Well, Santa didn’t leave me any goodies last weekend. I had an ugly 1-3 week, but I’m still north of 60% for the season, and I like five or six dogs this week. I narrowed it down to my three favorites:
Panthers +3 ½ at Buccaneers
It’s probably foolish picking against Tom Brady in a win and in scenario, but I really think the Panthers are poised to complete the season sweep. They dominated the Bucs 21-3 in the first meeting and showed last week that they’re starting to put things together on both sides of the ball. They’ve won four of their last six, while the Bucs barely beat a Cardinals team led by Trace McSorley. Tampa Bay is beat up on defense and might be down four or five starters. They’ll be lucky to win this one and wrap up the South. The three and a half points are a gift.
Bears +6 at Lions
The Lions return home with their tails between their legs after getting dusted in Carolina. They’re the more motivated team, but the Bears would like nothing more than to spoil their party and will come in the looser team. Justin Fields is eyeing the season rushing record for a QB and Detroit won’t offer much resistance. The Bears’ defense is banged up, but they’re playing hard every week and this is just too many points in a late season divisional matchup. This was a one-point game when they met in November, and I see no reason why a field goal won’t decide this one.
Texans +3 vs. Jaguars
Everyone knows Houston would be better off losing to stay atop the ’23 draft. But they’re playing hard under Lovie and are definitely not in tanking mode. For some reason, they own the Jags, beating them three straight times. And in this matchup, the Jags have little motivation, since next week’s game is for the AFC South title, no matter what happens this week. I could see Doug Pederson pulling Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne at halftime and make sure his team is ready for next week’s showdown.
Last Week: 1-3
Season: 28-17-4
