The Football Drive NFL Week 2 Picks Against The Spread!

At This point you probably know about the Wrestling Drive, my daily wrestling car vlog looking at the biggest news stories in pro wrestling as they happen as well as reaction vlogs to the biggest shows in the world professional wrestling.  Well, this week I decided to take that same concept and extend that out to football.  Introducing the Football Drive!  Each week I’m going to bring you 2 different NFL Football Car Vlogs looking at both top picks against the spread as well as NFL Survivor/ Knockout Pool advice.  I’d love to get you feedback on both pieces and so I’m going to attach both pieces right here!

First up take a look at my top NFL Picks Against The Spread,  looking at my top 6 picks against the spread.  I was 5-2 against the spread to start the season last week so we are off and running

 

Next take a look at my picks for NFL Survivor/ Knockout Pools for Week 2.  I give you two obvious choices, your smartest “Big Picture” choice of the week and 3 games to stay away from this week!

Check out the videos here and be sure to hit subscribe so that you get these videos as soon as they upload to the site!

Thanks and enjoy Week 2!

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The Spotlight NFL Picks Against The Spread-Week 1 Thursday Night Football

Dum Dum Dum Dum! Dum Dum Dum Dum Dum….
No? Alright sorry I was trying to do the football theme. I apologize as I can’t help but feel a little excited as tonight the NFL is back! For those of you who have not heard the big announcement over on the youtube channel earlier this morning, thedailyspotlight.com is going to really become your one stop source for all things NFL. Every week, we are going to bring you The Football Drive, a football car vlog, twice a week every week throughout the NFL season. The Football Drive will be presented every Thursday and Friday right here on thedailysptolight.com and on the official youtube page of the daily spotlight, which you can subscribe to right here. Thursday’s episode will focus on your best advice for an NFL survivor pool. Many people participate in these pools and they are a lot of fun. Then on Friday’s I’ll be back with the Football Drive looking at the top NFL Picks Against The Spread choosing 7 games every single week given to you absolutely free of charge. If you followed along last season you know that I take these very serious and had a pretty good winning percentage agaisnt the spread last year. That’s not all though, every week I’ll also be dropping columns right here on thedailyspotlight.com looking at each one pf the NFL primetime games against the spread, which is probably why you’re all hereright now. Lastly, in honor of NFL kickoff, I’ll be dropping NFL preview columns every day of the weekend predicting every one of the divisions. From who’s going to finish dead last, to your divsiion winners all the way up to the next Superbowl Champions. This is going to be a lot of fun and I want it to be as interactive as possible so if you have any questions related to all things NFL, feel free to drop them in the comments section below or over at Twitter @TommyOnTheSpot. Without any further ado, let’s get right into tonight’s game.
Carolina Panthers (-3) at Denver Broncos
Not everyday you see a team heading to Mile High and walking in as the favorite but that is the case of the reigning NFL MVP, Cam Newton and company tonight. I’ll be honest, when I first heard about Denver’s plan this offseason, to sign Mark Sanchez, I was mildly impressed. Look, these are the defending champs, they have the best defense in the league, they’re coached very well and have great veteran wide receivers to boot. All the Denver really needed was a veteran presence at quarterback and they’d like be right back there competing for a title next year. Then they inexplicably cut Sanchez and decided to go with a guy in Trevor Semian, who only has one NFL kneel to his credit. Now, rather than a game manager at quarterback, the Broncos have an inexperienced quarterback who will likely cost them games.  
On the other side of the ball we have Cam Newton coming off a career year and the Carolina Panthers who are out for revenge. The Panthers, admittedly are goign to struggle in their secondary without Josh Norman but their front seven is going to be coming for Semian all night long and will knock him off his game, especially early. The Panthers also get back their number one wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin who they were able to go 15-1 without him last year and his return should take a little bit of the pressure off Cam Newton to feel like he has to do it all.  
The Panthers won’t go 15-1 again this year, but they’ll get off to a good start tonight, take the Panthers and swallow the points.  
THE PICK: The Panthers (-3) 

The Spotlight NFL Week 12 NFL Picks Against The Spread

Almost had to take a bye week here, but have no fear we are in before the kickoffs here.  If you were unable to check out my thanksgiving picks, you can do so right here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hp_U76Nifok , that would be our official youtube channel which I’ll be updating again either later today or tomorrow with a video chronicling my trip to the 2015 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.  So far this week with the Thanksgiving games I’m 2-1, which brings my year long total to 62-24 against the spread.  Vegas can be a cold hearted  bitch but we are getting through this so let’s get into the rest of the picks.

