It’s a weird scenario in which the NFL takes a back seat to Major League Baseball, but tonight will mark the second time this week that it has happened. The Dodgers vs. Mets series has been elevated since the hot button items of the series moving to Citi Field after Chase Utley’s cowardly and dirty takeout of Ruben Tejada. It was more must-watch theatre than a mediocre Steelers vs. Chargers game was on Monday night. (The game may have had a good finish, but no one gets excited about a game that’s 7-3 at halftime.) Tonight we have Game 5 of the same NLDS series and it goes against the Falcons vs. Saints game. The over/under of 51 indicates that Vegas is expecting a high-scoring affair, but I’m not sure even that can take the attention away from deGrom vs. Grienke. We do still have to pick the games though.
Survivor Pick of the Week:
GREEN BAY over San Diego
It sure has been a weird survivor season. We’ve had two epic weeks of defeats. Kansas City’s meltdown against Chicago last week was quite epic because I’m sure most Chiefs backers thought they were save when Kansas City attempted a field goal in the third quarter up 17-3. Even they thought nothing of the field goal block. Next thing they knew, smoking Jay Cutler was sticking the tomb in their survivor grave. They do call it a survivor pool after all and those still alive have surely survived.
You’re taking the Packers this week because San Diego is coming in on a short week off a heart-breaking loss. Their offensive line is decimated and the Packers are second in the league in sacks. Green Bay hasn’t just won its first five games, but they’ve covered the spread in all of them. They’re winning and winning with general ease. I don’t mind the Jets if you want to go with them. It’s a slightly different spot than when the Jets lost to the Eagles at home because Washington is slightly worse than Philadelphia on both sides of the ball. Ryan Fitzpatrick is always liable to have a bad game, but it’s fair to assume Brandon Marshall won’t try to lateral the ball again. The Patriots can always be taken, especially in a deflate-gate hate game, but you probably want to save them. I’m not sure you can trust Seattle with the way they look right now, but they should be able to handle Carolina.
Thursday Night Pick:
Atlanta -3.5 over NEW ORLEANS
This game would’ve been a lot more fun a couple of years ago when both teams had high-powered offenses. Now only the Falcons have one and its best offensive player is beat up with a hamstring concern. That might not matter for Atlanta this week because the Saints are just that bad. Consider this: New Orleans has given up 26 points or more to quarterbacks not named Brandon Weeden. That’s pretty piss poor. They also just got gashed for 186 rushing yards by Philadelphia and now face Atlanta’s #2 ranked rushing offenses according to Football Outsiders. There’s no hope for the Saints defense right now.
On the other side of the ball, don’t be confused by Drew Brees’ recent play. He’s not back. He’s dinking and dunking more than ever down the field and his numbers have been augmented by a fluky overtime touchdown pass to C.J. Spiller and a garbage time drive and touchdown to Brandin Cooks. Brees is struggling because his shoulder can’t work in the same way it used to with the recent injury. He’s struggling because the team traded away his favorite receiver without a suitable replacement. It’s obvious New Orleans is a league-average offense now haven’t only scored 37 points in regulation during their last two games.
J.Camm’s Pick: New Orleans
Last Week: 5-8-1
Season: 41-34-3
Locks: 11-4
Survivor: 3-2
JCamm: 39-36-3