Ted Walker

Wild. Card. Weekend. For many fans these are some of the most fun games to watch… and bet on. The Philadelphia Eagles visit the Chicago Bears Sunday at Soldier Field. Ted Walker has your NFL football pick.

The Minnesota Vikings host the Chicago Bears in a “must-win game” for the host. The Viks are in a “win or tie and you’re in” position. The Bears have secured the NFC North crown and have an outside shot at the NFC No. 2 seed with a win and an upset road win by the 49ers over the Rams. The NFL board shows the Vikings as a -4.5 point spread favorite with a total line of 40.5. First-year Bears coach Matt Nagy says that he won’t rest players but some nicked up players are unlikely to be pushed into action making this game a tough call for most? Not our handicapper Ted Wilson. Read on to get his spread winner.

There are few teams that could lose a Pro Bowl level running back and actually improve their offensive output but the Steelers have not only survived the Le’Veon Bell absence but found their future bellcow in the process. James Conner has rushed for 909 yards and 12 touchdowns while adding 52 receptions but he is questionable for Sunday with a high ankle sprain. Whether he goes or not, will the Steelers have the offense to stay within 5.

They like to say that because there are only 16 regular season games in the NFL, each one matters. I guess each is important in some regard but we are at the point in the season when some appear to be rather meaningless. The Green Bay Packers head east to take on the New York Jets in a battle of teams that are firmly looking ahead to next season. The Jets have been in this spot before and knew this year was going to be Sam Darnold’s on-the-job training session more than anything else but the Packers are not accustomed to being in this position. Pride is on the line here in week 16. Sportsbooks opened Packers -1.

The Packers were successful in their first game without former coach Mike McCarthy and while they didn’t look remarkably different, there were noticeable changes with Joe Philbin calling the shots. Green Bay is 10th in passing and they continued to utilize that strength early against Atlanta but the play-calling featured many more quick-hitting patterns that got the ball out of Aaron Rodgers’ hands right away. That was no accident considering how long Rodgers prefers to hold on to the ball, a fact that has, in part, led to Green Bay allowing 41 sacks so far. Can Green Bay continue to make successful changes and stay within 6 points for a win against the spread?

There is no denying that you are what your record says you are at this time of year in the NFL. Bad breaks, injuries or any other excuses have to be put aside and your favorite team is either a playoff contender or not. For the fortunate fans, that means meaningful football ahead and for the not-so-fortunate, it means watching a team play out the string with one eye firmly on next year. Atlanta visits Green Bay this weekend in a matchup of teams that certainly thought they would be in better shape heading into Week 14. With talent and pride on the field, as well as a new coaching record in play, does Green Bay cover the bookmaker’s line and win by a TD?

The glaring deficit that Arizona will have to overcome is their complete lack of offense. Heading into the week, the Cards rank dead-last in rushing yards, passing yards, points scored, third down conversions and time of possession. Getting consistent offensive movement has been nearly impossible with Arizona scoring 20-points just twice this season, topping out at 28 in one of their two wins against the Niners. They are even last in field goal makes, further hamstringing their ability to put points on the board. They do have a highly capable back in David Johnson but he is averaging just 3.2 yards and the Cards fail to average 80 rushing yards per game. Sportsbooks are giving Arizona 14 points to work with. Can they stay within 2 TDs? Ted has your NFL pick.