Saturday, December 2, 2017

Week 13 NFL Picks Against the Spread (Yanotchko)

Every week, four of our contributors pick between two and five games each and assign a number of units (one to five) to their selection based on their confidence in the pick.

With that said, here are Dan Yanotchko's Week 13 NFL picks against the spread:

New England Patriots -9 over Buffalo Bills (4 units)

Pretty much one of the things that you can count on during the season is the Patriots domination of the Buffalo Bills. New England has gone 9-1 in the last five seasons against the Bills, and they are also an amazing 11-2 against the number in their last 13. The Bills looked like a playoff contender earlier this year, but after a mistimed quarterback replacement, and the trade of Marcel Dareus has them falling back to earth. The Bills are starting to give up massive chunks of yardage on the ground, as they allow 114 yards per game rushing, 4.1 yards per carry and a league-leading 16 touchdowns to opposing rushers. I'll take Tom Brady giving less than 10 on the road, as you know they are looking to cement the AFC East title and punch their playoff ticket.

Carolina Panthers +5.5 over New Orleans Saints (3 units)

This game is most likely the best game we will have all weekend, so I feel that this game will go down right to the last possession. Yes, the Saints beat the Panthers earlier this year on the road, and they are definitely a better team when they are playing in the Superdome, but Carolina matches up quite well with the Saints. The Panthers have the second best rush defense in the league, as they only allow 83.2 yards per game and 3.9 yards per carry, which is good enough to slow down that two-headed monster of Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram. Also, the Panthers have a great pass defense that can get after Drew Brees with 32 sacks and they only allow 205 yards passing per game. I feel the Saints should win this one at home, but the 5.5 is just too good to give up in the year of the underdog.

Seattle Seahawks +5 over Philadelphia Eagles (3 units)

Ok, so this game just might be better than the previously mentioned one in Carolina vs. New Orleans, as it will be an interesting test to see how good the Eagles really are. First off they are playing at Seattle in primetime, and say what you want about Seahawks fans, but they certainly bring the noise better than almost any team in the league. The Eagles do have the best rushing defense in the league, but we all know that it is Russell Wilson that really makes the Seahawks go, and just remember he almost pulled that Falcons game out a few weeks ago. The Eagles can be had through the air, as they allow 227 yards passing per game. I have a feeling that Philly will stumble here, as going all the way across the country in primetime as five-point favorites is just a little too much. When in doubt, take the points.
- Note: All of our NFL picks against the spread will be centralized here.

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