Week 8 Picks

Can you believe it's already week eight? The season is almost half over...which means, of course, that mid-season Eddie Awards ("The Eddies") and my second half preview are on tap. That's right--get excited. For now, here are my picks for week eight:

STEELERS -3 over Giants
I keep telling myself how much I despise the Steelers, yet seeing Hines Ward talk about his jaw-breaking hit last week curiously didn’t add to that hatred. I think these teams are pretty even. Flip a coin. Go with the home team.

Seahawks +5.5 over 49ERS
You know I’ll find a way to rationalize picking the Seahawks. So this pick and my rationalization really mean nothing. However, Seneca Wallace did have a good game two years ago when he started in front of his Sac-Town friends at San Francisco. This year, he’s going to do one better and get the victory. Mike Singletary may become a great coach, but he won’t be blocking for J.T. O’Sullivan, who’s going to be on his back early and often once again versus the Seahawks.

Bengals +9 over TEXANS
First the Texans struggle to win, then they struggle to cover. The Texans are an ok team, but they’re not going to blow anyone out, and last week, that included Detroit. If they can’t blow out Detroit, why should we think they can blow out Cincinnati a week later? The Bengals are not only going to cover—they’re going to come away with their first victory of the year.

TITANS -4 over Colts
Manning laid an egg last week and decides that’s a good time to talk about his staph infection in the preseason. Nice try trying to distract us away from the two INTDs he threw against the beat-up Packers secondary. I hope he’s spent this week thinking of next week’s media distraction, because the Titans defense is going to make him look bad once again.

RAVENS -7.5 over Raiders
Does anyone remember what the Raiders looked like against the Saints two weeks ago? Barely beating the Jet-lagged Jets in an overtime game that no one seemed to want has not convinced me.

Chargers -3 over Saints (in London)
Both teams are going to be equally jet-lagged. So instead of one team playing like crap, you get two teams playing like crap. That’s a recipe for an ugly game. Add in a sloppy wet field meant for soccer and what do you get? A sold-out game barely worth watching.

JETS -14 over Chiefs
Speaking of barely worth watching… The Jets will be much more comfortable this week at home and playing perhaps the worst team in the league. Strike that, the Chiefs ARE the worst team in the league. The Jets, who looked decidedly mediocre in losing to a struggling Raiders team are FOURTEEN-POINT FAVORITES. I previously wrote that no team should be a double-digit favorite, but like the 49ers in New York last week, this is another understandable exception.

Bills -1.5 over DOLPHINS
Where’s the respect? The Bills don’t even need to circle the wagons. They’re circled. The Wildcat has run its course and those wagons will keep it in check.

Bucs +1.5 over COWBOYS
The Cowboys are a mess and picked a bad time to have Tampa Bay coming to town. Hey, but at least they have another Pro-Bowl receiver to steal touches from T.O. That should keep the drama down.

Falcons +9 over EAGLES
The Falcons have me convinced. They are for real. They beat the Bears at home and beat the Packers in Green Bay, so how are they a 9-point underdog in Philly? The Eagles should have no more than the three-point home-field advantage, or less.

PATRIOTS -7.5 over Rams
The Haslett ra-ra has run out. As much as it pains me to pick the Patriots, I think they’re finally figuring things out without Mr. Brady.

Redskins -7.5 over LIONS
The Redskins defense and run game will be too much for the Lions to come back against this week.

Browns +7 over JAGUARS
The Browns are trending in the right direction. They beat the world champs and then played a strong game in Washington. This is another line that is just too high. This game will be close.

Week 7: 8-6
Overall: 46-53-2

Eddie in the Money Superpicks (home teams in CAPS)
Atlanta +9 over PHILLY
CAROLINA -4 over Arizona
Buffalo -1.5 over MIAMI
BALTIMORE -7.5 over Oakland
Cincinnati +9.5 over HOUSTON
Cleveland +7 over JACKSONVILLE.

Week 7: 3-2
Overall: 16-6-1