1) Oakland Raiders (-1) at Tennessee Titans

I’ve been against the Raiders much of the way because I feel like they’ve gotten a ton of hype, despite not beating any one .500 or better (other than the Jets but that was the Geno Smith game).  Well, this week they get to play the 2-8 Titans and so I’m back on the Raiders here.  Look the Titans defense is pretty good (ranked number 6 overall) but they haven’t been able to carry the offense to anything save for that game in New Orleans where they won a stunner in overtime.  Honestly though, I could call my boy Adam Tobey and have him rally up the Benai Brith youth troop and we’d drop 30 on the Saints defense too.  The Raiders have been pretty unlucky the past three weeks but that luck will turn around in Tennessee.  I like the Raiders in a pickem.

2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+3) at Indianapolis Colts

If you can make this 3.5 for a little less juice, I’d like it a little more because it reads like a field goal winner either way.  It’s the battle of the oldest quarterback in the league vs. the youngest quarterback in the league.  Despite Matt Hasslebeck being undefeated this season, I’m going to take my chances with youth on the road.  Famous Jameis has arrived folks!  Way sooner than anyone could have predicted, Winston has the Bucs right in the midst of a playoff race.  While Winston has made the play when he’s had to, I can’t give him all the credit.  The Bucs have done it this season lead by a stout defense, lead by Lavonte David and by the number 2 rusher in the NFL, Doug Martin, who has bounced back in a big way this year.  The Bucs really showed me a lot last week when they went into Philly and beat them by four touchdowns, I think their road prowess continues this week.  I like to the Bucs +3

3) Houston Texans (-3) over New Orleans Saints 

Oh boy do I love this pick!  I like it so much it was so close to being my lock of the week.  The Texans are rolling after taking down the undefeated Bengals and my New york Jets and now they get Brian Hoyer back.  While Hoyer likely won’t be battling for a pro bowl slot, he’s the best the Texans have and opposing defenses don’t need Deandre Hopkins to get a better quarterback.  Speaking of defenses, you’ve probably heard all week that the Saints defense will be a lot better because they’ve finally fired Rob Ryan.  Well, they still have the same personnel and the last time I checked, Drew Brees still can’t win on the road.  Don’t expect Brees to get his act together against JJ Watt and that stiff Defense of the Texans.  I lie the Texans by a field goal.

4) Kansas City Chiefs (-4) over the Buffalo Bills 

After going on the road and outscoring their opponents 62-16, the Kansas City Chiefs return home winners of four straight to play host to the Buffalo Bills.  The Bills have a good defense but seem to really be struggling to score on the offensive side of the ball.  You mean to tell me a Rex Ryan led team has trouble with the quarterback position.  As a Jets fan, I’m tired of that narrative.  The defense should keep it close, but I like Kansas City, -4.

5) Pittsburgh Steelers +3.5 at Seattle Seahawks

Big Ben makes his first ever appearance at Seattle today and I’m going to go with the road team in this one.  Go ahead a take a peak at the Seahawks schedule.  They really haven’t beaten anyone all season and have been beatable at home.  On the other side of things, the Steelers are coming off a bye so Ben has had an extra week to rest up and get healthy.  You know I don’t choose underdogs that I don’t think can win.  I like the Steelers +3.5

6) IF YOU”RE DESPERATE: Atlanta Falcons (-1) over Minnesota Viking 

I know I know, the Falcons have been awful as of late and continue to find a way to lose.  Actually I haven’t lost too much this season but when I have it’s mostly been with the Jets and the Falcons.  That said, this is my tenth game that I’m picking before the primetime games even start and so it’s a bit of slim pickings.  The Falcons have been a bit too dependent on Devonta Freeman after his fluky hot start and so now that he’s out I expect a lot of Matt Ryan airing it out.  That’s when the Falcons are at their best.  The Vikings were a bit exposed last week against the Packers and I expect a bit of a hangover here.  Falcons will find a way to get it done.

