Dave’s Dime
“Because Two Cents Just Isn’t Enough”

THE INTRO

My oh my what a difference a month can make.

One month ago, I was considering quitting the Dime because I was so disheartened by how much I sucked.

One month ago, I was 17 games under .500 against the spread.

One month ago, the Miami Dolphins were winless, and the New England Patriots were undefeated.

Well, a month doesn’t always make a difference I suppose. But 41 wins and 23 losses later, I suddenly find myself back in a familiar position as a break even guy.

So what was I doing wrong? What am I doing right? What can I learn from this season?

My answer is a resounding “WHO CARES”.

It is good to be back! The last question that remains is which Dave will show up for the last 3 weeks of the regular season; 12 – 4 Dave, or 4 – 12 Dave?

I hope you all don’t mind that I’ve done away with the RESULTS section. My brother pointed out to me that he skips it seeing as he already checked my record and had read last week at that point. This made sense to me; besides, you could always click the link at the bottom of the page to check out past issues. If you miss it though and would like to see it, please let me know though so I can reinstate it.

THE RECORD

Last Week
With the spread: 11 – 5 – 0 (.688)
Without the spread: 13 – 3 – 0 (.813)
^^Zen Picks^^: 2 – 0 – 0 (1.000)
**Outright Upsets**: 0 – 2 – 0 (.000)

Season
With the spread: 100 – 99 – 9 (.503)
Without the spread: 126 – 82 – 0 (.606)
^^Zen Picks^^: 12 – 5 – 2 (.706)
**Outright Upsets**: 17 – 37 – 0 (.315)

THE PICKS
* – Indicates Upset Pick
^ – Indicates Zen Pick

THURSDAY

Denver (-1.0) @ Houston (+1.0)
A simple look at this year’s scores tells you that Denver is an awful road team, and I figured the momentum of the Tampa Bay win would carry Houston to a win here.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Houston (WIN)
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Houston (WIN)

SATURDAY

Cincinnati (-8.5) @ San Francisco (+8.5)
San Francisco’s lethargic offense wasn’t supposed to be able to keep up with the Bengals, let alone beat them!
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Cincinnati (LOSS)
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Cincinnati (LOSS)

SUNDAY

Arizona (+4.0) @ New Orleans (-4.0)
Arizona will punish New Orleans’ poor secondary, and will make their blowout against Atlanta a very distant memory.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Arizona
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Arizona

Atlanta (+13.0) @ Tampa Bay (-13.0)
Sure, Tampa Bay isn’t a “blowout team”, but Atlanta is flat out pitiful, and on top of just being blown out, they have lost their coach, have nothing to play for and are on the road, what is to like?
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Tampa Bay
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Tampa Bay

Baltimore (-3.0) @ Miami (+3.0)
I had this game circled as a winnable one for Miami, but all you have to do is watch 10 minutes of a game of theirs to see why this team is winless. I may consider them against the Bengals, but they have burnt me all year long, and they’ll have to beat me to do so this week.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Baltimore
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Baltimore

Buffalo (+5.5) @ Cleveland (-5.5)
With heavy snows brewing, I can’t see Cleveland running their offense the way they like to; and while they should pull it off at home, it should be close.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Buffalo
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Cleveland

Green Bay (-8.5) @ St. Louis (+8.5)
Absolutely no reason to believe Green Bay doesn’t roll in this one.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Green Bay
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Green Bay

Jacksonville (+3.5) @ Pittsburgh (-3.5)
Jacksonville may be considered a warm weather team, and the snow may very well bother them… but they don’t play like a soft team. They are harder and tougher than the Steelers (hard to swallow, I know, but its true) and even in the snow, I think they are the pick.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Jacksonville
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Jacksonville

New York Jets (+21.0) @ New England (-21.0)
Weather reports indicate the game will be played in almost blizzard like conditions. Assuming it isn’t canceled, there just isn’t any way you can expect a blowout here. Anything can happen in a game like this…
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *New York Jets
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: New England

Seattle (-7.5) @ Carolina (+7.5)
Carolina starting a rookie QB… Seattle has won 5 straight both with and without the spread… what isn’t to love about Seattle here?
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Seattle
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Seattle

Tennessee (-3.5) @ Kansas City (+3.5)
Yuck. I mean I know Tennessee has fallen off, but they can handle the CHIEFS, can’t they?
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Tennessee
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Tennessee

Indianapolis (-10.5) @ Oakland (+10.5)
I’m honored that bookmakers are giving us a reasonable spread this week, but WHY is beyond me. I suppose the crowd could factor in, and Indy does have injuries… but are the Raiders really going to keep it close on the Colts?
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Indianapolis
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Indianapolis

Detroit (+10.0) @ San Diego (-10.0)
Last week’s slip up was the nail in the coffin to their season. They come out looking dejected in this one and get blown away early.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: San Diego
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: San Diego

Philadelphia (+10.5) @ Dallas (-10.5)
I’m sorry, I know that Dallas is the real deal, but a tough division rival with nothing but hatred of you to play for is a little to dangerous to be giving up double digit points to.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Philadelphia
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Dallas

Washington (+4.5) @ New York Giants (-4.5)
While the same logic as above could apply here, 4.5 points is a lot easier to swallow.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: New York Giants
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: New York Giants

MONDAY

Chicago (+10.0) @ Minnesota (-10.0)
Kyle Orton getting the start for Chicago… as if I needed another reason to pick the red hot Vikings.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Minnesota
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Minnesota

Have a great Sunday everyone!
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