Week 2 Picks

Got an early start this week. This week's spreadsheet can be found at...

Week 2 Picks & Stats
Week 1 Picks & Stats

I add games as the week goes by, so keep checking back!
During the course of the week, if the line changes by at least 1 point I'll redo the sim. Anything less than that only changes the % by 1 or 2 pts. I'll let everyone know of the change when it happens. When I info to the post, I'll separate them at the bottom with '---'.

 Watch out for the NE NYJ game... NYJ to win at 67%. I simulated twice to be sure. The numbers make sense, but Brady is a wild card.
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The rest of the stats will be up a little later, Friday at the very latest.

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Most of the stats are up.

CLE at DEN
Check out the Denver game! I don't think I've ever seen such a mismatch. DEN averaging 26 and CLE averaging 11 points. This is the first 70+% straight up game of the season... it's the first 80+%, too. Their passing games are pretty even. It looks like it really came down to the run game. Oddly enough, they perfectly matched each other in rush yds and carries, but on average, DEN scored 1 more rushing TD than CLE. 1.5 to 0.6. Sounds like red zone efficiency to me. Watch Buckhalter and Moreno destroy Cleveland's 32nd ranked run defense.

---

Alright, everything is up for the week. It looks like NFLSim went a little wild this weekend with its predictions. I'm going to chalk it up to the small amount of stats to work with. Then again, last week's predictions were a bit counter-intuitive and they worked out pretty nicely. Use these picks at your own discretion, don't rely on them for anything too important. Next week we'll be in business fo' sho'.

There's a 2nd 70+% straight up game: MIA over IND, who'da thunk it. In both passing and rushing, Miami was able to score more touchdowns.

Then again, there are some experts at ESPN and other sports news outlets that agree with some of the more eccentric picks...

