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Writer's pictureBob Hocking

As The NFL Reaches Week Eleven In 2024, Penny Dominates The Season

The NFL Schedule Has Boring Games And Terrific Contests In Week Eleven.  The Point Spreads For The Matchups Sway Wildly Across The Board.


Two Golden Retrievers Have Selected More Than Half Of The Games Correctly This Season.  How Will They Do As Teams Begin Officially Playing For Next Year?


Penny does her research with tennis balls.
Penny waits for the toss to make her selection.

I want to start this article with some appreciation for Cassie.  We are 152 games into the 2024 NFL season, and a Golden Retriever has picked against the point spread for each of those games, and gotten more than half of them correct.


Pause for just a moment and think about that.  A dog has turned in a slate of selections using tennis balls and point spreads, and gotten more than half of them correct.  Compared to her, my selections have only resulted in five additional wins.


There are few people out there that may chuckle.  They may not be impressed by the accomplishment.  In response, I’d like to point a spotlight toward Penny.  She’s also a Golden Retriever.  She currently stands a whopping 42 games over even, turning in a selection that has been correct just shy of 65% of the time.


Week Ten:

Bob: 7-7

Penny: 9-5

Cassie: 7-7

 

The Year To Date:

Bob: 80-66-6 (54.6%)

Penny: 94-52-6 (63.8%)

Cassie 75-71-6 (51.3%)


Brace yourselves for a run of amazing picks from the dogs.


Penny takes a lap on her competion with her picks this year.
Penny is leaving everyone, including Cassie, far behind in 2024.

Washington Commanders At Philadelphia Eagles (-3.5)


This will be an interesting contest.  Washington is having a terrific season, but many wonder how long the rookie sensation can continue to play well.  Philadelphia is also having a good season, but many believe it’s been smoke and mirrors.


I’m a believer in Jayden Daniels.


Bob: Washington

Penny: Washington

Cassie: Washington


Green Bay and Jordan Love look to build momentum heading toward the playoffs.
Jordan Love looks to provide some magic this week.

Green Bay Packers (-6) At Chicago Bears


The Bears looked lost last week against the Patriots.  That’s all that needs to be considered.


If you want more, Chicago overhauled its offensive staff during the past few days.  Since the move was likely not based on one game, the action means the organization has been seeing troubles for quite some time.


Bob: Green Bay

Penny: Chicago

Cassie: Chicago


Detroit's balanced attack is getting big touchdowns from Amon-Ra St. Brown.
Amon-Ra St. Brown is having a big season for the Lions.

Jacksonville Jaguars At Detroit Lions (-13)


The Jaguars have offered a bit of a fight recently.  Granted, they’ve lost three straight games.  They were competitive in each game though, which involved the Packers, Eagles, and Vikings.


Troubles arrive in waves for Jacksonville for this game.  First, Mac Jones delivered 111 yards passing and 2 interceptions in his start against Minnesota.  Second, Detroit is going to score points.  Third, three straight losses eventually deliver an emotional toll, as competing is not a professional victory.


Bob: Detroit

Penny: Jacksonville

Cassie: Jacksonville


Tua Tagovailoa attempts to bring Miami back into the playoff picture.
Can Tua Tagovailoa make Miami a Postseason threat?

Las Vegas Raiders At Miami Dolphins (-7.5)


The Raiders seem to have fallen into the category of playing for next year.  Even when they can score points, they do not present much of a threat.


The Dolphins have appeared to have a bit of life return with Tua Tagovailoa back on the field.  Miami is unlikely to mount any serious threat at much more than an 8 or 9-win season.  Still, Miami might be a club with something left to prove.


Bob: Miami

Penny: Miami

Cassie: Las Vegas


Can Matthew Stafford help the Rams remain in the playoff hunt?
Is 2024 over for Matthew Stafford and the Rams?

Los Angeles Rams (-4.5) At New England Patriots


The Patriots showed some grit, and perhaps a bit of fire when playing the Bears last week.  The Rams are coming off a loss, playing on a short week, after flying across the country for this road game.  There is an argument to be made for New England winning this matchup.


Los Angeles has a chance to put together a playoff run.  The loss to Miami certainly hurt those chances, and at 4-5, it will be a rough hill to climb.  They are only one loss behind division-leading Arizona.  They won’t last long if they make it to the postseason, but they could make it there.  It’s hard to see New England as a team ready to stop that level of opposition.


