Monday, November 25, 2013

NFL 2013: Week 12 Picks

We had it working in picking the locals with a Jets loss being the only thing stopping us from a clean 4-0 week in picking the winners and picking against the spread.  Overall, we were 10-5 straight up, but only 6-9 against the spread.  Add in the Start ‘Em team’s fifth straight win and a win in the Knockout Pool, and it was a good week.

JOIN US!

It is never too late to join and see how you measure up against me and other listeners who participate.  You can enter your picks and join the groups I created for the show.  The winner will be touted on the Saturday show and, if you top the charts, you could even call in to give me your picks!  Here is how:

Game
Goal
Where to Play
Group to Join
Eliminator Challenge
Pick 1 winner per week, no repeat picks (a.k.a. Knockout Pool)
Pigskin Pick’Em (Straight Up)
Pick a winner for each game, every week
Pigskin Pick’Em (Against the Spread)
Pick a winner against the point spread for each game, every week
NFL Gridiron Challenge
Pick a team of players with a $50 million salary cap

KNOCKOUT POOL/ESPN.com ELIMINATOR CHALLENGE

We got back on track in Week 11 with the Giants, joining in their resurgence.  They defeated Green Bay and their third-string quarterback convincingly, 27-13, to help me to move to 8-3 on the season in Knockout picks.  But, we can only use them once.  And, they are playing against a starting quarterback in Tony Romo this week.

This week’s pick: Detroit defeating Tampa Bay

We have reached the time of the season where it is getting tough to find a good matchup for a team you have not picked all year.  We managed to get the most popular Knockout pick on ESPN.com, which is Detroit at home over Tampa Bay.  Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson at home against an improved Buccaneers team, which includes Darrelle Revis.  I think it will be a close game, but I think Detroit comes out a winner.

PAST PICKS
Week 1: Tampa Bay (L at NYJ)
Week 2: Cincinnati (W vs. PIT)
Week 3: Minnesota (L vs. CLE)
Week 4: Indianapolis (W at JAX)
Week 5: St. Louis (W vs. JAX)
Week 6: Denver (W vs. JAX)
Week 7: Green Bay (W vs. CLE)
Week 8: New Orleans (W vs. BUF)
Week 9: Seattle (W vs. TBY)
Week 10: Tennessee (L vs. JAX)
Week 11: N.Y. Giants (W vs. GBY)

GAME PICKS/ESPN.com PIGSKIN PICK ‘EM

Here are the game picks for this week.  We talk about the local games and the three of the other most important games, our “Big Games”, on our weekly This Week in Fantasy Sports segment on Saturdays, but we pick every game, every week here on the blog.  New this year is the listing of our Preseason picks we made for our NFL Preview series on the show.  This will give you an idea on what I thought of each team before the season and what I am thinking of each team during the season.

ALL GAMES

RESULTS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
SEASON
96-66 (.593)
68-94 (.420)
95-67 (.586)
LAST WEEK (Week 11)
10-5
6-9
11-4

LOCAL GAMES

RESULTS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
SEASON
19-18
13-24
18-19
LAST WEEK (Week 11)
3-1
3-1
2-2
WEEK 12 LOCAL GAME PICKS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
N.Y. Jets at Baltimore (Sunday 1pm)
BAL
BAL (-3.5)
BAL
Dallas at N.Y. Giants (Sunday 4pm)
NYG
NYG (-2.5)
NYG
Denver at New England (Sunday night)
DEN
DEN (-2.5)
DEN

BIG GAMES

RESULTS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
SEASON
17-16
15-18
17-16
LAST WEEK (Week 11)
2-1
0-3
3-0
WEEK 12 BIG GAME PICKS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
San Diego at Kansas City (Sunday 1pm)
KCY
KCY (-5.5)
KCY
Pittsburgh at Cleveland (Sunday 1pm)
PIT
PIT (+2.5)
PIT
Indianapolis at Arizona (Sunday 4pm)
IND
IND (+2.5)
IND

