NFL 2021 Week 9 Predictions

Solid week for the Commish at Wannamakeabet.com last week going 3-2 despite not being entirely in the know about certain injury statuses (read: Dak Prescott).  That brings our season record to 23/40 or 57.5% as we head into our NFL 2021 Week 9 Predictions.   All lines are from Wannamakeabet.com as of the time of this post.

Cleveland Browns +2.5 over Cincinnati Bengals

You might want to wait to get a 3 in this game as public sentiment certainly appears to be on the side of Cincy in the battle of Ohio today.  The Browns find themselves on the wrong side of drama and perception with Odell getting cut this week.  But the truth is, my power rankings have the Browns ranked 8th overall in the league and Cincinnati ranked 21st.  This is primarily a testimony to the Brown’s strength of schedule.  Reminder that they only lost to the Chiefs, Chargers, Cardinals and Steelers, all teams with winning records.  Take the small number today and play the moneyline as well.  Cleveland comes out of the queen city with a W.   I’m not a huge totals player but I lean over in this game as well even though we have already climbed to 47.

Minnesota Vikings + 6 over Baltimore Ravens

My power rankings have the Vikes 11th and the Ravens 8th.  And this line feels more like 3.5 or 4 to me so there is perceived value in getting 6.   The Vikings have al the players on the field to support a higher ranking and yet they continue to struggle from poor coaching.  Kirk Cousins is not only capable of delivering the ball to his talented receivers and running backs, but I actually have him ranked 7th overall whereas Lamar is ranked 12th.  Baltimore is a fickle character this season in the sense you’re not sure who’s going to show up each week.  But in general, they are bad favorite and great underdog.  Today feels like a one score game and I’m on them as a dog.

Green Bay Packers +7 over Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs are highly dysfunctional as we saw last week in their near inability to beat the lowly Giants.  They continue to fumble and struggle on offense.  And now the Packers come into Arrowhead today ranked 14th by the commish and the Chiefs are ranked 18th and favored by a touchdown?  I have been impressed by the Packer defense in recent weeks and I think that’s the difference today in their ability to keep this inside the number.  There is tremendous value in this line because yes, rookie Jordan Love is going to start because Aaron Rodgers has Covid but the opening line was Chiefs -2.5 and now it’s 7.  I don’t think Aaron Rodgers is worth 4.5 points.  You may want to wait and let this get to 7.5 or throw it into a teaser but the Chiefs have been barely winning games and they certainly don’t blow anybody out, ever.

Philadelphia Eagles +1.5 over LA Chargers

All week long I haven’t understood this line until now.  Most people I talk to think the Chargers are going to come into Philly and blow them out, which is exactly why I think they’re wrong.  The script for this game is quite simple.  Run the ball down the Chargers throat because they struggle to stop the run with heavy run teams.  Just look at what the Browns (despite losing) did to them.  Same story with the Ravens.  Jalen Hurts is a running back who happens to be taking snaps, and even he is playing better in recent weeks as they got right in a big way last week in Detroit.  Philly allows the underneath stuff but not the deep ball.  Despite the strong start for the Chargers, the ship has been shaky since the bye and their struggles continue today.

San Francisco – 3 over Arizona Cardinals

Last week found me on the wrong side of some important injury information.  But that comes with the territory when you can’t release picks right at kickoff.  So part of this handicap is that Kyler Murray is banged up and potentially won’t play.  He’s got a shoulder, thumb, and ankle issue.  That means we might see Colt McCoy.  For SF, George Kittle is back from IR and will play.  Debo Samuel is ready.   All that said.  Jimmy G, who I’m not a fan of as we all know, had a great game in Chicago last week.  Can he keep it going this week?  I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt here and the 49ers seem to finally be finding  themselves.   Revenge match for the first game as well when the Cards were clicking at 100% but the 49ers lost 17-10 as a five point dog.  Today is their day in the bay.

NFL 2021 Week 9 Predictions