Week 7: Rest or Recovery

Tom Brady doesn't even need to by stock to own the Jets! (Getty)

Both OXen anticipated a rough week last week.  For all intensive purposes, especially in Stally's case, the only thing they really predicted correctly was that they would both struggle picking any of the games.  Thank goodness the Falcons held onto a three-point win over the Raiders or it might have been the end of this blog due to incompetence.

This week, six teams are on bye.  However, while the number of games appears to be cut down, there are plenty of good ones to watch and that starts with the signature game of this blog.  It comes as little surprise who Stally's middle-finger pick to Austen is this week.

Stally's Seven-Point Pick - @New England over New York-J

Stally: It's a tradition now!  Both of the last two years, I've had the honor of picking the Patriots first-overall when playing home against the Jets.  It might be arrogance on my part, sure, but I know the Patriots are going to win this game, and I like to remind Austen how much better I consider my team than his.

Week 6: Questionable Calls

Matty-Ice and the Falcons are flying high. (AP)

Stally's Editor's Note: It doesn't look like Austen is going to get his picks in before kickoff as he's going to the Jets game, so here are my thoughts.  I also did zero proof reading as I too have plans today.

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.

Week 5: The Return of the Jet-i

Hey, it's Stally.  I'm sure everyone is excited that Austen being back from Europe.  I know I am as it makes my opinions look a lot smarter when contrasted to his weird ideas.

I got the Rams right again on Thursday night (the second week in a row I had them and Austen didn't), so let's see if I can keep rolling as we start Sunday!

Stally believes the 49ers' stifling defense should shut
down a struggling Bills' offense in San Francisco.

Stally's Seven-Point Pick - @San Francisco over Buffalo

Stally: You have one of the best teams at home against one of the lesser teams.  This is a pretty easy one, the Bills aren't gonna beat the Niners at "The 'Stick," no way, no how.

Austen: Unless Mario Williams has the game of his life, the 49ers are taking this one.

Austen's Seven-Point Pick - Green Bay over @ Indianapolis

Austen: The Packers have to win games like this one in order to get back atop the division. I think they will take care of business on the road, especially with Dwight Freeney dinged up.

Stally: I didn't have the Packers as high as this, but I can't argue.  If Green Bay is going to get back to being an elite team every week, this one shouldn't be close.

Week 4: The Auto-Draft

It wasn't surprising that the Ravens
knocked out the Browns. (AP)

It's just me, Stally, this week.  Austen is still in Europe, so he emailed me his picks based on confidence points, so that we could do an auto-draft.

The auto-draft was setup so that each guy always took whatever game he had with the highest amount of confidence points remaining.

Austen's Eight-Point Pick - @Baltimore over Cleveland

Confidence: Austen - 15, Stally - 15

Austen and I both gave the Ravens 15 confidence points this week and were rewarded with a win.  Props to the Browns to keep it within seven, but a Thursday night game with a disparity of talent that favors the home team is an easy choice.

Stally's Eight-Point Pick - @Houston over Tennessee

Confidence: Stally - 14, Austen - 13

I'm completely out on Tennessee.  I still think Houston has some flaws that might be exposed against a better team, but they won't see that in the AFC South.  Austen seemed to share a similar feeling on this game.

Week 3: Austen Goes to Europe

After a decade of futility, the 49ers definitely
have their traditional swagger back. (Getty)

Wow!  We actually got our picks out early this week.

It wasn't without the usual snags.  Stally's working about 16 hours a day as NASCAR is in town at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.  Meanwhile, Austen claims to very swamped with life as he prepares for a week-long trip to Europe (don't we all feel bad for him).

However, the crunch meant that the OXen actually had to push out the predictions early this week and you might actually get to read them before the 4 o'clock slate of games on Sunday!

Stally (Eight-Point Pick) - San Francisco over @Minnesota

Stally: I'd have to power rank the 49ers as Number 1 in the NFL right now.  The Vikings, on the other hand, needed overtime to beat the Jags at home and lost to the Colts.  There's a huge disparity here.

Austen: The 49ers might not be the best team in the league, but they could play a pretty terrible game and still knock off a Vikings team that is in the bottom three in the league.