Thursday, December 24, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 16

Welcome to the "Holiday Edition" of this year's NFL Picks, aka Week 16's picks. I broke by 10-6 streak by going 11-5 last week, improving my overall percentage slightly to 63.8%. My Pick of the Week, Seattle, came out on top to improve my record to 11-4 on the year. Again I was only 1 for 3 in upset picks, but remain on the positive side at 17-15.

I lost the Thu9atrsday Night game, as Tampa Bay was unable to pull off the upset at St. Louis. Jacksonville (at home) could not beat Atlanta, Buffalo could not beat Washington on the road (wishful thinking), Miami was denied a road upset at San Diego, and New Orleans could not come back at home against Detroit on Monday Night. On to Week 16!

Thursday, December 17, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 15

What do you know? 10-6 again! Which means I stayed virtually the same % overall, around 63.5% for the year. My PotW was correct (Kansas City over San Diego) to improve to 10-4. I was only 1 for 3 in upset picks (good on Pittsburgh, bad on San Francisco and Miami), which has me at 16-13 this season.

As I mentioned above, I lost in upset picks as San Francisco could not beat Cleveland, and the Monday Night game as home underdog Miami couldn't overcome the New York Giants. Other losses included Chicago losing at home to Washington, Detroit losing on the road at St. Louis, Tampa Bay dropping a home game to New Orleans, and Denver giving up an upset win to Oakland. Hopefully I can snap my 10-6 streak this week:

Thursday, December 10, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 14

Finished 10-6 for the second week in a row and although I'm not improving, at least I'm consistent. Overall percentage dipped every so slightly by 0.1% to 63.5% on the year. I barely lost both my upset picks, but I'm still doing well at 15-11. And I can't be too upset about losing my PotW, as Philadelphia actually pulled it out on the road against New England. Now 9-4 for my Pick of the Week.

As for my losses, Chicago was unable to beat San Francisco at home, Seattle destroyed Minnesota on the road (no favorite), Atlanta blew an upset at Tampa Bay, the New York Giants let the New York Jets comeback on their home turf (though not really), Philadelphia pulled a huge upset at New England, and Dallas went into Washington and came out with a win. Lots of home losses, let's hope Week 14 proves better:

Thursday, December 3, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 13

I didn't really benefit from a full week of 16 games, but I didn't get hurt either. I finished 10-6, which maintained my overall percentage around 63%. I did continue my recent string of correct upset picks, with another 2 wins to 1 loss. That's good for 15-9 on the year, which is probably the best I've done over the last few seasons (with 5 weeks left to go!). My PotW was right as well, and I improve to 9-3 on the season.

I incorrectly picked Green Bay to beat Chicago at home, Tampa Bay upsetting Indianapolis on the road, the New York Giants to beat Washington, Jacksonville to win at home against San Diego, New England to remain unbeaten at Denver, and Cleveland to beat Baltimore on Monday night. On to week 14!

Thursday, November 26, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 12

Happy Thanksgiving football fans! The NFL is serving up a full plate of 3 games today, so there will be plenty of football to watch.

As for Week 11, I ended up at 9-5, as I just can't seem to reach double digits lately. The bye weeks are over though, so hopefully I can change that this week. Overall, my percentage stayed virtually the same, though I excelled in my upset picks (3-1) to improve to 13-8 on the year. I was back on the right track with my Pick of the Week (Seattle) to reach 8-3 on the year.

Miami lost to Dallas (no favorite), Philadelphia got crushed by underdog Tampa Bay (seriously, WTF is wrong with this team), Indianapolis upset Atlanta, Oakland failed to beat Detroit, and San Diego was nowhere near pulling up the upset against Kansas City. Week 12 picks after the jump!

Thursday, November 19, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 11

I finished an even 7-7 for Week 10, which isn't terrible considering there were a whopping 9 upsets out of the 14 games. Nobody in their right mind would pick that many upsets. However, I was a ridiculous 3-0 in my upset picks to improve to 10-7 on the year. My POTW shit the bed again, as I fell to an abysmal 7-3 on the year. Overall I saw my percentage drop from 65.2% to 63.7%.

