Category: NFL General

There sure has been a whole lot of trash talk lately about who “owns” whom.  So now it’s time to step up and prove it.  I’ve created a Pick Em group on Yahoo.  Anyone can join, up to 50 people. No cash. Just bragging rights. Every week, I’ll post the standings.  You can talk all the trash you want in that thread.  Also, if you have any sure fire picks, put em in there as well.

To sign up, go here.

Group ID#:    50204
Group Password: bragging

You can join at anytime.   I suggest using your Sportscolumn user name as your “pick” name. Good luck.

What a difference a week makes. The AFC dominates the top of the charts as no decent team in the NFC has a better than .500 record. And yes by decent team, I mean one that has a chance to make the playoffs.

A mediocre start to the NFL season puts the Sportscolumn Picks crew at 35-29 (.547) so far. Don’t worry though, we got plenty of time to turn this thing up a notch.

Don’t forget about the podcast to go along with the picks below. You can listen/download the mp3 file directly here or you can subscribe to the podcast using this feed. If you have iTunes, go to your Advanced Menu, click on Subscribe to Podcast and enter this url: http://feeds.feedburner.com/nflpickspodcast

Home teams in CAPS.

BET THE HOUSE AWARD

Seemingly, there are several candidates this week that reek of “gimmes.” For bettors, that’s a scary proposition. Even still, I must select a “sure thing,” and this week’s guarantee is…

Pittsburgh (-7) over HOUSTON

Week 1 of the NFL season is the toughest to do the Power Rankings. Do the Saints belong above the Eagles? Or even Minnesota? Are Power Rankings how well a team has done in the past week(s) or how well they’ll do in the future? I subscribe to a mix of the two.

The overriding theme for this week is: it’s a long season. We’ll reward teams for winning on opening weekend, but that doesn’t mean they’re in the top of the class. On the flip side, one loss doesn’t mean you’re out of playoff contention either. Unless you lose to the Niners, in which case you deserve to be ranked last.

Recently I have been hearing more and more about how Fantasy Football is detrimental to the NFL.  This wave of sentiment seems to have started with a few sports columnists, who, as “football purists”, clearly see all new-fangled ideas as “destructive to the spirit of the game”.  They believe that fantasy football can encourage people to root for teams other than their home team, thereby (by means unknown), destroying the game.  Next they will be asking us to abolish the forward pass, saying it “undermines the integrity of the game.”  In all seriousness, though, most people who play fantasy football love it.  It is a great way to feel in control of your own team, and promotes a sense of competition.  For many people, it brings them closer to the NFL, rather than pushing them away.

If there is any fan out there who understands the NFL’s quarterback efficiency rating they should probably make them Commissioner. The complex, arcane, over-computerized method used to rate quarterbacks is so flawed and confusing that it makes the BCS look like kindergarten arithmetic. I’m just a fan, I shouldn’t need a PhD in mathematics to determine if my favorite quarterback is statistically efficient.

There needs to be an easily calculable, fair, yet comprehensive system for fans, and announcers, to be able to gauge the effectiveness of quarterbacks. The QB rating system could be as fun and understandable as calculating your favorite baseball player’s batting average, or on base percentage. But until now, it hasn’t been.

Welcome to the 2005-2006 Weekly NFL Picks. We have three new experts joining us this year: Teri Berg, Ryan McGowan, and Trevor Freeman, all regular columnists on the site.

In addition, we have a podcast to go along with the picks below. You can listen/download the mp3 file directly here or you can subscribe to the podcast using this feed. If you have iTunes, go to your Advanced Menu, click on Subscribe to Podcast and enter this url: http://feeds.feedburner.com/nflpickspodcast

Here’s to a great season and hoping we do better than that idiot Merrill Hoge.

        If you’re a football fan right about now, you’ve probably grown so delirious waiting for the NFL to come back you’ve convinced yourself that your team has a shot.  Never mind all those faults you couldn’t help but notice as last season wore on; those have slowly been pushed out the back of your head, replaced with reasons why your team has “it” this year.  Well, chances are, your team doesn’t have “it”.  In fact, your team has only a 1-in-32 shot of having “it”, and that’s if you give the Niners the same odds as the Patriots.

Usually this time of year Detroit fans have a lot to celebrate. The beginning of the year brings thoughts of winning the NFC and going on to the Superbowl winning the coveted title.

Okay okay it usually lasts only until after the second game, but this year could be different for a few key reasons….