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| Matty-Ice and the Falcons are flying high. (AP) |
With the exception of one game, it's easy to see most all of this week's games going to the underdog. That made it particularly hard for the Stubborn OXen to pick their poison and it didn't take more than a last second field goal in Tennessee on Thursday night to begin gumming up the words.
We'll start with any easy one, but it's likely that Austen and Stally will soon be back to disagreeing with one another one many of the other games.
Austen's Seven-Point Pick - @Atlanta over Oakland
Austen: Well since I had no time this weekend to get to these picks, I will be reviewing my picks with a whole lot of hindsight. Here it goes. I did not think there was anyway the Falcons would lose to home to one of the worst teams in the league who were going to have to travel 2500 miles for this one, and I was right, but barely. The Falcons squeaked out a win and got me my seven points this week.
Stally: This is a pretty clear pick. The Falcons are very good, even better at home, and Oakland isn't any good anywhere.
Stally's Seven-Point Pick - @San Francisco over New York-G
Stally: This is the second week in a row that an early pick has induced a "reaaaaly!?" out of Austen (last week it was New England over Denver). That's not to say Austen isn't in agreement, he just sees it as an over-draft. Muffed Kyle Williams punts aside, I don't see much of a way the Giants win this one on the road, so I'm taking the 49ers first because I'm more confident they'll win that most any of the other offerings.
Austen: Well Stally was straight up dead wrong. The Giants surprised the nation on this one. I thought there was a chance they would pull off a win, but I do not think anyone could have predicted that they were going to dominate the 49ers the way they did. They made the 9ers look like the team they were before Jim Harbaugh came to town (and while Stally was working for this sorry franchise). Bravo Giants, bravo.
Austen's Six-Point Pick - Pittsburgh over @Tennessee
Austen: Well it took three injured lineman and two injured running backs for the Titans to win this game. Ben Roethlisberger also failed on a third down attempt at the end of the game which would have basically sealed the victory for the Black and Yellow, which is highly uncharacteristic. I'm still shocked they lost this one, but obviously I over drafted this one.
Stally: Austen was shocked I passed on this game with my first pick. A 26-23 Titans win shows why. I certainly thought the Steelers would win, but I don't think they're all that great and a Thursday night game on the road had all the makings of a possible upset.
Stally's Six-Point Pick - @Arizona over Buffalo
Stally: This sucks. I really didn't want to take this, but I couldn't find any better option, because you know what sucks more than using six points on Arizona? ... The Buffalo Bills on the road! Arizona is also a very strong home team, so this one shouldn't feature many surprises.
Austen: This was another shocked for me. The Cardinals could not get anything going against this defense that allowed 97 points over the last two games. That is not a good sign for things to come for this 4-2 team. They need to right the ship before it goes down for good.
Austen's Five-Point Pick - @Tampa Bay over Kansas City
Austen: What Stally seems to forget is that Brady Quinn is just awful. He got run out of his home state while playing for a franchise that has not had a decent quarterback since the 70s (a time in which they were actually a different franchise than this Browns organization, but that's a story for another time). He could not even compete with Kyle Orton or Tim Tebow in Denver. What has he done in the NFL that inspires any confidence in him? Nothing. Throw in the fact that the Chiefs are playing some of the worst football in the NFL this season and you have a clear favorite in the Bucs. The Chiefs at home are always tough, but these Chiefs on the road are a cake walk.
Stally: I actually have Kansas City. Not with a whole lot of confidence, but as much as I like Matt Cassel, I think a change at QB will inject a new mentality.
Stally's Five-Point Pick - New England over @Seattle
Stally: Don't get me wrong, I have plenty of blind faith in my Patriots. However, I also respect the 12th Man of the Seattle Seahawks and understand the Pats could struggle in this road game. All things considered, can I see Russell Wilson beating Tom Brady? No, I can't.
Austen: Stally clearly had a rough week. I had the Patriots, but I had this game pretty low on my list. The Patriots struggle against physical teams and that's why they are 3-3 this season. I'm not sure when Bill Belichick lost his mojo on defense, but these players cannot stop anyone, especially when it matters most.
Austen's Four-Point Pick - @Baltimore over Dallas
Austen: This one was a lot closer than I thought it would be, but the Cowboys, much like the Patriots this year, cannot close out games. I don't know what it is about the makeup of this team, but they always find a way to lose. To me that is bad coaching, but something needs to change in Big D.
Stally: I could definitely see Dallas winning, as they are a good team, but the Ravens at home? Yeah, I can't disagree with this selection.
Stally's Four-Point Pick - @San Diego over Denver
Stally: I'm definitely not feeling good using this many points on an enigma like San Diego. However, this Denver team is vastly overrated. It continually digs itself into huge holes against the respectable teams in the league and I think that the Chargers offense at home will put the Broncos in a similar hole as they've seen in their three losses to Atlanta, Houston and New England.
