NFL Point Spreads Week 17: Best Picks Against the Spread
One game, the presumed most important for playoff positioning, is usually flexed into the Sunday night window, but the league opted not to do that this year. Here’s a quick look at all the Week 17 matchups with Sports Interaction NFL odds.
Sunday NFL Point Spreads
Carolina is in the playoffs but would win the NFC South with a victory and New Orleans loss in Tampa Bay. Atlanta is a wild-card team with a victory. It would also get in with a loss and Seahawks home loss to Arizona. In Week 9, the Panthers beat the Falcons 20-17.
Pick ATS: Atlanta
Packers are playing out the string without Aaron Rodgers. The Lions were in the wild-card hunt before they were upset Sunday in Cincinnati so now this game is meaningless. Detroit goes for the season sweep as it won in Green Bay – a huge rarity for the Lions – 30-17 in Week 9. There was no Rodgers then, either. Matthew Stafford passed for 361 yards and two touchdowns to Marvin Jones.
Pick ATS: Detroit
Nothing whatsoever at stake here as both teams’ seasons were ruined by quarterback injuries (Houston’s Deshaun Watson) or surgeries (Indy’s Andrew Luck). Could be the final game as Texans coach for Bill O’Brien and almost surely is the finale for Colts coach Chuck Pagano. One of the Colts’ three victories was Week 9 in Houston, 20-14. That was the first game after Houston lost Watson.
Pick ATS: Indianapolis
Miami’s playoff hopes were dashed Sunday in a loss at Kansas City. Buffalo has the longest postseason drought in the NFL but would get a wild-card spot with a victory and some help. It’s the second game in two weeks between the two as the Bills beat the visiting Dolphins 24-16 on Dec. 17. Buffalo running back LeSean McCoy scored twice and became the 30th player to hit 10,000 career yards. Jay Cutler threw three interceptions. This should be his final game in a Miami uniform.
Pick ATS: Buffalo
End to another dreary season in Chicago, and Coach John Fox won’t be back. Minnesota is looking to lock down the No. 2 seed in the NFC and would do so with a victory. The Vikings won in Chicago in Week 5, 20-17. That was the NFL debut of Bears rookie QB Mitchell Trubisky. He started in place of a struggling Mike Glennon, and Trubisky left the field since. He threw a costly late pick that led to the winning Minnesota field goal.
Pick ATS: Chicago
Could be the last game as Jets coach for Todd Bowles. The Patriots still have to care as they need a win to ensure the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC. New England won at the Jets much closer than expected in Week 6, 24-17. That was Tom Brady’s NFL record-setting 187th regular-season victory. New York led 14-0 in the second quarter.
Pick ATS: NY Jets
NFC East foes playing out the string. The Giants will have a new head coach next season and the Redskins might. New York also could replace Eli Manning at quarterback in the offseason, and Washington may lose QB Kirk Cousins to free agency. The Redskins beat the Giants 20-10 on American Thanksgiving night. Cousins threw two TD passes, while Manning struggled mightily.
Pick ATS: NY Giants
The Cowboys were eliminated from the playoffs with a Week 16 home loss to Seattle, while the Eagles have clinched the top seed in the NFC and thus are likely to rest some starters. Philadelphia won in Dallas in Week 11 in a 37-9 blowout. Carson Wentz, now out for the season, threw for two touchdowns and three 2-point conversions – the Eagles had lost their kicker to injury. Dallas, without a suspended Ezekiel Elliott, was held to 225 yards.
Pick ATS: Dallas
Will the Browns join the 2008 Detroit Lions in 0-16 infamy? One would think so as the Steelers have reason to play hard considering the No. 1 seed in the AFC is still possible – but it would take not just a win but an unlikely Patriots loss. Pittsburgh opened the season with a 21-18 victory in Cleveland. Ben Roethlisberger improved to 21-2 in his career against the Browns.
Pick ATS: Cleveland
The Bucs were one of the NFL’s biggest disappointments, and this could be it for Coach Dirk Koetter. The Saints are in the playoffs and take the NFC South with a victory or Carolina loss in Atlanta. Tampa lost in New Orleans on Nov. 5, 30-10. Bucs starting QB Jameis Winston left after the first half with shoulder soreness and then nearly started a fight with some sideline antics.
Pick ATS: New Orleans
Who would have guessed when the schedule was released this would be one of the most important games of Week 17? The Jaguars are AFC South champions and locked into the AFC’s No. 3 seed, while the Titans need a win for a wild-card berth (these two could play again next week). It’s possible to get in if the Titans lose, but they would need plenty of help. Tennessee won in Jacksonville in Week 2, 37-16. The Titans led 6-3 at the half but outscored the Jags 17-0 in the third.
Pick ATS: Tennessee
Likely the end of the road for Bengals coach Marvin Lewis, the second-longest tenured coach in the NFL. The Ravens will be a wild-card team with a victory and could get in a with a loss if other games break right. Baltimore opened the season with a 20-0 victory in Cincinnati. Neither team had 270 yards of total offence, but the Bengals turned it over five times.
Pick ATS: Baltimore
Seattle has never missed the playoffs since drafting QB Russell Wilson in 2012 but needs a win and Atlanta home loss to Carolina to get a wild-card spot. Arizona misses the playoffs for a second straight season and likely will have a new coach and starting quarterback in 2018. The Seahawks won in the desert in Week 10, 22-16. Wilson threw two touchdown passes to Jimmy Graham
Pick ATS: Seattle
The Chiefs have nothing to play for here as they are locked into their No. 4 playoff seeding as the AFC West champions. Expect some starters to sit. Denver has been one of the AFC’s top disappointments. The Broncos lost in Kansas City in Week 8, 29-19. The Chiefs forced five turnovers, one returned for a touchdown.
Pick ATS: Denver
Oakland is eliminated from playoff contention, while the Chargers can get a wild-card spot with a win, Ravens victory over Cincinnati and Tennessee loss to Jacksonville. The Chargers won in Oakland in Week 6, 17-16. Nick Novak kicked a 32-yard field goal on the final play of the game. Raiders kicker Giorgio Tavecchio had earlier missed an extra point, which obviously proved crucial.
Pick ATS: LA Chargers
The Niners are playing out the string, but this has been a successful season because they found their franchise quarterback in Jimmy Garoppolo. They are 4-0 since he took over as the starter. The NFC West champion Rams won at San Francisco in Week 3, 41-39. Jared Goff threw for 292 yards and three touchdowns and Todd Gurley ran for two TDs and caught one. Brian Hoyer was the 49ers’ QB then.
Pick ATS: LA Rams


































