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 2-3 in Week 3 and are tied for 893rd place out of 1,968 entries.
The betting lines are released every Wednesday, and selections are due by Saturday afternoon.
Here are Sam’s and Mike’s picks for Week 4 of the SuperContest:
Los Angeles Chargers -3.5 vs. Las Vegas Raiders
MC: Are the Raiders good? We’re not ready to buy it, especially given how each of their three wins have been eked out, two of them coming against mediocre-at-best teams in the Dolphins and Steelers. The Chargers also have the defensive personnel both up front and in the secondary to slow down a red-hot Vegas offense.
Baltimore Ravens +1 at Denver Broncos
SP: The scheduling Gods hooked the Broncos up big time to start the season. How the hell did Denver get the Giants, Jaguars and Jets in the first three games? Lol. Despite a 3-0 start, injuries have really hit the Broncos hard over the last few weeks. Josey Jewell, Ronald Darby, Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler are all on the shelf and Bradley Chubb is still on the PUP list. Eventually, the lack of health will catch up to Denver and we’ve got former league MVP Lamar Jackson dealing the Broncos their first loss.
Carolina Panthers +4.5 at Dallas Cowboys
SP: Love this spot for Carolina with the extra three days of rest after playing last Thursday night. On the other hand, Dallas is dealing with a short week after beating a division rival. The Panthers’ offense looks worlds better with Joe Brady and Sam Darnold completely in-sync and that Cowboy defense is nothing special. This feels like a field goal game either way.
Green Bay Packers -6.5 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
MC: We took a bit of a gamble on Pittsburgh’s health situation, and the return of T.J. Watt hurts our spot here. Is he 100%, though? Probably not. Neither is Ben Roethlisberger, who they haven’t been able to protect anyway, and the receiving corps is banged up. Tough spot going to Lambeau against a Packers team that is finding its groove despite injuries on the offensive line.
Chicago Bears -3 vs. Detroit Lions
SP: Ugh. We’re pulling the trigger again with the Bears. We did it successfully in Week 2 after they got pounded by the Rams and it worked out. Let’s go back to the well after an embarrassing performance in Cleveland. You zig, we zag. This lookahead number was Chicago -6, so we’ll buy low on a Bears team that should be able to hold serve at home against the lowly Lions.
RECORD: (7-7-1, +7.5 points)
