NFL Week 14 picks: 49ers bounce back at Bengals; Steelers surprise Vikings
Long story short, let’s get to my NFL picks for Week 14:
49ers 21, Bengals 18: Kyle Shanahan said he would have gone for a two-point conversion and the win — had things gone differently late in Seattle. That aggressive mentality is what they’ll need to win along the Ohio River. Line: 49ers -1
Steelers 24, Vikings 23: T.J. Watt’s 65 ½ career sacks through 72 games are as exactly as many as J.J. Watt had. Only Reggie White (80) had more. Line: Steelers +3
Falcons 23, Panthers 21: Matt Ryan improves to 10-6 against Cam Newton in their NFC South wars. Line: Falcons +2 1/2
Ravens 17, Browns 14: Call it the Van Halen Bowl. These teams are runnin’ with the devil. They each enter with 1,765 rushin’ yards. They’re playing next door to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Van Halen was inducted in 2007. OK, that’s enough. Line: Ravens +2 1/2
Seahawks 32, Texans 17: Overpaid safety Jamal Adams sustained a season-ending shoulder injury against the 49ers – and then the Seahawks posted a second-half shutout to keep alive their slimmest shot at a playoff run. Line: Seahawks -7 1/2
Chiefs 33, Raiders 26: After winning last year in Arrowhead, the Raiders revert to normal form and lose for the eighth time in nine trips there. Line: Raiders +9 1/2
Jets 23, Saints 21: The Jets might not have the talent yet but the Saints always have an officiating crew working against them. Line: Jets +5 1/2
Titans 36, Jaguars 17: The Jaguars are getting outscored on average 32-18. They lost 37-19 in October to the Titans. Line: Titans -8 1/2
Washington 20, Cowboys 17: Last year in Week 14, Washington defeated the 49ers in the penultimate game of Alex Smith’s career. Call this upset Week 14 magic. Line: Washington +4
Broncos 20, Lions 16: Detroit’s win streak is one-and-done, although the Lions certainly could make themselves into late-season spoilers judging from Sunday’s walk-off theatrics against the Vikings. Line: Lions +8
Chargers 23, Giants 20: Apologies to Kliff Kingsbury and Bill Belichick but super-composed Brandon Staley should be the NFL Coach of the Year – if only he won more. Line: Giants +10
Bucs 27, Bills 21: After Monday night’s loss to the run-run-run Patriots, Buffalo gets baffled by Tom Brady’s passing for the high-scoring Bucs. Line: Bucs -3
Packers 31, Bears 16: Rather than Aaron Rodgers repeat how he owns the Bears, the streaking Packers can simply stake claim to owning a playoff berth with this win. Line: Packers -12 1/2
Cardinals 36, Rams 31: Arizona clinches its first playoff spot since 2015, and it does so by sweeping the not-so-dream-team. Line: Cardinals -2 1/2
Last week: 9-5 straight up, 8-6 against the spread
Season: 107-86-1 straight up, 95-98-1 against the spread