Alternative Picks: Week 14, 2021

Who needs Packers/Bears or Bucs/Patriots. This back-and-forth battle between brothers right here on Zoneblitz now looks like it may come down to the season’s final weeks. Tony snuck back in with a win in week 13, tightening things even more.

You can cut the tension with a (plastic kid’s) knife as we head into the final stretch of the season. What crazy result will turn up this week:

1) Tony – Green Bay over Chicago – The lines don’t all agree with me, but looks to me like another week of good matching up with good, and bad matching up with bad. This game does have the highest line, though, and deserves it. Never hoped to be more wrong.

2) Andy – Chargers over Giants – Los Angeles has been a bit up and down all season long. But the New York Giants may be eclipsing the New York Jets as the city’s worst pro football team right now. Things are getting ugly.

3) Andy – Broncos over Lions – Detroit is playing hard, but betting against the Lions is still usually a pretty good bet. And Denver, while not great under Vic Fangio, won’t sit back and let Jared Goff complete passes while his defensive backs are sitting eight yards deep in the end zone.

4) Tony – Titans over Jaguars – Yes, the Titans are not as good without Derrick Henry. But it’s still the Jaguars.

5) Andy – Seahawks over Texans – Seattle is hard to figure out. They’ll look like the wheels are completely coming off in hapless losses to the Washington Football Team, Arizona and Green Bay, then come out and pound San Francisco. Houston, however, is not hard to figure out. They suck and likely are just one or two early punches away from hanging it up to get another week closer to the offseason.

6) Tony – Chiefs over Raiders – Not sure I make this pick if we went by lines, and certainly not this high—but the Raiders finally do seem to be imploding a bit, notwithstanding their Thanksgiving win over the Cowboys.

7) Andy – Steelers over Vikings – With the loss against Detroit, you can start the countdown on the Vikings’ search for a new front office and head coach. Pittsburgh is certainly not at the height of its game either, but the wheels are about to come off in Minnesota.

8) Tony – Bengals over 49ers – Sure, they won three in a row before losing to the Seahawks—but one was a floundering Rams team, one was a floundering Vikings team, and one was the Jaguars. The Bengals loss to the Chargers was at least a good opponent—the 49ers loss was indicative of who they are.

9) Andy – Saints over Jets – Surprised this one lasted. Sure, the Saints aren’t as good without Brees or Winston or Siemian, but it’s still the Jets.

10) Tony – Cardinals over Rams – I’m more likely to pick a 0-0 tie in the Saints/Jets game than pick it that high. Meanwhile, the Rams finally got off the schneid after a three-game slump—and all it took was the Jacksonville Jaguars, the ultimate slump buster. Traveling to Arizona, who is getting (kind of) healthy again—look for the Rams to realize that a one-night stand with the Jags doesn’t cure what they’ve got—in fact, they might wake up Tuesday with an even bigger problem.

11) Andy – Ravens over Browns – Baltimore isn’t looking great right now, but Cleveland hasn’t all season long. I think the Ravens let out some frustration in this one.

12) Tony – Cowboys over Football Team – This one shouldn’t be as close as the line is making it out to be. At least not if Dallas is for real.

13) Andy – Buccaneers over Bills – I don’t expect to see Tom Brady going through a game only throwing three passes, but I do expect Leonard Fournette to have a big game. New England laid the blueprint for neutralizing Buffalo and until the Bills figure out how to stop it, they aren’t going to be a threat.

14) Tony – Carolina over Atlanta – The definition of a tossup game. Also, the definition of a who could care less game. Guessing most fans in Carolina and Atlanta will be seeking out other forms of entertainment this weekend too–like watching paint dry.

If they were being judged on their straight-up picks, these two might both lose. Another mediocre week for the pickers.