NFL Week 8: Take Off Your Pants, Singletary Will Be Along Shortly

Finally had my break through week against the spread…and the overall record wasn’t too bad either. I was 10-2 for Week 7, and I was 10-1-1 against the spread. That bumps the records up to:

Overall: 68-28 (71%)
Vs. Spread: 55-39-2

SUNDAY

Denver Broncos (6-0) vs. Baltimore Ravens (3-3)(-3.5)
1:00 p.m. M&T Bank Stadium
I’ll start off strong this week. If the Broncos are playing like contenders, I might as well start picking them. The overall Vegas line matches my own personal over/under line for personal foul calls against the Baltimore defense this week.
Pick: Broncos

New York Giants (5-2) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (4-2)(-2)
1:00 p.m. Lincoln Financial Field
Not having Brian Westbrook would be a big deal for the Eagles if they ever ran the ball. LeSean McCoy is just as effective at not getting the football as Westbrook is.
Pick: Giants

Cleveland Browns (1-6) vs. Chicago Bears (3-3)(-13)
1:00 p.m. Soldier Field
You would think that with the Vikings and Packers blowing by them in the standings, the Bears would have wanted to at least make their game competitive last week. I watched most of the first half of that Bears-Bengals contest, and one of two things is true. One, the Bengals are the Super Bowl favorite right now. Two, the Bears aren’t capable of going .500 the rest of the season. I think the latter is more likely.
Pick: Bears

Houston Texans (4-3)(-4) vs. Buffalo Bills (3-4)
1:00 p.m. Ralph Wilson Stadium
The Bills keep finding themselves in games with odd lines. Last week they were giving seven to a bad Carolina team. Now they are giving four at home against an up and down Texans team that may or may not have the services of Andre Johnson. Eeesh, I want to take the Bills...but I can't.
Pick: Texans

San Francisco 49ers (3-3) vs. Indianapolis Colts (6-0)(-12)
1:00 p.m. Lucas Oil Stadium
Here are two facts for you. The 49ers have looked terrible during their last two games. Mike Singletary has yet to drop his pants during those two performances. Coincidence? I think not.
Pick: Colts

Miami Dolphins (2-4) vs. New York Jets (4-3)(-3)
1:00 p.m. Giants Stadium
I’ve listened to everyone slurp the Dolphins and the Wildcat offense the past few weeks. I’m not sure if anyone else has noticed the Dolphins 2-4 record? Does anyone else see that? Let’s talk about that before we start gushing about the Wildcat offense.
Pick: Dolphins

St. Louis Rams (0-7) vs. Detroit Lions (1-5)(-4)
1:00 p.m. Ford Field
Really NFL? Really? I don’t know what I could possibly say about this one. The only reason to go with Detroit instead of St. Louis is because the Lions are coming off a bye week. Pay no attention to that -4 line. It’s meaningless (much like this game). It took me several minutes to find a betting site that even had a line listed. Most places aren’t even letting you put money on this game. That’s right, Vegas doesn’t even know what to do with this one.
Pick: Lions

Seattle Seahawks (2-4) vs. Dallas Cowboys (4-2)(-10)
1:00 p.m. Cowboys Stadium
I really don’t know how the Cowboys have managed to go 4-2. They aren’t that good. Their second half schedule will prove it. This game may even go a long way towards proving it.
Pick: Cowboys, Seahawks cover

Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3) vs. Tennessee Titans (0-6)(-3)
4:05 p.m. LP Field
For the Redskins fans who can’t comprehend the positive effect that Albert Haynesworth is having for the defense, first check out Andre Carter’s and Brian Orakpo’s statistics. Then look at Tennessee’s defensive statistics. Maybe not worth the $45 million guaranteed, but Kyle Vanden Bosch would sure love him to come back to Nashville.
Pick: Jaguars

Oakland Raiders (2-5) vs. San Diego Chargers (3-3)(-16.5)
4:05 p.m. Qualcomm Stadium
My girlfriend and I are in the same fantasy football league. We both had defenses on the bye this week. I had a higher priority wavier than she did. She begged me not to pick up San Diego’s defense. I’ll be starting Arizona this week…I’m such a sucker.
Pick: Chargers

Carolina Panthers (2-4) vs. Arizona Cardinals (4-2)(-10)
4:15 p.m. University of Phoenix Stadium
Go Arizona defense!!! Meanwhile, since I spend a lot of time criticizing some of my own stupid predictions, it’s about time I praise myself. No one had the Cardinals covering the spread last week, let alone had them beating the Giants on the road…no one except for me.
Pick: Cardinals

Minnesota Vikings (6-1) vs. Green Bay Packers (4-2)(-3.5)
4:15 p.m. Lambeau Field
Gag me. Didn’t we just go through this Brett Favre nonsense a couple of weeks ago? What’s stunning is this game isn’t in primetime on either Sunday or Monday night. How did the NFL allow this to become a 4:15 game?
Pick: Vikings

MONDAY

Atlanta Falcons (4-2) vs. New Orleans Saints (6-0)(-10)
8:30 p.m. Louisiana Superdome
Even when Miami was up 24-3 on New Orleans, I had NO doubt that the Saints would come back in that game. In fact, I was surprised it took them until the fourth quarter to take the lead. I expected them to be winning by the middle of the third.
Pick: Saints, Falcons cover

Bye Week: Cincinnati, Kansas City, New England, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay, Washington