All the games I lost ended up being upsets where the away team won, aside from Washington at home over New Orleans in which there was no favorite: Buffalo over New York Jets, Detroit over Green Bay (my pick of the week), Miami over Philadelphia (What. The. Fuck.), Chicago over St. Louis, Kansas City over Denver, and Houston over previously undefeated Cincinnati. I'm ready to put this week behind me. And the Eagles season if they lose this week...

Thursday, November 12, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 10

9-4 was the result of Week 9's picks, improving me slightly to 65% overall. I started off strong, with a correct PotW (Cincinnati) in the Thursday night game to reach 7-2 on the season. I was correct in my only upset pick (undefeated Carolina at home somehow), which improves my record to 9-7.

I would have been better off picking a few more upsets, as New Orleans lost to Tennessee at home, Atlanta continued their slide in San Francisco, Denver was handed their first lost by Indianapolis, and San Diego couldn't handle Chicago at home. Week 10 picks after the jump...

Tuesday, November 10, 2015

'The Walking Dead' casts its next villain

I'm very fucking excited for this, though this character's introduction comes a but earlier than expected. This should also have a huge implication on Glenn's apparent death. I'll say more later.

Major comic spoilers! Please don't click unless you're ok with being spoiled!

Thursday, November 5, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 9

I finished Week 8 at 9-5, essentially maintaining my overall percentage at 64.7%. My Pick of the Week (now 6-2) came through in OT, which was one several OT games this week. I managed to split my 2 upset picks, to remain above .500 at 8-7.

Losses included Chicago losing at home to Minnesota, Tampa Bay upsetting Atlanta, Baltimore hanging on to beat San Diego, Pittsburgh losing to undefeated Cincinnati, and Green Bay getting demolished by Denver. On to Week 9:

Thursday, October 29, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 8

Meh. So-so picks for Week 7, finishing 8-6 despite seeming worse than that. My overall percentage dipped a bit to 64.8%, so I am still off from my 70% goal. Unfortunately San Diego could not live up to my Pick of the Week, as I already have my second loss at 5-2 for the year. 0-2 for upset picks, down to 7-6 on the year.

Buffalo lost in London to Jacksonville, New Orleans upset the disappointing Indianapolis on the road, Pittsburgh was unable to upset Kansas City, Detroit lost at home to Minnesota, San Diego couldn't stay hot at home against Oakland, and I continue to incorrectly pick Philadelphia as they lost to Carolina. Hopefully Week 8 will be better:

Thursday, October 22, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 7

11-3! That's what I finished last week, and even I was surprised at some of the picks looking back (Pittsburgh, San Fran). My overall % raised by about 2.3 to 66%. My PotW was correct, as Green Bay barely hung on to beat San Diego. Both my upset picks (Miami, San Francisco) were right, and I improved to be 7-4 for the year. Oh, and I correctly picked Philadelphia for the first time all year!

My only incorrect picks were choosing Atlanta over New Orleans, Jacksonville vs Houston, and Seattle at home against Carolina. Now to keep the good times going (hopefully) with my Week 7 picks:

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

'Back to the Future' Day has finally arrived!

Hope everyone enjoyed 'Back to the Future' Day today, which celebrated the date Marty and Doc traveled to in Back to the Future Part II. Figured I'd post some of the cooler stuff I came across today:

How accurate was the technology depicted in BttF?

Michael J. Fox received the first pair of self lacing Nike Air Mags

An honest trailer for 'Back to the Future'

A special message from Doc Brown

Oh, and Pepsi Perfect is real! It already sold out today, but they are releasing more on November 3rd.

Thursday, October 15, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 6

Another good week of picks during Week 5, as I finished 9-5. Overall, my percentage essentially remained the same, only improving by 0.1% to 63.6%. I correctly chose Denver as my PotW, and improved to 4-1 on the season. Of my 3 upset picks, I only correctly chose Indianapolis; I remain above .500 at 5-4 for the season. As a side note, I continue not being able to pick the Eagles correctly, as I am now 0-5 for the season.