Austen: Stally again gets beat up on this one. Blowing a 24 point halftime lead does not even begin to explain this one. The Chargers allowed 35 unanswered points in the second half. This was the worst second half melt down of all time (only once has a team blown a 24 point lead and the Chargers are now the only team to have blown a 24 point lead to lose by double digits). Peyton Manning was flawless in this second half, but he had a whole lot of help from the Chargers. Phillip Rivers turned the ball over six times (five times in the second half) and simply looked like a grumpy school child. He was pouty and had no energy. His bad attitude effected the entire team and cost this team the game. There is plenty of blame to go around, but Rivers, Norv Turner, and A.J. Smith should take the majority of the criticism for this one. A lack of motivation, game planning, and talent very well might keep the Chargers out of the playoffs yet again.
Austen's Three-Point Pick - Cincinnati over @Cleveland
Austen: Another shocker in my book. Trent Richardson goes down and the Browns win their first game of the season? How did that happen? I'll tell you: Brandon Weeden outplayed Andy Dalton (I never saw that coming) and Josh Gordon is a legit receiving threat (I don't think anyone saw that one coming). If that defense can keep causing turnovers and Richardson can get healthy, this might be a team that continues to upset teams better than them. The Steelers and Ravens better take note because they might not have the Browns to beat on anymore.
Stally: I like Cleveland in the battle for Ohio only because they're at home. I think it's fair to realize the Bengals aren't that great and while the Browns are the worst team in the league, it'd be unfair to devalue a rivalry game like this.
Stally's Three-Point Pick - @Houston over Green Bay
Stally: Let's just accept that this Packers team isn't the one it was last season. Greg Jennings might not play, Jermichael Finley might not either, and it's time to stop expecting the 15-1 reigning champions to walk out that tunnel.
Austen: Wrong again. This team is just adjusting to life without Greg Jennings. Aaron Rodgers is still the best quarterback in the league, and the Texans defensive backfield is not playing so well. They let Jeremy Kerley get open constantly when they played the Jets and he was the only receiver that they had to worry about, so Rodgers tearing this defense a new one was no surprise by me. In the NFL, it's all about matchups and how can you exploit the other team's weaknesses. The Packers found the Texans' achilles heel and bashed the hell out of it.
Austen's Two-Point Pick - @New York-J over Indianapolis
Austen: I love Andrew Luck, but he still relies heavily Reggie Wayne for his production, mostly because the rest of the offense is garbage. With Wayne facing up against Antonio Cromartie, who has been the best cornerback in the NFL this season, I knew that Luck would struggle. Donald Brown being injured only makes matters worse. This defense is terrible, so I knew that even this battered Jets team was more talented than this Colts team. Cro shut down Wayne and Shonn Greene put this entire offense on his back.
Stally: I got the Colts. I think they're a team on a mission and I just don't have that much respect for the Jets. Andrew Luck looks better and better each game.
Stally's Two-Point Pick - Minnesota over @Washington
Stally: It does sound like Robert Griffin III will play this weekend. However, it really comes down to this: Minnesota is actually a good team and Washington not. End ... of ... story.
Austen: Washington might not be a great team, but they are solid and the Vikings are highly overrated due to their record. This offense has very few weapons and their defense lacks any real playmakers besides Jared Allen. RG3 was a one man wrecking machine all day long and this was why I have never been so excited for a rookie player in my entire life. Good job Mike Shanahan in making that trade happen with the Rams to get this all star. Oh, I had the Redskins in this one. I kinda like RG3.
Austen's One-Point Pick - St. Louis over @Miami
Austen: The Rams and Titans always screw me. Whenever I go against them, they pull off a huge upset. Whenever I think they will be consistent and knock off a mediocre team, they fail me. I can't win with these two. Also I hate admitting that the Dolphins are actually putting a solid team together. That just disgusts me.
Stally: I'm taking the Dolphins because I think the Rams are a completely different team at home in the dome than they are on the road. Of course, I could flip a coin on this one and go with whatever side it landed on.
Stally's One-Point Pick - Detroit over @Philadelphia
Stally: There's a certain rule that states that teams will regress to their mean over the course of the season. The Eagles are -19 in point differential this season, the Lions are -14. Philly is better than it should be at 3-2, Detroit is worse than it should be at 1-3. This is a perfect game for the regression to the mean to prove itself.
Austen: I had the Lions as well. The only reason I took the Rams ahead of this game is because for some reason I thought Stally would take the Eagles at home. The Lions defense is still horrendous, but Vick just loves to turn the ball over. Also the Lions offense can make up for a lot despite not having a run game or an offensive line. I think both of these teams are headed to a 8-8 record.
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