Sports Handicapper Sean Murphy's Picks & Predictions

My selection is on the 'under' between Pittsburgh and Jacksonville at 1 pm et on Sunday.

I'll back the 'under' in Jacksonville on Sunday afternoon. The Jaguars will be playing their first true home game since way back in Week 7. They do draw the red hot Steelers in a favorable spot here, with Pittsburgh playing on the road in an early start game, where QB Ben Roethlisberger has typically struggled. I do see this as a solid bounce-back matchup for the Jaguars defense, which hasn't come close to living up to expectations this season. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh's defense has quietly turned things around following a disastrous start to the season. The Steelers have to be licking their chops at the prospect of facing the Jags undermanned and overmatched offensive line. While RB Leonard Fournette did provide the Jags a spark in his return last week, I'm not sure he'll be able to do enough to make up for QB Blake Bortles shortcomings on Sunday afternoon. Take the under (10*).

My selection is on the 'under' between Minnesota and Chicago at 8:20 pm et on Sunday.

I'll back the 'under' at Soldier Field on Sunday night. The Bears have been hanging crooked numbers on the scoreboard lately, putting up 75 points in their last two games combined. That's come largely on the strength of their defense, which has routinely been forcing turnovers. They've forced six of them over their last two games. I do think we'll see the Vikings take much better care of the football on Sunday night, limiting the Bears short fields on offense. Chicago's lack of a consistent rushing attack has actually been masked during its current three-game winning streak. Bears QB Mitchell Trubiski has been lighting it up lately, but that's been largely due to a weak schedule. He'll be tested by a now-healthy Vikings defense coming off their bye week. Minnesota has had major issues on the offensive line this season and while they do check back in healthier after the bye week, I do believe some of those issues protecting QB Kirk Cousins will remain, especially against an aggressive Bears defense that is firing on all cylinders right now. The sky is the limit for this Vikings offense with supreme talent at wide receiver and in the backfield, but only if Cousins is given time to operate and the running backs are given room to run. I'm not convinced either will happen on Sunday night. Take the under (10*).

NFL NFC Total of the Month. My selection is on the 'over' between Philadelphia and New Orleans at 4:25 pm et on Sunday.

This has all the makings of a shootout on Sunday afternoon at the Superdome. The Eagles looked sluggish on offense in Sunday night's loss to the Cowboys. That's become a bit of a theme for this Eagles offense this season as they haven't come close to living up to expectations. With that being said, I do see this as a favorable spot for QB Carson Wentz and his myriad of weapons to go off against a beatable Saints defense that has been getting a bit of hype, especially following a dismantling of the Bengals last Sunday in Cincinnati. This is still a below average defense as far as I'm concerned, and I'm confident we'll see Wentz and the Eagles bomb away all afternoon long with no real semblance of a running game to speak of. Meanwhile, the Eagles defense, particularly the secondary, has been ravaged by injuries. That leaves the unit vulnerable against an explosive Saints passing attack. Saints QB Drew Brees is absolutely at the top of his game right now and should have little trouble picking apart a makeshift Eagles secondary on Sunday afternoon. Even in a game where they were able to get ahead big early and lay up, we saw the Saints hang 50+ points on the board last Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati. New Orleans won't shy away from another shootout in ideal conditions at the Superdome on Sunday. Take the over (10*).

NFL Blowout Game of the Month. My selection is on Arizona minus the points over Oakland at 4:05 pm et on Sunday.

This matchup isn't going to draw much attention on Sunday afternoon but that's just fine with us. The lack of attention has helped to keep the line in check in a game the Cardinals should win going away. To say that the Raiders are struggling would be a massive understatement. Were it not for a late penalty call against Cleveland back in Week 4 we might be talking about a team on a collision course with an 0-16 season. The case can certainly be made that the Raiders are 'tanking' at this point. They've scored a grand total of nine points in their last two games and have been held to 10 points or less in four of their last five contests. Things don't figure to get any better for the Oakland offense this week as it hits the road to face a highly-motivated Cardinals defense that is coming off a tough matchup in Kansas City. Even more than the Cards defense, I'm encouraged by the Arizona offense, which has shown some signs of life under new offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich. Leftwich has made a point to get RB David Johnson more involved in the offense. Last Sunday in Kansas City Johnson ran for 98 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries and also caught seven passes for 85 yards and a score. QB Josh Rosen didn't have a banner day but did throw for over 200 yards, marking the first time he has done so in consecutive games this season. While the Raiders defense has been on the field an awful lot over the last couple of weeks, the Cardinals will be playing for just the second time in three weeks thanks to a bye week prior to last week's game. A return home should serve them well as they've had this matchup circled as a rare winnable game in an otherwise lost season. Take Arizona (10*).