NCAA Five Locks Of The Week

Last week was not only a great slate of games for the viewers, but also a solid week for picking games against the spread. There were tons of high scoring games that we all love, as well as a few minor upsets. Last week I went 4-1 in my five picks, so here's to hoping I can go perfect this week. Here are my five locks for Week 8:

(4) Baylor -7.5 at West Virginia

Duke -2.5 vs Virginia

(24) Clemson -5.0 at Boston College

UCLA -7.0 at California 

(10) Georgia -3.5 at Arkansas 

Week 7 Picks Against The Spread

Week 6 was a great week in the NFL yet again, with so many games going back and forth and full of excitement. Some upsets were deadly for some people's picks, but that's the beauty of the sport. I personally went 10-5 with my picks, which is a slight improvement on the week before. Here are my picks against the spread for Week 7:



New York Jets at New England
Line: Patriots -10.0
My Pick: Jets +10.0

Atlanta at Baltimore
Line: Ravens -7.0
My Pick: Falcons +7.0

Minnesota at Buffalo
Line: Bills -5.5
My Pick: Vikings +5.5

Miami at Chicago
Line: Bears -3.5
My Pick: Bears -3.5

New Orleans at Detroit
Line: Lions -3.0
My Pick: Saints +3.0

Carolina at Green Bay
Line: Packers -7.0
My Pick: Packers -7.0

Cincinnati at Indianapolis
Line: Colts -3.0
My Pick: Colts -3.0

Cleveland at Jacksonville
Line: Browns -5.5
My Pick: Browns -5.5

Seattle at St. Louis
Line: Seahawks -7.0
My Pick: Seahawks -7.0

Tennessee at Washington
Line: Redskins -6.0
My Pick: Redskins -6.0

Kansas City at San Diego
Line: Chargers -4.0
My Pick: Chargers -4.0

New York Giants at Dallas
Line: Cowboys -6.5
My Pick: Giants +6.5

Arizona at Oakland
Line: Cardinals -3.5
My Pick: Cardinals -3.5

San Francisco at Denver
Line: Broncos -6.5
My Pick: 49ers +6.5

Houston at Pittsburgh
Line: Steelers -3.5
My Pick: Steelers -3.5


Teams on Bye's: Philadelphia, Tampa Bay

Top NBA Fantasy Players At Each Position

The NBA season is just two weeks away, and with that comes Fantasy Basketball. Although basketball isn't the Fantasy Sports powerhouse in popularity like football is, it's still very popular and a big hobby for hoops fans. I put together a few charts showing the top 10 players at each position; PG, SG, SF, and top 15 for PF/C. They are ranked statistically by several categories that most Fantasy Basketball websites use. Here's how the stars in basketball stack up:


Point Guard:

Shooting Guard:

Small Forward:

Power Forward/Centre:

Fierce Fifteen - Week 7 NFL Power Rankings

Another week is in the books, and what an exciting one it was once again. There were some big comeback thrillers, the expected blowouts, and even a tie! The biggest story of the week, was the Cowboys upset win over the Seahawks, when absolutely no one expected it. That game, as well as some others, shuffled the Rankings heading into Week 7:

1. Denver Broncos (4-1)

2. San Diego Chargers (5-1)

3. Dallas Cowboys (5-1)

4. Philadelphia Eagles (5-1)

5. Seattle Seahawks (3-2)

6. Green Bay Packers (4-2)

7. Cincinnati Bengals (3-1-1

8. Indianapolis Colts (4-2)

9. San Francisco 49ers (4-2)

10. Arizona Cardinals (4-1)

11. New England Patriots (4-2)

12. Baltimore Ravens (4-2)

13. Detroit Lions (4-2)

14. Carolina Panthers (3-2-1)

15. Cleveland Browns (3-2)

Five Takeaways From Week 6 in the NFL

What a week in the NFL once again. A new team has emerged as one of the favourites, another has come out of the basement, and I think we finally know who the really good teams are, and who the really bad teams are. Here are my 5 Takeaways from Week 6:

1. The Cleveland Browns Are The Real Deal

The Browns, AFC North Champions? It's very possible. After a dominating 31-10 performance against the Steelers on Sunday, Cleveland showed that they definitely belong in the conversation. The Bengals have come off a loss, and a rare tie, and currently sit at 3-1-1 and lead the division. The Ravens are 4-2, and are in a close second, but right behind them are the Browns, sitting at a very promising 3-2 with their Bye week behind them. 

