Sep 27, 2013
Week 4 Picks
Last Week: 8-8
Last night, the San Francisco 49ers crushed the St. Louis Rams 35-11 in St. Louis to end a 2 game losing streak they had to the Seahawks and the Colts. Colin Kaepernick wasn’t great but he did enough to get the job done completing 15-23 and throwing for 167 yards and 2 TD (he also had a fumble). Frank Gore had a great night running 20 times for 153 yards and a TD. Anquan Boldin also had a stellar night having 5 receptions for 90 yards and a TD.
Now for Skydel’s week 4 picks.
Baltimore Ravens -3 at the Buffalo Bills
Okay so I was wrong about the Ravens not being very good last week. They defeated a very good Houston Texans team last week 30-9 and this week against a bad Bills team, expect more of the same.
Cincinnati Bengals -4 at the Cleveland Browns
The Bengals are probably coming off their best win in years with their comeback win over the Packers last week in Cincy. The Browns, on the other hand, are coming off their first win of the season last week against the Vikings. The Packers are much better than the Vikings just like the Bengals are much better than the Browns. Bengals win by 10.
Chicago Bears +3 at the Detroit Lions
The Bears are cruising now and I am very surprised to see them as underdogs in this game. The Lions are playing very good football right now but it’s just very hard to pick against Jay Cutler, Matt Forte, and that stellar Chicago D right now. Bears win by 3.
Kansas City Chiefs -4 vs. the New York Giants
The Chiefs are rolling right now behind a very consistent Alex Smith and with Smith, you know what you are going to get each game. Smith will control the clock, make the right plays at the right time, and NOT TURN THE BALL OVER. Eli Manning turns the ball over and has been doing so at an alarming rate. Manning also doesn’t have any protection either. Until the Giants prove that they can protect Manning and can stop the other team from scoring, then I will have to go against them. Chiefs win by 10.
Pittsburgh Steelers -3 at the Minnesota Vikings
Here is the 0-3 bowl. We have two teams here that know that if they lose this game, their season is basically over before it began unless it isn’t over already. The Steelers went 8-8 last season and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2009 and the Vikings went into this season hoping they could build off their first round playoff loss from last season. Both teams now look like they are headed downward and whoever loses this game won’t be able to pick itself back up. Since the Steelers are very well coached and have the experience, they will win this game by 7.
Arizona Cardinals +1 at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Cardinals are 1-2 and the Bucs are 0-3. Neither team is near respectability right now but since the Bucs decided to bench QB Josh Freeman for this game in favor of some unproven rookie, The Cardinals have to win right? They do have Carson Palmer though. Cardinals by 3.
Indianapolis Colts -10 at Jacksonville Jaguars
After last week’s win over the 49ers by the Colts, I am finally sold. The Colts are good and may possibly be great or super by seasons end. This week they are playing a very bad Jaguars team and I don’t even think the spread is enough. In fact, every week, no matter who is playing the Jaguars should be favored by at least 20 points. The Jaguars are that bad and are not getting better any time soon.
Houston Texans +3 vs. the Seattle Seahawks
This is a very bold pick but there is no way that the Seahawks are going to go 16-0. The Texans are home where they play very well and the Seahawks are nowhere near as good on the road as they are on the road. Texans win by a late field goal to win the game.
New York Jets +4 at the Tennessee Titans
The Jets have surprisingly played very well through their first three games. They beat Tampa Bay by a point in week 1, then lost in New England by only 3 in week 2, and beat Buffalo last week in week 3. Now, they face a Titans team that has also played well with wins over the Steelers and Chargers and an overtime loss to the Texans. I believe that this game will be very close but the Titans will pull it out for the victory. Titans win by 3.
Denver Broncos -12 vs. the Philadelphia Eagles
The Broncos are 3-0 led by a very hot Peyton Manning who is completing 73% of his passes through his first three games. The Eagles are 1-2 and got beaten up at home last week by the Chiefs. Right now, anybody playing the Broncos doesn’t really stand a chance, especially the Eagles. Broncos win by 20.
Oakland Raiders +4 vs. the Washington Redskins
The Oakland Raiders are 1-2 and the Redskins are 0-3 coming into this game but for some reason, the Raiders are underdogs and they are the home team. To me, that doesn’t make any sense. The Redskins showed a little bit of life last week in their loss to the Lions and by life, I mean that they didn’t fall behind by 30 points and then try to come back. They lost a hard fought game to a very good Lions team by only a touchdown. The Raiders only did what anybody who faces the Broncos this season do, lose and lose very badly. This week, I believe that the Raiders will put that loss behind them and play a good game against a very desperate Redskins team who can’t afford to go 0-4 after winning the NFC East last season. The game will be close but I think the Redskins will win by 3.
San Diego Chargers +2 vs. the Dallas Cowboys
The Chargers have looked very good this season even though they are 1-2. They lost to the Texans in OT in Week 1 and then beat the Eagles in Philly in Week 2 and then lost to the Titans by 3 in Week 3. They could easily be 0-3 right now. The Cowboys come in to this game at 2-1 after destroying the Rams last week in Dallas. The Cowboys are playing very well this season but the Chargers are home so I believe they will win by 3 in a high scoring game.
Atlanta Falcons -2 vs. New England Patriots
The Falcons come into this game at 1-2 while the Patriots are 3-0. The Falcons are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Miami Dolphins in which they gave up a game winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter to lose that game 27-23. The Patriots are coming off a 20 point win over the Bucs at home. The Falcons now return home where they barely ever lose. Expect Matt Ryan to have an excellent game to get this team back on track and feeling good about themselves. Falcons win by 3.
Miami Dolphins +7 at the New Orleans Saints
The Dolphins and Saints both come into this game with records of 3-0 and are looking to stay undefeated. In order for them to do that, they will both have to defend the explosive offenses of both teams. Whichever team succeeds at doing so will win. In this case, the Saints are home and it is much easier to stop Ryan Tannehill than Drew Brees. Saints win by 4.
Those are my picks for week 4.
