This article is part of our NFL Picks series.
While I compile this article every week, I never pay attention to how anyone besides myself is doing on Sundays. Maybe I will in Week 15 on if I'm vying for the lead, but for Week 5, the first time I know how anyone did is when I add up the totals while preparing the article for Week 6. Imagine my surprise and horror 45 minutes ago to discover that Stopa actually went 13-1 last week. But for the Broncos against the Ravens, he would have had a perfect slate. Needless to say, this propels him into first place by three games over Pianow who went 6-8. DDD's in third at 40-33, while I'm in fourth at 39-34. Erickson's bringing up the caboose, but he's actually only one game under .500 -a mark that would probably put him in first in the New York Post most years.
We hit on all three of our consensus picks, too.
Enjoy the games.
| Erickson | Pianowski | Liss | Stopa | Del Don | |
| Falcons +3 at Eagles | Eagles | Falcons | Eagles | Eagles | Eagles |
| Browns +14 at Steelers | Steelers | Browns | Browns | Steelers | Steelers |
| Seahawks +7 at Bears | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks | Bears | Bears |
| Lions +10.5 at Giants | Lions | Lions | Giants | Giants | Lions |
| Ravens +2.5 at Patriots | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens | Patriots |
| Chargers -8 at Rams | Rams | Rams | Chargers | Chargers | Rams |
| Dolphins +3* at Packers | Packers | Packers | Dolphins | Packers | Packers |
| Saints -4.5 at Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers |
| Chiefs +4.5 at Texans | Chiefs | Chiefs | Texans | Chiefs | Texans |
| Jets -3 at |
While I compile this article every week, I never pay attention to how anyone besides myself is doing on Sundays. Maybe I will in Week 15 on if I'm vying for the lead, but for Week 5, the first time I know how anyone did is when I add up the totals while preparing the article for Week 6. Imagine my surprise and horror 45 minutes ago to discover that Stopa actually went 13-1 last week. But for the Broncos against the Ravens, he would have had a perfect slate. Needless to say, this propels him into first place by three games over Pianow who went 6-8. DDD's in third at 40-33, while I'm in fourth at 39-34. Erickson's bringing up the caboose, but he's actually only one game under .500 -a mark that would probably put him in first in the New York Post most years.
We hit on all three of our consensus picks, too.
Enjoy the games.
| Erickson | Pianowski | Liss | Stopa | Del Don | |
| Falcons +3 at Eagles | Eagles | Falcons | Eagles | Eagles | Eagles |
| Browns +14 at Steelers | Steelers | Browns | Browns | Steelers | Steelers |
| Seahawks +7 at Bears | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks | Bears | Bears |
| Lions +10.5 at Giants | Lions | Lions | Giants | Giants | Lions |
| Ravens +2.5 at Patriots | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens | Patriots |
| Chargers -8 at Rams | Rams | Rams | Chargers | Chargers | Rams |
| Dolphins +3* at Packers | Packers | Packers | Dolphins | Packers | Packers |
| Saints -4.5 at Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers |
| Chiefs +4.5 at Texans | Chiefs | Chiefs | Texans | Chiefs | Texans |
| Jets -3 at Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Jets | Broncos |
| Raiders +6.5 at 49ers | Raiders | Raiders | 49ers | 49ers | 49ers |
| Cowboys +1.5 at Vikings | Vikings | Cowboys | Vikings | Cowboys | Cowboys |
| Colts -3 at Redskins | Colts | Colts | Redskins | Colts | Colts |
| Titans -3 at Jaguars | Jaguars | Jaguars | Jaguars | Titans | Jaguars |
| Best Bet | Broncos | Raiders | Broncos | Steelers | Steelers |
| Last Week's Record | 7-7 | 6-8 | 8-6 | 13-1 | 8-6 |
| 2010 Record | 36-37-3 | 41-32-3 | 39-34-3 | 44-29-3 | 40-33-3 |
| Best Bet Record | 1-4 | 1-2-1 | 3-2 | 3-1-1 | 2-2-1 |
| Consensus Pick Record | 14-9-1 | ||||
| 2009 Record | 123-130-3 | 132-121-3 | 131-122-3 | 130-123-3 | 126-127-3 |
| 2008 Record | 132-114-10 | 128-118-10 | 124-122-10 | 125-121-10 | 130-116-10 |
| 2007 Record | 127-120 | 118-129 | 127-120 | N/A | 130-117 |
| 2006 Record | 118-129 | N/A | 139-108 | N/A | N/A |
| 2005 Record | 121-126 | N/A | 127-120 | N/A | N/A |
| 2004 Record | 124-124 | N/A | 130-118 | N/A | N/A |
| 2003 Record | 121-126 | 118-129 | 124-123 | N/A | N/A |
| 2002 Record | 113-136 | 123-126 | 141-108 | N/A | N/A |
| 2001 Record | 124-113 | 117-120 | 118-119 | N/A | N/A |
| 2000 Record | 123-117 | 134-106 | 141-99 | N/A | N/A |
Consensus Picks
This week we have one consensus pick: the Buccaneers.
