NFL Week 4 Staff Picks: Bortles to the rescue
Each week during the NFL season, the staff at theScore will put on their prognosticator hats and offer up selections against the spread on each of the week’s top games, highlighting several marquee matchups.
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| Game | Battaglia | Bottero | Holroyd |
|---|---|---|---|
| Giants at Redskins | WSH -3.5 | WSH -3.5 | WSH -3.5 |
| Dolphins at Raiders | OAK +3.5 | MIA -3.5 | MIA -3.5 |
| Packers at Bears | CHI +1.5 | GB -1.5 | GB -1.5 |
| Bills at Texans | BUF +3 | HOU -3 | HOU -3 |
| Titans at Colts | IND -7.5 | TEN +7.5 | IND -7.5 |
| Panthers at Ravens | BAL -3 | CAR +3 | CAR +3 |
| Lions at Jets | DET -1.5 | DET -1.5 | NYJ +1.5 |
| Buccaneers at Steelers | TB +7.5 | TB +7.5 | PIT -7.5 |
| Jaguars at Chargers | JAX +13 | JAX +13 | JAX +13 |
| Eagles at 49ers | PHI +5 | PHI +5 | SF -5 |
| Falcons at Vikings | ATL -3 | ATL -3 | ATL -3 |
| Saints at Cowboys | NO -3 | NO -3 | NO -3 |
| Patriots at Chiefs | KC +3.5 | KC +3.5 | NE -3.5 |
Unanimous selections: Redskins -3.5, Jaguars +13, Falcons -3, Saints -3
Unanimous selections are 5-6 ATS for the season. Last week: 3-1 ATS.
Marquee Matchups
Green Bay Packers (-1.5) at Chicago Bears
Chris Battaglia: Green Bay’s offensive line is letting Aaron Rodgers down this season. Only the Jacksonville Jaguars have surrendered more yardage to sacks than the Packers. Chicago’s defense has faced questions early on, but if they can get to Rodgers, Jay Cutler should be able to create enough offense for the home victory. Bears +1.5
Gino Bottero: The Packers' offensive line is to blame for the majority of the team's woes this season, but the Bears have issues getting to the quarterback. Expect Rodgers to get back on track and light up a Bears secondary that is extremely shorthanded at the moment, and the Packers' defense to make enough key stops to get out of the Windy City with a victory. Packers -1.5
Caitlyn Holroyd: This should be one of the more exciting matchups this week, as there are some early-season implications on the line. If the Bears win, they could move into sole possession of first in the NFC North. The Packers already lost to one division foe - the Lions in Week 3 - and need to avoid falling to 1-3. Chicago is 92-88-6 against Green Bay all time, but has won only four of the last 15 matchups between the two teams. Packers -1.5
Philadelphia Eagles at San Francisco 49ers (-5)
Battaglia: Philadelphia is 3-0 despite trailing by as much as 10 points in each of its first three games. That kind of resilience makes them tough to bet against, even on the road at San Francisco’s brand-new Levi’s Stadium. The 49ers should prevail, but count on Nick Foles and the Eagles making this a close game and taking it right to the wire. Eagles +5
Bottero: The Eagles have had issues with slow starts, while the 49ers have had issues closing. That's going to leave the possibility of a backdoor cover open throughout the afternoon. The 49ers' issues extend well beyond the fourth quarter, and Chip Kelly's quick-strike offense will expose them. Eagles +5
Holroyd: Despite trailing their opponents after the first quarter in each of their first three games, the Eagles find themselves atop the NFC East at a perfect 3-0. That could be bad news for the 49ers, who blew a 17-point, second-quarter lead to the Cardinals in Week 3 to fall to 1-2 on the season. San Francisco needs to win this one more, though, and holds an all-time record of 18-12-1 against Philadelphia. 49ers -5
New Orleans Saints (-3) at Dallas Cowboys
Battaglia: New Orleans is better than its 1-2 record suggests, while Dallas still has a host of problems on either side of the ball. The only thing going right for the Cowboys at the moment is their running game, and the Saints have done well to contain opposing backfields thus far. The only reason this line isn’t more lopsided is because New Orleans has an exaggerated reputation of playing poorly on the road. Saints -3
Bottero: The last time these teams faced off, the Saints posted a record 40 first downs in a 49-17 thrashing of the Cowboys at the Superdome. While the venue is different, this game will still be played indoors on the fast track. The Saints' reputation for playing poorly on the road has had too great an impact on this number, as has the Cowboys' back-to-back wins over soft competition. Saints -3
Holroyd: The road hasn't been kind to the Saints in recent years - except in the case of Cowboys stadium, where New Orleans has won both their games. Dallas matched their biggest comeback victory in franchise history in Week 3, clawing back from a 21-0 deficit to defeat the Rams 34-31. They won't be so lucky this week, though. Saints -3
Wild Card Selections
Detroit Lions (-1.5) at New York Jets
Battaglia: Detroit has the edge in this battle of stout defenses. The Jets biggest strength off the ball is their run defense, but the Lions should be able to neutralize that advantage with their pass-heavy offense. Geno Smith will be hard pressed to create big plays against Detroit’s secondary while Ndamukong Suh will look to increase his sack total. Lions -1.5
Atlanta Falcons (-3) at Minnesota Vikings
Bottero: The Falcons' defense hasn't quite been up to snuff this season, but they showed enough a week ago that they can be trusted against a poor Vikings offense that will trot out a rookie quarterback in Teddy Bridgewater, who will make his first career start. The Vikings' defense has been better than advertised, but the Falcons have the weapons to exploit them through the air. Falcons -3
New England Patriots (-3.5) at Kansas City Chiefs
Holroyd: The Patriots opened Week 3 with the biggest point spread of the season, but were unable to cover against the struggling Oakland Raiders. They got the win, though, and face a much more manageable spread this week. New England is tied for first in the NFL with a plus-6 turnover differential, while Kansas City has a league-worst differential of minus-5. Patriots -3.5
Lines courtesy Scoresandodds.com.