The undefeated Kansas City Chiefs face their biggest challenge of the year as they visit the 8-1 Denver Broncos Sunday night. Coach Andy Reid has miraculously turned the Chiefs around with a 9-0 start. The Chiefs finished last season at 2-14.
Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos have nearly been unstoppable, as the Broncos offense has averaged over 41 points per game this season. The Broncos (8-1) only misstep this year was a loss at Indianapolis, Manning’s worst game by far.
The Chiefs wins haven’t been pretty, but they find a way. Las Vegas doesn’t have much confidence in Kansas City as the Chiefs find themselves as an 8-point underdog.
The Broncos have won 17 straight regular season games at home, but did lose last year in the playoffs to Baltimore at Sports Authority Field.
The Chiefs can’t afford to get behind in this game, they don’t have the offensive firepower to match the Broncos. Look for KC to control the ball and time of possession. Quarterback Alex Smith is 29-5-1 as an NFL starter. KC had an extra week to prepare, so look for them to stay close.
Sunday 1:00 PM
Atlanta Falcons (-1.5) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Matchup:The Tampa Bay Buccaneers got their first win Monday night against the Miami Dolphins and now welcome the disappointing Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons are now a dreadful 2-7. The trends for a team getting their first win this late in a season actually favor Tampa Bay in this one. The trend for Tampa Bay with their first win is 11-1 ATS.
Steve’s Pick: Bucs 24 Falcons 20
Dan’s Pick: Falcons 24 Bucs 16
Matt’s Pick: Falcons 24 Bucs 21
NY Jets at Buffalo Bills (-1)
Matchup:The Bills are off the Steelers loss and now have lost 3 in a row. The Jets are 5-4 and off a bye. Home team in Bills games are 11-1 ATS last 12. These two teams met back in September with the Jets taking that one 27-20 led by Geno Smith throwing for 331 yards.
Steve’s Pick: Jets 24 Bills 21
Dan’s Pick: Bills 23 Jets 20
Matt’s Pick: Jets 27 Bills 20
Detroit Lions at Pittsburgh Steelers (-2.5)
Matchup:The Lions won a thriller in Chicago last week, stopping the Bears on a 2-pt conversion late in game. The Steelers have struggled this year at 3-6, but did pick up the win last week against the Bills. A rare home dog spot for the Steelers, and Lions are 4-15 ATS as favorite on the road.
Steve’s Pick: Steelers 27 Lions 23
Dan’s Pick: Lions 28 Steelers 21
Matt’s Pick: Lions 30 Steelers 21
Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles (-3.5)
Matchup:These two teams met in week 1 where the Eagles got off to a big lead and held on to defeat the Redskins 33-27. The Eagles have won 2 in a row behind QB Nick Foles, and seem to be more comfortable with the Chip Kelly offense. Nick Foles has looked like Johnny Unitas of late, but now return to Philly where they’ve been awful. Philly is 2-14 ATS at home, and their last cover at home was in 2011.
Steve’s Pick: Redskins 33 Eagles 29
Dan’s Pick: Eagles 30 Redskins 23
Matt’s Pick: Eagles 31 Redskins 17
Baltimore Ravens at Chicago Bears (-3)
Matchup:Two struggling teams meet in Chicago, as the 4-5 Ravens take on the 5-4 Bears. The Ravens squeezed out an OT victory at home against the Bengals last week, while the Bears lost that tough one at the hands of the Lions. Weather could be a factor in this one as high winds are forcasted.
Steve’s Pick: Bears 20 Ravens 13
Dan’s Pick: Ravens 27 Bears 24
Matt’s Pick: Ravens 26 Bears 23
Cleveland Browns at Cincinnati Bengals (-6)
Matchup:The Cincinnati Bengals are off two tough OT losses to the Dolphins and Ravens. The Browns are off a bye following a win at home against the Ravens. The Browns beat Cincinnati earlier this year 17-6 at home. The favorite in this contest is 1-12 ATS the last six years.
Steve’s Pick: Bengals 24 Browns 20
Dan’s Pick: Bengals 33 Browns 20
Matt’s Pick: Browns 24 Bengals 21
Oakland Raiders at Houston Texans (-7)
Matchup:The Raiders will start undrafted quarterback Matt McGloin as Terrelle Pryor nurses a knee injury. The Houston Texans have lost 7 in a row, but have been installed here as a 7-point favorite. The Raiders have lost 2 in a row and are 3-6 overall.
