This article is part of our NFL Picks series.
What a week for the staff. Scott Pianowski goes 11-5 and finishes in third place. Just not good enough, Scott. Stopa and I went 13-3, and the majority picks, teams taken by three or more writers, went 12-4. Through two weeks, the majority picks are 24-7-1 (77%!). I hate to break it to our readers, this pace is not sustainable. We've run a four-minute mile to start the marathon which is nice, but there will be regression. Let's hope it's on the mild side.
| Erickson | Pianowski | Liss | Stopa | Del Don | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buccaneers +6.5 at Falcons | Buccaneers | Falcons | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers |
| Chargers +2.5 at Bills | Bills | Chargers | Chargers | Bills | Bills |
| Cowboys -1.5 at Rams | Rams | Rams | Rams | Rams | Rams |
| Redskins +6.5 at Eagles | Redskins | Redskins | Redskins | Redskins | Redskins |
| Texans -2.5 at Giants | Giants | Texans | Giants | Giants | Giants |
| Vikings +10.5 at Saints | Saints | Saints | Saints | Saints | Saints |
| Titans +7 at Bengals | Titans | Titans | Bengals | Titans | Bengals |
| Ravens -1.5 at Browns | Browns | Ravens | Browns | Browns | Browns |
| Packers +2 at Lions | Packers | Packers | Packers | Packers | Lions |
| Colts -7 at Jaguars | Jaguars | Jaguars | Colts | Jaguars | Jaguars |
| Raiders +14 at Patriots | Patriots | Raiders | Raiders | Patriots | Raiders |
| 49ers -3 at Cardinals | Cardinals | Cardinals | Cardinals | 49ers | 49ers |
| Broncos +5 at Seahawks | Seahawks | Broncos | Seahawks | Seahawks | Broncos |
| Chiefs +4.5 at Dolphins | Chiefs | Dolphins | Chiefs | Dolphins | Chiefs |
| Steelers +3.5 at Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Steelers |
| Bears +2.5 at Jets | Jets | Bears | Bears | Jets | Jets |
| Best Bet | Browns | Panthers | Saints | Seahawks | 49ers |
| Last Week's Record | 8-8 | 11-5 | 13-3 | 13-3 | 9-7 |
| 2014 |
What a week for the staff. Scott Pianowski goes 11-5 and finishes in third place. Just not good enough, Scott. Stopa and I went 13-3, and the majority picks, teams taken by three or more writers, went 12-4. Through two weeks, the majority picks are 24-7-1 (77%!). I hate to break it to our readers, this pace is not sustainable. We've run a four-minute mile to start the marathon which is nice, but there will be regression. Let's hope it's on the mild side.
Unanimous/Majority Picks
The players:
| Erickson | Pianowski | Liss | Stopa | Del Don | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buccaneers +6.5 at Falcons | Buccaneers | Falcons | Buccaneers | Buccaneers | Buccaneers |
| Chargers +2.5 at Bills | Bills | Chargers | Chargers | Bills | Bills |
| Cowboys -1.5 at Rams | Rams | Rams | Rams | Rams | Rams |
| Redskins +6.5 at Eagles | Redskins | Redskins | Redskins | Redskins | Redskins |
| Texans -2.5 at Giants | Giants | Texans | Giants | Giants | Giants |
| Vikings +10.5 at Saints | Saints | Saints | Saints | Saints | Saints |
| Titans +7 at Bengals | Titans | Titans | Bengals | Titans | Bengals |
| Ravens -1.5 at Browns | Browns | Ravens | Browns | Browns | Browns |
| Packers +2 at Lions | Packers | Packers | Packers | Packers | Lions |
| Colts -7 at Jaguars | Jaguars | Jaguars | Colts | Jaguars | Jaguars |
| Raiders +14 at Patriots | Patriots | Raiders | Raiders | Patriots | Raiders |
| 49ers -3 at Cardinals | Cardinals | Cardinals | Cardinals | 49ers | 49ers |
| Broncos +5 at Seahawks | Seahawks | Broncos | Seahawks | Seahawks | Broncos |
| Chiefs +4.5 at Dolphins | Chiefs | Dolphins | Chiefs | Dolphins | Chiefs |
| Steelers +3.5 at Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Panthers | Steelers |
| Bears +2.5 at Jets | Jets | Bears | Bears | Jets | Jets |
| Best Bet | Browns | Panthers | Saints | Seahawks | 49ers |
| Last Week's Record | 8-8 | 11-5 | 13-3 | 13-3 | 9-7 |
| 2014 Record | 17-14-1 | 20-11-1 | 22-9-1 | 22-9-1 | 17-14-1 |
| Best Bet Record | 1-1 | 1-1 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 0-2 |
| Majority Record | 24-7-1 | ||||
