NFL Picks: Parlays, Best Bets, Player Props, and Expert Predictions Against the Spread.

Free NFL Picks: Cardinals at Buccaneers Week 4 Odds
by Alan Matthews - 9/26/2013

There's not much argument that the three best games on Sunday in the NFL's Week 4 would be Seattle at Houston, Philadelphia at Denver and New England at Atlanta. All six of those teams could be in the playoffs this winter, although the Eagles and Falcons have to improve. However, the point of these previews isn't to look at the NFL's powerhouses every week, and there will be plenty of opportunities to do Seahawks, Broncos and Patriots games the rest of the way.

Monday Night Football Predictions: Raiders at Broncos Week 3 Odds
by Alan Matthews - 9/20/2013

Most times, a 15.5-point spread will be the highest you will see all season, but Monday's night's gap between the Super Bowl-favored Broncos and visiting Oakland paled in comparison to Sunday's Jaguars-Seahawks number. Looking at the remaining MNF schedule this year, this should easily be the worst game in terms of being competitive. I'm not really sure why the Raiders even got a Monday night slot to be honest.

NFL Picks: Giants at Panthers Odds and Week 3 Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 9/19/2013

There are two Desperation Bowls in Week 3 involving 0-2 teams: Cleveland at Minnesota and the New York Giants at Carolina. Only 22 teams since 1990, when the playoff expanded, have made the postseason (around 11.5 percent), but three won the Super Bowl, including the 2007 Giants. So it's their game against the Panthers I will preview. No team that started 0-3 has made the playoffs since 1998.

Monday Night Football Picks: Steelers at Bengals Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 9/13/2013

Let me preface this by saying I highly doubt it, but could Mike Tomlin be in some trouble with the Pittsburgh Steelers this season? I hate to overreact to one week, but Pittsburgh looked arguably like the second-worst team in football in its opening 16-9 home loss to Tennessee (Jags are easily the worst). How does a team score only one late touchdown against a defense that allowed an NFL-high 29.4 points a season ago (a franchise record)? That ended a 10-game winning streak in home openers for Pittsburgh.

NFL Picks: Broncos at Giants Week 2 Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 9/12/2013

With all due respect to the Broncos at Giants, i.e. Manning Bowl III, the best game of Week 2 in the NFL is easily the 49ers at Seahawks, a matchup of the NFC's two Super Bowl favorites and perhaps the best rivalry in the NFL right now. However, those two will play again later this year, so I am going to jump on the Manning Bowl hype bandwagon as much as I hate to. After all, this could be the final time the brothers face off.

NFL Picks: 2013 Chicago Bears Predictions and NFL Futures Odds
by Alan Matthews - 8/8/2013

Coach Lovie Smith led the Chicago Bears to a combined mark of 18-14 the past two seasons. If he does that in Buffalo, he gets a contract extension. In Chicago. he got the gate. The main problem under Smith is that while his defense was annually terrific and was easily the best in the NFL at forcing turnovers, he could never find the right offensive coordinator to spark Jay Cutler and those quarterbacks before him.

NFL Picks: Houston at San Diego Week 1 Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 8/1/2013

The opening week of the 2013 season concludes with a doubleheader on "Monday Night Football," as has been the case the past few seasons, and the nightcap should be a good one when San Diego hosts Houston. It wouldn't shock me if this is the highest-scoring game of Week 1. These teams haven't met since 2010 when the Chargers won 29-23 in Houston behind four touchdown passes from Philip Rivers. Arian Foster rushed for 127 yards and two scores to lead Houston.

NFL Picks: Eagles at Redskins Predictions and Betting Odds
by Alan Matthews - 7/31/2013

We'll call the first "Monday Night Football" game of the 2013 NFL season the “Torn ACL Bowl” with the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins facing off. Why that moniker? Torn ACLs hang heavy over both teams.

NFL Picks: Giants at Cowboys Week 1 Predictions and Betting Odds
by Alan Matthews - 7/30/2013

Is Tony Romo an elite franchise quarterback? I'd say no, considering the Cowboys haven't had a winning record since 2009 and have won a single playoff game under Romo. Well, the Cowboys are certainly paying Romo like one of the NFL's best as he got a seven-year, $119.5 million extension this offseason, barely less than reigning Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco.

NFL Picks: Packers at 49ers Odds and Week 1 Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 7/26/2013

There are two playoff rematches on the Week 1 schedule for the 2013 NFL season, and with all due respect to the NFL Kickoff opener in Denver between the Ravens and Broncos, the marquee game is easily Green Bay at San Francisco. It will be the third game in almost exactly a year (364 days to be exact) between the two, which is pretty unusual between non-division rivals.

