NFL Survivor Pool Picks

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 9
by Matt Severance - 11/2/2016

When will these NFL coaches stop playing for the chip-shot field goal in overtime of a tie game and go for the touchdown? Playing conservative bit Seattle's Pete Carroll and Arizona's Bruce Arians in a 6-6 tie in Week 7, and the same scenario by Washington's Jay Gruden led to a 27-27 tie last Sunday in London against Cincinnati. At least the "football" fans in London are accustomed to draws.

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 9
by Trevor Whenham - 11/1/2016

It was a week of serious carnage in the world of Survivor Pools last week. The most popular pick by a wide margin last week was the Vikings over the Bears - well over half of all remaining players took Minnesota and suffered as a result. The Vikings offense is suddenly nonexistent, and their defense isn't as sharp as it once was - if it was then the Bears wouldn't have been able to score enough to win.

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 8
by Matt Severance - 10/26/2016

So I'm curious how your Survivor Pool handles ties. Last Sunday night, the Seahawks and Cardinals played probably the most entertaining 6-6 game in NFL history, only because each team's kicker shockingly missed a bunny to win the game in overtime. Arizona's special teams was a disaster in a game that the Cardinals should have definitely won.

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 8
by Trevor Whenham - 10/24/2016

Last week was supposed to be the last week for this column for the year. Seven weeks -- my editor decreed it so before the season, and I agreed. But then we heard from a reader that she wasn't done with us yet. So, Wendy, this one's for you. With thanks. And, for everyone else, if you follow these picks and they don't work out for you then it is all Wendy's fault.

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 7
by Matt Severance - 10/19/2016

Can't remember the last time I used Buffalo as my choice in a Survivor Pool, but Rex Ryan's boys are rampaging since a 0-2 start and they were the pick last week at home against San Francisco. The Bills were the biggest blowout winners of Week 6 in a 45-16 victory. How about LeSean McCoy for MVP? That guy has gone off since Anthony Lynn replaced the fired Greg Roman as offensive coordinator.

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 7
by Trevor Whenham - 10/18/2016

This is most likely the last time this year that I will take a look at NFL Survivor Pools, although Matt Severance will continue his weekly column here at Doc's Sports. By this point a lot of people are already out of their pools - and potentially out of second- and third-chance pools as well. Last week's loss by the Steelers against Miami was a big one - well over a third of all players picked Pittsburgh, so it was a pool killer.

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 6
by Matt Severance - 10/12/2016

Probably a rather ho-hum Week 5 in your Survivor Pool as surely the vast majority of competitors used New England over Cleveland in Tom Brady's return from suspension. That was also listed as my top choice, although I mentioned you might want to play defense and not use the Pats just in case a miracle occurred. But this is Cleveland we are talking about, and the Browns were blown out as Brady started his "FU Tour" against the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell with 406 yards passing and three touchdowns. It was win No. 250 for Bill Belichick -- his first came as coach of the Browns in 1991 -- as he became the fourth coach in league history with that many victories.

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 6
by Trevor Whenham - 10/11/2016

Things went just as well as they could last week. We looked at three games that were playable. The Patriots crushed the Browns. The Steelers annihilated the Jets, and the Raiders found a way to beat the Chargers. Three comfortable ways to live for another week. No surprises in the games that mattered. It was a dream weekend for Survivor Pool players. Let's see if there is another such weekend in store for us. Here's a look at the most likely plays this weekend:

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 5
by Matt Severance - 10/5/2016

I've said before that sometimes the smart play in a Survivor Pool during a particular week isn't going with the team you think that's most likely to win, especially if there are a few other clubs you are very confident about, but playing defense against the rest of your competition. I hope you did that in Week 4.

