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Short week, a bad team coming to the best home-field advantage in football and Kirk Cousins out for revenge amid a scorching streak where he's bombing play-action shots down the field. It's more than two touchdowns, so I get why you wouldn't want to take it, but Washington is bad and the Vikings defense at home is great. I'll lay the points. Can't take the Redskins.
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Are people aware of how well Matthew Stafford is playing this season? If the Lions had won some of their closer games, Stafford would be getting MVP buzz. It's concerning Detroit lost Kerryon Johnson, but not too much against this Giants defense, which sports a secondary that can be shredded with ease. Stafford will find Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones multiple times and this will turn into a blowout.
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Crazy to think Marcus Mariota isn't even starting in the rematch of the No. 1 and No. 2 picks for the 2016 NFL Draft. Jameis Winston is still going, however, and he's badly in need of a win. I think this is a good spot for him: Tampa is 2-1 against the spread on the road, while the Titans haven't covered at home. People remember them beating the Chargers and Tampa stinking against Carolina, but the Bucs run defense is good enough to bottle up Derrick Henry and the Titans offense won't adjust. Bucs win outright.
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Everyone is going to want to fade the Bears here. Even with the Chargers losing to the Titans, the primary game on FOX we saw Sunday was the Bears messing themselves against the Saints. I don't think I believe in Mitchell Trubisky right now, but the Chargers stink on defense and have a terrible/banged-up offensive line. That's a bad matchup against a Bears team no one wants to back. I think Chicago can steamroll the Chargers here honestly.
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What am I missing with this line? If Matt Ryan doesn't play this can't stick at Seahawks -3.5. Atlanta's defense has been completely carved up the last five weeks. Russell Wilson is coming off a loss and going to a place he's had success in the past. He should throw bombs to his wide receiver corps and force the Falcons into trying to keep pace with Matt Schaub.
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Everyone watched the Jets get embarrassed on Monday and, as such, I expect everyone to back the Jaguars. Barring something serious with Sam Darnold's toenail/ghost visions, I like the Jets in this spot. Le'Veon Bell's gotten a raw deal in terms of defenses he's faced plus his QB being missing. I think he shows up with a massive game against a questionable Jaguars run defense.
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Not sure the Bills are the cure for the Eagles' offensive woes, but I'm not sure the Eagles are the cure for the Bills' offensive woes either. Maybe Josh Allen and John Brown hook up here for a deep ball, but I think we get a bounce-back after that Dallas debacle and see the Eagles put together a nice week against a tough Buffalo team that might be a bit overrated by their record.
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Huge spread on a neutral field, but does it really matter where the Bengals are playing? I need to see the travel schedules for these teams before I commit to this as a strong bet, but I've been feeling a Darrell Henderson breakout in my bones for a few weeks now and Cincy would be the perfect spot for him to have a huge game. If the Rams get a lead, they're going to yank Todd Gurley and I could see Henderson going bananas.
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The Saints are absolutely rolling, taking care of business against anyone and everyone despite the absence of Drew Brees. Will he be back this week? The line is actually off the board a lot of places as we wait to find out. This will sound weird, but I might prefer him coming in if I'm on the Cardinals. Teddy Bridgewater's been great and Brees will need a minute to get adjusted. Plus the Cardinals might have a decent defense with Patrick Peterson back?? This will be a major test for Kliff Kingsbury and Kyler Murray.
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There will be nothing inspiring about the Broncos after seeing them lose on Thursday night to the Chiefs without Patrick Mahomes for a full half. That effort was rough, man. But this isn't a great matchup for Indy, as Denver should be able to run the ball effectively. Jacoby Brissett shouldn't go hog wild like he did against Houston, although I would never discount his ability to step up. I just think Denver keeps this one close, maybe wins outright when almost no one is expecting it.
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San Francisco is a great team and the 49ers just landed Emmanuel Sanders. But the Panthers shouldn't be getting more than a field goal while coming off their bye. Carolina might be a bad matchup for the Niners too: they can protect Kyle Allen and get the ball out of his hand quickly. They should also be able to get pressure on Jimmy Garoppolo. Don't see a shootout here, so I'll take the points. I actually think Carolina wins outright though.
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Rough pair of road matchups for the Raiders, but don't sleep on a possible upset here. The Texans struggle to slow down opposing passing offenses and Derek Carr and Co. have actually looked pretty good. They were closer to hanging with the Packers than the score indicates. Darren Waller is balling out. The Texans are tough against the run, but a big game from Josh Jacobs wouldn't surprise me either. This could be a sneaky shootout.
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This is another huge number a team on a short week is laying, but did you see that Jets game??? I know, I know. Everyone will be on the Patriots. I just don't think the Browns will be able to generate enough offense to keep this game within 14 when the Patriots simply refuse to allow other teams to score. This is yet another young QB going against this Bill Belichick defense. Good luck.
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Again, uh, what am I missing here? The Chiefs are a talented overall team, but I don't see them slowing down Aaron Rodgers in prime time. Dude is locked in right now and the Chiefs don't have Patrick Mahomes. Matt Moore looked pretty sharp in backup duty, but this is asking a lot against a tough defense. The mini bye for Andy Reid is a little concerning, and I would guess he tries to turn this into a slow-paced rock fight that leans on the run game. I'll still take the Packers as road chalk with Rodgers potentially taking off on an MVP run.
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The Steelers can stomp someone on national television and the Dolphins are willing to get stomped, but this is a bit too much for me in terms of a point spread when the Steelers will be forced to use Mason Rudolph and Devlin "Duck" Hodges at quarterback. Ryan Fitzpatrick should have some prime time magic left in those old bones. I think Miami can keep it close enough to cover here.
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