NFL Week 17 survivor pool picks: How we're tackling the Christmas slate, plus rankings for every format

NFL survivor pools that use 20-gameweek formats are in for a fun one this year, as quarterback injuries have made any planning done over the course of the season moot. All three Christmas games are expected to feature a third-string quarterback playing for the home team, and depending on who has been burned earlier in the year, survivors are going to have to pick one of those QBs to trust with potentially millions on the line.

That's right, millions. In the Circa Survivor, which has a prize pool of more than $18 million, none of the 10 remaining survivors have the Broncos or Lions available to use this week. Five have the Cowboys, and that figures to be the most popular play. Those looking for leverage in that game are likely going all-in with the Commanders and hoping to wipe out half the pool. The only entry that doesn't have the Commanders available is the only one that does have the Chiefs, and it's one of the entries without the Cowboys available. That means that survivor will have to decide between Chris Oladokun or Max Brosmer, as everyone has the Vikings available.

What would you do in this situation? I would not be surprised to see nine of the 10 entries on the Cowboys game, and that makes it interesting as anyone that has both teams available can't really think about flipping to the "leverage" side since it would presumably put more people on the Commanders than Cowboys. That's if no one backs the Vikings (aside from our one Chiefs-Vikings entry) with no available leverage in fading the Lions. If the ticket counts come out and we have nine on the Dallas game, I'm going to be rooting for a tie, which would give the outlier a chance if they can pull off the win since a tie grades as a loss in that competition.

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We'll break down our preferred approach to both slates in 20-gameweek formats as well as the standard 18-gameweek slates, while giving out rankings for all three. 

Why listen to me? I'm 718-623-37 and up more than 32 units on ATS picks over the last eight years and even better with my top five picks each week, going 464-379-27 (55%) over the last 10 years in the Las Vegas ATS contests. While survivor doesn't involve picking against the spread, I do believe by applying the strategies I've developed to have long-term success on those picks to survivor pools, we'll be in the best position to outlast the competition this season.

In Week 17, I've ranked several options for both small pool and large pool participants, weighing whether it's worth using what might be the consensus play or digging a little deeper into the options.

So which NFL survivor picks should you make for the 2025 NFL season, and which Week 17 pick could separate you from the pack? ... Join SportsLine right now to see NFL Survivor Pool 2025 strategy from the expert who's 718-623-37 on ATS picks from 2017 to 2024, returning more than 32 units!

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