LOCK OF THE WEEK (10-1): New York Giants (pk) at Washington Redskins

Prior to this season, I have never picked the Giants and when I have it’s blown up in my face.  That said, the Giants have been my Lock of the week 3 times this season and I like em again today.  The Redskins are sneaky good at home (4-1) and have their big weapon back in Desean Jackson which makes Kirk Cousins look like a professional quarterback.  That said, the Giants are coming off of a bye and get Prince Amukamura back.  Couple Prince with the resurgence of JPP and the Giants have something on the defensive side of the ball to go along with Eli, who’s looked great.  The Giants will find a way to get it done and put the NFC East to bed before Decemeber.

 

The Spotlight NFL Week 12 Thanksgiving Picks Against The Spread 

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! As promised on Thanksgiving Day we were going to launch the next phase of our website…the video portion! The spotlight videos are going to debut on our official YouTube channel and  then within the next couple of hours you’ll be able to watch those videos right here on thedailyspotlight.com! The videos are going to consist of a good portion of travel videos that I’ve built up over the past 2 years or so. However, I’m also going to be filming videos dedicated to my weekly NFL picks. The plan is to film my picks at a different location every time, so without any further ado lets get into them.

This week I’m going to start with a video breaking down the three games that will be played today, on Thanksgiving! Now yes we’re 60-24 this season and have simply been tearing it up but use a little caution here. This is a tough slate of games here, so tough that I likely would have passed on the three games if they were a part of Sunday. I feel much better about my Sunday games by the way and I’m excited to get into those games later this weekend. If you’re unaware of the schedule today the (3-7) Detroit Lions will host the (4-6) Philadelphia Eagles at 12:30 PM EST on Fox. From there the (3-7) Dallas Cowboys will welcome the (10-0) Carolina Panthers at 4:00 PM EST on CBS and then tonight the (7-3) Green Bay Packers play host to their bitter rival, the (4-6) Chicago Bears on Brett Favre day at 8:30 PM EST on NBC. I break down all three of the games in the 2 and a half minute video below. Check it out and I wish all of you a happy and healthy Thanksgiving!

The spotlight NFL Week 11 Picks Against The Spread- Monday Night Football

Believe it or not, week 11 in the 2015 NFL season comes to a close tonight as the 9-0 New England Patriots play host to the 5-4 Buffalo Bills.  We are fresh off of another 5-2 week and now have our overally record up to 59-24 on the season.  The major headline for the Patriots is going to see how they adjust to the loss of wide receiver Julian Edleman.  Whereas the headline for the Buffalo Bills is going to be can they open up a bit of distance for themselves in the wildcard race that has 1 game separating 7 teams currently.  Of course this is also Rex Ryan’s return to Foxboro as the coach of the Buffalo Bills which adds a little extra pizzazz to the matchup for sure.

Yes Rex Ryan has won in Foxboro before, and has even done so in the postseason, but that was a long time ago.   Rex Ryan actually doesn’t have a particularly good record against the Patriots (4-10) despite his insistance that he isn’t there to kiss Bill Belichick’s rings.  Ryan has also long 8 of the last 9 matchups against the Patriots including an 8 point loss to the Pats earlier this season in Buffalo.  The Bills are coming off a big win last week against the Jets but, like I said in my preview for that game, it was Rex Ryan’s Superbowl.  Also, let’s be honest, the Bills won that game moreso due to the Jets’ ineptitude on the offensive side of the ball which included costly turnovers. The Bills offense looked better by finally getting Shady McCo involved in the offense but I’m still generally unimpressed with Tyrod Taylor who threw for only 158 yards last week and who, despite an 11-4 TD-INT ratio is ranked 31st in passing yards amongst qualifying quarterbacks.

Flipping the dime on the Patriots side of things, I’m not going to say that the loss of Julian Edleman is going to be easy but, let’s face it, one of the best things the Patriots do is adjust.  I mean let’s not forget that Bill Belichick once won 11 games with Matt Cassell and we saw how good hes been ever since.  The story before the season was how the Pats would adjust with losing Darrell Revis and they may go 16-0!  They’re all about the next man up and I can see Danny Amedola playing a larger role in the offense for the Pats, sliding into the role once occupied by Edleman.

A rare night as a Jets fan when I’ll actually be rooting hard for the evil empire and sporting some blue.  At the end of the day if you ask me to choose, I’d go Brady over Taylor, Belichick over Ryan and the New England Patriots over the Buffalo Bills any day of the week.

The Pick: Patriots (-7)