Monday?s 6-pack
Top 6 picks for Week 15 of Westgate SuperBook NFL handicapping contest:
1) Indianapolis Colts -3 (999)- W
2) Tennessee Titans +2.5 (911)- W
3) Seattle Seahawks -4.5 (877)- L
4) New England Patriots -2.5 (865)- L
5) Green Bay Packers +6 (743)- L
6) Cleveland Browns +3 (701)- W
Season record: 46-41-3
Quote of the Day
?He?s our kicker from start to finish and I liked the way he came back and banged that next opportunity, and that is what this thing [football] is about. You are going to be tested, we are going to be tested, sometimes you are going to fail but you better pass enough of them.?
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, talking about kicker Chris Boswell
Monday?s quiz
What city was the old TV show Homicide set in?
Sunday?s quiz
Baylor University is located in Waco, TX
Saturday?s quiz
Los Angeles Rams? owner Stan Kroenke also owns the Denver Nuggets in the NBA and the Colorado Avalanche in the NHL.
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Monday?s List of 13: Wrapping up an NFL Sunday??
Colts 23, Cowboys 0? Indy won for 7th time in its last eight games; Dallas had their five-game win streak snapped. Cowboys are 2-5 on road this season; they had ball twice in red zone, turned it over both times, and had a 47-yard FG blocked on their first drive of the game.
Colts are tied with Ravens/Titans for #6 seed in AFC with two weeks left; they ran ball for 178 yards in this game. Andrew Luck has to be Comeback Player of the Year, yes?
Vikings 41, Dolphins 17? Minnesota went right down field first three times they had ball, scoring on TD drives of 76-60-70 yards, then Cousins threw a pick-6 on 4th drive and things got a little dicey, but Vikings pulled away late.
Vikings had nine sacks; Miami had 12 first downs and only 37 net passing yards. Yardage in this game was 418-193. Minnesota is 5-2 as a home favorite this year, 22-7 under Zimmer. Miami is 7-14 as road underdogs under Gase- they lost their last six road games.
Bengals 30, Raiders 16? 1:00 games were lackluster Sunday; 14 of the 18 teams stayed under their team total for the game. Bengals out rushed Oakland 171-68; two of their three TD drives were less than 50 yards (45-21 yards)- they scored 30 points but gained only 294 yards.
Bengals snapped a 5-game losing streak with this win; they won their home finale the last seven years. Oakland heads home for what is likely their last-ever game in Oakland next Sunday. Cincy QB Driskel gets his first NFL win as a starting QB. Over is 5-2 in Bengals? last seven games.
Ravens 20, Buccaneers 12? Lamar Jackson is now 4-1 as a starting QB; Ravens ran ball for 242 yards, running 27 more plays (74-47) than Tampa Bay on a rainy day in Maryland. Tampa Bay went for two after its first TD and failed, then never scored another TD all day.
Buccaneers lost their last six road games; they?re 2-4-1 as road underdogs. Ravens are 5-2 SU at home- they?re tied with Colts/Titans for last playoff spot in AFC.
Bills 14, Lions 13? Buffalo is 3-2 in its last five games; they scored winning TD with 10:26 left and now they?re now- their win total for season is 6.5, so they?d have to win in Foxboro next week to have a shot at going over and that ain?t happening. Buffalo actually ran out of running backs in this game; all their active RB?s got hurt.
Detroit lost six of its last eight games; they scored 15.5 ppg the last four games. How is a team that pays its QB $28M a year this bad on offense? They have same offensive coaches they had last year; was Golden Tate that important a player for them? Seven of Lions? last eight games stayed under the total.
Bears 24, Packers 17? Just third win in last 17 series games for Chicago, as Bears clinch the NFC North for first time since 2010, going 7-1 at home for first time since ?05. Chicago is 10-0 this year when they allow less than 24 points. Chicago had a 10-yard edge in field position.
Packers lost six of their last eight games- they?re 0-7 on road, 1-3-1 as road underdogs. Interesting to see with Packers eliminated, if Aaron Rodgers plays the last two games.
Titans 17, Giants 0? Tennessee ran ball for 215 yards on a rainy, dismal day in Swamp Stadium. Titans have now won three games in row; this was only second loss in last six games for Giants.
This was the Titans? first shutout since a Christmas Day win over Dallas in 2000. Tennessee is tied for last playoff spot; those two 1-point losses back in October have to sting now. Titns are 8-6; this was only 4th time the season they led at halftime.
Redskins 16, Jaguars 13? Josh Johnson?s last NFL start was December 4, 2011, a 38-19 loss for Tampa Bay against the Panthers. Seven years later, he gets his first win (1-5) as an NFL starter, and the Redskins are still alive in the playoff race.- they?re half-game behind Minnesota for the #6 seed. Washington is 7-0 when they allow 17 or fewer points, 0-7 when they allow more.
Jacksonville had 20 net passing yards in this game, averaging 0.9 yards per attempt. Jaguars lost nine of their last ten games; they?ve scored one TD on their last 30 drives, and stayed under their team total in eight of last ten games. They should draft Kyler Murray.
Falcons 40, Cardinals 7? Atlanta took out its frustrations on the Cardinals as they snapped a 5-game losing skid; Falcons ran ball for 215 yards, outgained Arizona 435-253 and were +3 in turnovers. Atlanta also scored a defensive TD in breaking its 5-game losing streak.
Redbirds are 5-11 in last 16 games as road underdogs, 3-4 this year; they?ve lost by 10-33 points in their two games on artificial turf this season.
49ers 26, Seahawks 23 OT? Seattle went right down field and scored on their first drive, then missed PAT, 49ers ran kickoff back for a TD and Seahawks never led again. Seattle was flagged 14 times for 148 yards. Loss ends Seattle?s 4-game win streak.
49ers are 3-3 with Mullens at QB; do they keep him this winter, or get a pretty good draft pick for him in a trade? Seattle is now 3-8-1 in last dozen games as a road favorite.
Steelers 17, Patriots 10? New England finishes 3-5 on road, and were favored in all eight games; right now, they?re game behind Houston for #2 seed and first round bye in playoffs.
Patriots had ball in red zone on their last three drives, but scored total of 3 points, coming up empty on last two drives. Steelers snapped a 3-game skid with this win, stay ahead of Ravens in the AFC North. Six of last seven Patriot games, four of last five Steeler games stayed under.
Eagles 30, Rams 23:
? Philly hangs on for dear life, evens it record at 7-7.
? Eagles are half-game behind Minnesota for last playoff spot in NFC.
? Someone at The Mirage in Las Vegas bet $180,000 on the Rams? money line; there was a $115,000 bet made on over 26 points in the first half. Neither bet won.
? Rams turned ball over nine times in three games since their bye; they?ll need to win out to get the #2 seed and the first round bye in the playoffs.