OTHER GAMES

LAST WEEK’S RESULTS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
SEASON
61-32
41-52
60-33
LAST WEEK (Week 11)
6-3
4-5
6-3
WEEK 12 OTHER GAME PICKS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
New Orleans at Atlanta (+8.5)
NO
ATL (+8.5)
ATL
Tampa Bay at Detroit (-9.5)
DET
TBY (+9.5)
TBY
Minnesota at Green Bay (-4.5)
GBY
GBY (-4.5)
GBY
Jacksonville at Houston (-10.5)
HOU
JAX (+10.5)
HOU
Carolina at Miami (+4.5)
CAR
CAR (-4.5)
MIA
Chicago at St. Louis (-1.5)
CHI
CHI (+1.5)
CHI
Tennessee at Oakland (-1.5)
OAK
OAK (-1.5)
OAK
San Francisco at Washington (+5.5)
SFO
SFO (-5.5)
SFO

START ‘EM/ANTI-START ‘EM/ESPN.com GRIDIRON CHALLENGE

We are participating in the ESPN Gridiron Challenge on ESPN.com again this season.  The object is to pick the best team possible with a $50 million salary cap.  The salary cap moves up if the value of your players increases.  However, we have added another wrinkle.  The object of the ESPN.com is to buy low and sell high and the more you accomplish that, the more money you get in your salary cap.  My goal is to put together a nine-man unit (2 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 K, 1 DEF) that is better than another nine-man unit at a similar price.

The Start ‘Em team crossed the century mark for the fifth week in a row in the 129-112 Week 11 victory and, coincidentally, they ran their winning streak to five games to stand at 7-4 for the season against the Anti-Start ‘Em team.  The teams were even for the most part and the biggest advantage was in the second quarterback position, as Carson Palmer scored 32 points for the Start ‘Em team compared to 24 points for Anti-Start ‘Em quarterback Alex Smith.

WEEK 1: Head-to-Head – L, 100-137; By Position: 2-7
WEEK 2: Head-to-Head – L, 86-116; By Position: 3-5-1
WEEK 3: Head-to-Head – W, 114-95; By Position: 6-3
WEEK 4: Head-to-Head – W, 118-48; By Position: 7-2
WEEK 5: Head-to-Head – L, 116-128; By Position: 6-2-1
WEEK 6: Head-to-Head – L, 81-102; By Position: 4-5
WEEK 7: Head-to-Head – W, 125-94; By Position: 5-3-1
WEEK 8: Head-to-Head – W, 117-86; By Position: 5-4
WEEK 9: Head-to-Head – W, 181-165; By Position: 5-2-2
WEEK 10: Head-to-Head – W, 119-61; By Position: 6-3
WEEK 11: Head-to-Head – W, 129-112; By Position: 5-3-1
SEASON: 7-4 W-L (.636), 1286 PF, 1144 PA (52.9% of points), 54-39-6 by position (.576)

Here is the Week 12 entry in the Gridrion Challenge, our “Start ‘Em” team, along with our comparable “Anti-Start ‘Em” team, which is our “opponent” for the week.

 (all dollar figures in millions)

Start ‘Em Team

POS

Anti-Start ‘Em Team

Peyton Manning DEN ($7.8)
QB
Robert Griffin III WSH ($6.7)
Mike Glennon TBY ($5.3)
QB
Philip Rivers SDG ($6.1)
Jamaal Charles KCY ($7.7)
RB
Alfred Morris WSH ($7.3)
Andre Brown NYG ($5.6)
RB
Chris Johnson TEN ($6.9)
Demaryius Thomas DEN ($7.4)
WR
Wes Welker DEN ($6.7)
Marques Colston NO ($5.4)
WR
Antonio Brown PIT ($6.5)
Rob Gronkowski NE ($6.3)
TE
Charles Clay MIA ($5.7)
Robbie Gould CHI ($4.8)
K
Shaun Suisham PIT ($5)
Carolina Panthers CAR ($5.9)
DEF
New England Patriots NE ($5.4)
$56.2 million

$56.3 million


Catch me on "Sports With The StatMan" on Wednesdays at 11pm ET and Saturdays at 11am ET. We'll break down these picks and look ahead to next week on our This Week in Fantasy Sports segment, Saturday morning at 11am ET.

Monday, November 18, 2013

NFL 2013: Week 11 Picks

We said goodbye to our six-game Knockout Pool streak in Week 10, but we were great in picking the local games and the biggest games on the schedule.  Against the spread, we were a perfect 5-0 in picking the two local games and the three big games, while we were 4-1 straight up.  Our “Start ‘Em” team went on to its fourth win in a row against the “Anti-Start” team, which pushed our record to 6-4 on the season.

