Week 15 Panel Picks: Bills Favorites Over Cowboys, Philly and KC on Upset Alert
Good morning everyone— Before I get to today’s article, I’d like to apologize for the lack of articles lately. I’ve had lot of work with finals in the last week, and my time has been limited as a result.
The numerous upsets from week 14 were cause for our worst performance in weeks. The best record was my 10-6 showing, and Rahul bottomed out the panel at 6-10 which led to Josh shrinking the gap at the bottom to just three games. Overall, we combined for a record of 56-56. You can check out the rest of the results here. So far this week, four games have been played. The Raiders romp of the Chargers on Thursday Night Football brought victories for Jackson, Theo, and I, and Saturday’s games gave plenty of mixed results. So far, I am the last panelist that is perfect through the first half of the weekend, and Theo and George split the two games that they picked differently. Here are the standings prior to week 15, and the rest of the picks.
Primetime Games
Early Window
Late Window
Most alike picks: There’s been a pattern of Theo and George picking very similar results in the last month of so. That trend continued this week—they only picked two different results, and both were already played.
Least alike picks: Jackson/Rahul and Josh and I each picked seven different results.
Most upsets picked: Ray, Josh, and Rahul all picked six upsets. Last week, the panelists who picked more upsets tended to have more success.
Fewest upsets picked: George and Theo only picked two upsets each.
Most picks with majority: All of George’s picks sided with the majority.
Most picks against majority: Jackson and I each were in the minority five times.
What Stands Out?
For the second straight week, the Bills are playing in the ATA game of the week. In week 14, the Chiefs were favored by four votes to three against them, and this week, they’ve got the 4-3 edge over the Cowboys. Bills vs Cowboys will have major playoff and panel implications.
Despite being three-point favorites over the injury-plagued Texans, I was the only person to vote for the Titans. C.J. Stroud, Nico Collins, and Tank Dell are all inactive.
At one point in time this season, the Commanders were unlockable against the Cardinals and the Giants. Now, in week 15, the Rams have been locked four times against Washington who has the worst defense in the league, and a coaching staff composed of a bunch of dead men walking.
This marks the 6th week in a row that the Panthers are receiving no votes. The last vote that they received was from Josh against the Colts. The Panthers lost 27-13 that week.
It’s clear that the Eagles are on upset alert against the Seahawks this week. Their defense cannot make any stops (the passing defense is one of the worst in the league) and their offense was incredibly stagnant against the 49ers and Cowboys—they rank last in use of motion.
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.
AFC
(1) Baltimore Ravens vs BYE | The Ravens can clinch a first round bye by winning their next two games.
(2) Miami Dolphins vs (7) Indianapolis Colts | Mike McDaniel and Shane Steichen would be the two most inexperienced head coaches in the AFC playoffs.
(3) Kansas City Chiefs vs (6) Cincinnati Bengals | This would be the third season in a row that Cincinnati and Kansas City meet in the postseason.
(4) Jacksonville Jaguars vs (5) Cleveland Browns | Cleveland won this matchup 31-27 last week.
NFC
(1) San Francisco 49ers vs BYE | The only future 49ers opponent with a winning record this season is Baltimore.
(2) Philadelphia Eagles vs (7) Green Bay Packers | Philadelphia beat Green Bay with Jordan Love 41-33 last year.
(3) Detroit Lions vs (6) Minnesota Vikings | Detroit and Minnesota play each other in weeks 16 and 18.
(4) Atlanta Falcons vs (5) Dallas Cowboys | Despite Dallas being seeded lower than Atlanta, their respective DVOA’s are 4th and 27th.