My selection is on Southern Miss plus the points over South Carolina at 6:30 pm et on Sunday.

South Carolina got off to a positive start with a 91-72 win over North Carolina A&T earlier this week. The Gamecocks were forced to overhaul their roster in the offseason so there will undoubtedly be some growing pains early on. Notably, they allowed North Carolina A&T to get off 60 field goal attempts in their opener. They were able to shoot incredibly well (31-for-63 from the field) themselves to ultimately hold them off comfortably. Southern Miss already has two games under its belt and it has treated them like preseason affairs for the most part, using 15 different players. I look for the Golden Eagles to shorten their bench considerably on Sunday as they look to hang tough in this measuring stick game against an SEC foe. Note that Southern Miss has held its first two opponents to just 53 and 57 field goal attempts. I think there's an opportunity here for it to frustrate the Gamecocks and ultimately keep this one closer than most are expecting. Take Southern Miss (8*).

My selection is on New York plus the points over Chicago at 1 pm et on Sunday.

With adverse weather conditions expected and a Bears defense that has employed a matador-like style, we'll grab all the points we can get with the underdog Giants. New York suffered a double-digit loss at home against the 49ers last Sunday. That leaves them as an after-thought for most bettors this week. Chicago pulled off a wild 47-42 win in Cincinnati last Sunday. I think that result led to more questions than answers as to whether the Bears can sustain success. Chicago is 5-3 but it has faced one of the easier schedules in the league. While the Giants don't appear all that imposing, I do think New York has enough upside to warrant backing them as they look to snap their three-game slide. Take New York (8*).

Sunday NFL Free play. My selection is on New Orleans plus the points over Carolina at 1 pm et on Sunday.

I think Carolina is one of the league's bigger 'paper tigers' at 5-4 on the season. The Panthers staged a massive 'upset' win on the road against the Packers last Sunday. They did little offensively in that game but massaged their way to a 16-13 victory. Now they're laying more than a field goal at home against a divisional opponent and I look for this one to be a grind. New Orleans was blown out on the road against the Rams last Sunday. Few are expecting much from the Saints as they've essentially waved the white flag at 1-8 as they've sold off plenty of key parts - most recently WR Rashid Shaheed. With that being said, NFL players have a lot of pride and I think we see the Saints rise to the occasion in this spot. Off four straight losses both SU and ATS we'll grab all the points we can get with a New Orleans squad that will have to play spoiler the rest of the way. Take New Orleans.

NFC West Game of the Year. My selection is on Los Angeles minus the points over San Francisco at 4:25 pm et on Sunday.

This game has blowout potential as injuries have severely depleted the 49ers on both sides of the football. The Rams are off a blowout win over the lowly Saints last Sunday but I don't think there's any chance of a letdown here as they head on the road to face a division rival. Los Angeles has a wealth of options to work with on offense with WR DaVante Adams giving the team even more than they probably expected, nicely complimenting legitimate superstar Puka Nacua. A shell of their former selves up front due to injury, Rams RB Kyren Williams figures to go off in this game as well. Defensively, the Rams are set to put Niners QB Mac Jones under duress all afternoon long. Last week, San Francisco scored 30+ points but that was rather misleading against a struggling Giants defense as Jones didn't even attempt to stretch the field. The Niners simply aren't built to play from behind right now with RB Christian McCaffrey the focal point of their offense. Take Los Angeles (10*).

Non-Conference Favorite of the Year. My selection is on Baltimore minus the points over Minnesota at 1 pm et on Sunday.

I have no problem fading the Vikings off their big 'upset' win on the road against division-rival Detroit last Sunday. Minnesota's offense received rave reviews following that contest yet what I saw was a quarterback in J.J. McCarthy that made some big plays but looked shaky behind a leaky offensive line. McCarthy hasn't gotten the best out of all-world WR Justin Jefferson and I expect that will continue to be the case against a quickly-ascending Ravens defense. Baltimore has had a few extra days to prepare for this matchup having not played since what amounted to a virtual walk-through against Miami a week ago Thursday. QB Lamar Jackson looked no worse for wear in his return from injury even though he wasn't asked to do much. Here, I look for the Ravens to open things up in ideal conditions at Bank of America Stadium, against an overrated Vikings defense. Take Baltimore (10*).

My selection is on Portland plus the points over Orlando at 7:10 pm et on Monday.

The knee-jerk reaction from most bettors will probably be to lay the short number with the Magic at home on Monday as they look to avoid a two-game slide after last night's tight loss against the Celtics. Orlando just hasn't been very good or certainly not consistently good in the early going this season, checking sporting a 4-6 SU and 3-7 ATS mark. The Blazers were off on Sunday following Saturday's 136-131 loss in Miami. Note that Portland has yet to lose consecutive games SU or ATS this season and checks in 5-4 SU and 6-3 ATS. We'll grab the points with the visitors here. Take Portland (8*).

MNF Game of the Year. My selection is on Philadelphia plus the points over Green Bay at 8:15 pm et on Monday.

I think we're looking at a 'wrong team favored' situation on Monday as the Eagles come off their bye week and travel to Green Bay to take on the Packers. Not much separates these two teams in the NFC standings. However, all records aren't created equally. Note that Green Bay has faced one of the easiest schedules in the league - arguably the easiest from Week 2 on (after a matchup with the Lions in its opener). The knee-jerk reaction might be to back the Pack in this rebound spot off last Sunday's 'upset' loss at home against the Panthers. I simply feel there are some issues that just aren't going to be fixed in the matter of a week. Losing TE Tucker Kraft certainly hurts but all in all, this is just an unfavorable matchup on both sides of the football for Green Bay. It's a pick your poison type of situation when you're facing the Eagles multi-pronged offense. Meanwhile, Philadelphia has had an extra week to scheme up a game plan on defense. The Eagles have looked like a different team since that upset loss in a Thursday nighter in New York on October 9th. Now they're incredibly fresh, playing only their third game since. Take Philadelphia (10*).