personnel wise the Bucs have a much better roster on the defensive side of the ball. I think that becomes the difference in this one. Kwon Alexander missed most of the game last Thursday, look for a much better showing with his return.
Buccaneers defeat Bears 41-17
Sunday 1 ET: Vikings At Redskins (MIN +2.5)
There are a number of ways this game could go. For me the difference is the Vikings absence of their top two tackles Matt Khalil and Andre Smith. Ryan Kerrigan is going to have a field day. It was a similar situation when Kerrigan had a field day on the Eagles while they were missing Lane Johnson. I think the coordinator change in Minnesota may take more time to get use to than just two weeks as well.
Redskins defeat Vikings 23-19
Sunday 4:05 ET: Dolphins At Chargers (MIA +4)
I like the Chargers to win but I think the Dolphins will cover. The ground game featuring Jay Ajayi has proved to be dangerous and will keep them in the game. Melvin Gordon and San Diego could also have some problems running the ball as Ndamukong Suh is one of the best run stuffers in the league. San Diego might score 30 plus points a week but they also give up an average of 27. 4 a week on defense as well.
Chargers defeat Dolphins 27-24
Sunday 4:05 ET: Cowboys At Steelers (DAL +2.5)
Wait a minute, Dallas is getting 2.5 points! Don’t be surprised people Pittsburgh is going to win this game. Dallas is 7-1 getting 2.5 points while the computerized predictions according to oddshark predict 30.9-18.8 in favor of Dallas. Trust me Vegas knows. 71 percent of the bets are going towards Dallas as well. Smart people always go the other way when they see that high of a percentage. Trust me America is stupid we elected that disaster Trump. Roethlisberger knocked the rust of in the 2nd half of that loss to the Ravens and will lead the Steelers to a big win. Again I want to stress I love everyone that Dak Prescott is doing in Dallas but at some point he going to have one of those bad games, it happens to every rookie quarterback.
Steelers defeat Cowboys 35-21
Sunday 4:25 ET: 49ers At Cardinals (SF +13.5)
Personally I will never bet a game that includes a 13.5 point spread. If I had to take this game I would probably pick the 49ers simply because its hard to beat any professional team by that many points. Then again the last time Colin Kaepernick played the Cardinals this was his stat line (9-19, 47 yards, 4 interceptions in a 47-7 loss). That same result could obviously take place vs an even better Cardinals defense featuring Chandler Jones. I won’t touch this game but maybe you’re feeling Kaepernick can at least put up a fight this time.
Cardinals defeat 49ers 30-17
Sunday Night: Seahawks At Patriots (SEA + 7.5)
I’m not going to lie this line caught me by surprise. 7.5 is a huge line for a game featuring two elite teams. The problem is the Patriots are simply on a different level from everyone else. I also tend to think the Seahawks may not be as good as advertised. Pete Carroll teams sort of just find ways to win. They could be in for a rude awakening. Not only are the Patriots 7-1 but they are also 7-1 against the spread as well where they are obviously favorites every week. I expect the Pats to win big, Tom Brady is just playing with that edge as a carry over from deflategate anger.
Patriots defeat Seahawks 34-16
Monday Night: Bengals At Giants (Even)
The Bengals coming off of a bye playing on a Monday Night sounds great to me. Now of course I’m terrified of this pick because Andy Dalton is absolutely terrible in prime time games. Eli Manning has always been quite the opposite. Maybe that’s why there is no spread. At some point the Bengals are going to win a bunch of games in a row and get back into the AFC North race. This game seems to be less urgent for the Giants that are sitting pretty at 5-3.
Bengals defeat Giants 23-14
