Take three weaker people and one lover

The late afternoon and evening Sunday evening of NFL Week 18 stretched from the playing fields in Los Angeles and Las Vegas to the final standings here in the Bettors’ Guide.

I entered the weekend with a five-game lead on the overall standings, but as it neared 7pm, it seemed the best I could do was draw for first place. Then the Buccaneers pulled out of the Panthers, the Bills had a late encounter with the Jets and the 49ers completed a great comeback to allow me to claim the title by being closer than it appeared four games to Brian Costello. .

There is even more drama in the Best Bet race. Howie Kussoy Needs a Case The Charger is a favorite three-point item at Raiders. But when Daniel Carlson scored an overtime goal for Las Vegas, it handed the title to Steve Serby, who finished the season with a highly profitable 61.1 win rate.

Into the knockout round!

Sunday

Philadelphia Eagles (+8.5) vs TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS; Above 45.5

First, I want to sincerely thank Nick Sirianni for my favorite cover of the 2021 season. On October 14 in Philadelphia, the Eagles lost 6.5 points to the Bucs and were down 28-14 midway through the fourth quarter. Jalen Hurts scored in a 2-yard run to make it 28-20, and then when every other coach in history has kicked the PAT, Sirianni scored twice and got them… and the cover. !

This spread is a bit lighter than I expected, but I expect this to be a street fight. Before resting many players in Week 18, the Eagles had won 4 games in a row and had a streak that allowed 13, 18, 17, 10 and 16 points. Also, a strong inner defense is often the best defense against Tom Brady.

Buccaneers, 27-20

San Francisco 49ers (+3) ahead of DALLAS COWBOYS; Under 50.5

For a team that went to 13-4 ATS, the Cowboys have an unusually high number of home red flags this season. They lost at Jerry’s World to the Broncos, Raiders, and Cardinals, and their team’s overall stats were boosted by a 56-14 win over the WFT withered and 51-26 against the remaining Eagles.

Last week’s comeback, from the 17-0 loss to the Rams, told us all we need to know about the 49ers, who are 8-3 SU and ATS in their past 11 games. Their offense can score in a variety of ways – with Deebo Samuel, George Kittle and others – and Kyle Shanahan knows how to use them all. In total, I think the 49ers will do enough of their damage on the ground for the clock to turn, and that Mike McCarthy will mismanage his timeout and lack a scoring opportunity.

49ers, 24-23

Pittsburgh Steelers (+12.5) overtakes CITY CHAIRMAN KANSAS; Above 46.5

I pretty much know that I’m up against a pretty bad team, and a team that lost to this opponent, at this stadium, by 36-10 three weeks ago. I know Ben Roethlisberger was right when he said, “I suppose, as a group, you understand that we probably shouldn’t be here. We are probably not a very good team. Out of the 14 teams that I think are present, we are probably number 14.” But here’s the part I like: “We were double-digit in the knockout round. So let’s just go play, have fun and see what happens.”

Indeed, the Steelers are playing with the house money, and catching a lot of points from the Chiefs that are known for winning and never hiding. They actually covered five in a row as favorites at the end of this season, but bounced back in Week 18. It’s also the biggest margin that Kansas City has been asked to cover the entire season. . Finally the trusty Mike Tomlin bottom corner – 46-23-2 ATS according to my unofficial runs.

Chief, 33-21

Monday

LOS ANGELES RAMS (-4) on the Arizona Cardinals; Under 49.5

It was the match between first-time playoff midfielder Kyler Murray and his post-season career 0-3, Matthew Stafford. Of course, Stafford now has Rams around him instead of Lions. Stafford has been pretty shaky lately, but he has the most unstoppable weapon in the game in Cooper Kupp, and also makes great use of Tyler Higbee.

Each team took the other team’s outright win in the regular season, and the Cardinals are actually 8-1 SU on the road in 2021. But that one loss was a lousy, 30-loss loss. 12 can’t be explained by the Lions, and the recent loss against the Colts and Seahawks has also been unsightly.

Rams, 30-17.

Course of the week: 49ers (Class of 10-7 in 2021).
Last week: 8-8 Final, 1-2 Best Bets.