On the ' first series of what ended up being a 41-7 win over the on Sunday, mi sed a 43-yard field goal. Prior to that kick, But he mi sed that one. That might seem like a weird way to start a story considering the Ravens beat the Texans by 34 points, rendering Tucker's rare mistake inconsequential, but if you took the over in that game -- as I did in my weekly best bets column -- then that mistake mattered. I took the over at 49.5, meaning that if Tucker had made that field goal, I would've earned my first 4-1 week of the season after weeks and weeks of remaining stuck in 3-2 and 2-3 purgatory, which would've finally helped me overcome my 1-9 start to the season. But Tucker mi sed a 43-yard field goal. A little later, so did Texans kicker . The over did not hit. And that's pretty much how my season has gone so far. That said, I am
Patrick Sharp Youth Jersey still encouraged as I continue to creep closer and closer .500. With six weeks remaining, I've still got time to salvage my season. With that in mind -- and now that I'm done making excuses -- let's get to this week's picks. Last week:3-2 This year: 24-30-1 1. at -3 In a game that carries huge weight in the playoff picture as the Packers and 49ers aim for home-field advantage, I think this is the game that will entirely legitimize the 49ers as a Super Bowl-caliber team. Conversely, I think the Packers might get exposed by what I consider to be a far better and more complete team. After a hot start to the season, the Packers' defense has fallen off a cliff. They . While the 49ers' offense remains inconsistent with at quarterback, they're a good running team -- only the Ravens have ran the ball more frequently and with more succe s in terms of yards per game. The Packers' defense, meanwhile, is 28th against the run by DVOA. Kyle Shanahan should be able to have his way as long as he leans on his deep backfield. On the other side of the ball, the 49ers' second-ranked defense should be able to handle the Packers' offense, mainly because they've been able to slow down nearly every offense in football that isn't quarterbacked by . Opposing quarterbacks have generated a 72.3 pa ser
Joonas Donskoi Women Jersey rating and are averaging only 5.9 yards per attempt against the 49ers' defense. While is still Aaron Rodgers -- capable of carving up any defense -- he hasn't been the same for a while now. By total QBR, He's still very good, but he's not the same quarterback he was back in, say, 2016. And so, because I think the 49ers' defense will be able to stifle the Packers' offense and their offense will be able to run the ball at will, I'll take the 49ers to beat up on the Packers, taking an important step toward the top seed in the NFC. 2. at Under 39 I'm not certain how either of these teams are going to score -- barring a barrage of defensive touchdowns, which I'll admit, does concern me. The Steelers are still stuck with at quarterback. Don't let the final 10 seconds of their lo s to the distract you from the fact that Rudolph threw four picks and also fumbled. Now, they could be heading into this matchup without both and , both of whom mi sed practice on Wednesday. The Bengals are starting fourth-round rookie . Through the first two starts of his career, Finley is completing 47.5 percent of his pa ses, averaging 4.6 yards per attempt, and has thrown one touchdown and two picks for a 52.8 pa ser rating. In a game between arguably the two worst starting quarterbacks in football, I'll take the under. 3. Ravens -3 at The Ravens are the most complete team in football right now and the Rams are only just barely alive in the playoff picture. It feels like a steal to be getting the Ravens at -3. The Ravens have covered in their past four games, a stretch that has seen them morph into the league's best team. We all know about their offense with , but it's their surprisingly resurgent defense that is just as big of a reason why I like the Ravens to beat the Rams by more than a field goal. Since allowing the Browns to hang 40 on them in their final game of September, the Ravens
Jay Bouwmeester Youth Jersey are allowing only 16 points per game. They just stifled . A month ago, they limited the to 16 points. So this isn't just a case of the Ravens beating up on bad teams. But on Sunday, the Ravens will have a
San Jose Sharks T-Shirt chance to beat up on a bad offense. By DVOA, has already thrown 10 interceptions this season, with three of them coming in the past two weeks. And he was fortunate to avoid a pick-six against the this past weekend when failed to come down with what would've been a game-changing play. I think he could be in for a nightmare against a Ravens defense that has racked up seven takeaways in the past three weeks. Opposing quarterbacks have accumulated a 79.5 pa ser rating against the Ravens. Only the Patriots and 49ers have allowed lower pa ser ratings. And we know what we're getting out of Jackson. That much is a given. The Rams , but they should be no match for the league's most dynamic player who took down the league's top defense a couple weeks ago in remarkably easy fashion. I'll take the Ravens to win in a landslide. 4. Seahawks +1.5 at Without trying to oversimplify things, I like the Seahawks in this game because of , whose MVP-level of play continues to hide the fact that the Seahawks, from top to bottom, aren't of a football team -- with their plus-21 point differential serving as evidence. At this point, with Wilson playing this well, it's difficult to imagine the Seahawks getting blown out by anyone. At the very least, it seems like Wilson will have the ball in his hands with a chance to win the game, and that's a situation I'll always take. I also like the Seahawks because the Eagles are banged up. If right tackle (concu sion) can't play, the Eagles are going to struggle to protect against a defensive front that is beginning to round into form. The Seahawks have racked up nine sacks the past three weeks -- including a five-sack outburst against the 49ers. Left tackle and receiver were also limited at practice on Wednesday, and receiver mi sed practice entirely. Because of the Eagles' injury situation and Wilson, I'll take the Seahawks to go into Philadelphia and cover the spread -- and I think they'll win outright too. 5. at Over 51.5 Fun fact: The past eight Buccaneers games have all gone over. The last time a Buccaneers' game went under? Week 2. Overall, eight of the Buccaneers' 10 games have gone over. It's not difficult to understand why. It has a lot to do with . Even though Winston has thrown for the third-most yards and fourth-most touchdowns, he also leads the league in interceptions by a wide margin and he's tied for second in fumbles. Add in the Buccaneers' below-average defense ( ) and you've got a formula designed to hit the over. The Falcons, who are surging with four takeaways and 11 sacks in their past two games, should be able to coax a
Johan Franzen Jersey familiar performance out of Winston. And with back and healthy, th
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