Week 9: Predictions

ARI -3 at STL, 48
Winner: ARI, 51%
Spread: STL +3, 61%
O/U: OVER, 54%

BAL at CLE -1.5, 36.5
Winner: BAL, 59%
Spread: BAL +1.5, 61%
O/U: OVER, 53%

DET at CHI -13, 43
Winner: CHI, 79%
Spread: DET +13, 64%
O/U: OVER, 61%

GB at TEN -5.5, 41.5
Winner: TEN, 64%
Spread: GB +5.5, 53%
O/U: UNDER, 51%

HOU at MIN -4.5, 47
Winner: MIN, 51%
Spread: HOU +4.5, 62%
O/U: OVER, 52%

JAX -7.5 at CIN, 40
Winner: JAX, 59%
Spread: CIN +7.5, 64%
O/U: OVER, 61%

NYJ at BUF -5.5, 42
Winner: BUF, 66%
Spread: BUF -5.5, 54%
O/U: OVER, 55%

TB -9 at KC, 36.5
Winner: TB, 60%
Spread: KC +9, 68%
O/U: OVER, 68%

MIA at DEN -3.5, 49
Winner: MIA, 56%
Spread: MIA +3.5, 72%
O/U: OVER, 55%

ATL -3 at OAK, 41
Winner: OAK, 54%
Spread: OAK +3, 65%
O/U: OVER, 61%

DAL at NYG -9, 41
Winner: NYG, 79%
Spread: DAL +9, 54%
O/U: UNDER, 58%

PHI -7 at SEA, 43
Winner: PHI, 76%
Spread: SEA +7, 52%
O/U: OVER, 60%

NE at IND -6, 44
Winner: NE, 57%
Spread: NE +6, 74%
O/U: OVER, 58%

PIT at WAS -1.5, 37
Winner: WAS, 67%
Spread: WAS -1.5, 65%
O/U: OVER, 54%

Week 8: Sim Stats

Week 8	YDS/PASS	YDS/PLAY	YDS/PT	QB RATING
Arizona Cardinals	7.06	4.96	15.17	92.37
Atlanta Falcons	6.74	4.80	16.17	83.52
Baltimore Ravens	7.03	5.15	14.10	87.59
Buffalo Bills	8.36	5.15	14.93	105.65
Carolina Panthers	8.00	5.37	12.95	102.12
Chicago Bears
Cincinnati Bengals	7.00	4.76	17.17	90.33
Cleveland Browns	5.81	4.45	13.43	78.52
Dallas Cowboys	6.05	4.69	16.03	71.09
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions	6.41	4.90	14.23	81.40
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans	6.99	5.50	11.52	95.98
Indianapolis Colts	6.27	4.37	16.69	76.58
Jacksonville Jaguars	7.33	5.33	13.90	92.84
Kansas City Chiefs	5.83	4.28	13.98	79.56
Miami Dolphins	7.40	5.34	13.38	99.93
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots	8.07	5.77	14.12	103.31
New Orleans Saints	8.70	6.08	15.39	107.64
New York Giants	6.47	4.81	13.82	89.33
New York Jets	7.92	6.26	14.17	97.06
Oakland Raiders	5.71	4.13	15.12	73.03
Philadelphia Eagles	7.14	5.48	11.15	99.34
Pittsburgh Steelers	7.51	4.91	12.27	98.24
San Diego Chargers	7.21	4.93	13.91	91.26
San Francisco 49ers	8.51	5.57	13.33	102.46
Seattle Seahawks	5.59	4.54	13.88	72.59
St. Louis Rams	7.13	5.13	15.31	90.66
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	6.25	4.52	12.95	89.82
Tennessee Titans	7.04	5.28	12.31	92.63
Washington Redskins	7.86	5.43	12.84	110.53
Simulated Average	7.05	5.07	14.08	91.26

Week 7: Predictions

Here are the week 7 predictions. Upsets include: MIN, GB, OAK, DEN.
Something interesting, if Tony Romo played, the Cowboys would be a 66% favorite, averaging 26 pts. Without him, they're a 51% favorite, averaging 21 pts. If anyone is curious about any other stats, send me an email and I'll post them. NFLSim generates virtually every team stat available on the NFL website.

BAL at MIA -3, 36.5
Winner: MIA, 67%
Spread: MIA -3, 56%
O/U: OVER, 60%

DAL -7 at STL, 43.5
Winner: DAL, 51%
Spread: STL +7, 74%
O/U: UNDER, 52%

MIN at CHI -3, 38
Winner: MIN, 52%
Spread: MIN +3, 59%
O/U: OVER, 54%

NO at CAR -3, 44.5
Winner: CAR, 53%
Spread: NO +3, 59%
O/U: UNDER, 62%

PIT -9.5 at CIN, 35
Winner: PIT, 60%
Spread: CIN +9.5, 63%
O/U: OVER, 62%

SD at BUF EVEN, 44.5
Winner: BUF, 64%
Spread: EVEN
O/U: OVER, 55%

SF at NYG -10.5, 46
Winner: NYG, 67%
Spread: SF +10.5, 68%
O/U: UNDER, 53%

TEN -9 at KC, 35.5
Winner: TEN, 69%
Spread: KC +9, 61%
O/U: OVER, 66%

DET at HOU -9.5, 46.5
Winner: HOU, 82%
Spread: HOU -9.5, 59%
O/U: OVER, 58%

CLE at WAS -7, 42
Winner: WAS, 77%
Spread: WAS -7, 55%
O/U: OVER, 53%

IND -2 at GB, 47
Winner: GB, 60%
Spread: GB +2, 65%
O/U: UNDER, 53%

NYJ -3 at OAK, 41
Winner: OAK, 55%
Spread: OAK +3, 65%
O/U: OVER, 63%

SEA at TB -10.5, 38
Winner: TB, 69%
Spread: SEA +10.5, 59%
O/U: OVER, 63%

DEN at NE -3, 48
Winner: DEN, 53%
Spread: DEN +3, 63%
O/U: OVER, 53%

Week 6: Results

Week 6 was an OK week. 2-3 with upsets, hitting ATL and GB. Not happy about MIA's loss. And CLE over NYG? Arguably the worst team in the NFL upsetting arguably the best team in the NFL. Any given Monday night... The win % and O/U % were a little disappointing, but can't complain about 57% spread.


