Looking to dominate your office pool this season? 18 Footballguys.com staff members are here to help you out. Each week they will pick the winners of every NFL game, and rank their selections based on how confident they are that the team will win. The most confident pick gets 16 points, and the least confident gets just 1. We'll even total up everyone's picks so you can get an 'overall consensus' on who our staff think will be the most likely winners. Each week we'll announce the weekly winners, and track the overall record for the entire season. A couple of things to note before we get to the picks:
- Picks for this pool are straight up (no point spread considered).
- Picks are due on Wednesday nights, and may not reflect late-breaking news. If your league allows for last minute changes, please make adjustments to your office pool accordingly.
- Our staffers also play in weekly picks Against The Spread, and Survivor Style 'Pick one Winner each week' formats as well. Check out the other weekly articles for more help with those type of games.
RESULTS from last week
It was a close one, but even with Philadelphia's win on Monday night, Andy Hicks still pulled it out. Andy took the Bears to win on Monday night, but even though they lost, he manaaged to hold off Dave Larkin by a point 105-104. Hicks missed five games, and lost 12 confidence points on Oakland, but still managed to take home the weekly win. Larkin nearly took home consecutive wins, but he had six incorrect picks this week, including losing 14 points on Seattle.
| Staffer | NYJ | BAL | MIA | DAL | TEN | KC | SF | CIN | NO | TB | SEA | ATL | JAX | IND | GB | PHI | MNF | TOT |
| BUF | CLE | NE | WAS | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | LAR | OAK | SD | DEN | MIN | CHI | TOT | Pts | |
| Hicks | BUF | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | LAR | OAK | SD | DEN | MIN | CHI | 41 | 105 |
| 3 | 1 | 16 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 15 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 2 | 14 | 10 | 5 | |||
| Larkin | NYJ | BAL | NE | DAL | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | CHI | 47 | 104 |
| 10 | 13 | 16 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 15 | 7 | 6 | 12 | 14 | 4 | 4 | 11 | 2 | 1 | |||
| Mamula | NYJ | BAL | NE | DAL | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | CHI | 42 | 99 |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 16 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |||
| Garda | NYJ | BAL | NE | DAL | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | PHI | 45 | 98 |
| 2 | 14 | 15 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 13 | 8 | 12 | 11 | 16 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 10 | |||
| Miglio | BUF | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | SD | DEN | GB | CHI | 46 | 94 |
| 2 | 12 | 11 | 3 | 9 | 5 | 16 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 1 | |||
| Tuccitto | NYJ | BAL | NE | DAL | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | CHI | 49 | 92 |
| 4 | 10 | 14 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 16 | 9 | 8 | 15 | 11 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 5 | 6 | |||
| Pasquino | NYJ | BAL | NE | DAL | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | CHI | 43 | 90 |
| 2 | 12 | 14 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 16 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 6 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 1 | |||
| Wimer | NYJ | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | PHI | 52 | 90 |
| 9 | 14 | 12 | 8 | 13 | 7 | 15 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 1 | |||
| Roberts | NYJ | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | KC | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | LAR | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | CHI | 40 | 89 |
| 5 | 14 | 15 | 1 | 10 | 4 | 16 | 12 | 7 | 9 | 3 | 11 | 6 | 8 | 13 | 2 | |||
| Gray | NYJ | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | CHI | 45 | 88 |
| 5 | 15 | 13 | 3 | 12 | 4 | 16 | 8 | 6 | 11 | 14 | 9 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 2 | |||