| Unanimous Pick Record | 6-3 | ||||
| 2013 Record | 132-114-10 | 118-128-10 | 123-123-10 | 111-135-10 | 128-118-10 |
| 2012 Record | 110-140-6 | 125-125-6 | 121-129-6 | 143-107-6 | 123-127-6 |
| 2011 Record | 121-128-7 | 134-115-7 | 124-125-7 | 123-126-7 | 127-122-7 |
| 2010 Record | 129-122-5 | 134-117-5 | 126-125-5 | 136-115-5 | 134-117-5 |
| 2009 Record | 123-130-3 | 132-121-3 | 131-122-3 | 130-123-3 | 126-127-3 |
| 2008 Record | 132-114-10 | 128-118-10 | 124-122-10 | 125-121-10 | 130-116-10 |
| 2007 Record | 127-120 | 118-129 | 127-120 | N/A | 130-117 |
| 2006 Record | 118-129 | N/A | 139-108 | N/A | N/A |
| 2005 Record | 121-126 | N/A | 127-120 | N/A | N/A |
| 2004 Record | 124-124 | N/A | 130-118 | N/A | N/A |
| 2003 Record | 121-126 | 118-129 | 124-123 | N/A | N/A |
| 2002 Record | 113-136 | 123-126 | 141-108 | N/A | N/A |
| 2001 Record | 124-113 | 117-120 | 118-119 | N/A | N/A |
| 2000 Record | 123-117 | 134-106 | 141-99 | N/A | N/A |
Unanimous/Majority Picks
This week, we all like the Rams, Redskins and Saints. Last week we went 4-2 on unanimous picks to go 6-3 on the year. And we went 12-4 on majority picks (three or more writers) to go 24-7-1.
Comments:
| Writer | Comment |
| Erickson | I'm already sick of taking the Giants, Raiders and Jaguars. I wonder how my reactionary "sick of" picks have done over the years? Probably .500 - I'd be surprised if there were a pattern... Surprised to see the Browns be dogs at home to the Ravens - I thought that the line would be somewhere around CLE -1.5. ... Struggled a lot with Bengals/Titans, but I think that the accumulated injuries and the Bengals' upcoming bye have them playing a little down this week. |
| Pianowski | I felt comfortable with the first two slates, but I really dislike this one (not that there's anything predictive about that sort of thing). Oh, and I'm sick and tied of losing with the Jaguars. |
| Liss | Like Pianow, I hated this slate. I think I might blindly bet the Saints at home and whoever they're playing on the road all year. I also like the Packers getting points in Detroit. These teams are essentially equal except one has one of the best quarterbacks of all time, and the other has Matthew Stafford. |
| Stopa | Coming off a week where the picks came so easily, and I went 13-3, I thought I'd be uber-confident picking this week. I wasn't. The lines feel tighter, and I saw fewer obvious choices, so I'll go back to fading the public and taking Seattle and New Orleans at home. I like Seattle coming off a loss, fading Denver off two wins, and I don't see what Denver has done differently since the Super Bowl to make Sunday's matchup any different... The Colts need to win before laying that many on the road... I feel like Carolina is much better than Pittsburgh; I'd bet the house if I could get that line at 3. The Steelers are a name brand but just aren't very good, particularly on defense. |
| Del Don | There are a lot of lines fewer than three points on which I could go either way, but mostly went with the home team that seemed uglier... Except, of course, the 49ers, whom I expect to bounce back in a big way after such a horrible fourth quarter Sunday night... The game of the week is obviously the rematch of last year's Super Bowl. The line seems about right, and I had the hardest time of all the games picking that one. |
The players:
•Jeff Erickson: RotoWire Senior editor, 2001, 2008, 2013 Staff Picks Champ. Writes the Weekly Rankings. Covers and roots for the Bengals.
•Scott Pianowski: Fantasy expert for Yahoo! Sports, and also contributes to Rotowire.com. 2009 and 2011 Staff Picks Champ. Roots for the Patriots.
•Chris Liss: RotoWire Managing Editor, 2000, 2002, 2006 Staff Picks Champ, 2003, 2004 co-champ. Writes East Coast Offense, Beating the Book and the Survivor column in addition to Staff Picks. Covers and roots for the Giants.
•Mark Stopa: Staff Writer, 2010, 2012 Staff Picks Champ, Writes Run 'N' Shoot. Roots for the Bills.
•Dalton Del Don: Fantasy Expert for Yahoo! Sports, 2007 Staff Picks Champ. Roots for the 49ers.
