Week 1 Panel Picks

In week 17 of last season, I had a group of five people predict NFL results, and added two more panelists in week 18. It was fun, but this season I wanted to up the ante. Throughout the next five months, myself and six friends will be predicting all 272 regular season and 14 playoff games. The most games picked correctly wins money, respect, invincibility from punishment, or whatever we decide to do.

Meet the panelists.

The rules:

1. A team must be picked as a lock to win each week. If the lock wins, the person who picked them gets two wins. If the lock loses, it counts for two losses. Locks are highlighted in green. You cannot lock a team favored by 7 or more points (in this case, the Ravens and the Commanders).

2. Each person must pick at least two underdogs according to point spreads created by Vegas.

Here are the week one picks.

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Primetime Games

Early Window Games

Late Window Games

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Most alike picks: George and Josh picked the same result for 14 of the 16 games.

Least alike picks: Ray and Jackson as well as Josh and Theo picked 7 results differently.

Most upsets picked: Josh picked a respectable 5 upsets.

Least upsets picked: Theo only picked 2 upsets.

Most picks with the majority: I picked with the majority 15 out of 16 times. Not sure how I feel about that.

Most picks against the majority: Ray enjoys life on the edge. He picked against the majority 5 times.

What Stands Out?

1. The early window is a breeding ground for disappointment. Of the five games that were sweeps, only one of them contained a lock, meaning that they are probably more closely contested than we are making them out to be. It’s probable that one of the Colts, Panthers, Buccaneers, Texans, or Cardinals will give everyone a loss this week.

2. Dolphins vs Chargers has serious potential to be game of the week. The Chargers received four picks to the Dolphins’ three, making this game one of just three toss up games on this week’s slate (Titans vs Saints and Cowboys vs Giants are the other two). Last year, LA beat Miami in a terrific 23-17 Sunday Night Game. Perhaps we get an encore this Sunday.

3. Travis Kelce’s injury and closely contested Jets vs Bills game give Jackson a chance to gain some valuable wins, as he was the only person to pick the Lions and the Jets.

4. Last year, the Commanders finished 4th in their division, and this week, they are favored by the second most points of any team. It’s going to be a long season for the Cardinals.

5. Six of our seven locks are on different teams, meaning that there could be a lot of blowouts this week.

Playoff Picture

Let’s pretend our majority pick in each matchup won this weekend. Here would be the playoff matchups on Wild Card Weekend if that were the case (since every playoff team is 1-0, I just went by how many people picked them to win).

AFC

(1) Baltimore Ravens vs BYE

(2) Jacksonville Jaguars vs (7) Tennessee Titans | Jacksonville won 20-16 in week 18 last season.

(3) Buffalo Bills vs (6) Los Angeles Chargers | The last time they faced off was in Herbert’s rookie year. Buffalo won 27-17.

(4) Kansas City Chiefs vs (5) Cincinnati Bengals | Kansas City won 23-20 in the AFC Championship game last season.

NFC

(1) Seattle Seahawks vs BYE

(2) Atlanta Falcons vs (7) Chicago Bears | Atlanta won 27-24 in week 11 last season.

(3) Minnesota Vikings vs (6) Philadelphia Eagles | Philadelphia won 24-7 in week 2 last season.

(4) Washington Commanders vs San Francisco 49ers | San Francisco won 37-20 in week 16 last season.

ATA Standings

1. George: 0-0

2. Jackson: 0-0

3. Josh: 0-0

4. Rahul: 0-0

5. Ray: 0-0

6. Theo: 0-0

7. Webb: 0-0

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When the Lions fly to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs, a spectacle will be produced. Not because the game is guaranteed to be of the highest quality, but rather because years of evidence tells us that football presents the highest quality of happiness. Do not forget that Lions vs Chiefs is also a commemoration of the 202 days preceding it, when all we could wish for was a three hour slugfest like the one we will watch on Thursday night. Here’s to a great week 1.