Bet the Farm is Razzball’s weekly wagering column. Josh Carey and Zorboss compete against your picks in the comments. The rules?
– You start off with $1,000 (and can start playing along in the comments any time you want – even now)
– Every bet must be an increment of $10 up to your full bankroll ($1,000 or maybe more)
– You can bet on the over/under or spread for any NFL game (Yahoo Sports’ Odds page is a good place to pick your lines)
– Win, add $9 to your total for every $10 bet (you have to beat the rake). Lose, subtract $10. Push, keep it the same.
– Beat us over the entire season and win our admiration (Note: our admiration has a cash value of $0).
Zorboss’ Picks
Bankroll :$1159 (last week -$48)
Record: 20-11 (last week 3-3)
Locks: 6-2 (last week 1-0)
$20 New Orleans vs. Philadelphia Over 51.5: I feel like I need to apologize for what happened last week in Denver. I’m sorry. Just one of those days that a girl gambler goes through. The Saints’ defense did their job by holding the Broncos to 530 total yards. The Saints’ offense should get wind sprints for Halloween instead of delicious candy. But they can win our hearts made of Greenbacks back by sending this game over. I tempered my bet back this week because the Eagles are a mess; we can’t have Nick Foles squandering our over chances. #iwillalwaysbeteverysaintsgameover.Saints 34 Eagles 21.
$50 Denver -3.5 at Cincinnati: We all know the power of the Broncos attack behind Peyton Manning. They will always be the smartest team on the field because of him.  However, I was certainly surprised and impressed with the Broncos’ defensive performance. To hold Drew Brees and the Saints the way they did only bodes well for the rest of 2013. This team, as the clichés say, are hitting on all cylinders and coming together at the right time. Even though the Bengals are coming off a bye and are at home, I think this is a tough game and matchup for them. Broncos 31 Bengals 21.
$50 Tampa Bay PK (Lock) at Oakland: This is both a bet on the Bucs and against the Raiders. I thoroughly enjoyed the looting the Buccaneers gave to those Scandiamerican Vikings last week. Truly an impressive performance all around. Ran well, passed the ball weller, played defense the wellest, and Doug Martin was the swellest. The Buccaneers have been competitive in every game they have played this year. I was never a believer in Josh Freeman coming into the year and I’m still sceptical going forward. I am going to give him the biggest opportunity and game of his career to prove me wrong, as I am making him my lock of the week. The Raiders had a bye week played the Chiefs last week and barely beat Chad Henne at home two weeks ago. This game is only a pick’em, so The Bucs just need to raid the Raiders with one picked pocket. Buccaneers 27 Raiders 17.
$50 Seattle -4 vs. Minnesota: I wonder why the Vikings still give the reigns of the ship over to Christian Ponder? Something to ponder. Don’t mull over it too much as any simple throwing statistic can tell you that he is no better than a poor Pennington. And don’t be misled by the poor statistics as most of the positive plays come from short throws you and I could make to speedster Percy Harvin. I don’t need to tell you that Seattle is one of the best home teams in the NFL. A 3-0 record at home, with victories over Dallas, Green Bay, and New England; all of whom have better squads than the Vikings. No need for an election here, as the Seahawks defense will turn the Vikings into a bunch of hanging chads. Seahawks 24 Vikings 13.
$20 Baltimore -3.5 at Cleveland: I need redemption on Cleveland after they knocked me out of a suicide pool last week. I don’t think scoring seven points this week will win or cover the game for the Browns. Baltimore beat them by seven at home earlier this year and that was on three day’s rest. Now they get a full two weeks to prepare and I think they win this tilt fairly easily. Ravens 21 Browns 13.
Total Wagered: $190
Josh Carey’s Picks
Bankroll: $1,095 (Last week: -$98)
Record: 19-17-1 (Last week: 2-6)
Locks: 5-2-1 (Last week: 1-0)
Zorboss, and likely most of you, is destroying me now after my pretty terrible week last week. We’re all allowed one of those, right? Besides, I threw ten bucks away on the Redskins just because of the Steelers uniforms. Don’t bet based on uniforms people. So I’ve tweaked my methodology this week and we’re trying something new. That will probably suck, too.
$50 Indianapolis +2.5 vs. Miami (LOCK OF THE WEEK): Have I mentioned I love home underdogs? Oh, just about every week we’ve run this column? Okay then. It helps that I’m pretty sure Indianapolis is better than the consensus would tell us they are right now. Most people are going to wait for this game against Miami to render judgement on whether or not they’re a legitimate wild card contender. Well, I’m going to be bold like A1 steak sauce and tell you they are going to win this one outright. But, you know, take the points just in case.
$40 Atlanta – 4 vs. Dallas: This is one of those interesting games. Has Atlanta really been as good as advertised? Some would say no, but they might grow into it. Has Dallas been as bad as advertised? This is a team that can look amazing or terrible – and do so in the same game, or even the same half. The deciding factor for me on choosing to pick this game is that I really felt this spread should have been larger, 6.5 or even 7. So I’m going to take the extra points of perception and plan on the Falcons taking care of business (every day, every way).
$40 Tampa Bay PK at Oakland: Tampa Bay is one of those teams I was pegging for a rebound at the beginning of the season, especially keeping an eye on Josh Freeman for a bounce-back campaign. They seem to have it and Oakland isn’t exactly much of a football team. Vincent Jackson had his typical crap effort after a big game, but now he’s poised to lead the Bucs to victory in the battle of the sea-faring criminals.
$30 Tennessee +3.5 vs Chicago: Again, I do love home underdogs. This pick isn’t as much about Tennessee (they’re bad), but my questioning just how consistent Chicago is. If they don’t get a defensive touchdown from there defense (it seems a bit unlikely it will keep happening every week) can a less-than-impressive offense really cover more than a field goal on the road? Part of the story with this team has been how the defense has nearly been outscoring the offense. Well, you can’t count on that continuing forever, so the Bears seem like pretty solid fade material.
Total wagered: $160
