NFL Bet Box – Week 17

Quick rehash after an 8-8 week that had some great insight and some wildly off the mark predictions.

The good: picking the 49ers on Thursday night might not have been so hot, but I did say I liked the under in that one. Also thinking the Ian Book debut would not lead to many points. The Notre Dame QBs have lost their last 24 starts stat is crazy. Couple wins for me.

The bad: so the Ravens don’t get embarrassed very often, eh. Wink Martindale said he isn’t ready to get Joe Burrow a gold jacket quite yet. Burrow showed he is a High Roller by throwing for 525 yards and four TDs.

The ugly: well what happened in Dallas, so much for keeping that close. But the Texans, 0-9 against teams from outside of the AFC South and threw those three months of futility out the window, smashing the Chargers’ playoff hopes to bits. Texas two-step disaster.

As for the penultimate week of the regular season. Keep in mind, it’s all bowl games until Sunday this week so you have a couple days to stew over these picks before firing away.

Jacksonville at Patriots (-15.5) – A pair of slow starts following the bye have sent the Pats spiraling out of control from the top of the AFC down to sixth. The toothless Jaguars come to Foxboro at the right time and have something to play for of their own, maintaining their lead for the No. 1 pick in the spring. It’s time to enjoy those win total future tickets cashing and booking a place in the postseason. Patriots, 38-10.

Las Vegas at Indianapolis (-6.5) – Jonathan Taylor was going to get his number called a lot, and that’s before Carson Wentz ensured he’d miss a meaningful contest. As they say, the best ability is availability. The Raiders have done well to stay in the race this long given what has gone on around them this year. Colts, 20-17.

N.Y. Giants at Chicago (-6) – The Giants are going (Jake) Fromm bad to worse with every move they make – on and off the field. Bears, 23-13.

Tampa Bay (-13.5) at N.Y. Jets – This could be Tom Brady’s final time at MetLife Stadium, the Bucs are not scheduled to face the Giants in the Meadowlands until 2024. The Jets ensured last week that they will not have the first overall pick.

Atlanta at Buffalo (-14.5) – The Bills did what they needed to do in Foxboro, does it open them up to a letdown spot? The game could be well in hand while not reaching the number. Bills 27-16.

Philadelphia (-3.5) at Washington – Two teams heading in opposite directions with the Eagles finding their running legs at the right time. As for Washington, that was an all-time disaster in prime time against the Cowboys last week. Eagles, 24-17.

Kansas City (-5.5) at Cincinnati – The other team in the Queen City with a marquee matchup this week should be a fun one going up against the hottest team in the league as the Chiefs have won eight straight. The hunch is the streak hits nine, but the Bengals show that they aren’t going to be a pushover in the postseason. Chiefs 28-25.

Miami at Tennessee (-3.5) – What a difference A.J. Brown made for the Titans in the second half in a huge win last week. The Dolphins haven’t been graceful during their seven-game winning streak, but they’re getting the result that matters. Dolphins, 20-17.

L.A. Rams (-3.5) at Baltimore – The Ravens are desperate for Lamar Jackson to return, and the Rams pass rush would love to see a wounded QB back there trying to make plays happen. Matthew Stafford stunk, and the Rams still put up 30 points last week against a team on the playoff bubble in Minnesota. Sony Michel 423 rushing yards and two TDs in the last four games. Rams, 31-20.

Denver at L.A. Chargers (-5.5) – Think the Chargers will be happy to have Austin Ekeler back in the lineup? The Bolts rushed for 89 yards in the loss to the lowly Texans. The Broncos are running on fumes, only 158 yards in last week’s loss to the Raiders. Chargers, 24-17.

Houston at San Francisco (-12.5) – With questions surrounding Jimmy Garoppolo’s thumb and a possible broken bone, might the 49ers turn to Trey Lance, who hasn’t thrown a pass since starting in Week 5 against Arizona. Too many uncertainties to lay nearly two TDs. 49ers, 24-14.

Arizona at Dallas (-5) – The Cowboys celebrated clinching the NFC East on Sunday by dropping 56 on the Football Team while getting points from the defense and special teams. It won’t be quite that easy this time, but there’s something off with the Cardinals, who are in serious danger of losing four straight. Cowboys, 31-24.

Carolina at New Orleans (-6.5) – Don’t save this one for the archive. The Saints defense should provide enough of an edge. Saints, 20-7.

Detroit at Seattle (-7) – Even with Tim Boyle at QB, the Lions showed fight against the Falcons going to the final minute before throwing an interception at the goal line. Detroit gets Jared Goff back this week while the Seahawks season went from bad to worse blowing a double-digit lead to the Bears in the snow. Lions, 23-20.

Minnesota at Green Bay (-6.5) – I thought the Packers were a no brainer last week and got burned in the second half, and yet here we are again. Less than a TD looks too good to be true. An outdoor team zeroing in on the coveted No. 1 seed vs. an indoor team that is on the outside looking in at a playoff spot. Expected high temperature Sunday in Green Bay, a balmy 11 degrees, it figures to be colder than that for the prime-time kickoff. Packers, 30-21.

Cleveland (-3) at Pittsburgh – It looks like the end of the line for Ben Roethlisberger, would there be a better way to go out than to stick the fork in the archrival? Steelers, 22-21.

LAST WEEK: 8-8-0 (.500)

SEASON: 111-128-1 (.465)

Lines used from FanDuel SportsBook.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/32HQPyf