Cardinals at Rams Picks and Week 1 NFL Odds
by Alan Matthews - 7/25/2013

The Arizona Cardinals and St. Louis Rams each could be improved in 2013 from last year, and it may not show in their records. Why? They each have to play four combined games against the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers, perhaps the NFL's two most-talented teams.

NFL Picks Against the Week 1 Lines
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 7/24/2013

Perhaps the most discussed, examined and wagered on point spreads are NFL Week 1 point spreads. Sports bettors have all summer to salivate over the lines and wait to take a crack at them. Not only are the lines some of the most scrutinized, but they are also some of the most volatile as the sheer amount of distance between their release (sometimes as early as a few days after the NFL Draft) and kickoff is months as opposed to the normal six days.

Chiefs at Jaguars Picks and Week 1 NFL Odds
by Alan Matthews - 7/23/2013

Thank goodness for sports betting. Why? Because unless you are a Kansas City Chiefs or Jacksonville Jaguars fan, I don't expect you would give a hoot about this matchup if you couldn't bet on it. These teams combined for an ugly four wins a year ago and picked Nos. 1 and 2 in the 2013 draft, each taking a future left tackle. Nothing much sexy there.

Seahawks at Panthers Picks and Week 1 NFL Odds
by Alan Matthews - 7/20/2013

There are a few really good matchups in Week 1 of the upcoming season. Certainly the Baltimore-Denver opener is chock-full of storylines. Just seeing New England's first game at Buffalo is worth monitoring to see how the Patriots will respond to all the body blows they have taken this offseason. Atlanta-New Orleans is for an early upper hand in the NFC South. Packers-49ers is probably the best game of them all. I could go on. But the one game I am most interested to see, outside of my own team's, is Seahawks-Panthers. Why?

Raiders at Colts Picks and Week 1 NFL Odds
by Alan Matthews - 7/18/2013

Don't think that hitting or missing on the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft determines the direction of a franchise? Well, I give you the Oakland Raiders and Indianapolis Colts, who face off in Week 1, as examples. When you really stink, you get the top pick.

Titans at Steelers Picks and Week 1 NFL Odds
by Alan Matthews - 7/15/2013

You don't hear the word “rebuilding” when it comes to the Pittsburgh Steelers very often, but that certainly appears to be the case in 2013. It seems like a long time ago that this team played Green Bay in the Super Bowl. The Steelers were "Tebowed" in their wild-card game in 2011 and then missed out on the postseason entirely last year with an 8-8 mark, the team's worst since 2006. The good news is that the previous four years the Steelers missed the playoffs, they returned the following season.

Vikings at Lions Picks and Week 1 NFL Odds
by Alan Matthews - 7/14/2013

I expect to learn a lot from the Week 1 matchup at Ford Field between the NFC North rival Vikings and Lions on Sunday, Sept. 8. First: Will Adrian Peterson become the first running back in history to repeat as NFL MVP? (Only Jim Brown has won multiple MVPs as a running back). I highly doubt that, but I will want to see if Peterson has to carry the team on his back again or if Christian Ponder finally is going to show signs of being a good NFL quarterback (no). I happen to think the Vikings overachieved a year ago, so a bad showing here will confirm my suspicions.

Falcons at Saints Picks and NFL Week 1 Betting Odds
by Alan Matthews - 6/19/2013

Every team in the NFC South -- the Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Bucs and Carolina Panthers -- has won the division at least twice since it was created for the 2002 season. But did you know no club has ever won it back-to-back? Pretty unusual, but it does seem like two teams in the South are in an up cycle every year and two in a down.

Dolphins at Browns Picks and NFL Week 1 Betting Odds
by Alan Matthews - 6/14/2013

Every team thinks it can make the playoffs once the NFL season kicks off. After all, not much was expected of the Indianapolis Colts, Washington Redskins or Minnesota Vikings last year, and they all got in the postseason. So I'm sure both the Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns, who kick off their 2013 seasons against one another, think they can crash the playoffs this year. In my opinion, a realistic goal is probably a .500 record.

Bengals at Bears Picks and NFL Week 1 Betting Odds
by Alan Matthews - 6/12/2013

In my opinion, the Week 1 NFL schedule is pretty weak. Yes, it kicks off in tremendous fashion with the Thursday night opener between Super Bowl Champion Baltimore and Denver in a playoff rematch from last season. But do you realize there are only two other games featuring clubs that won at least 10 games in 2012? One of them is getting mostly overlooked, a 1 p.m. Eastern start from Chicago when the Bears host the Cincinnati Bengals.