Strong Side Sports

It feels like not too long ago, I was sitting around in August speculating about what this NFL season would bring. In the blink of an eye, we’re in mid-December with only four weeks left in the regular season. This Week 15 slate is chock full of potentially exciting games. Let’s get into it:

Saturday and the Seven and Sixers

With 5 out of the 6 teams playing on Saturday having the same record, we should get good matchups across the board. Some thoughts:

• Vikings/Bengals – Not sure that the Vikes can get that offense rolling even against the soft Bengals D.
• Steelers/Colts – Hoping that fading the Steelers for good luck will work again. It’s been a rough two weeks. Expect Gardner Minshew to look like Tom Brady today.
• Broncos/Lions – Taking the Broncos here feels bold and possibly stupid but on the whole they’ve been playing a lot better as of late and have a good defense, something Detroit lacks.

The Other Games

Okay, so actually, a lot of the games during the day on Sunday aren’t great. But some could be at least entertaining.

• Jets/Dolphins – Possibly interesting game, definitely so if Tyreek Hill sees limited action. The biggest question mark is the Jets offense. Can they replicate their success from last week or was it simply a flash in the pan?
• Texans/Titans – CJ Stroud is currently listed as doubtful, and for that reason, I’ve decided to go with the Titans. Pretty cut and dry here, I don’t see Davis Mills leading Houston to victory against a very scrappy Titans team.
• Buccaneers/Packers – Great potential for an entertaining mid-off. Going with the Packers since they lost last week and tend to have a very Jekyll and Hyde behavior to them.
• Giants/Saints – This a tale of teams going in opposite directions in terms of feeling inspired by the quarterback position. Tommy DeVito has been solid, garnering confidence of teammates and fans. Derek Carr has been…ass. I’m riding with the hot hand.
• Falcons/Panthers – Nobody should watch this game. Bryce Young is bad, Desmond Ridder is bad. This game sucks. Don’t watch.
• Bears/Browns – I actually think this one will be really entertaining as the Bears have proven to be capable of being mid. The Browns are probably slightly better than mid now with Joe Flacco airing the ball out. Certainly he’s been an upgrade over DTR/PJ Walker and hell, probably an upgrade of Watson. Anyway, I think Chicago makes it close but ultimately falls short.
• Chiefs/Patriots – There’s no reason the Chiefs should lose this game.
• Niners/Cardinals- See above and apply to Niners.
• Commanders/Rams – Expect Sam Howell to get sacked a lot. Also, expect a lot of points in this one. The Rams are the better team here, but it could be close.
• Cowboys/Bills – I should be rooting for the Cowboys here, but my mind is telling me that the Bills are about to go on a run. This is simply a vibes pick.
• Ravens/Jaguars – Don’t get me wrong, the Jaguars are a good team. But Baltimore is a whole different level.
• Eagles/Seahawks – A few weeks ago, this game would’ve seemed a lot better. It could still be interesting though, as Philly’s secondary has been less than effective and Seattle has plenty of talent at the skill positions.

Last Week

On the whole, Week 14 wasn’t too bad for me, but going 0-2 on the Monday Night double header really hurt.

Bets or whatever

In typical fashion, I went 0-3 last week. Yikes. 19-23 on the year. Let’s get this over with:

Money Line: Broncos (+184)

Spread: Niners -12.5 (-110)

Point Total: Commanders/Rams O50.5 (-110)