This article is part of our NFL Picks series.
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Erickson crushed it with a 12-4 week to extend his lead to four games over Stopa. Everyone else but me went .500 or better, and I'm still mired in last, four games behind the terrible DDD.
Shockingly, we have seven unanimous picks this week, some of which were on teams about which I didn't feel strongly at all. Moreover, four of the five writers agreed on six more games. In other words, on 13 of 16 games there was at least a 4-1 split, and on only three did it go 3-2.
Finally, all five best bets were on games where there was a 4-1 split, i.e., none of the seven unanimous picks were anyone's best bet. Both Erickson and DDD took the Bucs as their best bets.
| Erickson | Pianowski | Liss | Stopa | Del Don | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers -3 at Lions | Lions | Lions | Lions | Lions | Lions |
| 49ers +7 at Bears | Bears | Bears | Bears | 49ers | Bears |
| Bengals -9.5 at Browns | Browns | Browns | Browns | Browns | Browns |
| Jaguars +2.5 at Titans | Titans | Titans | Titans | Titans | Titans |
| Texans +3 at Bills | Bills | Texans | Texans | Texans | Texans |
| Ravens +4 at Dolphins | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens | Dolphins | Ravens |
| Seahawks pick 'em at Vikings | Seahawks | Vikings | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks |
| Cardinals -5.5 at Rams | Rams | Cardinals | Rams | Cardinals | Cardinals |
| Falcons +2 at Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Falcons | Buccaneers |
| Jets -2 at Giants | Giants | Jets | Giants | Jets | Giants |
| Broncos -4 at Chargers | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos |
| Chiefs |
To hear the podcast version of the article, click here. To subscribe, here.
Erickson crushed it with a 12-4 week to extend his lead to four games over Stopa. Everyone else but me went .500 or better, and I'm still mired in last, four games behind the terrible DDD.
Shockingly, we have seven unanimous picks this week, some of which were on teams about which I didn't feel strongly at all. Moreover, four of the five writers agreed on six more games. In other words, on 13 of 16 games there was at least a 4-1 split, and on only three did it go 3-2.
Finally, all five best bets were on games where there was a 4-1 split, i.e., none of the seven unanimous picks were anyone's best bet. Both Erickson and DDD took the Bucs as their best bets.
| Erickson | Pianowski | Liss | Stopa | Del Don | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers -3 at Lions | Lions | Lions | Lions | Lions | Lions |
| 49ers +7 at Bears | Bears | Bears | Bears | 49ers | Bears |
| Bengals -9.5 at Browns | Browns | Browns | Browns | Browns | Browns |
| Jaguars +2.5 at Titans | Titans | Titans | Titans | Titans | Titans |
| Texans +3 at Bills | Bills | Texans | Texans | Texans | Texans |
| Ravens +4 at Dolphins | Ravens | Ravens | Ravens | Dolphins | Ravens |
| Seahawks pick 'em at Vikings | Seahawks | Vikings | Seahawks | Seahawks | Seahawks |
| Cardinals -5.5 at Rams | Rams | Cardinals | Rams | Cardinals | Cardinals |
| Falcons +2 at Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Falcons | Buccaneers |
| Jets -2 at Giants | Giants | Jets | Giants | Jets | Giants |
| Broncos -4 at Chargers | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos | Broncos |
| Chiefs -3 at Raiders | Raiders | Raiders | Raiders | Raiders | Raiders |
| Panthers -7 at Saints | Saints | Saints | Saints | Panthers | Saints |
| Eagles +9.5 at Patriots | Patriots | Patriots | Patriots | Patriots | Patriots |
| Colts +7 at Steelers | Steelers | Steelers | Steelers | Steelers | Steelers |
| Cowboys +4 at Redskins | Redskins | Cowboys | Cowboys | Cowboys | Redskins |
| Best Bet | Buccaneers | Ravens | Bears | Cardinals | Buccaneers |
| Last Week's Record | 12-4 | 8-8 | 7-9 | 9-7 | 9-7 |
| 2015 Record | 93-77-6 | 85-85-6 | 75-95-6 | 89-81-6 | 79-91-6 |
| Best Bet Record | 7-4-1 | 5-7 | 5-6-1 | 4-7-1 | 6-6 |
| Unanimous Pick Record | 15-15 | ||||
| Majority Pick Record | 81-89-6 | ||||
| 2014 Unanimous Pick Record | 20-15-1 | ||||
| 2014 Majority Record | 146-116-5 | ||||
| 2014 Record | 123-128-5 | 140-111-5 | 135-116-5 | 124-127-5 | 128-123-5 |
| 2013 Record | 132-114-10 | 118-128-10 | 123-123-10 | 111-135-10 | 128-118-10 |
| 2012 Record | 110-140-6 | 125-125-6 | 121-129-6 | 143-107-6 | 123-127-6 |
| 2011 Record | 121-128-7 | 134-115-7 | 124-125-7 | 123-126-7 | 127-122-7 |
| 2010 Record | 129-122-5 | 134-117-5 | 126-125-5 | 136-115-5 | 134-117-5 |
| 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 |
Unanimous/Majority Picks
This week we have a whopping seven unanimous picks: the Lions, Browns, Titans, Broncos, Raiders, Patriots and Steelers. We went 2-1 on unanimous picks last week to bring our season record to 15-15. We went 8-8 on majority picks (three or more writers) to bring our season record to 81-89-6.
Comments:
| Writer | Comment |
|---|---|
| Erickson | Really tight lines this week - it was rare that I found myself more than a point or two off from the lines. But I'll take the Bucs at less than three points at home against a faltering Falcons squad... Having to pick on Wednesday really is difficult in the Colts-Steelers game, Big Ben is everything. ... I went back-and-forth on Cards-Rams multiple times. |
| Pianowski | Miami has no home-field advantage, and Ryan Tannehill, I am convinced, is not good. John Harbaugh is also an advantage over Miami's coaching staff. |
| Liss | I really like the Bears at home against the 49ers as it's time to sell Blaine Gabbert, and San Francisco is so much better at home. I also like the Saints getting seven in their home stadium against an undefeated divison rival. They have to be up for that game. |
| Stopa | The Cardinals and Bengals are similar teams, and Cincy just mopped the floor with St Louis. I see no reason Arizona won't do the same. I'd have put this line over seven, not under. |
| Del Don | The Falcons sure look like one of the worst teams in the league right now, so I'll back the home team laying less than a field goal. I also like the Bears and Patriots this week. |
The players:
• Jeff Erickson: RotoWire Senior editor, 2001, 2008, 2013 Staff Picks Champ. Writes the Weekly Rankings. Covers and roots for the Bengals.
• Scott Pianowski: Fantasy expert for Yahoo! Sports, and also contributes to Rotowire.com. 2009, 2011 and 2014 Staff Picks Champ. Roots for the Patriots.
• Chris Liss: RotoWire Managing Editor, 2000, 2002, 2006 Staff Picks Champ, 2003, 2004 co-champ. Writes East Coast Offense, Beating the Book and the Survivor column in addition to Staff Picks. Covers and roots for the Giants.
• Mark Stopa: Staff Writer, 2010, 2012 Staff Picks Champ, Writes Run 'N' Shoot. Roots for the Bills.
• Dalton Del Don: Fantasy Expert for Yahoo! Sports, 2007 Staff Picks Champ. Roots for the 49ers.
