This Week's Picks

I had pretty good luck with a parlay last weekend, winning $30.00 on a $5.00 bet with Chicago, the New York Giants, and the Steelers, all covering the spread in their games; by contrast, all the straight wagers I did on single games—Minnesota, the 49ers, and the Cleveland Browns—lost. So, I’ve decided this week, that the safe bet isn’t really safe at all and am going with three different three-team parlays, figuring that, even if only one hits, I’ll pay for my other wagers whether they pan out or not.

In the first of the three, I’m going with the Broncos -1 at home against the Chargers, the Rams +8.5 at home against the Giants, and the Jets -1 against the Patriots in New York. Of the three, I’m thinking the third is the sketchiest, but with Favre for New York and no Brady for the Pats, I’ll take it.

The second parlay features the Seahawks -6.5 against San Francisco, Carolina -3 at home vs. the Bears, and Arizona -6.5 against the Dolphins. Again, it’s the third of those three that I’m must unsure of; I think Seattle with run up the score against the 49ers, the Bears aren’t I think, as good as they looked against Indianapolis, but the Dolphins might surprise the Couch Slouch’s perennial team of destiny, the Cardinals. But, we’ll see.

Parlay number three, is Indianapolis -1.5 against the Vikes, Detroit +3 vs. the Pack, and the Bengals -1 against the Titans. In this case, I’m surest only of the third; in fact, I may go back and place another version of this same parlay with the Vikings beating the spread against the Colts.

Finally, just for fun, and contrary to my usual rule against betting on my Boyz, I’ve got the Steelers and Browns under 44.5, but Pittsburgh alone over 25.5.