| Brimacombe | NYJ | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | PHI | 45 | 87 |
| 1 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 12 | 11 | 16 | 10 | 9 | 15 | 14 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 2 | |||
| Wood | NYJ | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | TB | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | PHI | 46 | 87 |
| 16 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |||
| Grant | BUF | BAL | MIA | DAL | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | SD | DEN | GB | PHI | 41 | 84 |
| 1 | 11 | 14 | 2 | 10 | 8 | 16 | 5 | 7 | 13 | 9 | 12 | 3 | 15 | 6 | 4 | |||
| Feery | NYJ | BAL | NE | WAS | TEN | KC | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | CHI | 42 | 83 |
| 2 | 9 | 12 | 1 | 7 | 10 | 16 | 5 | 4 | 15 | 11 | 14 | 6 | 13 | 8 | 3 | |||
| Knotts | BUF | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | KC | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | PHI | 44 | 82 |
| 1 | 15 | 8 | 2 | 11 | 3 | 13 | 9 | 6 | 12 | 16 | 7 | 4 | 14 | 10 | 5 | |||
| Kuczynski | NYJ | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | KC | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | PHI | 44 | 79 |
| 5 | 13 | 11 | 4 | 10 | 6 | 15 | 8 | 3 | 14 | 12 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 16 | 1 | |||
| Bitonti | NYJ | BAL | NE | DAL | DET | KC | CAR | CIN | NO | ARI | SEA | OAK | SD | DEN | GB | CHI | 48 | 64 |
| 9 | 16 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 15 | 3 | 11 | 4 | 14 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 13 | 2 | |||
| Heiser | NYJ | BAL | NE | WAS | DET | KC | CAR | PIT | NO | ARI | SEA | OAK | JAX | DEN | GB | CHI | 42 | 55 |
| 12 | 11 | 16 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 6 | |||
| Away | NYJ | BAL | MIA | DAL | TEN | KC | SF | CIN | NO | TB | SEA | ATL | JAX | IND | GB | PHI | ||
| Total Pts | 94 | 221 | 14 | 36 | 7 | 43 | 0 | 3 | 15 | 7 | 212 | 0 | 57 | 0 | 123 | 24 | ||
| Home | BUF | CLE | NE | WAS | DET | HOU | CAR | PIT | NYG | ARI | LAR | OAK | SD | DEN | MIN | CHI | ||
| Total Pts | 7 | 0 | 210 | 56 | 164 | 71 | 262 | 137 | 121 | 189 | 16 | 148 | 17 | 154 | 10 | 30 |
The weekend upsets started early, with Detroit falling to Tennessee 16-15. The big upset of the week was the Rams surprise performance against the Seahawks, outlasting them in a field-goal festival 9-3. Seattle took down 212 confidence points from the field. Andy Hicks was one of only 2 staffers to pick the Rams to win, and it was a big part of why he took home this week's crown. Oakland was also an upset lost that hurt.
OVERALL RANKINGS
Larkin had an impressive lead after week 1, but considering how poorly the top of the leaderboard this week, he's extended his lead to an impressive 39 points. Garda climbed into second with 98 points this week and Miglio moved into 3rd with 94.
| Staffer | Wk01 | Wk02 | Wk03 | Wk04 | Wk05 | Wk06 | Wk07 | Wk08 | Wk09 | Wk10 | Wk11 | Wk12 | Wk13 | Wk14 | Wk15 | Wk16 | Wk17 | Total |
| Larkin | 120 | 104 | 224 | |||||||||||||||
| Garda | 87 | 98 | 185 | |||||||||||||||
| Miglio | 88 | 94 | 182 | |||||||||||||||
| Tuccitto | 87 | 92 | 179 | |||||||||||||||
| Mamula | 79 | 99 | 178 | |||||||||||||||
| Kuczynski | 98 | 79 | 177 | |||||||||||||||
| Roberts | 88 | 89 | 177 | |||||||||||||||
| Pasquino | 84 | 90 | 174 | |||||||||||||||
| Wood | 86 | 87 | 173 | |||||||||||||||
| Gray | 85 | 88 | 173 | |||||||||||||||
| Wimer | 83 | 90 | 173 | |||||||||||||||
| Knotts | 88 | 82 | 170 | |||||||||||||||
| Hicks | 64 | 105 | 169 | |||||||||||||||
| Brimacombe | 74 | 87 | 161 | |||||||||||||||
| Grant | 75 | 84 | 159 | |||||||||||||||
| Feery | 72 | 83 | 155 | |||||||||||||||
| Bitonti | 90 | 64 | 154 | |||||||||||||||
| Heiser | 82 | 55 | 137 |
Unfortunately Hicks finished last after week 1, so his week 2 win barely moved him out of the basement. If you follow this column at all, you know Andy's more about picking the weekly winners than he is about the overall chase and he's proven again why that strategy can work.
