Can they stop their skid?
Coming off their BYE, the 49ers will look to end a three-game losing streak on Sunday when they travel to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars. It’s no secret that the Niners defense has been struggling while the offense has been mired in inconsistency over the past few weeks. They’ll look to begin reestablishing themselves as a top team in the league this week.
Due to our sponsorship with Tallysight, we have to pick every game. But, as usual, we’ll narrow it down to six for you at the bottom. Odds for all the games are available on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Marc’s picks record last year:
Regular season: 154-116-2
Postseason: 12-1
This season:
Week 1: 7-9
Week 2: 9-7
Week 3: 10-6
Week 4: 13-3
Week 5: 10-4
Week 6: 9-6
Week 7: 7-6
Week 8: 9-7
Week 9: 8-6
Overall: 82-54
Here are Marc’s picks for this week’s slate of games:
Panthers over Bears: I’m still not a Tyson Bagent believer, so asking me to take the Bears in any scenario with worse than -150 odds is just a no go.
Patriots over Colts: Maybe I need to let go of my confidence in Bill Belichick ensuring the Patriots will be formidable against flawed teams like Indianapolis, but I still think New England has played better than their 2-7 record suggests.
Steelers over Packers: It had been awhile, but Jordan Love delivered a solid performance last week against the Rams. Green Bay could begin convincing me that my decision to abandon my early-season optimism was a mistake by pulling the upset. I don’t think that’s in the cards, though.
Vikings over Saints: I was already optimistic about the Vikings pairing with Josh Dobbs before his incredibly ability to fill in for an injured Jarren Hall against the Falcons. The defense will need to play better to beat the Saints, but I think they are the better all-around team.
Bengals over Texans: Given how well C.J. Stroud has been playing, I was tempted to take the favorable underdog line and lean toward the upset. However, the Bengals have begun firing on all cylinders, and I think the hype around Stroud is too high for Cincy to fall into a trap game.
Ravens over Browns: The Ravens have arguably been the best team in the NFL over the past month. Plain and simple.
Bucs over Titans: Tampa Bay’s offense did a far more impressive job keeping up with Stroud last week than I expected. Given Tennessee’s lack of offensive firepower, the Bucs have the upper hand.
Lions over Chargers: In a matchup between two good, but not great, teams, I ended up going with rest over home-field advantage. The Chargers are playing on a short week while Detroit is coming off a BYE.
Falcons over Cardinals: The Falcons aren’t a good team. But they aren’t horrid. So I’m breaking my usual rule of taking the underdog in a game between two teams I don’t trust.
Seahawks over Commanders: Seattle has to be furious after getting drubbed by Baltimore and returning home to host the Commanders gives them an excellent opportunity to turn that frustration into a win.
Cowboys over Giants: It’d be funny if Dallas lost, but there’s no reason to expect it.
Jets over Raiders: I don’t believe the Antonio Pierce boost will last.
Bills over Broncos: Buffalo is clearly a tier below previous iterations of the team, but Denver is still a ways off.
49ers over Jaguars: I strongly considered picking Jacksonville, and if not for the 49ers BYE, and the return of Deebo Samuel, I would have picked against San Francisco. But I think San Francisco has enough offensive X factors to end their losing streak.
Here are the six games to pick (times in Pacific):
Colts @ Patriots, 6:30 AM
49ers @ Jaguars, 10:00 AM
Titans @ Bucs, 10:00 AM
Saints @ Vikings, 10:00 AM
Falcons @ Cardinals, 1:05 PM
Jets @ Raiders, 5:20 PM
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