2016 NFL Midseason Betting Predictions & Picks

Not counting the Monday Night game between the Vikings and the Bears, it’s safe to say that we are officially past the midway part of the 2016 NFL season, thanks to an entertaining eight-week marathon to start the season. And with plenty of expectations, surprises, disappointments and achievements to sieve through from the first half of the season; forecasting on the second of the year should be fun, right? Anyway, here we go with our midseason NFL betting predictions…

2016 NFL Midseason Betting Predictions & Picks

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Arizona Cardinal Will Miss the Playoffs

It’s not just that the Cards are 3-4- 1, it is that the team is looking disjointed in virtually every phase, a key reason they’ve pathetically gone 2-3- 1 in their last six weeks. Carson Palmer isn’t the reliable quarterback he was last season and his O-line is as bogus as it gets in the NFL, injuries are piling up at an unprecedented rate (Tyrann Mathieu et al.), Arizona’s defense can’t seem to get its act together and the Cardinals still have an absolutely loaded schedule—including @Vikings, @Falcons, vs. Redskins, vs. Saints and @ Seattle –which doesn’t bode well for Arizona’s playoff hopes. So, even with a bye in Week 9, there’s simply no way the Cards will be regrouping in time to make a run for the NFC West title or winning at least 7 more games to have a legitimate shot of cracking the jam-packed NFC postseason race.

Dallas Will Clinch the No. 1 NFC Seed

Riding on an immaculate six-game winning streak and a solid 6-1 record that includes a clutch Dak Prescott-led overtime win over the Eagles on Sunday, the Cowboys have proven that they are here to stay and should therefore be taken seriously. And looking at the manner in which Prescott, stud running back Ezekiel Elliot and Dallas’ solid defense have showed this season; it’s hard to argue against the winning momentum carrying into the second half of the season. Not to forget, Dez Bryant is back, Tony Romo is fit and the Cowboys dominated the NFC East division so far, with their lone loss being the oh-so- close 20-19 Week 1 defeat to the Giants in Week 1. Minnesota will make some noise in the race for the No. 1 seed, and so will Atlanta and Seattle. But judging by consistency, efficient play on both sides of the ball and experience to sustain momentum, it goes without saying that the Cowboys are the class of the NFC.

New England Will Clinch the No. 1 AFC Seed

Bill Belichick is as focused as ever, Tom Brady is back and he is doing MVP-like things, Rob Gronkowski is breaking records, New England’s defense continues to make plays and the streaking Patriots (4-0 in their last 4 since Brady returned with double-digit wins in all those games) look unstoppable as arguably the most complete and surest winning team in the league. At 7-1 on the season, a bye in Week 9 and a soft second-half schedule that includes this year’s bottom-feeders like San Francisco, NY Jets (twice) and Dolphins (to go with the sputtering Ravens and the beatable duo of Broncos and Seahawks standing as their toughest tests); the Pats could very easily finish the season 15-1 if they want, so clinching the top seed in the AFC shouldn’t be a biggie.

Oakland Will Make the Playoffs

Thanks to their ability to make key plays down the stretch of crucial encounters, the Raiders are now 6-2 on the season with their latest win coming at the expense of the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay on Sunday, preserving their perfect win record on the road this season (at 5-0). Do you know the last time the Raiders started 5-0? That happened in 1977, which was coincidentally the year after the franchise’s first Super Bowl championship. Oh, and I also did read from this interesting fact from Elias Sports Bureau that Oakland is the 46th team since 1990 to win five straight road games in a season, and each of the previous 45 winners made the playoffs. Then, of course, there is the power and efficiency that comes with Oakland’s solid offense—ranking #4 in the nation in passing yards, #5 in points scored per game and #8 rushing yards per game—that makes it easy for Oakland to go toe-to- toe with the best teams in the nation. Making it 10-or-more wins and reaching the postseason for the first time since 2002 should therefore be very likely, especially if you consider that four of Oakland’s remaining games are against teams that are currently .500 or below.

