Intro by Yank
It has been a blizzard for the last week in Indianapolis folks, but thankfully it’s a great weekend to be stuck inside because the football action is heating up.
Saturday, January 11, 2025
The Los Angeles Chargers-3 @ the Houston Texans – 4:30 PM ET
Sam: This matchup is probably the least interesting game to me. The Texans have been mired in mediocrity much of this season. The genius that was Bobby Slowik and the superstar QB CJ Stroud have taken a step back after teams had a whole offseason to gameplan against them. If Houston had its full slate of weapons, this might be a different story, but my money is on the Herbert/Harbaugh renaissance.
Yank: This one is pretty simple, I don’t think the Chargers are good enough to be three point favorites on the road against a playoff team. I didn’t believe in the Texans at home in this exact spot last year and they rose to the occasion with the help of their rowdy fans. I think this has a chance of playing out similarly this year.
Yank’s Pick: $11.50 on the Texans+3 (-115)
Sam’s Pick: $10.00 on the Chargers-2.5 (-125)
The Pittsburgh Steelers @ the Baltimore Ravens-9.5 – 8:00 PM ET
Yank: The Ravens could, and probably should, beat the brakes off the Steelers in this game. I don’t expect the Steelers to go quietly. This should be an incredibly physical matchup that is decided by the turnover battle. If the Ravens dominate on that front they will dominate the scoreboard. I’m not sure enough that they will to lay 9.5 points in this one.
Sam: This has to be the Ravens least favorite playoff matchup in round 1 right? They are a good team, but always seem to play down to the competition when they go against the Steelers. I like the Steelers getting 9 free points and am hoping the offense can score at least 17. Throw in the Zay Flowers injury and you have to seriously be thinking about the Steelers.
Sam: This has to be the Ravens least favorite playoff matchup in round 1 right? They are a good team, but always seem to play down to the competition when they go against the Steelers. I like the Steelers getting 9 free points and am hoping the offense can score at least 17. Throw in the Zay Flowers injury and you have to seriously be thinking about the Steelers.
Yank’s Pick: $11.70 on the Steelers+10 (-117)
Sam’s Pick: $10.60 on the Steelers+9.5 (-106)
Sunday, January 12, 2025
The Denver Broncos @ the Buffalo Bills-9 – 1:00 PM ET
Sam: I’ll let Yank talk about his 2-7 matchup angle, but a rookie QB in a road playoff game? I can’t say it won’t happen, but this has Bills 30+ to Broncos ~10 written all over it. Josh Allen has been great this season and I expect to see him put up a lot of points, despite going up against what is a decent defense.
Yank: This is your annual reminder that this playoff game should not exist. The number two seed used to get a bye for a reason, the seventh best team in each conference is generally not very good. This years Broncos are no exception, they could not beat Cincinnati in essentially a must win spot two weeks ago. The Bills are quite good! This stadium will be quite loud. Lay the points on the two seed for as long as we get the opportunity folks.
Yank’s Pick: $11.00 on the Bills-8.5 (-110)
Sam’s Pick: $11.00 on the Bills-8.5 (-110)
The Green Bay Packers @ the Philadelphia Eagles-5 – 4:30 PM ET
Yank: Another two seven matchup here, so the pick is once again easy: take the Eagles, don’t think twice about it.
Sam: As much as it pains me to say it, I do think the Packers are a good football team. That being said, Barkley and Hurts should do a number on this defense. Love will have a few spectacular throws, but loves to go full Brett Favre at times. Even though I don’t like the Eagles, they’ve played better down the stretch and seem to have those early season jitters out of the way.
Yank’s Pick: $10.50 on the Eagles-5.5 (-105)
Sam’s Pick: $10.50 on the Eagles-5.5 (-105)
The Washington Commanders @ the Tampa Bay Buccaneers-3 – 8:15 PM ET
Sam: I hope this game is as fun as it should be. I mean how fun is it to see Jayden Daniels running all over the place and Baker playing the best football of his career? Similar to the Broncos, I find it difficult to see rookie Daniels going on the road in a playoff game and delivering. The Bucs fans will be fired up and should make for a fun environment.
Yank: I don’t expect a fun game here to be honest. The Bucs are super scrappy and tough, Baker Mayfield is a great avatar for their whole team. The Commanders honestly could have lost to the Giants twice. I don’t believe in them, particularly on the road.
Yank’s Pick: $10.80 on the Bucs-2.5 (-108)
Sam’s Pick: $10.50 on the Bucs-3 (-105)
Monday, January 13, 2025
The Minnesota Vikings-3 @ the Los Angeles Rams – 8:00 PM ET
Yank: I’ll leave the deep analysis to Sam on this one. What I will say is I think if you win 14 NFL games your team is likely pretty good. The Rams on the other hand have struggled to score 14 points for weeks now. I’m happy to ride with Minnesota.
Sam: Woof. What a fall for the Vikings last week. After a great season and falling just short of the 1 seed, they have to travel to LA Phoenix to take on the only other team they’ve lost to this season. Throw in they’re coming off Sam Darnold’s worst game of the season and a defense that was on the field way too long last week against a physical Lions team, this doesn’t bode that well for the Vikings. Nevertheless, I find myself backing my team. KOC has shown that he can help Darnold with his erratic footwork and this time it won’t be a surprise that Nacua will be lining up for the Rams. They get an extra day to recover, so let’s hope KOC has them fired up and ready to play on Monday.
Yank’s Pick: $11.00 on the Vikings-2.5 (-110)
Sam’s Pick: $11.50 on the Vikings-2.5 (-115)
Authors: Sam Mattson and Michael Yanckello
One Last Line 