NFL Survivor Pool: And one more makes three

Week 7 was another poor week for favorites as normally predictable teams like Tampa Bay, Green Bay, and New England all fell as favorites. There has been a lot of that going around this season, hence the less-than-stellar start to so many Survivor Contest entries.

Has the NFL settled down?  Doubtful! I am on a roll though so let's keep it going.

Survivor Pool Teams Used So Far:  Tennessee Titans, Cincinnati Bengals, Los Angeles Chargers, Detroit Lions, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Los Angeles Rams, and Las Vegas Raiders.

Record: 3-4

Week 7 Survivor Pool Recommendation

This is an interesting week for picking. The most obvious play is to go with either Philadelphia or Buffalo. Both were off last week so they had extra time to prepare, but more important than that, both are at home against overmatched opponents (hence the double-digit spreads in both their games). They are probably the 2 best teams in the league too. Is now the time to pull the trigger with one of them?  It is very tempting but I think we can go a little deeper with both. Instead, I am recommending another team that also had a bye week last week ...

The Pick: Minnesota Vikings

The Vikings are 5-1 this season and have a nice cushion in the NFC North. That lone loss was to Philly too, so there is no shame in that. In all of their other games, they have won by at least 4 points. Their ATS record is not profitable, but that is less of a concern here. There is a lot to like about the Vikings, who while not quite elite, are very balanced. On offense, Kirk Cousins knows where the ball is supposed to go and their defense has some playmakers.

Fading Arizona in this spot is not a bad idea either as they looked lifeless in their loss to Seattle last week. They have weird splits in that they are 2-1 on the road but 1-3 at home. That is a telltale sign of a team that is just unreliable. Sure it might make you want to back them in a spot like this but to me, that just makes them a team to stay away from and Minnesota is 3-0 at home this season.

This is a nice spot to pluck Minnesota in looking at their future schedule too. They are on the road for the next 2 weeks including a game at Buffalo where they definitely will be underdogs. They have games coming up hosting both the New York Jets and Giants that do not look like the gimmes they did at the beginning of the season. This is a good team in a good spot. There is no reason not to lock it in.