JOIN US!

It is never too late to join and see how you measure up against me and other listeners who participate.  You can enter your picks and join the groups I created for the show.  The winner will be touted on the Saturday show and, if you top the charts, you could even call in to give me your picks!  Here is how:

Game
Goal
Where to Play
Group to Join
Eliminator Challenge
Pick 1 winner per week, no repeat picks (a.k.a. Knockout Pool)
Pigskin Pick’Em (Straight Up)
Pick a winner for each game, every week
Pigskin Pick’Em (Against the Spread)
Pick a winner against the point spread for each game, every week
NFL Gridiron Challenge
Pick a team of players with a $50 million salary cap

KNOCKOUT POOL/ESPN.com ELIMINATOR CHALLENGE

Our six-game winning streak in the Knockout Pool is over and spoiled by a team that helped us more than any other team to put together that streak: Jacksonville.  The Jaguars earned their first win of the season and it was on the road against Tennessee.  We are now 7-3 in Knockout Pool picks.

This week’s pick: N.Y. Giants defeating Green Bay

This would be laughable a few weeks ago, when the Giants were winless and the Packers had Aaron Rodgers as their starting quarterback.  But, times have changed.  Also, the Giants have shown a proclivity for beating teams with backup quarterbacks (see: Vikings, Eagles) and bad quarterbacks (see: Raiders).  The Packers are on their third starting quarterback in as many weeks with Scott Tolzien taking over this week.  I am taking the Giants to help me get back on the winning track.

PAST PICKS
Week 1: Tampa Bay (L at NYJ)
Week 2: Cincinnati (W vs. PIT)
Week 3: Minnesota (L vs. CLE)
Week 4: Indianapolis (W at JAX)
Week 5: St. Louis (W vs. JAX)
Week 6: Denver (W vs. JAX)
Week 7: Green Bay (W vs. CLE)
Week 8: New Orleans (W vs. BUF)
Week 9: Seattle (W vs. TBY)
Week 10: Tennessee (L vs. JAX)

GAME PICKS/ESPN.com PIGSKIN PICK ‘EM

Here are the game picks for this week.  We talk about the local games and the three of the other most important games, our “Big Games”, on our weekly This Week in Fantasy Sports segment on Saturdays, but we pick every game, every week here on the blog.  New this year is the listing of our Preseason picks we made for our NFL Preview series on the show.  This will give you an idea on what I thought of each team before the season and what I am thinking of each team during the season.

ALL GAMES

RESULTS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
SEASON
86-61 (.585)
62-85 (.422)
84-63 (.571)
LAST WEEK (Week 10)
8-6
9-5
8-6

LOCAL GAMES

RESULTS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
SEASON
16-17
10-23
16-17
LAST WEEK (Week 10)
2-0
2-0
1-1
WEEK 11 LOCAL GAME PICKS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
N.Y. Jets at Buffalo (Sunday 1pm)
NYJ
NYJ (+1.5)
BUF
Washington at Philadelphia (Sunday 1pm)
PHL
PHL (-3.5)
WSH
Green Bay at N.Y. Giants (Sunday 4pm)
NYG
NYG (-6.5)
NYG
New England at Carolina (Monday night)
CAR
CAR (-2.5)
NE

BIG GAMES

RESULTS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
SEASON
15-15
15-15
14-16
LAST WEEK (Week 10)
2-1
3-0
2-1
WEEK 11 BIG GAME PICKS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
Baltimore at Chicago (Sunday 1pm)
CHI
BAL (+2.5)
CHI
San Francisco at New Orleans (Sunday 4pm)
NO
NO (-3.5)
NO
Kansas City at Denver (Sunday night)
DEN
KCY (+8.5)
DEN

