Katie's Picks (6 Live)
Katie's Past Picks
The Broncos winning streak is a bit fraudulent as they have been very lucky with turnovers. During their 5 consecutive wins, Denver is plus-13 in turnover margin. Not only is that the best in NFL but it's at least 5 better than any other team. The Texans defense should bounce back after getting lit up by the Jags and I trust CJ Stroud to continue to make good plays.
After last week, Purdy now has a full season of NFL starts. In Purdy's 17 starts, the Niners have gone 13-4. The spread is massive, so instead of laying the points with SF, I'll go with what has cashed in 6 of 9 games this season and take the over on the Niners team total. With healthy weapons and Trent Williams back on the field, this offense is just too hard to contain.
What has this offense shown us under Tommy Devito that makes me think they can keep this remotely close? Nothing. However, 9.5 is just too many points for such a low total. I expect Wink Martindale to blitz the living daylights out of Sam Howell and make it hard on the Washington offense. This one is as ugly as you’d expect, but I'll still take the points.
McBride has surpassed 40 receiving yards only one time in his other eight games. However, with Kyler under Center, McBride caught 8 of 9 targets for 131 yards in the Cards victory over the Falcons. With Ertz still sidelined, Murray will continue to feed the 2nd year Tight End.
Texans have been on a roll but this week looks to be a classic let down spot for them against the Cardinals. Kyler Murray was fantastic last week, as was James Conner. Look for AZ to get back to the frisky play we saw earlier in the season that led them to be covering machines. I'll take the points but wouldn't be surprised if Arizona wins outright.
C.J. Stroud just lit up the Bucs passing defense, within his 470 yard game 8 completions were 21+ yards. D-Hop has caught at least one pass of 20+ yards in each of his last six games, with seven receptions of 25+ in that span. Take the over on his longest reception.
The last 3 weeks have been brutal on the 49ers, losing 3 straight and failing to score more than 17 pts in all 3 of those losses. However, I'm betting on a Niners bounce back offensively. Prior to the last 3 weeks, SF routinely scored over 30 ppg. The defense should improve with Chase Young to the front and create more pressure/ trouble on Trevor Lawrence. Why this is key to the Niners offensive success is that Brock Purdy's kryptonite seems to be when they Niners are playing from behind late in the game. The improved defense should help Purdy get back on track in both confidence and performance. Oh and Deebo Samuel back in the line-up is huge. Niners over 23.5.
Last week was fun for C.J. Stroud, 470 passing yards and 5 TD's. Unfortunately this week he will not enjoy the same success. Cincy's Defense is stout. They held the Bills to just 18 points and the 49ers to17 points the week before. More impressively, the Bengals have not allowed ANY team to break the 20-point threshold during their 4 game winning streak. As for the Texans, in 3 of their 4 road games they have failed to get to 20 points. I'll take the under on their team total in The Jungle.
Kyler Murray, aka "Mighty Mouse" is set to make his return this week for Arizona, a true duel threat QB who should light up Atlanta (even if rusty).The Falcons defense just let his former teammate, Josh Dobbs score 3 TD’s on them, 2 through the air and 1 rushing. The Cardinals have covered as a home dog in 3 of 4 games this season. I'm not sure that happens this week, however I do think they keep this competitive and relatively high scoring. Over 43.