Kansas City Will Make it Three AFC West Teams in the Playoffs

With Oakland going into the playoffs, as has been explained above, and also Denver riding hot on its defense plus Trevor Siemian into the playoffs, that’s already two solid AFC West teams challenging for divisional title and two spots in the AFC playoffs. But this number could improve to three AFC West teams if Kansas City lives up to its potential. San Diego (3-5), as you’ve probably figured out already, pretty much played itself out of the AFC West title race and the AFC playoffs with Sunday’s loss at Denver. Meanwhile, Kansas City (5-2) has won three straight games since returning from their bye and looks to be on course for another solid run akin to their 10-game unbeaten finish to the 2016 season. There are concerns regarding starting quarterback Alex Smith, who got injured in the 30-14 win over Indianapolis, but backup quarterback Nick Foles filled in well for Smith and KC appears to trust the former Ram with the Chieftaincy. Personally, I have reservations regarding Foles, but Smith is not nursing a major injury so he should be back in no time. But even if he doesn’t make a speedy return, Chiefs have a good-enough defense and solid runners to help Foles. And, at 5-2, including a win over the first-place Raiders, the Chiefs should fancy making a run for the playoffs in the second half. This should be particularly encouraged by Kansas City’s 2-0 mark in the AFC West, and the Chiefs still have five games to play at the homely Arrowhead Stadium where they are 3-0 this season.

Winner of Oakland vs. Denver in Week 9 Will Claim the AFC West Title

Kansas City is good, but there is no question about Denver (6-2) and Oakland (6-2) being the most consistent teams in the division, so having them as the top contenders for the AFC West crown shouldn’t be a surprise. That said, Oakland is just 1-2 at home this season, which makes it hard to trust the Silver and Black when they host the Broncos this coming weekend in must-see TV encounter. But then again, Carr is coming off a career game against Tampa Bay—where he threw for a franchise-record 513 yards and 4 touchdowns against zero interceptions—so sleeping on him and the Raiders would be a bad idea, even if Denver All-World- Best defense will be making things difficult for the hosts. Whatever the case, the winner of this game will have a two-game lead, giving themselves a decent divisional cushion in the running for the AFC West title.

Buffalo Will Miss Playoffs…AGAIN!

All the postseason hopes that were at all-time high during Buffalo’s four-game winning streak after an 0-2 start to the season seems to have faded away following the team’s two losses in Week 7 and Week 8. After a three-point loss to Miami in Week 7, the Bills looked beak-less against Tom Brady and the Patriots, falling in a lopsided 41-25 loss on Sunday. Resultantly the Bills are now 4-4 on the season. This isn’t a bad record, but the Patriots– who lead the division by three full games– have all but assured themselves of an eighth successive AFC East title, particularly with the Bills sitting at 1-3 in the division, with back-to- back losses at Miami and home to New England in the past two weeks. And with a loaded schedule in the second half of the season, it doesn’t look like the Bills will manage to go even 6-2 in the rest of the season to have a legitimate wild card chance. With that in mind, it should therefore another postseason-less year for the Bills, who own an NFL-record 16-year playoff drought.

Tennessee Challenges for a .500 Finish, Houston repeats as AFC South Champion

The Colts (3-5), as was befittingly explained by Yahoo, have hit rock-bottom and have no business playing in the AFC South, or the NFL, for that matter. The same—or worse—could be said of the out-of- sorts Jaguars (2-5). The Titans (4-4), thanks largely to a really improved play from second-year quarterback Marcus Mariota and lethal running back tandem in DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry, appear to be Houston’s biggest threat in the division. But the truth is that Tennessee is still trying to find its defensive identity, and that will negatively affect its push for the AFC South title. Still, the Titans will be facing the way poorer defensive duo of Indy and Jacksonville, which should help their quest to challenge a .500 finish and a decent placement in the division. The Texans haven’t looked formidable, either, but Brock Osweiler has been doing a decent number of good things in the Field Goal-reliant Houston offense with the Jadeveon Clowney-led defense taking care of things on the other end of the field. So, in short, it’s going to be really ugly in the AFC South. In the end, though, we must have a winner, and from the current outlook of things, Houston (5-3) should be your preferred AFC South title pick.