Steve’s Pick: Texans 30 Raiders 13
Dan’s Pick: Texans 23 Raiders 14
Matt’s Pick: Texans 17 Raiders 9
Arizona Cardinals (-7) at Jacksonville Jaguars
Matchup:Another gem here at the Cardinals travel to Jacksonville. Arizona hasn’t been this big of a road favorite since 2009. The Jags got into the win column last week with a win at Tennessee. As with Tampa, the trends highly favor the Jaguars in this spot.
Steve’s Pick: Cardinals 27 Jaguars 24
Dan’s Pick: Cardinals 28 Jaguars 24
Matt’s Pick: Cardinals 20 Jaguars 10
Sunday 4:05 PM
San Diego (-1.5) at Miami Dolphins
Matchup:The recent controversy in Miami likely took its toll last week as Dolphins lost a tight one to the previously winless Buccaneers. San Diego is off a 28-20 loss to the Broncos at home, and now stand at 4-5. This will be the Chargers 5th visit to the Eastern time zone. They are 2-2 this season on trips to the east.
Steve’s Pick: Chargers 23 Dolphins 17
Dan’s Pick: Chargers 24 Dolphins 20
Matt’s Pick: Chargers 24 Dolphins 17
Sunday 4:25 PM
San Francisco at New Orleans (-3)
Matchup:The 49ers return to New Orleans for the first time since February when they lost the Super Bowl to the Baltimore Ravens. The 49ers had won 5 in a row prior to falling last week to the Panthers 10-9. The Saints are off an easy win at home against the Cowboys 49-17, and look strong with a 7-2 record. Saints have covered 14 straight under coach Payton.
Steve’s Pick: Saints 33 49ers 20
Dan’s Pick: Saints 34 49ers 30
Matt’s Pick: 49ers 26 Saints 24
Minnesota Vikings at Seattle Seahawks (-12.5)
Matchup:The Vikings picked up a rare win 10 days ago against the Redskins 34-27. After two close games against the Rams and Bucs, the Seattle Seahawks won going away last week in Atlanta 33-10. The Seahawks lead the NFC with a 9-1 record. The Seahawks do have their bye next week.
Steve’s Pick: Seahawks 34 Vikings 17
Dan’s Pick: Seahawks 31 Vikings 14
Matt’s Pick: Seahawks 24 Vikings 14
Green Bay Packers at New York Giants (-5.5)
Matchup:What a difference an All-Pro quarterback makes in the NFL. The Packers struggled mightily in loss last week against the Eagles at home. The Packers were without their star quarterback Aaron Rodgers who was out with a fractured collarbone. The Packers will start former practice player Scott Tolzien. The New York Giants started the season 0-6, but have now put together 3 straight wins. Every game now a must win for the Giants. New York faces Dallas next week.
Steve’s Pick: Giants 27 Packers 17
Dan’s Pick: Giants 28 Packers 21
Matt’s Pick: Giants 16 Packers 13
Sunday 8:30 PM
Kansas City at Denver Broncos (-8)
Matchup:This is the big one. The undefeated Kansas City Chiefs travel to Denver to face 8-1 Broncos. Vegas is not giving the Chiefs much respect as KC is an 8-point underdog. Be careful with this one. Andy Reid is an amazing 14-1 SU off a bye. They will likely need to score some points to hang with Denver, so the extra week to prepare can only help.
Steve’s Pick: Broncos 27 Chiefs 20
Dan’s Pick: Broncos 34 Chiefs 24
Matt’s Pick: Chiefs 35 Broncos 32
Monday 8:40 PM
New England Patriots at Carolina Panthers (-2.5)
Matchup:This has turned into a marque Monday night matchup as the 6-3 Carolina Panthers host the 7-2 New England Patriots. The Panthers have been red hot, winning 5 in a row. The Patriots are off a bye, giving Belichick the extra time to prepare for the Panthers. Normally this would be a flat spot for team off a big road win, as the Panthers beat the 49ers, but not likely on primetime against the Patriots.
Steve’s Pick: Panthers 23 Patriots 16
Dan’s Pick: Patriots 30 Panthers 20
Matt’s Pick: Patriots 36 Panthers 28
ATS Season Results
Dan 58-74-5
Matt 47-58-5
Steve 53-79-5
Images via NFL.com