For my incorrect picks, most of which were close: Baltimore blew it against Cleveland by 3, Chicago upset Kansas City by 1, Cincinnati came back at home against Seattle by 3, New Orleans was blown out by Philadelphia by 22 (Glad to be wrong about this one, and it wasn't even that close), and Pittsburgh won by 4 with a last second TD over San Diego. Aside from the NO/PHI game, the margin of victory was only 2.75 points. Close calls, but losses nonetheless.  Moving onto Week 6:

Thursday, October 8, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 5

Week 4 had me finishing at a very good 11-4, and improving by 3% to 63.5%. I had no upset picks, so I remain at 4-2 after the first quarter of the season. Seattle just pulled out a win over Detroit, to improve me to 3-1 for PotW.

Losses were picking Oakland at Chicago, Philadelphia at Washington (ugh), Buffalo at home against the New York Giants, and Arizona at home vs. St. Louis. On to Week 5 after the jump.

Thursday, October 1, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 4

Stellar Week 3 for me, finishing with my best record of the year at 12-4. My percentage raised over 7%, to 60.4% overall. I was good on my PotW, now 2-1 on the season. I had 3 upset picks and got 2 of them correct to improve to 4-2 on the year thus far.

Matchups I incorrectly guessed: Baltimore winning at home against Cincinnati, the Eagles losing to the New York Jets (I'm very happy I was wrong with this one), Oakland losing to Cleveland on the road, and Dallas upsetting Atlanta (also quite happy about this). The byes start this week, and I was hoping to accumulate more wins before then; regardless, Week 4 is upon us with 15 new games.

Thursday, September 24, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 3

Ouch. In a week full of upsets, I apparently picked all of the wrong ones and ended up 7-9 Week 2. Lost my PotW (New Orleans vs Tampa Bay), so 1-1 for that. Of the 3 upset picks I had, I did manage to get 2 of them correct (2 for 3 on the season). My overall percentage dropped about 10 points to 53%. There were a ridiculous 10 upsets out of 16 games last week, so I can't complain too much.

Said upsets that I didn't correctly choose included Denver over Kansas City (this was a toss-up for me), Cleveland over Tennessee, Washington at home against St. Louis, Tampa Bay on the road against New Orleans, Oakland over Baltimore, Jacksonville over Miami, Philadelphia losing to Dallas (ugh), and Indianapolis
falling to New York Jets. I was seriously this close to switching my MNF pick, I swear. On to the next week:

Thursday, 8:30pm
Washington Redskins at New York Giants
Sunday, 1pm
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Houston Texans
Cincinnati Bengals at Baltimore Ravens
Jacksonville Jaguars at *New England Patriots*
Pittsburgh Steelers at St. Louis Rams
San Diego Chargers at Minnesota Vikings
Indianapolis Colts at Tennessee Titans
Philadelphia Eagles at New York Jets
Oakland Raiders at Cleveland Browns
Atlanta Falcons at Dallas Cowboys
Sunday, 4pm
San Francisco 49ers at Arizona Cardinals
Buffalo Bills at Miami Dolphins
Chicago Bears at Seattle Seahawks
Sunday, 8:30pm
Denver Broncos at Detroit Lions
Monday, 8:30pm
Kansas City Chiefs at Green Bay Packers

*Pick of the Week*

Upset picks as of 9/24 8:30pm

Previous Results
Week 1: 10-6
Week 2: 7-9
Season: 53%

Thursday, September 17, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 2

Off to a decent start after Week 1, finishing 10-6 (62.5%) from picking all the favorites. 1-0 in PotW (Green Bay over Chicago). Losses included picking Houston at home against Kansas City, Seattle being upset by St. Louis, Tennessee beating Tampa Bay in a battle of rookie QBs, and both road teams on MNF (Philadelphia at Atlanta and Minnesota at San Francisco). Again, all of my incorrect picks were upsets, so take from that what you will. On to Week 2:

