NFL against the spread picks: It suddenly seems like an important game for the Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are 11-2, and lead every other NFC team by at least two games with three to go.
So why does Sunday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers feel pretty big?
Calls for the Cowboys to bench quarterback Dak Prescott for Tony Romo after one loss, following an 11-game winning streak, were premature, though we all knew that was going to happen. Prescott hasn’t played as well lately (Greg Cosell of NFL Films broke down the Xs and Os of that in this piece), but there’s no need to panic yet.
But what happens if the Cowboys lose again, this time as a seven-point favorite at home, and what if Prescott has another quiet game? Then you’d have a team worried it’s not playing its best ball when it counts most, with the NFC East race perhaps tightening, a rookie quarterback in a slump and a louder quarterback controversy.
The Cowboys don’t want any part of that. They don’t want to deal with the drama of a December losing streak or a quarterback controversy. The way to avoid it all is to handle their business against a Buccaneers team that has played well lately. I think Dallas will win Sunday night and cover (and I’m picking them in the SuperContest as a 6.5-point favorite there). The Bucs defense is very good against the pass but not so much against the run, and the Cowboys should be able to control the game on the ground. And Tampa Bay is facing a Dallas team that should be refocused after a loss at the New York Giants.
And if the Cowboys look bad in a loss? It’s going to be a long week in Dallas.
Here are the rest of the Week 15 against the spread picks.
SUPERCONTEST
Bengals (+3) over Steelers: I think you’ll get one last all-in effort from the Bengals this season, and this is it. These teams don’t like each other. The Steelers’ make-or-break game is next week against the Ravens. That game, in all likelihood, ultimately decides the AFC North title whether the Steelers win here or not. I think you’ll see a minor upset here.
Lions (+4) over Giants: This line just seems a little high. The one concern is Matthew Stafford’s finger injury. If he’s not right, the Lions are in deep trouble. (The line is +4.5 in Yahoo Pro Football Pick’em, which I use for my season record.)
Falcons (-13.5) over 49ers: It goes against everything I believe in to like a double-digit NFL favorite this much. But we know the Falcons can score a ton. The 49ers are a broken mess. And Atlanta needs to keep winning because now the Buccaneers are one of the hottest teams in football and tied with the Falcons for first place. It looks like a blowout is coming.
Raiders (-3) over Chargers: Raiders have extra rest and are clearly the better team. San Diego isn’t exactly packing fans in; I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more Raiders fans in San Diego on Sunday. Melvin Gordon is out. Philip Rivers is struggling. Oakland needs to win to keep alive any hopes at a division title. It looks like Las Vegas is begging you to pick the Raiders (that’s never good), but I don’t know why you’d pick the Chargers.
And the rest of the picks …
Seahawks (-15) over Rams (picked Thursday): We’re getting to the part of the season in which bad teams are playing out the string and sometimes the line can’t be set too high.
Dolphins (-2.5) over Jets: I feel a little uneasy about this game. But nobody should be impressed with the Jets lately, and I’ve always thought Matt Moore is one of the league’s better backup quarterbacks. Miami will play well around him … I think.
Bills over Browns (-10): I just can’t take the Browns right now. And I also think there’s an eye on next week (home against San Diego) as their “Let’s not go 0-16” Super Bowl.
Bears (+6.5) over Packers: I could see the Packers having a slight letdown, after beating the Seahawks in a big game and with the Vikings and Lions on deck. The Bears are 3-10; they’re hard to get up for. But as a close loss last week at Detroit showed, the Bears are still trying. Throw in terrible weather (though as Jon Campbell at OddsShark points out, cold weather usually favors the home team) and an Aaron Rodgers calf injury and this just seems like an ugly, close game.
Chiefs (-5) over Titans: I like what the Titans are doing, but I think the Chiefs are getting hot, and some extra rest helps too.
Vikings (-4) over Colts: Last week’s brutal loss to the Texans was the likely death of the Colts’ playoff hopes. I’m figuring on a letdown here. And Adrian Peterson’s return should give the Vikings at least an emotional lift. Who knows, maybe Peterson will be a big factor in the offense right away too.
Eagles (+6) over Ravens: It’s hard to back the Eagles, especially on the road. But the Ravens are coming off a tough Monday night loss to the Patriots, with the showdown against the Steelers on deck. We might not see Baltimore’s “A” game.
Texans (-6) over Jaguars: I just can’t pick the Jaguars. Also on Houston’s side, according to OddsShark: Houston has won its last five in a row against the Jaguars, and is 5-1 in its last six games at home.
Saints (+2.5) over Cardinals: Zero idea what we’ll get out of either team here. Would skip this game if I could.
Broncos (+3) over Patriots: The Broncos are 8-5 and have games left against the Patriots, Chiefs and Raiders, three of the four NFL teams who have already reached at least 10 wins. They probably need to win two of those three to make the playoffs. This will feel like a playoff game already for them.
Panthers (+4.5) over Redskins: The line has moved up to 6.5 points a few places. I’ll still go with the Panthers, assuming quarterback Cam Newton plays. They haven’t exactly packed it in yet, and I think they’ll give a good effort on “Monday Night Football.”
