Mid Season Pickem Update

Eight weeks into the season, let's take a look at where we stand.

Ian 60-52-4 +8
Phil 55-57-4 -2
Dav 52-60-4 -8
Mike 51-61-4 -10
Flip 50-62-4 -12
Eric 49-63-4 -14
ChrisM 49-63-4 -14
Matt 45-59-4 -14

W.O.C 42-60-4 -18
Combined: 411-477-32 -66


Sad News to Note:
We are a combined 66 games below .500. Seriously. At this point last year we were above .500! How could we have regressed so far? It can't be the substitution of Eric for Tyler. That wasn't that much of a difference. Is it that there has been more upsets? No! In fact, favorites are exactly 56-56-4. If one was to pick just the favorites, they would be sitting in 2nd place, just behind Ian. That would be, to use the common parlance, a 401K GM type move. Someone who wants to finish higher and have bragging rights over their fellow pickers but will never contend to win.

Check out how teams are doing against the spread.

Vegas is doing a pretty good job. All but two teams (30 out of 32) are in that 2-4-1 to 5-3 meaty range. The only outliers are the Titans (7-0 ATS) and the Broncos (1-5-1 ATS)

Anyway, let's see some good picks out there this week.

Here are the week's lines:

MINNESOTA (-4.5) houston

jacksonville (-8) CINCINNATI

tampa bay (-9) KANSAS CITY

CLEVELAND (-1.5) baltimore

BUFFALO (-5.5) ny jets

arizona (-3) ST LOUIS

CHICAGO (-12.5) detroit

TENNESSEE (-5) green bay

DENVER (-3.5) miami

atlanta (-3) OAKLAND

NY GIANTS (-8.5) dallas

philadelphia (-6.5) SEATTLE

INDIANAPOLIS (-6) new england

WASHINGTON (-2) pittsburgh

The Return of the VSB

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (-12) new york giants
Over/under --- 54

Eli Manning Passing Yards o/u 247
Over -115
Under -115

Eli Manning Pass Completions o/u 24

Over-115
Under -115

Eli Manning Pass Attempts o/u 39

Over -115
Under 115

Brandon Jacobs & Ahmad Bradshaw Rushing Yards o/u 164

Over -115
Under -115

Tom Brady Passing Yards o/u 293.5

Over -115
Under -115

Tom Brady Passing Touchdowns o/u 3

Over -115
Under -115

How long will it take Jordin Sparks to sing the National anthem?

Over 1:42 -125
Under 1:42 -115

Will this be the Most Watched Super Bowl in history?

Yes -200
No +150

What will the TV Rating be, O/U (Nielsen)?

Over 43½ -105
Under 43½ -125

Who will have the largest market share in TV Ratings?

New York -130
Boston Even

How Many Times will Joe Buck mention Peyton Manning's name during the Broadcast?

Over 5.5 -125
Under 5.5 -115

Will the entire Fox pre-game team pick the Pats to win the Super Bowl?

Yes -175
No +125

Which Super Bowl commercial will have a higher rating on USA Today's annual Ad Meter?

Budweiser 2/3
Go Daddy.com 3/1
Pepsi 6/1
McDonald's 9/1
Victoria Secret 8/1
Other 2/1

Will one of these Cities win Double championships in their respective sports in 2008?
Pats/Celtics 2/1
Pats/Red sox 3/1
Giants/Yankees 10/1
None 1/2

Who will have more on February 3rd?

Kobe Bryant Total Points +2½ -120
New England Patriots Total Points -2½ -120

Will the team that scores first win the game?

Yes -240
No +190

Will either team convert a 4th down attempt?

Yes -220
No +180

Who will have more penalty yards in the game?

New York Giants -130
New England Patriots Even

Who will the MVP of the Game thank first?

Teammates 3/1
God 2/1
Family 2/1
Coach 4/1
Doesn't thank anyone 6/1

Will the game go to overtime?

Yes +600
No -1100

Will Lawrence Tynes miss a field goal?

Yes -125
No -110

Will Don Shula be on the field to shake Belichick's hand after the game?

Yes +150
No -200

If the Patriots win, will Bob Kraft mention the 72 Dolphins during the Trophy Presentation?

Yes -135
No Even

Will an NFL player get arrested in Phoenix during the week of the Super Bowl?

Yes -120
No -120

What will the choosing team call in the Coin Toss?