Last week we went 3-0 on consensus picks, putting us at 14-9-1 on the year. We finished 2009 at 19-23-1 on consensus picks, and were 24-19-2 on them in 2008.
Comments:
| Writer | Comment |
| Erickson | I'm only backing four favorites this week, but I'm backing the biggest favorite in the Steelers because of the QB situation. I feel like such a square doing it, though. |
| Pianowski | Random question: What are the odds of the Steelers scoring on defense this week? Fifty percent, maybe? I feel like the Pittsburgh-Cleveland pick comes down to stuff like that. |
| Liss | I like the Broncos, Niners and Eagles best. Hate the Browns and Seahawks picks. |
| Stopa | After going 13-1 last week, I want to pull a Costanza, as it will never get any better than this. Instead, I'm forced to make more picks, proving that if you flip a coin 14 times in a row often enough, sometimes it will land on heads 13 times. Anyway, I really like the Steelers this week at under 14. They're coming off a loss (and a bye), Ben is back, McCoy is making his first start; hide the women and children, folks... I also like the Bears a lot - Seattle is awful on the road, and Chicago's offense should rebound with Cutler back... I think the loss of Randy Moss will be tougher on the Patriots than people realize. Even when he's not producing, he commands a double-team, freeing up Wes Welker. Plus, I'm still not sold on that defense... The Raiders feel like an obvious pick against a winless Niners team, but the line moved from above 7 to below, so I'll fade the public (unusual for the public to be on a big road underdog) and Jason Campbell... I want to sell the Bucs high, but I still don't feel like Vegas has adjusted to the 2010 version of the Saints... The Cowboys/Vikings matchup is a mirror image - one-win teams underperforming, crappy coaches, excess media hype. I think the Cowboys have more talent, the Vikings throw too much, and karma has caught up with Favre. I like Dallas... PManning in prime time, giving less than a FG - that's all the analysis I need there... I suspect I'll be alone on the Jets, but I see them as the NFL's most talented team. The sudden transformation of Orton and Lloyd from journeymen to studs overshadows how the Broncos have struggled in virtually every other facet... Why did the Jaguars get a Monday night game? I struggled with the games I didn't mention, and I feel like I have too many favorites. Too late for a Constanza, Chris? |
| Del Don | The teams I like the most this week are the Bucs, Texans and Steelers, who are my best bet. |
The players:
- Jeff Erickson: RotoWire Senior editor, 2001, 2008 Staff Picks Champ. Writes the Value Meter. Covers and roots for the Bengals.
- Scott Pianowski: Fantasy expert for Yahoo! Sports, and also contributes to Rotowire.com. 2009 Staff Picks Champ. Roots for the Patriots.
- Chris Liss: RotoWire Managing Editor, 2000, 2002, 2006 Staff Picks Champ, 2003, 2004 co-champ. Writes Beating the Book and Surviving the Week in addition to Staff Picks. Covers and roots for the Giants.
- Mark Stopa: Staff Writer, Writes Working the Wire. Roots for the Bills.
- Dalton Del Don: RotoWire Senior Staff Writer. 2007 Staff Picks Champ. Writes the Game Capsules and the Barometer. Covers the Eagles and roots for the 49ers.