OTHER GAMES

LAST WEEK’S RESULTS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
SEASON
55-29
37-47
54-30
LAST WEEK (Week 10)
4-5
4-5
5-4
WEEK 11 OTHER GAME PICKS
Straight Up
Against the Spread
Preseason SU
Indianapolis at Tennessee (Thursday night)
IND
IND (-3.5)
IND
Cleveland at Cincinnati (Sunday 1pm)
CIN
CLE (+6.5)
CIN
Atlanta at Tampa Bay (Sunday 1pm)
TBY
TBY (+1.5)
TBY
Arizona at Jacksonville (Sunday 1pm)
ARZ
ARZ (-6.5)
JAX
Oakland at Houston (Sunday 1pm)
HOU
HOU (-6.5)
HOU
Detroit at Pittsburgh (Sunday 1pm)
DET
DET (-2.5)
PIT
San Diego at Miami (Sunday 4pm)
SDG
SDG (-1.5)
MIA
Minnesota at Seattle (Sunday 4pm)
SEA
SEA (-13.5)
SEA

START ‘EM/ANTI-START ‘EM/ESPN.com GRIDIRON CHALLENGE

We are participating in the ESPN Gridiron Challenge on ESPN.com again this season.  The object is to pick the best team possible with a $50 million salary cap.  The salary cap moves up if the value of your players increases.  However, we have added another wrinkle.  The object of the ESPN.com is to buy low and sell high and the more you accomplish that, the more money you get in your salary cap.  My goal is to put together a nine-man unit (2 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 K, 1 DEF) that is better than another nine-man unit at a similar price.

This was as dominating a win as we have had all season in Week 10, as the Start ‘Em team won, 119-61.  Even though the positional matchups was only won by a 6-3 count, the three losses were very close.  Case Keenum outdueled our Carson Palmer, 20-18, Torrey Smith edged our Jordy Nelson, 8-5, and neither their Greg Olsen or our Vernon Davis was startable in Week 10, as we lost that matchup, 2-1.  Demaryius Thomas (28 points) and Russell Wilson (27) led the way for the Start ‘Ems, and Pierre Thomas (20) made it a trio of 20-point scorers.  The Anti-Start ‘Ems Keenum was the only 20-point producer for the losers.

WEEK 1: Head-to-Head – L, 100-137; By Position: 2-7
WEEK 2: Head-to-Head – L, 86-116; By Position: 3-5-1
WEEK 3: Head-to-Head – W, 114-95; By Position: 6-3
WEEK 4: Head-to-Head – W, 118-48; By Position: 7-2
WEEK 5: Head-to-Head – L, 116-128; By Position: 6-2-1
WEEK 6: Head-to-Head – L, 81-102; By Position: 4-5
WEEK 7: Head-to-Head – W, 125-94; By Position: 5-3-1
WEEK 8: Head-to-Head – W, 117-86; By Position: 5-4
WEEK 9: Head-to-Head – W, 181-165; By Position: 5-2-2
WEEK 10: Head-to-Head – W, 119-61; By Position: 6-3
SEASON: 6-4 W-L (.556), 1157 PF, 1032 PA (52.9% of points), 49-36-5 by position (.562)

Here is the Week 11 entry in the Gridrion Challenge, our “Start ‘Em” team, along with our comparable “Anti-Start ‘Em” team, which is our “opponent” for the week.

 (all dollar figures in millions)

Start ‘Em Team

POS

Anti-Start ‘Em Team

Russell Wilson SEA ($6.5)
QB
Colin Kaepernick SFO ($6)
Carson Palmer ARZ ($5.5)
QB
Alex Smith KCY ($5.2)
Marshawn Lynch SEA ($7.2)
RB
LeSean McCoy PHL ($7.4)
Danny Woodhead SDG ($5.7)
RB
Stevan Ridley NE ($6.4)
Victor Cruz NYG ($5.9)
WR
Eric Decker DEN ($6.1)
Marques Colston NO ($5.3)
WR
Hakeem Nicks NYG ($5.4)
Julius Thomas DEN ($6.4)
TE
Vernon Davis SFO ($6.2)
Stephen Gostkowski NE ($5.4)
K
Mason Crosby GBY ($5.1)
Houston Texans HOU ($4.0)
DEF
Minnesota Vikings MIN ($4.1)
$51.9 million
TOTAL
$51.9 million


Catch me on "Sports With The StatMan" on Wednesdays at 11pm ET and Saturdays at 11am ET. We'll break down these picks and look ahead to next week on our This Week in Fantasy Sports segment, Saturday morning at 11am ET.

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