Rain is expected in Seattle today when the Seahawks host the Minnesota Vikings. The rest of the outdoor venues for the National Football League in Week 16 offer clear skies and no conditions to affect play on the field.
The Atlanta Falcons spent more than one-million-dollars to lure quarterback Kirk Cousins from the Minnesota Vikings. How did that work out? Very well for the Vikings, who after spending a first-round draft choice on Michigan Quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who was injured in the preseason and lost for his rookie year, turned to a one-time first round draft choice who had not distinguished himself with three organizations, Sam Darnold.
Yet, in his seventh pro season with his fourth team Darnold struck the motherlode. He has guided the Vikings to a share of first place in the NFC North Division with a 12-2 record.
And the Falcons, well they have decided to bench their expensive quarterback this week and replace him with rookie Michael Penix Jr. Do you think the Vikings knew this might be coming? After all, just a couple weeks after they backed up the brinks truck to bring Cousins to Atlanta, they spent their first draft pick on Penix.
In a year that saw a half dozen quarterbacks drafted in the first round, Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels going first and second, Penix is one a number of football scouts liked the most. In fact, it has turned out to be a very good quarterback draft class. In addition to Daniels having the Washington Commanders on the brink of a playoff berth, Bo Nix has led the Denver Broncos to a probable postseason slot.
As for Penix?
We’ll see.
In his first start today, he steps into a very difficult situation. That is, a team with a .500 record that has given up more points on the season as a favorite on the point spread after the 14th week is 1 and 15 against the point spread since 1998. The Falcons, behind Cousins, are 7 and 7 this year while being outscored by 49 points. I’m not excited about landing on the New York Giants, who visit the Mercedes-Benz Stadium today, but with a rookie making his first start and those historical numbers I’m in.
The public has checked in with their three favorite plays today beginning with the Detroit Lions (-7) over the Chicago Bears and followed by the Cincinnati Bengals (-9) over the Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles (-4) over the Washington Commanders.
The Qoxhi money rated plays are now posted on this site, and if a Bullet Play develops in the final hour leading up to the day’s first kickoff, that game will be added to the list of recommendations by 9:45 a.m. Pacific Time.