BAL at IND -5, 39
Winner: BAL, 58%
Spread: BAL +5, 72%
O/U: OVER, 51%

CAR at TB -1, 36.5
Winner: TB, 58%
Spread: TB -1, 56%
O/U: OVER, 69%

CHI -3 at ATL, 43.5
Winner: ATL, 57%
Spread: ATL +3, 67%
O/U: OVER, 58%

CIN at NYJ -6, 44.5
Winner: NYJ, 65%
Spread: CIN +6, 51%
O/U: OVER, 56%

DET at MIN -14, 45.5
Winner: MIN, 79%
Spread: DET +14, 61%
O/U: OVER, 59%

MIA at HOU -3, 44.5
Winner: MIA, 51%
Spread: MIA +3, 66%
O/U: OVER, 70%

OAK at NO -7.5, 47
Winner: OAK, 55%
Spread: OAK +7.5, 80%
O/U: UNDER, 57%

STL at WAS -13.5, 44.5
Winner: WAS, 76%
Spread: STL +13.5, 63%
O/U: OVER, 54%

JAX at DEN -3.5, 48
Winner: DEN, 75%
Spread: DEN -3.5, 63%
O/U: OVER, 57%

DAL -6 at ARI, 50
Winner: DAL, 51%
Spread: ARI +6, 70%
O/U: UNDER, 54%

GB at SEA -3, 47
Winner: GB, 54%
Spread: GB +3, 60%
O/U: OVER, 57%

PHI -5 at SF, 43
Winner: PHI, 59%
Spread: SF +5, 52%
O/U: OVER, 58%

NE at SD -6, 45
Winner: SD, 60%
Spread: NE +6, 59%
O/U: OVER, 72%

NYG -8 at CLE, 43
Winner: NYG, 76%
Spread: NYG -8, 51%
O/U: OVER, 55%

Straight	%	Wins	Games	Win %
	50-59	4	8	50.0%
	60-69	2	2	100.0%
	70-79	1	4	25.0%
	80-89	0	0	---
	90-100	0	0	---
	Total	7	14	50.0%
Spread	%	Wins	Games	Win %
	50-59	2	5	40.0%
	60-69	5	6	83.3%
	70-79	1	2	50.0%
	80-89	0	1	0.0%
	90-100	0	0	---
	Total	8	14	57.1%
Total		Wins	Games	Win %
	50-59	3	11	27.3%
	60-69	0	1	0.0%
	70-79	1	2	50.0%
	80-89	0	0	---
	90-100	0	0	---
	Total	4	14	28.6%

Week 4: BOA

Now, the increasingly popular Bet Optimization Algorithm (BOA). Things should be more exciting this week since there are 3 underdog picks. That means greater risk and greater rewards (or greater losses). Remember, these are all MONEYLINE bets, they are NOT ATS.

I've noticed that as the number of bets increases, the success of BOA increases, so I'll put up 30 bets this time.