Thursday, 8:30pm
Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs
Sunday, 1pm
Detroit Lions at Minnesota Vikings
Arizona Cardinals at Chicago Bears
Tennessee Titans at Cleveland Browns
New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills
Houston Texans at Carolina Panthers
San Francisco 49ers at Pittsburgh Steelers
San Diego Chargers at Cincinnati Bengals
St. Louis Rams at Washington Redskins
Atlanta Falcons at New York Giants
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at *New Orleans Saints*
Sunday, 4pm
Baltimore Ravens at Oakland Raiders
Miami Dolphins at Jacksonville Jaguars
Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles
Sunday, 8:30pm
Seattle Seahawks at Green Bay Packers
Monday, 8:30pm
New York Jets at Indianapolis Colts

*Pick of the Week*

Upset picks as of 9/20 11:45am

Previous Results
Week 1: 10-6 (62.5%)

Thursday, September 10, 2015

2015 NFL Picks Week 1

What's this? A new post?

Yes, I decided to resurrect the B Long Blog for the NFL season, as I will be returning for my third full season of making picks. While I didn't quite reach my goal of 70%, I did have my best year picking games at a respectable 68%. That was much better than 2013 (60%), and slightly better than 2012 (65%).

With a correct Super Bowl XLIX pick, in which I nearly predicted the correct score, I finished the 2014 playoffs with a 8-3 record (good for 73%). I'll take it.

I'll be making picks the same as last year. Picking straight up, the winners will be bolded, upset picks will be italicized, and my *Pick of the Week* will be offset by asterisks. Previous results will be linked each week, and can also be accessed by clicking on the "NFL Picks" tag.

New season wipes the slate clean:

Thursday, 8:30pm
Pittsburgh Steelers at New England Patriots
Sunday, 1pm
*Green Bay Packers* at Chicago Bears
Cleveland Browns at New York Jets
Seattle Seahawks at St. Louis Rams
Kansas City Chiefs at Houston Texans
Miami Dolphins at Washington Redskins
Indianapolis Colts at Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers at Jacksonville Jaguars
Sunday, 4pm
Detroit Lions at San Diego Chargers
New Orleans Saints at Arizona Cardinals
Tennessee Titans at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Baltimore Ravens at Denver Broncos
Cincinnati Bengals at Oakland Raiders
Sunday, 8:30pm
New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys
Monday Night Football
Philadelphia Eagles at Atlanta Falcons (7:10pm)
Minnesota Vikings at San Francisco 49ers (10:20pm)

*Pick of the Week*

No upset pick as of 9/10 4:45pm

Friday, February 27, 2015

Pet peeve #whatever

I can't stand bathroom attendants. Seriously, I can't fucking stand them. I felt obligated to tip when I was younger, but now it's not even an option. All they do is hand you a paper towel. Oh, wow! I couldn't do that myself! Thank you so much! Not. Please, go away.

And no, I don't want your shitty cologne or gum. Thanks but no thanks.

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Super Bowl XLIX Pick

Just like last year, the big game (Super Bowl XLIX if you're wondering) will come down to both #1 seeds. The Seattle Seahawks of the NFC will try to defend their title against the New England Patriots of the AFC, and it should be an excellent game. It is in Arizona this year, so weather will not be a factor; in fact there is no favorite for this game as of last night. Before my pick, a brief recap of the Conference Championships.

For the second year in a row I was correct with both conference picks, though it seemed I wouldn't be for a while. The Seattle Seahawks needed a great comeback to overcome MVP Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers. The Indianapolis Colts, however, were unable to overcome "Deflate Gate" as Tom Brady and the New England Patriots rolled over them. Brady will meet the fearsome Seattle D in just a few hours...

Super Bowl XLIX
New England Patriots over Seattle Seahawks, 27-23

Previous Results
Week 1: 11-5
Week 2: 9-7
Week 3: 11-5
Week 4: 5-8
Week 5: 11-4
Week 6: 13-1-1
Week 7: 11-4
Week 8: 9-6
Week 9: 10-3
Week 10: 9-4
Week 11: 8-6
Week 12: 12-3
Week 13: 11-5
Week 14: 9-7
Week 15: 14-2
Week 16: 10-6
Week 17: 11-5
Season: 174-81 (68%)

Wild Card: 2-2
Divisional: 3-1
Conference: 2-0
Playoffs: 7-3 (70%)

Sunday, January 18, 2015

2014 NFL Picks for Conference Championships

I did indeed improve my playoff mark last week, finishing 3-1 for the Divisional Round. I am 5-3 overall during the playoffs, and if I go 3 for 3 during the remaining games I will post my best playoff record thus far.

