Football Picks

Where is the love? We all know that winning breeds jealousy so it isn't too hard to understand why most of America hates Bill Belichick and his Patriots. Belichick has the three Super Bowls, Tom Brady, and enough wins to last the Cincinnati Bengals for 20 years. The SpyGate fiasco from a year ago brought some unwanted negative attention but when coaches such as Brian Billick (winning coach in Super Bowl XXXV) claim that Belichick was simply doing what most coaches do in monitoring the opposing sideline, you have to think that the hits he took were coming from sore losers. I get that people hate Belichick but there has to be some credit thrown his way for having the Pats tied atop the AFC East with a 5-2 record without Brady or a competent defensive secondary. This Sunday, he will head into enemy territory and try to put the Colts (3-4) season on life support. A week from Sunday, he will try and wrestle away the division lead from the Bills. If the Pats are 6-2 on Monday and 7-2 a week from Monday, maybe then Belichick will get some long overdue props. All picks are against the spread (Boston Globe, Herald truck late again on Friday) and home teams are in capitals. NCAA BC (-4) over Clemson Oregon (+3) over CALIFORNIA TEXAS TECH (+4) over Texas Miami (+2) over VIRGINIA NOTRE DAME (-4.5) over Pittsburgh Last Week: 3 - 2 Season: 15 - 24 - 1 NFL Patriots (+6) over INDIANAPOLIS Arizona (-3) over ST. LOUIS Atlanta (-3) over OAKLAND NY Jets (+5.5) over BUFFALO CHICAGO (-12.5) over Detroit CLEVELAND (-1.5) over Baltimore Miami (+3.5) over DENVER Jacksonville (-7.5) over CINCINNATI MINNESOTA (-4.5) over Houston Dallas (+9) over NY GIANTS Philadelphia (-6.5) over SEATTLE Tampa Bay (-8.5) over KANSAS CITY TENNESSEE (-5.5) over Green Bay WASHINGTON (-2) over Pittsburgh Last Week: 9 - 4 - 1 Season: 55 - 56 - 7