1-TEN, 2-DEN, 3-SF, 4-NYJ, 5-TB, 6-ATL, 7-JAX, 8-CIN, 9-SD, 10-BUF, 11-DAL, 12-PHI, 13-BAL

BET	BOA ODDS	VEGAS PAYOUT	% of BANKROLL	PAYOUT
10	82.00%	1.25	5.73%	7.16
8	78.00%	1.53	5.39%	8.25
1	74.00%	1.61	4.90%	7.90
6	65.00%	3.70	4.71%	17.42
3	65.00%	3.00	4.52%	13.56
8,10	63.96%	1.91	3.82%	7.31
6,10	53.30%	4.63	3.66%	16.94
6,8	50.70%	5.66	3.56%	20.15
1,10	60.68%	2.01	3.49%	7.02
3,10	53.30%	3.75	3.46%	12.98
1,8	57.72%	2.46	3.44%	8.47
3,8	50.70%	4.59	3.39%	15.55
2	67.00%	1.21	3.37%	4.07
13	55.00%	2.90	3.35%	9.71
1,6	48.10%	5.96	3.34%	19.89
1,3	48.10%	4.83	3.17%	15.29
3,6	42.25%	11.10	3.14%	34.86
6,8,10	41.57%	7.08	2.82%	19.98
3,8,10	41.57%	5.74	2.66%	15.27
1,6,10	39.44%	7.45	2.65%	19.76
2,6	43.55%	4.48	2.62%	11.74
1,6,8	37.52%	9.11	2.60%	23.69
1,8,10	47.33%	3.08	2.56%	7.89
8,13	42.90%	4.44	2.55%	11.29
12	57.00%	1.59	2.54%	4.04
10,13	45.10%	3.63	2.54%	9.20
3,6,10	34.65%	13.88	2.54%	35.21
6,13	35.75%	10.73	2.52%	27.07
1,3,10	39.44%	6.04	2.49%	15.05
1,3,8	37.52%	7.39	2.46%	18.21

Week 3: BOA Results

Wow. Things almost couldn't have gone any better. I say this because I'm extremely pleased with how BOA performed this week. It spread out the risk while still offering a high level of reward. 7 of the 9 teams were correct. 10 of the 19 bets were correct. If only Vegas' 12.5 point favorite, my 90% favorite had beaten one of the worst teams in the league, I'd be much, much happier. So for week 3, if you started with a bankroll of $100, you would have lost $14.38, or -14.38%. I hate to play the 'what if' game, but I can't help myself this week. What if the 12.5 pt favorite, NE, had decided to beat MIA? $100 would have turned into $157.79. Fine. There's always next week.

Tracking BOA: Week 2, started with $100. Up 64.62% week 2, down 14.38% week 3.
Initial Investment: $100
Current Investment: $140.95
ROI: 40.95%

1-ATL, 2-BUF, 3-CHI, 4-MIN, 5-NE, 6-NYG, 7-TEN, 8-WAS, 9-SF, 10-SEA, 11-DEN, 12-PHI, 13-IND, 14-BAL, 15-DAL, 16-SD

BET	BOA ODDS	VEGAS PAYOUT	% of BANKROLL	PAYOUT
5	90.00%	1.11	7.21%	8.01
7	87.00%	1.43	6.94%	9.92
6	84.00%	1.11	6.20%	6.88
14	80.00%	1.77	6.12%	10.83
9	79.00%	1.50	5.79%	8.68
5,7	78.30%	1.59	5.76%	9.14
2	79.00%	1.19	5.46%	6.50
5,14	72.00%	1.96	5.14%	10.10
7,14	69.60%	2.53	5.13%	12.98
6,7	73.08%	1.59	5.00%	7.93
5,6	75.60%	1.23	4.97%	6.12
7,9	68.73%	2.15	4.82%	10.35
5,9	71.10%	1.67	4.79%	7.97
13	71.00%	1.43	4.52%	6.46
5,7,14	62.64%	2.81	4.50%	12.64
11	70.00%	1.40	4.48%	6.28
10	71.00%	1.20	4.39%	5.27
5,6,7	65.77%	1.76	4.39%	7.74
5,7,9	61.86%	2.38	4.38%	10.44

Week 3 Predictions

This is the first time NFLSim has predicted all of the favorites to win. Also, something unusual - all home teams are favorites except for DAL at GB. Anyone know when the last time all home teams were favorites? I sure don't.