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 5
by Trevor Whenham - 10/3/2016

Things were kind of crazy the first couple of weeks of the NFL season in Survivor Pool action. The last two weeks, though, things have been more normal. Mercifully. The games have seemed somewhat straightforward heading into the week, and the most obvious choices have turned out as expected. At this point it seems like that is the case again this week. We have a very easy pick and another quite attractive one as well. It should be a good week to be a Survivor Pool player:

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 4
by Matt Severance - 9/28/2016

Whew! Last time I count on the Miami Dolphins for anything! I haven't liked that stupid franchise since Dan Marino and his rolling pocket upset my unbeaten Chicago Bears on the highest-rated "Monday Night Football" game ever late in the 1985 season.

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 4
by Trevor Whenham - 9/27/2016

It was mostly a good week for Survivor Pool players last week. Arizona probably cost some, but there were better spots out there so it wasn't a crushing upset like it could have been. Miami caused a lot of people stress with a terrible performance, but they came out on top in the end even if they needed overtime against Cleveland.

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 3
by Matt Severance - 9/21/2016

I almost broke my own rule last week in that I was considering saving a team, in this case the Carolina Panthers, for use in my Survivor Pool down the road. So I was pondering taking the Detroit Lions at home against the Tennessee Titans in Week 2.

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 3
by Trevor Whenham - 9/20/2016

All I can hope is that you didn't listen to a thing I said last week. I suggested that the clear and obvious pick was Seattle over the hapless Rams. That was, of course, a horrible suggestion. Now, I could pretend that I knew it all along and I was just testing you or that I was out to teach you a lesson about the challenges of Survivor Pools. If that was the case, though, then I wouldn't have picked Seattle in more than half of my own pools.

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 2
by Matt Severance - 9/14/2016

If you followed my advice last week and steered clear of Week 1's biggest favorite, Seattle at home against Miami, how excited were you that the Dolphins were leading 10-6 with under a minute left in the Pacific Northwest? Or if you watched the game, that analyst Dan Fouts said the winning 6-yard touchdown pass to Doug Baldwin (my fantasy team thanks you) was going to come back because of offensive pass interference?

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 2
by Trevor Whenham - 9/14/2016

It was a tense week of Survivor Pool action for me last week. Actually, it wasn't that tense because I had given up on most of my pools by about five minutes into the game. I was confident that Kansas City over San Diego was the best choice of the week, and that it wasn't even close. Unfortunately, the Chiefs only decided to play for 15 minutes, and it was the last 15 minutes. They came through in the end, but it wasn't pretty, and it wasn't fun to watch.

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 1
by Matt Severance - 9/7/2016

I'd like to tell you I'm really enthused about the 2016 NFL season from a personal standpoint, but that would be false because I expect very little out of my Chicago Bears. In fact, I probably won't even pay much attention to them until the Cubs allow me to die happy some day by finally winning the World Series. Already planning to need my stomach pumped that night.

NFL Survivor Pools Strategy Advice and Predictions: Week 1
by Trevor Whenham - 9/5/2016

It's time for another year of tackling and dominating survivor pools. For the next nine weeks I'll be offering my picks and predictions for survivor pool success. We'll look at the most obvious and popular picks every week and determine whether they make sense or not, and we'll try to uncover a few gems along the way that will allow us to separate ourselves from the competition. Basically, we are going to do everything we can to win these pools.

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 17
by Matt Severance - 12/30/2015

No Thursday night game (or Monday) in Week 17, so no need to get those Survivor Pool entries in early -- as I've said before, it's usually wise to totally steer clear of those Thursday games anyway and wait until your Sunday deadline to make a pick. Not taking advantage of the latest injury news is a mistake.

NFL Survivor Pool Picks and Advice: Week 16
by Matt Severance - 12/24/2015

Really a rather boring NFL Week 15 in terms of upsets as nearly every favorite won -- no earth-shaking results that should have affected any of those Survivor Pools still going. Do you consider Atlanta winning at Jacksonville an upset? The Falcons were slight underdogs. How about Houston winning at Indianapolis? I know the Las Vegas sportsbooks took a beating because so many favorites covered. The general public backs favorites and obviously so do Survivor Pool competitors.