The lines are from oddsshark.com and the home teams in CAPs.
SAN FRANCISCO -7 over Minnesota
You have to be impressed by the Vikings going into New Orleans and walking out with an OT win — even if it was a bit controversial and the Saints have a bit of a recent history of choking in the playoffs. But, heading across the country to face the best team in the NFC is a much bigger mountain for the Vikes to climb. The 49ers have had the extra week to get health and will even see key linebacker Kwon Alexander return. San Fran’s defence should shutdown Dalvin Cook and put pressure on Kirk Cousins all day. With a multi-faceted running attack, we should see the hosts grind down Minnesota for a solid win.
Tennessee +10 over BALTIMORE
The Ravens are a great team and, best of all, they’re balanced. Both Baltimore’s offence and defence have been tremendous and tough this season with likely MVP Lamar Jackson leading the way. So why take the Titans? Because the points are a bit too enticing with Derrick Henry on the other side of the ball. Henry and the Titans showed they can move the ball against an elite-level defence last week and will be hard to slow down here, too. Straight up, we’d take the Ravens but we think there’s no ruling out a backdoor cover in this one.
Houston +10 over KANSAS CITY
Andy Reid’s record coming off a bye is well-documented, but so are his playoff foibles. The Chiefs are the superior team in this one, no doubt, but don’t forget that the Texans won here earlier this season. While the Texans have some concerns for sure, we have no doubt that Deshaun Watson and DeAndre Hopkins will be able to put up more points this week than last, when they faced one of the league’s best defences. A win might not be in the offing for the visitors, but a cover is there to be had.
GREEN BAY -4 over Seattle
The public is all over the Seahawks — and for good reason. They have a stellar record on the road this season and there’s not a lot of confidence behind the Packers. But this is a Green Bay team that is on the second-longest active winning streak in the league and has had an extra week to prepare at home. Seattle, on the other hand, didn’t impress too much last week in Philly despite facing backup QB Josh McCown for most of the game and also a ton of injury problems. While the Marshawn Lynch story is a nice one, he’s nothing more than a glorified goal-line back at this point.
Last week: 3-1
This season: 129-114-7