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| Thursday, November 10, 2022 |
| Welcome to the Thursday edition of the Pick Six newsletter! |
| If you look at the NFL schedule, you will notice that the Falcons and Panthers are playing tonight, and although that doesn't sound overly exciting, let me just say that if this game is half as crazy as their first meeting, this could go down as the greatest Thursday night game of all-time. If you don't remember that first meeting, the Falcons won, 37-34, in overtime back in Week 8 in a game that had a Hail Mary by Carolina that should have won it, but the Panthers got flagged for taking off their helmet to celebrate the Hail Mary and their kicker missed the ensuing 48-yard extra point attempt. (He also missed a 32-yarder in overtime to win it.) |
| We'll be previewing tonight's game and offering some picks, plus we'll be making our midseason Super Bowl predictions. |
| As always, here's your weekly reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the Pick Six newsletter. To get your friends to sign up, all you have to do is click here and then share this link with them. |
| 1. Today's show: Brady Quinn breaks down the latest NFL news |
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| If you're going to listen to just one episode of the Pick Six podcast every week, then you should definitely make sure that you're listening every Thursday, because that's when Brady Quinn joins the show. For today's episode, the former first-round pick chatted with Will Brinson about a multitude of topics, including whether the Packers should think about playing Jordan Love. |
| The Packers could fall to 3-7 this week if they lose to the Cowboys, and if that happens, Quinn thinks they should at least consider sending Aaron Rodgers to the bench just so they can see what they have in Jordan Love. |
| "They have such a long road to get back into this just to be a wild-card team," Quinn said. "I do think you have to start contemplating, 'Maybe we need to look at Jordan Love. Just from a business standpoint, where are we going to be at with this guy after the season so we can make a decision on that fifth-year option.' I think there's some validity to that." |
| Besides the Packers, Quinn also weighed in on the wristband debate that Pete Carroll started this week. Carroll complimented Geno Smith for his willingness to wear a wristband, which seemed to be a subtle shot at Russell Wilson, who refused to wear a wristband during his time in Seattle. |
| If you want to hear what Quinn had to say on that -- and everything else the two guys talked about on today's podcast -- then be sure to click here. If you want to see his handsome face, then you can also watch today's episode on YouTube by clicking here. |
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| 2. Thursday night preview: Prepping you for Falcons at Panthers |
| For the second time in 11 days, the Falcons and Panthers will be playing each other, and if there's any division rivalry that's almost oddly fun to watch, it's this one. The past five games between these two teams have all been decided by just one score, including Atlanta's 37-34 overtime win in Week 8 that was one of the craziest wins of the season by any team. |
| My good buddy Jared Dubin wrote our deep-dive preview for this game here at CBSSports.com, and here's how he sees the game playing out: |
| Why the Falcons can win: The Falcons will be going into this game with the NFL's fourth-best rushing offense (162.9 yards per game), and they'll be facing a Panthers defense that can't stop the run. Through the first nine weeks, the Panthers have given up 139.3 yards per game on the ground, which is the fifth-worst number in the NFL. When you add in the fact that Cordarrelle Patterson will be on the field (he was out with an injury in the first meeting), it feels like the Falcons should be able to run the ball at will, and if they do that, they should be able to escape Carolina with a win. Why the Panthers can win: The Panthers have been one of the NFL's worst passing teams this year, but if they're going to win tonight, they're probably going to have to figure out how to jumpstart their passing game. The Falcons are giving up 300 yards per game through the air, which is the worst number in the NFL. In Week 8, the Panthers threw for 309 yards against the Falcons, a wildly high number considering they've only averaged 169 passing yards in their other eight games. The Panthers would definitely prefer to run, but it's hard to see them winning if P.J. Walker doesn't produce through the air, and that won't be easy because the forecast tonight is calling for rain. If the Panthers can figure out how to throw the ball, this game could get interesting. |
