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| Dak Prescott has the Cowboys looking up. |
No, not the Cowboys, although they're back too. But after a hiatus for Austen's move to a new apartment and Stally's trip football trip to Carolina (Gamecocks and Panthers), the Stubborn OXen boys are back for Week 9.
Oh yeah, and we have Round 2 of our fantasy head-to-head in our famous keeper league too, so that should be interesting.
Here are our picks:
Stally's Seven-Point Pick
@Green Bay over Indianapolis
Stally: I'm not ready to tout the Packers as one of the league's best. There are flaws, and there are no running backs in Green Bay. However, the Colts are a mess right now, and the Pack is good enough to win this one easily at home.
Austen: The Colts' defense is non-existent and Aaron Rodgers is back to looking like, well, Aaron Rodgers. This should be a blowout.
Austen's Seven-Point Pick
@Kansas City over Jacksonville
Austen: This is my top pick of the week, despite the fact that the Chiefs are down their starting quarterback (Alex Smith), their top two running backs (Spencer Ware and Jamaal Charles), and possibly their top wide receiver (Jeremy Maclin). Oh how the Jags have fallen off since being the offseason darlings. I had the Jags winning the AFC South in the preseason, so this shows you how far they have fallen out of my favor. Although, that division is still 100% up for grabs.
Stally: Yes, the Jags could still manage to win that division, but it's unlikely they win this game. The only pause for concern for the Chiefs is the afore mentioned abundance of injuries.
Stally's Six-Point Pick
Dallas over @Cleveland
Stally: The Browns just keep losing ... and Dak Prescott and the Cowboys just keeps winning.
Austen: This matchup features two rookie quarterbacks going against each other, neither of them expected to play at all this season. Despite Cody Kessler looking good in a bad situation, the Browns have to be kicking themselves for taking him over rookie sensation Dak Prescott. They will get a close up look at what they could have had.
Austen's Six-Point Pick
New Orleans over @San Francisco
Austen: Any game that Carlos Hyde misses is a game in which the 49ers are the less talented team. The 49ers might be the least talented team with Carlos Hyde, so this matchup with a surging Saints team is a big time mismatch. The Saints will get an early lead and the 49ers do not have enough offensive weapons (do they have any offensive weapons?) to play catchup. This should be the least watchable game of the week.
Stally: My hope is that Drew Brees throws for at least four TDs so I can beat Austen in our fantasy matchup. Saints win going away.
Stally's Five-Point Pick
Atlanta over @Tampa Bay
Stally: I got this one correct on Thursday night. I had thought the Bucs would put up some sort of fight, but they put up none at all.
Austen: These are two teams going in opposite directions. The Bucs were a middle-of-the-road team before they were hit with a slew of injuries. The fact that they are mostly on the offensive side of the ball shows in Jameis Winston's struggles. The Falcons feature a quarterback who is leading the race for the MVP of the league.
Austen's Five-Point Pick
Carolina over @Los Angeles
Austen: The Panthers' domination of a weakened Cardinals team is just what the doctor ordered. Can they keep it going against a Rams team that has looked more like the NFC West bottom dweller that we expected than the team that knocked off the Cardinals and Seahawks early in the season? I think they keep it rolling and make a strong playoff push.
Stally: I had the chance to see that Panthers game in person. I can verify: yes, they look like the Panthers we saw make the Super Bowl last year. This game shouldn't be much of a contest.
Stally's Four-Point Pick
@San Diego over Tennessee
Stally: I might be underselling the Titans, as I haven't believed in them much this season, despite a respectable 4-4 record. But, I'll continue to underrate until they truly prove me otherwise. Chargers win at home.
Austen: Shockingly, both these teams could be competing against each other at the end of the season for the final AFC Wild Card spot. This game will show us who these teams really are, as both have been playing improved football over the last few weeks.
Austen's Four-Point Pick
Pittsburgh over @Baltimore
Austen: John Harbaugh is a top-five coach in the NFL, but he cannot keep a roster this devoid of talent afloat for long. The Steelers might be working with a less than 100% Big Ben, but they are a far and away better team than the Ravens. I'll side with the talent.
Stally: Big Ben is officially playing. The Steelers are good. The Ravens aren't. What Austen said is spot on.
Stally's Three-Point Pick
@Minnesota over Detroit
Stally: The Vikings don't look like the Super Bowl favorite of a few weeks ago when they were 5-0 and rolling, but after two straight losses, I'm expecting them to right the ship (pun intended) at home in this one.
Austen: Matt Stafford is playing the best football of his career. Sam Bradford is back to looking confused behind the worst offensive line in the NFL. I'll take Detroit in a close one, with Stafford being a late game hero.
Austen's Three-Point Pick
@Seattle over Buffalo
Austen: This is the time of the year that the true Bills usually show up. A.k.a., they start playing poorly. Going into Seattle and coming away with a win is no easy task for the most talented teams in the league, so I just have a hard time seeing a banged up Bills team pulling off the feat.
Stally: Let's not discredit the Bills too much. This is the fourth-to-last game we picked, and if it was Week 1, it probably would have been the first one off the board. I agree that the Seahawks are the correct pick, but I don't know where the negativity toward Buffalo is coming from considering we're in Coin Flip Land at this point.
Stally's Two-Point Pick
Philadelphia over @New York Giants
Stally: The Eagles have failed to impress since a 3-0 start, but I'm not totally giving up on them yet. All of their losses have been within seven points, including a one-point loss and an overtime loss. I think they're better than the Giants and that they win this one.
Austen: Second Stally pick in a row I disagree with. Neither of these teams are particularly good football teams. The Giants offense is solid and the Eagles defensive is solid, but the other side of the ball for each team is failing to live up to the hype. I'll side with the home team and the team with the best player on the field (Odell Beckham Jr.).
Austen's Two-Point Pick
@Oakland over Denver
Austen: Before the season, I was touting the Raiders and Jags as two new division leaders. One outta two ain't all that bad, right? I'll stick with the Raiders staying hot against a Broncos team missing their best cornerback (Aqib Talib). This is unquestionably the game of the week. However, I'll wait to see how this one goes before I say Stally's Patriots need to be worried about the #2 team in the AFC coming for them.
Stally: Yeah, I'm not worried about either of these teams bettering the Patriots, but I am excited for this benchmark game. I'm going to take the experience of the Broncos, who are used to being good, in what I could see being a three-point differential in final score.
Stally's One-Point Pick
New York Jets over @Miami
Stally: Who cares? But, yeah, I took the Jets because I think they're slightly more talented.
Austen: Neither of these teams are going anywhere fast. Both are streaky and not very talented, so anyone's guess is as good as mine as who will come away with a W in this one.
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