Heads -105
Tails -105

Odds to Win Super Bowl XLII MVP

Tom Brady (NE) 1/2
Eli Manning (NYG) 7/2
Randy Moss (NE) 4/1
Laurence Maroney (NE) 5/1
Wes Welker (NE) 5/1
Plaxico Burress (NYG) 8/1
Brandon Jacobs(NYG) 10/1
Kevin Faulk (NE) 12/1
Ahmad Bradshaw (NYG) 15/1
Armani Toomer (NYG) 15/1
Asante Samuel (NE) 15/1
Rodney Harrison (NE) 18/1
Donte' Stallworth (NE) 20/1
Jabar Gaffney (NE) 20/1
Lawrence Tynes (NYG) 20/1
Junior Seau (NE) 25/1
Stephen Gostkowski (NE) 25/1
Tedy Bruschi (NE) 25/1
Benjamin Watson (NE) 30/1
Michael Strahan (NYG) 30/1
Osi Umenyiora (NYG) 30/1
Steve Smith (NYG) 33/1
Gibril Wilson (NYG) 40/1
Adalius Thomas (NE) 45/1
Antonio Pierce (NYG) 45/1
Corey Webster (NYG) 45/1
Sam Madison (NYG) 45/1
Field (Any Other Player) 11/2

What Song will Tom Petty sing to end his Halftime Show at the Super Bowl?

Free Falling 5/6
Don't Do Me Like That 5/1
Learning to Fly 12/1
Great Wide Open 9/1
Last Dance with Mary Jane 4/1
Runnin' Down A Dream 9/4

Some Metrics

1st Place Weeks:
1. Dav 5
1. E-on 5
3. Flip 4
3. CMart 4
5. Hanley 3
5. Tyler 3
5. PhilG 3
8. Ham 0

Dropping One's Worst Two Weeks:
CMart (5-11 in W2; 6-10 in W15) -- 120-94-10 .5580
Tyler (3-10 in W6; 5-10-1 in W11) --103-86-9 .5429
Dav (5-10-1 in W1; 4-12 in W2) -- 116-99-9 .5379
Eon (5-8-1 in W10; 5-11 in W16) -- 117-100-9 .5376
Hankles (5-8 in W8; 4-10 in W9) -- 118-101-10 .5371
Phil (4-12 in W2; 1-13 in W9) -- 115-101-10 .5309
Flip (2-12 in W4; 3-12-1 in W11) -- 107-109-9 .4955
Ham (4-10 in W4; 3-13 in W13) -- 98-118-10 .4557

Very interesting to note how much Phil jumps here. Subtracting a combined 5-25 will do that to you. Those who did not improve that much? E-on, whose worst weeks were 10-19-1. That's not that bad.

Final Vs. 500 Chart

Regular Season Wrap-Up

Standings:
1. CMart (7-8-1; 131-115-10; 6)
2. Hankles (8-7-1; 127-119-10; 4)
2. E-On (7-8-1; 127-119-10; 4)
4. Ty (6-9-1; 111-106-10; 2.5)
5. Dav (7-8-1; 125-121-10; 2)
6. PhilG (11-4-1; 120-126-10; -3)
7. Flip (4-11-1; 112-133-10; -11)
8. Ham (6-9-1; 105-141-10; -18)

The regular season has finished. The playoff pickem is about to begin.

Big Props to CMart for winning the regular season. 256 picks. More successful than not. That is quite an accomplishment.

Big Props to BleedCubbieBlue for their victory over Bad Newz Kennels in the Fantasy Finals. It was fun watching the games with you Miguel.

Details will come for playoff pickem but it will basically be more of the same.

Week 17 Picks

Unanimous:
Cincinnati (-3) over MIAMI

Near Unanimous:
New England (-13.5) over NY GIANTS [Tyler is a fat winner]
TAMPA BAY (+2.5) over Carolina [Hankles likes the favorite]
Pittsburgh (-3) over BALTIMORE [PhilG likes the Ravens]
San Diego (-9) over OAKLAND [Ham likes the home finale]
ARIZONA (-6.5) over St. Louis [Flip likes the Rams...]

Week 17 Lines

New England (-13.5) NY GIANTS

PHILADELPHIA (-7.5) Buffalo

Carolina (-2.5) TAMPA BAY

Cincinnati (-3) MIAMI

WASHINGTON (-9) Dallas

GREEN BAY (-4) Detroit

HOUSTON (-6) Jacksonville

New Orleans (-2) CHICAGO

Pittsburgh (-3) BALTIMORE

ATLANTA (-1) Seattle

CLEVELAND (-10) San Francisco

Tennessee (-6) INDIANAPOLIS

Minnesota (-3) DENVER

San Diego (-9) OAKLAND

ARIZONA (-6.5) St. Louis

NY JETS (-6) Kansas City