KC at ATL -5.5
Winner: ATL, 64%
Spread: ATL -5.5, 52%

OAK at BUF -9.5
Winner: BUF, 79%
Spread: BUF -9.5, 55%

TB at CHI -3
Winner: CHI, 55%
Spread: EVEN

CAR at MIN -3
Winner: MIN, 63%
Spread: MIN -3, 54%

MIA at NE -12.5
Winner: NE, 90%
Spread: NE -12.5, 66%

CIN at NYG -13.5
Winner: NYG, 84%
Spread: NYG -13.5, 51%

HOU at TEN -5
Winner: TEN, 87%
Spread: TEN -5, 77%

ARI at WAS -3
Winner: WAS, 51%
Spread: ARI +3, 61%

DET at SF -4
Winner: SF, 79%
Spread: SF -4, 65%

STL at SEA -9.5
Winner: SEA, 71%
Spread: STL +9.5, 58%

NO at DEN -5.5
Winner: DEN, 70%
Spread: DEN -5.5, 57%

PIT at PHI -3.5
Winner: PHI, 62%
Spread: EVEN

JAX at IND -5
Winner: IND, 71%
Spread: IND -5, 55%

CLE at BAL -2.5
Winner: BAL, 97%
Spread: BAL -2.5, 96%

DAL -3 at GB
Winner: DAL, 54%
Spread: GB +3, 59%

NYJ at SD -9
Winner: SD, 53%
Spread: NYJ +9, 75%

Bet Optimization Algorithm

The results for week 2 were none too impressive, but this makes my Bet Optimization Algorithm ("BOA") look much better. Simply put, BOA takes up to 21 individual bets, i.e. NYG win, MIA win, DAL win, MIN +3, etc., the payouts on those bets that Vegas offers, and the confidence NFLSim generates. Using the algorithms, BOA generates the optimal bets as well as what percentage of your bankroll you should wager on each bet. It spits out single bets and parlays of up to 6 teams. I didn't post the BOA's suggestions last week because I didn't want anyone relying on it, but I'll put them up for week 3. Keep in mind, it's still early in the season so things aren't as accurate as they could be, so be careful. Use at your own risk. Anyway, here's what it said to bet on last week. It generated a return on investment of 64% on the bets (all 31 of them). I'd say that's pretty successful.

To make it easier for me, I assign a number to each bet. All bets are on straight up winners on the moneyline, NO SPREAD. If there are numbers separated by a commas, those are parlays. All calculations are based on a total bankroll of $100. Makes calculations easier.

~"BOA ODDS" are BOA's calculated probability that the bet will win.
~"VEGAS PAYOUT" is the payout for that bet according to Vegas, in decimal form.
~"% OF BANKROLL" is the amount bankroll devoted to that bet.
~"POSSIBLE PAYOUT" is the amount won if the bet is won. (BANKROLL * % OF BANKROLL * VEGAS PAYOUT)
~"ACTUAL PAYOUT" is 0.00 if the bet loses or POSSIBLE PAYOUT if it wins.