THIS WEEK'S PICKS
Here are the picks for this week
| Staffer | HOU | DEN | WAS | MIN | CLE | BAL | ARI | OAK | DET | LAR | SF | SD | NYJ | PIT | CHI | ATL | MNF |
| NE | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | BUF | TEN | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PHI | DAL | NO | TOTAL | |
| Miglio | NE | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | TEN | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 51 |
| 2 | 5 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 1 | 13 | 4 | 11 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 15 | 3 | ||
| Garda | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | NYJ | PIT | DAL | NO | 70 |
| 8 | 13 | 14 | 9 | 12 | 10 | 16 | 11 | 15 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | ||
| Hicks | NE | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | BUF | TEN | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PHI | DAL | NO | 45 |
| 11 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 7 | ||
| Heiser | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 56 |
| 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 16 | 5 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 12 | 1 | ||
| Feery | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | NYJ | PIT | DAL | NO | 52 |
| 11 | 10 | 8 | 16 | 12 | 6 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 13 | 7 | 1 | ||
| Kuczynski | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 53 |
| 3 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 1 | 16 | 5 | 11 | 4 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 15 | 13 | 8 | ||
| Gray | HOU | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 52 |
| 6 | 3 | 12 | 13 | 16 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 10 | 14 | 9 | ||
| Tuccitto | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | ARI | TEN | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 49 |
| 2 | 3 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 14 | 8 | 16 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 12 | 5 | ||
| Larkin | NE | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | TEN | GB | TB | SEA | SD | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 68 |
| 6 | 12 | 11 | 4 | 13 | 5 | 10 | 7 | 16 | 9 | 15 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 8 | ||
| Knotts | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 55 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 15 | 16 | 4 | 14 | 9 | 13 | 5 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 7 | ||
| Brimacombe | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 62 |
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 10 | 6 | 15 | 2 | 16 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 9 | 8 | ||
| Wood | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | TEN | DET | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | ATL | 47 |
| 16 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Pasquino | HOU | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | NYJ | PIT | DAL | NO | 69 |
| 8 | 6 | 10 | 15 | 14 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 13 | 9 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 11 | 7 | ||
| Mamula | HOU | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 56 |
| 16 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Roberts | HOU | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | ARI | TEN | GB | TB | SEA | IND | NYJ | PIT | DAL | NO | 62 |
| 4 | 1 | 11 | 15 | 16 | 10 | 12 | 3 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 14 | 5 | ||
| Wimer | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PHI | DAL | ATL | 77 |
| 10 | 9 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 11 | 3 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 15 | 13 | ||
| Bitonti | HOU | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | BAL | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | NYJ | PHI | DAL | ATL | 48 |
| 11 | 4 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 13 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 16 | 3 | ||
| Grant | HOU | DEN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | ARI | OAK | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PIT | DAL | NO | 52 |
| 2 | 1 | 9 | 16 | 15 | 5 | 13 | 6 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 12 | 8 | ||
| Away | HOU | DEN | WAS | MIN | CLE | BAL | ARI | OAK | DET | LAR | SF | SD | NYJ | PIT | CHI | ATL | |
| Total Pts | 112 | 69 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 205 | 70 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 97 | 0 | 17 | |
| Home | NE | CIN | NYG | CAR | MIA | JAX | BUF | TEN | GB | TB | SEA | IND | KC | PHI | DAL | NO | |
| Total Pts | 19 | 58 | 188 | 227 | 249 | 58 | 2 | 28 | 207 | 126 | 190 | 114 | 67 | 7 | 187 | 80 |
HEAVY FAVORITES
The Giants, Carolina, Miami, Tampa Bay, Seattle, and Dallas were all picked by every staffer in the board to win this week, with the Dolphins and Panthers being the most confident picks. Hicks was the only staffer to pick the Bills, and Larkin was the only team to pick the Chargers this week, making Arizona and Indianapolis strong picks as well. Jason Wood was the only staffer to take the Lions over Green Bay.
DUAL SUPPORT
Baltimore at Jacksonville looks like the hardest game of the week to pick.The Jaguars received a couple more picks, edging out the Ravens 58-50. KC is a strong favorite over the Jets this week, but that game received the fewest confident points with just 77 total from the entire field. The Broncos at the Bengals, Oakland at Tennessee, and Pittsburgh at Philadelphia are also games with a lower confidence totals.
ODDS AND ENDS
The top two teams this week represent two different styles of play. Larkin always builds a competitive team, and actually won Week 1 last season as well. His approach always keeps him competitive, and you can usually find him near the top of the leaderboard every week. Andy Hicks is a swing for the fences kind of guy, picking a couple big upsets each week. He is almost always one of the lowest teams on the overall board, but when his upsets hit, he pulls out the weekly win. Both approaches are perfectly valid, since Andy usually takes home two or three weekly prizes and that's more than most of the other teams do.
Larkin's lead this early can really not be praised enough. From week to week, the difference between the top team and the #10 team is usually just a few confidence points, and when the bye weeks happen, it's even closer. It's hard to make big moves in the overall leaderboard, and it could take another five or six weeks to catch Larkin at this point. A 40 point lead is massive at this point, and if he can hold that until the bye weeks start, he's going to be on the top of the overall board for a long time.
Good luck this weekend!
