| Name | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | TOTAL TO DATE | ||
| Maneesh | 30 | 14 | 6 | 11 | 0 | 14 | 5 | 80 | ||
| Dan P. | 20 | 6 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 6 | 8 | 74 | ||
| Vinny & Marco | 16 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 13 | 10 | 12 | 72 | ||
| Paul | 9 | 15 | 5 | 6 | 15 | 6 | 15 | 71 | ||
| Michael | 17 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 67 | ||
| Nav | 10 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 66 | ||
| Cheddar Packs | 16 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 65 | ||
| Stan | 11 | 15 | 9 | 13 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 64 | ||
| Archibald | 24 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 57 | ||
| Cellar Dweller | 13 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 11 | 53 | ||
| T-Dog | 2 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 15 | 12 | 6 | 53 | ||
| Jay | 16 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 52 | ||
| Airin Rodgers | 6 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 46 | ||
Congratulations to:
First Place Winner: Maneesh with 80 points - $30 gift certificate
Second Place Winner: Dan P. with 74 points - $20 gift certificate
Fourth Place Winner: Paul B. with 71 points - aforementioned homemade TSZ t-shirt
And a hearty thank you to the rest who participated consistently with only 3-6 reminders per week. Kidding, of course. We really appreciate all of you that read, follow, poke fun at, and participate in The Spread Zone. If we were wealthy gambloggers, we'd send you all t-shirts.
Coffee Thank You's: It's nice to have this section back. A warm, hearty thank you to Tony G. and Airin Rodgers for their generous contributions to our writing project in the form of Coffee for Vinny and Marco donations.
On to the football...
I don't know about you, but once I found out who was in the playoffs I was ready for them to begin. Trying to get my football and gambling fixes using bowl games like North Texas/UNLV or Rice/Mississippi State reminds me too much of college - when I tried to curb my drinking and partying by drinking Zima. Ultimately, it just took me more time and money to get drunk and start partying. Plus it was gross. Let's let the real games begin.
Last Week's Record: 11-5 ATS (not bad for Whacky Week 17)
Week 17 Friday Five: 4-1 ATS
Friday Five Record Since Week 14: 15-4-1 ATS
Record Since Week 10: 68-49-5 ATS
Season to Date (for the sake of integrity): 113-132-9 ATS
For those of you who were not with us last year, The Spread Zone was originally spawned from playoff success. Two years ago, when the Giants met the Patriots in the Super Bowl, Marco and I were simply pool participating football fans. We'd won some money over the course of the year, but our picks really started to heat up late in the season and in the playoffs. In fact, during the 2011-12 post-season our picks went 9-2 ATS, won us a chunk of change and ever-lasting resentment from a group of friends and strangers, and inspired us to collaborate on what has become the finest community of intelligent, literate gamblers I've ever met. Mind you, I'd never met any intelligent, literate gamblers prior to that.
So, let's get to our NFL Wild Card Weekend Picks against the spread. If you're not a fan of reading but you love themes, then you'll be happy to know we're rolling with the road dogs on Saturday and the favorites on Sunday. As they always have been, our picks are bold and HOME teams are in CAPS.
Kansas City Chiefs (+2.5) over INDIANAPOLIS COLTS: We liked this better when it was three, but the fact that 58% of the public is backing the Colts and the line is still moving towards the Chiefs tells us there's some sharp action going towards Kansas City. To be completely honest, I don't really understand what the public is thinking here. Sure Andrew Luck has been legendary at home since arriving in Indy going 13-3 SU/12-4 ATS since his arrival. This year, however, they only played 3 teams over .500 (Denver, Seattle, and Miami), went 2-1 SU/ATS, and all three games were played before Reggie Wayne went out for the season. At the end of the year, the perception is the Colts finished strong at home on a three game winning streak, but those game came against the Titans, Jags, and Texans with a combined 13 wins this year.
The Kansas City Chiefs had 11 wins, and all five of their losses came against playoff teams - Denver and San Diego twice, and these very Colts two weeks ago. Kansas City has one of the best defenses in the league, which is a big part of the reason they were 6-2 SU/7-1 ATS on the road. It is very difficult to beat a team twice in the same year, which is why - along with the fact that the Chiefs have the more experienced coach and QB (not better QB, but Alex Smith just wins games), we'll take the points and put some cash on the money line, too.
Pick: Chiefs (+2.5) and the UNDER 46.5
New Orleans Saints (+2.5) over PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: We would have taken the points here no matter who was getting them. A home dog in the playoffs has a dangerous bite, but the fact that the Saints are getting points tells us that the Eagles are being slightly over-valued here because of the Saints inconsistency on the road and Philly's recent home blowouts. There's no denying just how bad the Saints were away from home - 3-5 SU/1-7 ATS. All their losses this season came on the road, but a closer look reveals that 6 of those 8 games were decided by a touchdown or less. Given the playoff atmosphere, the experience of Drew Brees, Sean Payton, and Rob Ryan, we like the Saints to throw in a few glitches on defense that might force Nick Foles to make some mistakes.
My apologies to Eagles fans - please know there is no good reason for us to take the Saints. Philly has been exceptional at home of late going 4-0 SU/3-0-1 ATS and they are definitely the team with momentum. The Saints woes on the road is not a one-year phenomenon. In fact, they've lost all five road playoff games since 1980, including a recent, memorable loss in Seattle a couple years ago. Nonetheless, we're taking the points and hoping that trends are meant to be broken.
Pick: Saints and the OVER 54 (Saints are 10-1-1 to the over in their last 12 post-season games)
Sorry to break up the flow, but please tune in tomorrow for our breakdown of the Sunday games in Cincinnati and Green Bay.
May the Spreads Be With You All,
Vinny and Marco
Reminders
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