1-BUF, 2-CHI, 3-DET, 4-MIN, 5-NO, 6-NYG, 7-KC, 8-TEN, 9-ATL, 10-SF, 11-BAL, 12-ARI, 13-NYJ, 14-DEN, 15-PIT, 16-PHI

BET	BOA ODDS	VEGAS PAYOUT	% OF BANKROLL	POSSIBLE PAYOUT			ACTUAL PAYOUT
15	91.00%	1.36	4.72%	6.41			6.41
9	80.00%	3.50	4.15%	14.53			0.00
10	79.00%	3.50	4.08%	14.28			14.28
7	81.00%	1.51	3.82%	5.77			0.00
8	79.00%	1.95	3.81%	7.44			7.44
9,15	72.80%	4.76	3.75%	17.85			0.00
10,15	71.89%	4.76	3.69%	17.55			17.55
8,15	71.89%	2.65	3.43%	9.08			9.08
14	74.00%	2.00	3.41%	6.82			6.82
7,15	73.71%	2.05	3.40%	6.99			0.00
9,10	63.20%	12.25	3.36%	41.21			0.00
7,9	64.80%	5.29	3.25%	17.17			0.00
8,9	63.20%	6.83	3.23%	22.05			0.00
7,10	63.99%	5.29	3.20%	16.89			0.00
8,10	62.41%	6.83	3.18%	21.70			21.70
6	76.00%	1.20	3.13%	3.76			3.76
14,15	67.34%	2.72	3.09%	8.41			8.41
16	65.00%	3.50	3.07%	10.76			0.00
9,10,15	57.51%	16.66	3.07%	51.17			0.00
9,14	59.20%	7.00	2.98%	20.88			0.00
7,9,15	58.97%	7.19	2.98%	21.39			0.00
8,9,15	57.51%	9.28	2.96%	27.46			0.00
10,14	58.46%	7.00	2.94%	20.55			20.55
7,10,15	58.23%	7.19	2.93%	21.06			0.00
8,10,15	56.79%	9.28	2.91%	27.05			27.05
7,8	63.99%	2.94	2.89%	8.52			0.00
1	64.00%	2.90	2.88%	8.36			8.36
6,9	60.80%	4.20	2.88%	12.08			0.00
7,8,9,10,15	36.80%	49.06	1.98%	97.36			0.00
7,9,10,15	46.58%	25.16	2.48%	62.51			0.00
1,8	50.56%	5.66	2.34%	13.22			13.22

Total Bankroll: $100
Total Winnings: $164.62
Total Profit: $64.62
Return on Investment: 64.62%

So even when the predictions aren't terribly accurate (53.3%), BOA is able to perform well based on the idea that the probabilities generated by NFLSim are equivalent to the probabilities in reality. Hopefully, for everyone, this will continue.

Week 2 Predictions

I'm going to withhold the total predictions for this week, but I'll put up the winners and spreads. This week's predictions are going to sound ridiculous. I was actually thinking about waiting another week before putting them up, but I went back and looked at the simulation of last season's week 2 to see how they compared. In both weeks 2 there were many picks of huge underdogs, but that week actually turned out to be a very good one. I won't give out that week's exact numbers because I don't want heightened expectations. Remember, use these at your own risk. If you're in a suicide / survivor pool and you see that SF wins 79% when they're a 7 point dog, use some discretion. Bear in mind it's the beginning of the season, so the picks may not be as reliable because of a lack of data. That said, here we go...

If the confidence is 50%, I'll just write EVEN.

NYG -8.5 at STL
Winner: NYG, 76%
Spread: EVEN

IND -2 at MIN
Winner: MIN, 54%
Spread: MIN +2, 58%

NO -1 at WAS
Winner: NO, 61%
Spread: NO -1, 60%

CHI at CAR -3
Winner: CAR, 51%
Spread: CHI +3, 61%

BUF at JAX -5
Winner: BUF, 64%
Spread: BUF +5, 77%

TEN at CIN -1
Winner: TEN, 79%
Spread: TEN +1, 80%

GB -3.5 at DET
Winner: DET, 59%
Spread: DET +3.5, 64%

OAK at KC -3.5
Winner: KC, 81%
Spread: KC -3.5, 72%

SF at SEA -6.5
Winner: SF, 79%
Spread: SF +6.5, 89%

ATL at TB -7
Winner: ATL, 80%
Spread: ATL +7, 92%

SD -1 at DEN
Winner: DEN, 74%
Spread: DEN +1, 75%

BAL at HOU -4.5
Winner: BAL, 70%
Spread: BAL +4.5, 80%

NE at NYJ -1.5
Winner: NYJ, 53%
Spread: EVEN

MIA at ARI -6.5
Winner: ARI, 57%
Spread: MIA +6.5, 61%

PIT -6 at CLE
Winner: PIT, 91%
Spread: PIT -6, 79%

PHI at DAL -7
Winner: PHI, 65%
Spread: PHI +7, 84%

Picks Start Week 2

One last reminder... picks start week 2. There aren't going to be any picks tomorrow. There may be an enlightening article in a few days. But no picks until next week, week 2. Keep checking back, though, some other cool stuff might pop up.