Team NESN is a part of the historic Las Vegas Westgate SuperContest this season.
Betting analyst Sam Panayotovich and digital content editor Mike Cole are teaming up to pick five weekly NFL games against the point spread. Each winning selection receives one point and ties earn a half-point. The guys went 2-2-1 in Week 1 and are tied for 882nd place out of 1,968 entries.
The betting lines are released every Wednesday and selections are due by Saturday afternoon.
Here are Sam and Mike’s picks for Week 2 of the SuperContest:
Green Bay Packers -11 vs. Detroit Lions
MC: This feels like one of two things for the Packers: a woodshed game where they beat down the hapless Lions or something way, way too close for comfort that indicates last week’s blowout loss was no aberration. We’re leaning toward the former, especially with how good Aaron Rodgers is following a loss. He’s thrown for at least four touchdowns in each of Green Bay’s last four games following regular-season losses.
Jacksonville Jaguars +6 vs. Denver Broncos
SP: I hate how much I love this one. This is a prime example of overreaction on both ends of the accordion. Denver looked amazing and Jacksonville sucked. So the line is three points higher than it was on the lookahead (-3 to -6). Trevor Lawrence will have every opportunity to keep this game close and the backdoor could easily remain open all afternoon.
Chicago Bears -2.5 vs. Cincinnati Bengals
SP: Let’s slow our roll on Cincinnati just a bit. The Bengals were outgained by Minnesota last Sunday and were lucky that Dalvin Cook coughed up the ball in overtime. The Vikings also committed 12 penalties for 116 yards. Sheesh. This is a decent buy low spot on Chicago — and an even better number — after it lost to a very good Rams team on Sunday night. Maybe we’ll see more Justin Fields!
New York Jets +6 vs. New England Patriots
MC: Despite all the narratives to come from Week 1, the Patriots scored 16 points and lost, while the Jets allowed just 19 points in their loss. The total of 43 is one of the lowest on the board this week. This should be a low-scoring game, and we think New York’s defense can keep this close, even with Bill Belichick squaring off against a rookie quarterback. Don’t forget: Robert Saleh knows a thing or two about defense, and he, too, will be taking on a first-year signal-caller.
Tennessee Titans +5.5 at Seattle Seahawks
SP: Russell Wilson snatched my soul last week with two deep touchdown passes against Indianapolis. One of them was a 69-yard bomb on second and 20. Woof. Oddsmakers were quick to upgrade Seattle and downgrade Tennessee after the Titans lost 38-13 to Arizona. We think the overreaction on the Seahawks is a tad much and like the ‘dog to hang inside the number.
RECORD: (2-2-1, +2.5 points)