| You can get a full preview of the game from Dubin by clicking here. |
| If you're thinking about betting on the game, Tyler Sullivan put together a full gambling preview (odds via Caesars Sportsbook). You can check out Tyler's full gambling preview by clicking here, but if you don't feel like clicking over, here's one prop from both of us for tonight's game. |
| ONE PROP TYLER LIKES: Marcus Mariota OVER 30.5 rushing yards (-119): "Mariota has gone over 30.5 yards in four of his past five games, including Atlanta's Week 8 win over Carolina when he had 43. Over the past five weeks, Mariota is averaging 41.8 yards per game on the ground." ONE PROP I LIKE: Cordarrelle Patterson OVER 54.5 rushing yards (-119): Patterson missed the Week 8 game due to an injury, which means this is the first time this season he'll get to face the Panthers. Carolina is surrendering 139.3 rush yards per game, which is the fifth-worst number in the NFL. I expect Patterson to take full advantage of that by rushing for at least 55 yards. |
| Finally, if you're wondering who we're picking, here's who we have tonight in a game where the Falcons are 2.5-point road favorites: |
Dubin's pick: Falcons 20-16 over Panthers
Sullivan's pick: Falcons 27-20 over Panthers
My pick: Falcons 30-23 over Panthers |
| To find out who our experts are taking, be sure to check out our CBSSports.com picks page by clicking here. |
| 3. QB news: Kyler Murray, Matthew Stafford both banged up |
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| It's been an ugly week for quarterback injuries, and if things don't change quickly, we could see multiple starters out Sunday. Here's a look at what we know about each injury: |
| Josh Allen sits out Wednesday's practice. The Bills QB is dealing with a ulnar collateral ligament injury, and as of right now, his status for Sunday's game against the Vikings is a total mystery. Allen didn't practice Wednesday, and coach Sean McDermott refused to offer any clues regarding whether Allen has thrown at all this week or whether he'll be playing. "We'll see," McDermott said. Matthew Stafford is in concussion protocol. Rams coach Sean McVay announced Wednesday that Stafford has been placed in concussion protocol, which means there's a chance he won't play this week against the Cardinals. McVay said he's "optimistic" about Stafford's chances of playing and "there's a possibility he'll be able to go." If Stafford can't go, the start will go to John Wolford. Kyler Murray dealing with a hamstring issue. The Rams-Cardinals game could be a battle of backups, and that's because Murray is also dealing with an injury. Kyler didn't take part in Wednesday's walk-through practice due to a hamstring injury. According to NFL.com, Murray is day-to-day, and although this isn't viewed as a long-term injury, it will be something to watch this week. If Murray can't go, Colt McCoy would get the start for Arizona. Ryan Tannehill's ankle not quite 100% yet. The Titans QB missed Tennessee's Week 9 game against the Chiefs due to an ankle injury, and that same injury made him a limited participant in practice Wednesday. Tannehill is hoping to play against the Broncos this week, but there's no guarantee that's going to happen. If he can't go, Malik Willis would be called upon to make his second career start. |
| For a full roundup of all the injuries around the NFL, be sure to click here. |
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| 4. Midseason Super Bowl predictions: Bills still lead the way |
| With the NFL season officially at the midpoint, we've decided that now is the perfect time to hand out some Super Bowl predictions. We've been able to watch each team play for nine weeks, and after watching them, it seems most of our experts are still in love with the Buffalo Bills. |
| Despite Josh Allen's injury, nearly everyone is still on the Bills bandwagon. Of our six experts, three of them have the Bills winning it all. Although the Bills were a popular pick, we're actually predicting six different teams to make it to the Super Bowl and four different teams to win it: |
Jason La Canfora: Bills over Cowboys
Pete Prisco: Bills over 49ers
Will Brinson: Ravens over Eagles
Ryan Wilson: Eagles over Chiefs
Jared Dubin: Bills over 49ers
John Breech: Chiefs over Cowboys |
| If you want to check out our entire prediction page, which includes us predicting each division winner and all 14 playoff teams, then you're going to want to click here. |