Bob: Los Angeles

Penny: Los Angeles

Cassie: New England


Cleveland Browns At New Orleans Saints (-1)


New Orleans delivered an impressive win over Atlanta last week.  It remains to be seen if that speaks highly of the Saints or says more about the Falcons.  Either way, the Saints get the nod over the Browns.


Bob: New Orleans

Penny: Cleveland

Cassie: New Orleans


Baltimore's Lamar Jackson is playing at an MVP level.
Lamar Jackson is chasing another MVP award.

Baltimore Ravens (-3) At Pittsburgh Steelers


This game is difficult to read.  Both clubs have 7 wins on the season.  Baltimore is an offensive powerhouse.  Pittsburgh is a defensive wall.


The trick for me, comes in a review of Pittsburgh’s schedule.  Recent successes include wins against the Giants, Jets, and Raiders.  Even with a victory over the Commanders, that’s not quite as impressive as the Ravens’ defeats of the Bengals twice, along with the Bills, Buccaneers, and Broncos.


Bob: Baltimore

Penny: Pittsburgh

Cassie:  Baltimore


Minnesota can win with Sam Darnold, but not his interceptions.
Sam Darnold needs to stop a rise in turnovers if he intends to help the Vikings.

Minnesota Vikings (-6) At Tennessee Titans


The Sam Darnold 2024 redemption tour stopped last week to face Jacksonville, and plenty of riders got off the bandwagon.  The Titans present an interesting test, as there are plenty of ways to see the Vikings getting to 11 or more wins, and decent playoff seeding.  A loss to Tennessee, however, narrows that window considerably with a schedule that still includes Arizona, Atlanta, Green Bay, and Detroit.


Bob: Minnesota

Penny: Tennessee

Cassie: Tennessee


Kirk Cousins attempts to turn around his playoff history with Atlanta.
Is Kirk Cousins able to lead a team to postseason success?

Atlanta Falcons At Denver Broncos (-2)


Atlanta has not been good at keeping opposing teams off the scoreboard.  Denver has been playing strong football, especially on defense.


Bob: Denver

Penny: Atlanta

Cassie: Atlanta


Is Christian McCaffrey's return too little, too late for San Fancisco?
Will the return of Christian McCaffrey make the 49ers a contender?

Seattle Seahawks At San Francisco 49ers (-6.5)


San Francisco appears to be gaining strength and is on its first run of multiple wins this year.  Expect the 49ers to get more production from Christian McCaffrey in his second game of the season, and that isn’t good news for the Seahawks.


Bob: San Francisco

Penny: San Francisco

Cassie: Seattle


Kansas City Chiefs At Buffalo Bills (-2.5)


Last week, I picked Denver to pull the upset and knock off Kansas City.  They came within a field goal of victory.  Buffalo has steadily navigated its season, with impressive wins and few stumbles, to a position on top of the AFC East.  This week, I am not taking the Chiefs to win on the road against the Bills.


Bob: Buffalo

Penny: Buffalo

Cassie: Kansas City


The Los Angeles offense has not been scoring behind the play of Justin Herbert.
Justin Herbert has not been leading the Chargers to many points.

Cincinnati Bengals At Los Angeles Chargers (-1.5)


The Chargers arrived at 6-3 with a simple approach: Don’t let the opposition score.  The other team scored 17 or more points in 4 games this season.  Unfortunately for Los Angeles, their offense has struggled, and they lost 3 of those 4 games.


Do you believe Joe Burrow could lead the Bengals to 20 or more points this week?  That’s the only question you need to answer for your wager here.


Bob: Cincinnati

Penny: Los Angeles

Cassie: Los Angeles


Indianapolis Colts At New York Jets (-4)


At one time, the Colts were 4-3.  Most observers wondered how they were accomplishing it.  Since then, they’ve lost three straight games, had their locker room swagger wiped out by a quarterback who doesn’t want to play, and fallen out of the surprise of the year group.


Amazingly, the Jets have been even worse.


Bob: Indianapolis

Penny: Indianapolis

Cassie: New York


Houston Texans (-7.5) At Dallas Cowboys


The Texans have been having some problems this year.  This week, the sun may finally be shining again in Houston.  They’ve managed to be competitive each week and have control of their division.  Nico Collins could be cleared to play in a return from injured reserve.


Dallas is coming off a humiliating loss to Philadelphia.  Their list of injuries makes it difficult to believe they will find a way to be competitive against Houston. 


Bob: Houston

Penny: Houston

Cassie: Dallas

 

Odds sourced from USA Today


 

 

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