Big Five Picks for 2018 NFL Week 9

by Gus Elmashni

Keeping it simple this week ... give you my picks and brief analysis. Last week we went 4-1! That is 10-5 for the last three weeks. We are getting a good handle of the season now! Overall, we are 21-18-1. Not bad and we will keep improving.

Here are our picks for Week 9 (based on lines from Westgate).

  1. Chicago -10
  2. Kansas City -8
  3. Carolina -6
  4. LA Chargers +2
  5. LA Rams +1.5

Yes, that is a lot of chalk for the first three games. Well our model has the Bears and Chiefs winning by at least 3 TDs. Last week, we had New England winning by 21 points and they won by 19 covering the 13.5 point spread. Buffalo and Cleveland are awful. We don't care where those games are being played ... the Bears and Chiefs are simply superior teams to the Bills and Browns. Eat the points, cough up the chalk, and make some money!

We also like Carolina to destory Tampa Bay. Panthers are 4-0 at home and Bucs are 1-3 on the road. Carolina's point differential at home is an average of +8.75 points per game. Except for the shocker in New Orleans, the Bucs have been awful on the road. The defense has been especially bad. Newton and McCaffrey will dominate the Bucs. Our model has the Panthers winning by at least 2 TDs and in fact Carolina is our best bet of Week 9. Oh, we officially have a QB controversy in Tampa Bay. That is going to tear apart the Bucs locker room.

As for the teams from LA, they are simply better than their opponents this week and they are underdogs. Don't just take the points ... go moneyline! Points are for pussies (when playing the underdogs) so let's make some real money! I wouldn't be surprised if we get an all LA Super Bowl. Be patient with the Chargers. Joey Bosa is due back soon and could return this week. Once he does, the Chargers pass rush is the best in the league. Couple that with a dynamic offense and they can give the Chiefs and Patriots a run for their money. As for the Rams, they are awesome and I don't see them losing many games this year. The Saints defense is not very good.

OK, there you have it! Keep riding this money train!