What is bringing the success in Cleveland? It's really coming from every area of the football team, right from the top with Coach Pettine. This is his first NFL Head Coaching gig, and he's showing early why the Browns brass chose him for the job. All three phases of the football team has been working extremely hard week in and week out on Sundays, and with leadership from QB Brian Hoyer, the offense is improving every week. They have 3 very capable running backs, with Ben Tate leading the way in the blowout. Their receivers could be better, but Josh Gordon will be back in just a few weeks, how perfect. The defense is once again solid through and through, and is one of the stronger ones in the AFC. Their Centre Alex Mack is now considered out for the year with a broken fibula, so we'll see how that massive loss effects their offense going forward. 

2. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers Are Terrible

You have to be able to compete with each team on a regular basis in any pro sports league, but that's especially true in the NFL with such a short schedule. Lovie Smith's team has not done the job this season on a consistent basis. After getting down early in two of the past four games, and Bucs were down four touchdowns after just the first quarter, and down six scores at half-time, with Joe Flacco throwing 5 touchdown passes for Baltimore in the process. Tampa Bay had a whopping 0 points at half. That's not going to get the job done. 

I'm pointing my finger at the defense, obviously, as 38 points allowed at half-time is atrocious. The worst part of this whole defense ordeal, is that they have big name players on that side of the ball, and Lovie Smith is a defensive minded coach who was brought in to preach his system to a defensive core who was awful last season. Overall, the Bucs allowed 48 points and almost 500 yards of offense in a blowout loss to the Ravens. Hopefully with the team heading into their Bye week, they can work on absolutely everything. 

3. The Dallas Cowboys Are The Best Team In The NFC

It's actually true, it's not a misprint. After this past weekend's big upset win over the Seahawks though, in Seattle, that's pretty clear. Everyone knows how good the 'Hawks are in their own stadium, so for the Cowboys to come out of there with a win is a major accomplishment. Even though Dallas had to come from behind in this one, it was clear they were the better team on Sunday. They outgained Seattle by 200 yards, and held the ball for 15 minutes longer. 

With the Cowboys sitting at 5-1, they have to be taken seriously in the NFC. It's the team's best start since 2007, and they're doing it in all aspects, extremely well. DeMarco Murray has been an unreal, and is currently on pace to break Eric Dickerson's single season rushing record. Tony Romo isn't making his typical mistakes to blow games late, or early ones for that matter. And most importantly in my opinion; their defense has improved vastly from last season. Last year, they were historically bad in every category, and set the record for basically the worst defense of all time. This year? They are top five in the NFL, and have completely turned it around, even with the loss of some big named players. Winners of five in a row; the Cowboys are huge contenders heading into Week 7.

4. Ties Are The Worst

A tie? Seriously? Panthers' Rookie Kelvin Benjamin had no idea that was possible in the NFL, and in my opinion, it shouldn't be. Mind you I don't think the NFL should have ridiculous Overtime rules similar to College Football, but what would more time hurt? The final score in the Bengals/Panthers tie on Sunday was 37-37, and both teams scored Field Goals in OT, so who's to say one of the teams wouldn't score 2-5 minutes into a second Overtime? Ties are boring, and nobody is satisfied. Carolina's Coach Ron Rivera wasn't even sure what to say to his players after the game. Cam Newton said he's never tied a football game in his life. Although a tie is better than a loss in the standings, there's nothing else they are good for. Dear NFL; get rid of ties.

5. Derek Carr Belongs

I know what you're saying; "the Raiders are 0-5" or, "he threw a late 4th quarter interception against San Diego", but his overall performance throughout the season since replacing Matt Schaub, has grown drastically each game, and against the Chargers this past Sunday he was very good. The Rookie was 18/34 for 282 yards, 4 touchdowns, and just that one late interception. He did all this with a new Head Coach on the sidelines, and against one of the top defense's in the NFL. For the facts that Oakland hasn't had an above average quarterback since Rich Gannon in 2003, and that the former Fresno State standout has progressed remarkably through the first quarter of his first pro season, Raiders' fans should be ecstatic for the future at the QB position.