NN prediction contest Week 7: Can the 49ers upset Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs?

The 49ers missed an excellent opportunity to take control of the NFC West last week, losing 28-14 to the Falcons. Returning home to San Francisco, the Niners have their toughest challenge of the season coming up against Patrick Mahomes and Kansas City’s high-powered offense.

Due to our sponsorship with Tallysight, we have to pick every game. But, as usual, we’ll narrow it down to six for you at the bottom. Odds for all the games are available on DraftKings Sportsbook.

Cardinals over Saints: The Cardinals are a mess, but I think Kyler Murray will bail them out against a Saints team that is showing the effects of a hamstrung salary cap and the loss of Sean Payton.

Falcons over Bengals: The Bengals have bounced back from their ugly start to the season, but the Falcons' rushing attack is going to give them problems. Cincinnati's defense has allowed nearly five yards per carry this season and will need Joe Burrow to have a standout game to win. It’s possible, but I’ll roll with the Falcons at +235.

Ravens over Browns: Talk about two teams failing to impress this season. I’ll keep rolling with the Ravens, given Cleveland’s woes on both sides of the ball, but I’m not as confident in Baltimore as I want to be with this pick.

Cowboys over Lions: I’m tempted to bet on a Lions bounce back after they were trounced by the Patriots, but I think Dallas’ defense is far too talented for Detroit to do much offensively. If I were picking points, I’d probably lean towards the Lions at +7, but I think the Cowboys stay hot.

Packers over Commanders: The two quarterbacks in this game have been lesser versions of their previous selves this season. The difference, of course, is a lesser version of Aaron Rodgers is still a decent quarterback. A lesser version of Carson Wentz is one of the worst signal callers in the league.

Colts over Titans: I’m going to only pick the underdog in AFC South matchups going forward since this division is such a mess.

Giants over Jaguars: I want to roll with the Jaguars, but they’ve been too inconsistent this season to pick them at -155 (with an implied probability of winning north of 60.7%).

Buccaneers over Panthers: Barring a significant shift, I don’t think I’ll be picking the Panthers to win another game anytime soon.

Texans over Raiders: At home and coming off a bye week following an impressive performance against Kansas City, the Raiders are heavy favorites over the Texans. However, Las Vegas has been far from good for most of this season. The Texans are a competent bad team and are good enough to get me to roll with them as the big underdogs.

Jets over Broncos: Keep it rolling, Robert Saleh! The Broncos' defense should be able to slow down the Jets' recent offensive explosion, but I don’t think Russell Wilson will be able to get enough points on the board to win a close game.

Kansas City over 49ers: I was expecting to pick the 49ers as big home underdogs, but with a line at +120, there’s just not enough upside to pick against Mahomes. The Niners' defense being depleted only makes matters worse.

Seahawks over Chargers: The Chargers are good but worse than I expected coming into the year. The Seahawks are looking like an above-average team in the mess of the NFC, and at +195, I’m picking the upset.

Dolphins over Steelers: Tua Tagovailoa is returning to the field, and I don’t think anyone will feel too good about watching that. However, if he’s close to what he was prior to his concussion, the Dolphins should crush the Steelers.

Bears over Patriots: I get it. The Bears suck. The Patriots are bad but competent. Bill Belichick spent so much of his press conference complimenting Chicago that it’s probably going to get ugly on Monday night. However, the Patriots' offense has been much better since Mac Jones went down with an injury. With Jones slated to return this week, I think New England might be in for a hiccup and a potential quarterback controversy.

BYE: Bills, Vikings, Rams, Eagles

Marc’s prediction record:
Week 1: 7-8-1
Week 2: 9-7
Week 3: 7-9
Week 4: 9-7
Week 5: 8-8
Week 6: 8-6
Overall: 48-45-1

Here are the six games for this week’s contest:

Giants @ Jaguars, 10:00 AM Pacific

Colts @ Titans, 10:00 AM Pacific

Falcons @ Bengals, 10:00 AM Pacific

Texans @ Raiders, 1:05 PM Pacific

Jets @ Broncos, 1:05 PM Pacific

Chiefs @ 49ers, 1:25 PM Pacific

Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.