If Del wants to have a chance to finish the season above the 50-percent mark with picks against the spread, he’s going to have to absolutely kill it over these least two weeks. I’m talking completely demolish it. There are only two weeks remaining and Del is 10 games below the 50-percent mark, so you do the math. The good news is the top-3 picks killed it all season and continue to do pretty well. Fortunately a lot of teams still have a lot to play for even though it is Week 16, so that should make picking games a little less complicated — so we think. Here are Del’s Week 16 NFL Picks with analysis after the chart. Remember to check back later in the week for Doc Brown’s picks. We’re in the home stretch, people. Time to go hard.
(ATS = Against the Spread, SU = Straight Up)
The first team I liked this week is the Bengals -4 at home against the Cardinals. Arizona has surprised some people and played well lately, but Cincinnati is at home with a lot more to play for. The Cards are out of playoff contention while the 8-6 Bengals are trying to cling to a wild card spot with two weeks remaining. I went with Cinci as a lock last week as well and they just made it, but that was on the road. I expect a better performance this week at home from Andy Dalton and company. They should beat Arizona by at least a touchdown to remain in the playoff race.
Another game that jumped out at me this week is the Chiefs laying 1.5 at home against Oakland. In case you missed it, the Chiefs just dethroned the Packers last weekend and spoiled their undefeated season. This is a team that loves playing at Arrowhead and should be loaded with confidence this week after shocking the league. The Chiefs players have come out and said they enjoy playing for Romeo Crennel and want him to remain the head coach next season. What better way to plead their case than to finish the season strong, so it would be tough to imagine them slipping against a divisional opponent at home — especially one that hasn’t played all that well lately. I expect the Chiefs to keep rolling through the end of the season under Crennel.
Finally, I’m taking the Cowboys at home -2 against the Eagles. Yes, the Eagles smoked Dallas earlier in the year and Michael Vick had his best game of the season. But that was on the road. This could be a huge game for both teams if the Jets beat the Giants earlier in the day. The Cowboys are a much better team at home than on the road, so I expect Tony Romo and company to look like a completely different squad this time around against Philly. Losing DeMarco Murray hurts the Cowboys, but Felix Jones is a viable back that can carry the load if he stays healthy. I’m going with the Cowboys based on little more than a gut feeling.
