Welcome back for another round of picks! Week 8 of Thursday Night Football kicks off later tonight, with the New England Patriots hosting the Miami Dolphins. The Patriots are unbeaten, and rolling along. The Dolphins are 3-3, but have won two straight since firing Joe Philbin and promoting Dan Campbell as their interim head coach.
I'll be posting my full picks against the spread on Saturday, but for today, I have posted my straight up picks down below, as well as my ATS pick for TNF. You can view the NN pick 'em contest results over here. I put together a 12-2 Week 7, which brings me to 68-37 for the season.
The 49ers opened as a 7.5-point underdog to the Rams, but the line has climbed up near 9-, or even 9.5-points at some sportsbooks. In the SuperContest, I can get the 49ers at +8.5, and I have to admit, it is really tempting. The 49ers are not a good football team, but the Rams intrigue me with their averageness. They won in Arizona, but this is still a Jeff Fisher coached and Nick Foles quarterbacked team. The only thing holding me back from taking the 49ers right now is that Rams defensive line. It could seriously brutalize the 49ers offensive line.
The Patriots are an eight-point favorite in the SuperContest. I'm leaning toward taking the Patriots to cover, but it is not an easy pick. Interim head coach Dan Campbell has the Dolphins playing some really good football lately, winning and covering the spread in his first two games. But heading into Foxboro is not exactly easy work. The New York Jets gave the Patriots a tough fight last week, as did the Indianapolis Colts the week before. I'll go with the Patriots to cover, as the Campbell train slows down a little bit.
Here are my Week 8 picks for our pick 'em contest.
Dolphins @ Patriots: Patriots
Lions @ Chiefs: Chiefs
Buccaneers @ Falcons: Falcons
Vikings @ Bears: Vikings
Cardinals @ Browns: Cardinals
49ers @ Rams: 49ers
Giants @ Saints: Saints
Bengals @ Steelers: Steelers
Chargers @ Ravens: Ravens
Titans @ Texans: Texans
Jets @ Raiders: Raiders
Seahawks @ Cowboys: Cowboys
Packers @ Broncos: Packers
Colts @ Panthers: Panthers