I wasn’t expecting such a sweat from the Giants/Bucs game. Monday night proved that survivor pool picks aren’t easy. Just about anything can happen in the NFL. The Giants came in at 1-6 with their lone win being a 1 pointer against Washington. The Bucs were 5-2 and looking like world-beaters vs the Packers and Raiders. In hindsight, it was a perfect let down spot. Even as bad as the Giants are, they have been playing teams close as of late.
Oh well – survive and advance with survivor pool picks. You’ll notice my list of games below is rather short. Of the 14 games on this week’s slate, 10 of them pair teams with records that are identical or within a game of each other. This truly might be separation Sunday.
Onto week 9 survivor pool picks!!
NFL Week 9 Survivor Pool Picks
Kansas City Chiefs (– 11 vs Carolina Panthers)
After a couple of sluggish games in weeks four and five, the Chiefs have been taking it to another level. First, they go into Buffalo to prove their AFC dominance and beat the Bills 26-17. Then, they follow it up with two blowout wins against the Broncos and Jets.
Meanwhile, the scrappy Panthers have been a nice story this year, especially when they were sitting at 3-2. Unfortunately, they are now in the midst of a three game slide that has them at 3-5. While brighter days may be ahead for Carolina, they simply don’t have the talent to hang around with the KC. I’d expect a double digit win here. As I said last week, if you are fortunate enough to have not picked the Chiefs yet, this week makes a lot of sense.
New England Patriots (-7 @ New York Jets)
As you know by now, I have been fading the Jets on a weekly basis. Can they go winless in 2020? Sam Darnold is back from injury which makes their offense somewhat better but it doesn’t really matter. They are, hands-down, the worst team in the NFL.
Lately, the Patriots haven’t been setting the world on fire either. After starting out 2-1, they have dropped the last 4 games. Cam Newton is proving that he struggles to throw the forward pass which, you know, is something a QB should be proficient at. How did this guy win NFL MVP again? Either way, I think this is the game that Belichick needs in order to right the ship. Your stomach may be a bit queasy riding with the Patriots, but they are playing the Jets after all.
Tennessee Titans (-5.5 vs Chicago Bears)
So I had to squeeze at least one more option into this column and this matchup has one of the higher game spreads left. After starting out 5-0, the Titans dropped a close game to the Steelers and then a head-scratcher to the Bengals, 31-20. While the latter is certainly cause for concern, I still think Tennessee is a solid team. They did make it to the AFC Championship game last year. After a couple L’s, Vrabel should have his team focused and hungry.
While the Bears have a winning record, they are a bit fraudulent. After feasting on mostly bad teams and starting the year 5-1, they have dropped their last two. I’d stay away from this game but if you’ve already taken the others teams in this column, you may have to roll the dice with Tennessee.
NFL Week 9 Survivor Pool Picks Winner!
Pittsburgh Steelers (NL @ Dallas Cowboys)
Of all the games this week, here’s the one that jumped off the page. The 7-0 Steelers are absolutely on fire right now after two road wins against the Titans and Ravens. They come home this week to square off against the lowly Cowboys. Expect big games from James Conner and the Steelers offense. There are college teams that could have a field day against this Dallas defense.
As for the Cowboys, they should be getting the Red Rifle back which I think is an upgrade over the JV quarterback they started last week. Not sure it really matters – in the last three weeks, Dallas has been outscored 86 to 22. They’ve quit.
Lastly, even if Dalton suits up, he’s lost his last 7 starts against Pittsburgh. He’s not exactly Roger Staubach. Go Steelers.
Teams already taken this year: KC, AZ, Indy, Baltimore, Dallas, Miami, Buffalo, TB
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