| If you click over, here are some quick nuggets you'll see: |
| Unanimous playoff participants. The six of us unanimously agreed that the Bills, Titans, Ravens, Chiefs, Dolphins, and Bengals would make the playoffs out of the AFC. In the NFC, we all agreed that the Eagles, Vikings, 49ers, and Cowboys would make the postseason. No one knows who's going to win the NFC South. In three of the NFL's eight divisions, we unanimously agreed who would end up winning it, but that definitely wasn't the case in the NFC South, as three different teams received at least one vote (Tampa Bay, Atlanta, New Orleans). Packers not dead. Although the Packers are currently 3-6, two of our six experts believe Green Bay will rebound and make the playoffs. I would just like everyone to know that I was not one of those two people who voted for that. |
| To check out the entire story along with all of our votes, be sure to click here. |
| 5. Looking at the teams with the easiest remaining strength of schedule |
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| If you're trying to figure out who's going to make the playoffs this year, one way to make an educated guess is to look at the remaining strength of schedule for each contender. That's exactly what Jeff Kerr did this week. |
| For instance, although the Falcons might not be the favorite to win the NFC South, things are actually shaping up well for them down the stretch, and that's because they have the easiest remaining strength schedule of any team in the NFC and second-easiest in the NFL. Over their final eight games, the Falcons will only face one team that currently has a winning record. |
| With that in mind, here's a look at the five teams with the easiest remaining schedules: |
1. Ravens (Opponents have a .353 combined winning percentage)
2. Falcons (.380)
3. Chiefs (.420)
4. Buccaneers (.429)
5. Panthers (.435) |
| Here's a look at the five teams with the most-difficult remaining schedules: |
1. Packers (.606)
2. Patriots (.603)
3. Commanders (.592)
4. Giants (.587)
5. Colts (.586) |
| For a full look at Kerr's story, which looks at the remaining schedule of the top-20 playoff contenders, be sure to click here. |
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| 6. Rapid-fire roundup: Commanders in hot water |
| It's been a busy 24 hours in the NFL, and since it's nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you. |
Commanders under investigation by U.S. attorney's office. The D.C. Attorney General has announced that he will "make a major announcement related to the Washington Commanders" at 1 p.m. ET on Thursday, which means we should know what kind of trouble the team is in by the time you read this. The Commanders fired back at the AG last night with a wild statement, but that's likely not going to keep the AG from making his announcement today. Ex-Bengals player has ties to winning Powerball ticket. The largest jackpot in world history was handed out this week with one person near L.A. taking home $2.04 billion in the Powerball. The winning ticket was sold by Joe's Service Center in Altadena, California, a place that just happens to be owned by the father-in-law of former NFL player Domata Peko. Peko spent 15 years in the NFL with 11 of those coming in Cincinnati. For more details on this story, be sure to click here.
Packers claim former Raiders first-rounder. Less than 24 hours after being released by the Raiders, Jonathan Abram already has a new home. The former first-round pick was claimed off waivers by the Packers, who will be bringing the safety in to give them some more depth in the secondary.
Zeke and Micah Parsons recruiting Odell. The Cowboys are going hard after Odell Beckham Jr. Not only has Jerry Jones made it clear he wants Odell, but Parsons and Ezekiel Elliott are also trying to woo the receiver to Dallas. Both players have let Odell know that he should sign with the Cowboys. Alvin Kamara hearing moved to January. The Saints running back is facing a felony charge of battery resulting in substantial bodily harm for an incident that took place in Las Vegas in February, and there was supposed to be a hearing this week. However, that hearing has now been moved back to Jan. 23, according to ESPN, which makes it highly unlikely Kamara faces any potential punishment from the NFL this year.
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| | CBS is kicking off the college basketball season with the 9th annual Veterans Classic. Watch #3 Houston face off against Saint Joseph's and Princeton take on Navy. Tune in at 6 PM ET on CBS Sports Network.
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