Last week: 12-3-1
Season to date: 105-97-6
SuperContest: 3-1-1 last week, 37-30-3 season
The Dallas Cowboys are 11-2, and lead every other NFC team by at least two games with three to go.
So why does Sunday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers feel pretty big?
Calls for the Cowboys to bench quarterback Dak Prescott for Tony Romo after one loss, following an 11-game winning streak, were premature, though we all knew that was going to happen. Prescott hasn’t played as well lately (Greg Cosell of NFL Films broke down the Xs and Os of that in this piece), but there’s no need to panic yet.
But what happens if the Cowboys lose again, this time as a seven-point favorite at home, and what if Prescott has another quiet game? Then you’d have a team worried it’s not playing its best ball when it counts most, with the NFC East race perhaps tightening, a rookie quarterback in a slump and a louder quarterback controversy.
The Cowboys don’t want any part of that. They don’t want to deal with the drama of a December losing streak or a quarterback controversy. The way to avoid it all is to handle their business against a Buccaneers team that has played well lately. I think Dallas will win Sunday night and cover (and I’m picking them in the SuperContest as a 6.5-point favorite there). The Bucs defense is very good against the pass but not so much against the run, and the Cowboys should be able to control the game on the ground. And Tampa Bay is facing a Dallas team that should be refocused after a loss at the New York Giants.
And if the Cowboys look bad in a loss? It’s going to be a long week in Dallas.
Here are the rest of the Week 15 against the spread picks.
SUPERCONTEST
Bengals (+3) over Steelers: I think you’ll get one last all-in effort from the Bengals this season, and this is it. These teams don’t like each other. The Steelers’ make-or-break game is next week against the Ravens. That game, in all likelihood, ultimately decides the AFC North title whether the Steelers win here or not. I think you’ll see a minor upset here.
Lions (+4) over Giants: This line just seems a little high. The one concern is Matthew Stafford’s finger injury. If he’s not right, the Lions are in deep trouble. (The line is +4.5 in Yahoo Pro Football Pick’em, which I use for my season record.)
Falcons (-13.5) over 49ers: It goes against everything I believe in to like a double-digit NFL favorite this much. But we know the Falcons can score a ton. The 49ers are a broken mess. And Atlanta needs to keep winning because now the Buccaneers are one of the hottest teams in football and tied with the Falcons for first place. It looks like a blowout is coming.
Raiders (-3) over Chargers: Raiders have extra rest and are clearly the better team. San Diego isn’t exactly packing fans in; I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more Raiders fans in San Diego on Sunday. Melvin Gordon is out. Philip Rivers is struggling. Oakland needs to win to keep alive any hopes at a division title. It looks like Las Vegas is begging you to pick the Raiders (that’s never good), but I don’t know why you’d pick the Chargers.
And the rest of the picks …
Seahawks (-15) over Rams (picked Thursday): We’re getting to the part of the season in which bad teams are playing out the string and sometimes the line can’t be set too high.
Dolphins (-2.5) over Jets: I feel a little uneasy about this game. But nobody should be impressed with the Jets lately, and I’ve always thought Matt Moore is one of the league’s better backup quarterbacks. Miami will play well around him … I think.
Bills over Browns (-10): I just can’t take the Browns right now. And I also think there’s an eye on next week (home against San Diego) as their “Let’s not go 0-16” Super Bowl.
Bears (+6.5) over Packers: I could see the Packers having a slight letdown, after beating the Seahawks in a big game and with the Vikings and Lions on deck. The Bears are 3-10; they’re hard to get up for. But as a close loss last week at Detroit showed, the Bears are still trying. Throw in terrible weather (though as Jon Campbell at OddsShark points out, cold weather usually favors the home team) and an Aaron Rodgers calf injury and this just seems like an ugly, close game.
Chiefs (-5) over Titans: I like what the Titans are doing, but I think the Chiefs are getting hot, and some extra rest helps too.
Vikings (-4) over Colts: Last week’s brutal loss to the Texans was the likely death of the Colts’ playoff hopes. I’m figuring on a letdown here. And Adrian Peterson’s return should give the Vikings at least an emotional lift. Who knows, maybe Peterson will be a big factor in the offense right away too.
Eagles (+6) over Ravens: It’s hard to back the Eagles, especially on the road. But the Ravens are coming off a tough Monday night loss to the Patriots, with the showdown against the Steelers on deck. We might not see Baltimore’s “A” game.
Texans (-6) over Jaguars: I just can’t pick the Jaguars. Also on Houston’s side, according to OddsShark: Houston has won its last five in a row against the Jaguars, and is 5-1 in its last six games at home.
Saints (+2.5) over Cardinals: Zero idea what we’ll get out of either team here. Would skip this game if I could.
Broncos (+3) over Patriots: The Broncos are 8-5 and have games left against the Patriots, Chiefs and Raiders, three of the four NFL teams who have already reached at least 10 wins. They probably need to win two of those three to make the playoffs. This will feel like a playoff game already for them.
Panthers (+4.5) over Redskins: The line has moved up to 6.5 points a few places. I’ll still go with the Panthers, assuming quarterback Cam Newton plays. They haven’t exactly packed it in yet, and I think they’ll give a good effort on “Monday Night Football.”
Last week: 12-3-1
Season to date: 105-97-6
SuperContest: 3-1-1 last week, 37-30-3 season
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