John Perrotto's 3 Best Picks for NFL Sunday Week 10
NFL Week 10 got underway Thursday with the Carolina Panthers beating the Atlanta Falcons 25-15 in a driving rainstorm in Charlotte. Sunday’s slate includes the first-ever NFL game in Munich as the Seattle Seahawks face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Other intriguing matchups including the Buffalo Bills visiting the Minnesota Vikings, the Green Bay Packers hosting the Cowboys in Dallas coach Mike McCarthy’s return to Lambeau Field and the Los Angeles Chargers visiting the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday Night Football. To follow along with my picks, visit my OddsCrowd Profile here.
Here are my three best bets for Sunday:
Seattle Seahawks @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Two teams having much different seasons than expected play at Allianz Arena, home of the soccer powerhouse FC Bayern Munich.
The Seahawks (6-5) were universally picked to finish last in the NFC West after trading quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos but lead the division. The Buccaneers (4-5) were expected to run away with NFL South but are in first place only because of the overall weakness of the division.
The Seahawks have won their last four games though, and covered in each. The Buccaneers, meanwhile, haven’t been on the winning side of the point spread since Week 2.
Tom Brady is second in the NFL with 2,547 yards but the 45-year-old is carrying almost the entire offensive load as the Buccaneers are last in the league in rushing. Meanwhile, Geno Smith has had a resurgence for Seattle in his first season as a QB1 since 2014 when he was with the Jets.
Picking Smith over Brady? Who would have guessed that two months ago?
Seattle Seahawks +2.5 over Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Minnesota Vikings @ Buffalo Bills
Bills quarterback Josh Allen is questionable because of an elbow injury. That has resulted in the line going from an opening figure of 7.5 down to 6.
It’s hard to pass up the Bills (6-2) at such low odds, even if Allen doesn’t play. Buffalo has the deepest roster in the NFL and a very competent backup QB in veteran Case Keenum, who had an 11-3 record as the Vikings’ starter in 2017.
Allen took part in the Bills’ final practice Friday. That should be taken as an encouraging sign.
The Vikings (7-1) have a better record than the Bills. However, Minnesota has played a weak schedule and lost 24-7 in Week 2 to the Philadelphia Eagles, the only good team it has faced.
The Bills’ defense should give Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins trouble. Throw in the fact Buffalo figures to be ready for a bounce-back game after losing to the New York Jets last week and the Bills are the way to go – with or without Allen.
Pick: Buffalo Bills -6 over Minnesota Vikings
Jacksonville Jaguars @ Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs (6-2) struggled to get past the visiting Tennessee Titans 20-17 in overtime last week on Sunday Night Football. However, Kansas City has won back-to-back games since losing to the Bills.
Furthermore, quarterback Patrick Mahomes is listed as the NFL MVP favorite by most books. He guides an explosive offense that leads the league in scoring with 30.4 points a game and is second to the Bills in total yards at 415.3 yards a game.
The Jaguars (3-6) have made strides in Doug Pederson’s first year as coach despite their record. Of course, Urban Meyer set the bar low for Pederson to step over.
However, Jacksonville has a middle of the pack defense, ranking 16th in the league. Mahomes should have no problem carving up the Jaguars and convincingly leading the Chiefs to their sixth straight win in the series.
Pick: Kansas City Chiefs -9.5 over Jacksonville Jaguars