My only loss came from picking the favorite Denver at home against Indianapolis. I was glad Dallas lost (karma is a bitch), and the other 2 games went how I expected. On to the championship games, which look like they should be very entertaining:

Sunday
Green Bay Packers at Seattle Seahawks
Indianapolis Colts at New England Patriots

no upset picks this week.

Previous Results
Week 1: 11-5
Week 2: 9-7
Week 3: 11-5
Week 4: 5-8
Week 5: 11-4
Week 6: 13-1-1
Week 7: 11-4
Week 8: 9-6
Week 9: 10-3
Week 10: 9-4
Week 11: 8-6
Week 12: 12-3
Week 13: 11-5
Week 14: 9-7
Week 15: 14-2
Week 16: 10-6
Week 17: 11-5
Season: 174-81 (68%)

Wild Card: 2-2
Divisional: 3-1
Playoffs: 5-3 (62.5%)

Saturday, January 10, 2015

2014 NFL Picks for Divisional Round

Finished up 2-2 last week after ending the Saturday games in an 0-2 hole. Not the best start obviously, but better than my 0-4 start to last year's playoffs. I incorrectly picked Arizona to upset Carolina, and should have used that upset pick to choose Baltimore over Pittsburgh. Meanwhile, Cincinnati still can't win a playoff (at Indianapolis last week), and Detroit was the victim of some terrible officiating at Dallas).

Looking to improve this week:

SaturdayBaltimore Ravens at New England Patriots
Carolina Panthers at Seattle Seahawks
SundayDallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers
Indianapolis Colts at Denver Broncos

no upset picks this week

Previous Results
Week 1: 11-5
Week 2: 9-7
Week 3: 11-5
Week 4: 5-8
Week 5: 11-4
Week 6: 13-1-1
Week 7: 11-4
Week 8: 9-6
Week 9: 10-3
Week 10: 9-4
Week 11: 8-6
Week 12: 12-3
Week 13: 11-5
Week 14: 9-7
Week 15: 14-2
Week 16: 10-6
Week 17: 11-5
Season: 174-81 (68%)

Wild Card: 2-2
Playoffs: 2-2 (50%)

Saturday, January 3, 2015

2014 NFL Picks for Wild Card Weekend

The 2014 NFL regular season is over, but my picks will continue during the playoffs. I ended up finishing the season at a solid 68% after going a respectable 11-5 for Week 17. I correctly picked Houston as my POTW, finishing 15-2 on the season. I was wrong in my 2 upset picks last week, but still finished above .500 at 19-18. All were good for my best totals since I started picking during the 2012 season. I only had 1 week where I picked less than 50%, but countered that with a 13-1-1 and a 14-2 week. Next year I will still try to reach my goal of 70% correct overall, but let's worry about that next year.

Quickly going over my losses before my playoff picks: San Diego was unable to make the playoffs after losing to Kansas City, New England lost a meaningless game against Buffalo, the New York Jets upset Miami, Arizona was unable to upset San Francisco, and Atlanta lost the winner-takes-all division matchup with Carolina. Now for my 2014 Wild Card Weekend playoff picks... keep in mind I was 0-4 last season!

Saturday
Arizona Cardinals at Carolina Panthers
Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers
Sunday
Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts
Detroit Lions at Dallas Cowboys

Upset pick as of 1/2 3pm

Previous Results
Week 1: 11-5
Week 2: 9-7
Week 3: 11-5
Week 4: 5-8
Week 5: 11-4
Week 6: 13-1-1
Week 7: 11-4
Week 8: 9-6
Week 9: 10-3
Week 10: 9-4
Week 11: 8-6
Week 12: 12-3
Week 13: 11-5
Week 14: 9-7
Week 15: 14-2
Week 16: 10-6
Week 17: 11-5
Season: 174-81 (68%)