Detroit Lions

NFL Wild Card Weekend 2017: Best Picks Against the Spread (ATS)

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 4:05 p.m. ET

Fansided, Dan Salem/FanSided via NFL Spin Zone

Four games on NFL Wild Card Weekend 2017 with grossly different spreads. Do you pick the home teams or take the points? Your best picks against the spread.

The regular season is in the books, mercifully so for us in our picks against the spread. Todd finished right around .500, but couldn’t crack the mark by the end of the season. Dan came up a few games short as well after a stellar final week. The playoffs are a different animal, so here we go. Four games on the docket for Wild Card weekend.

Only two of these matchups bring excitement via star quarterbacks, yet all four feel like close games on paper. The lines are skewed, which makes these your best picks against the spread for NFL Wild Card Weekend 2017.

Two brothers from New York, Dan Salem and Todd Salem, discuss the best picks against the spread in today’s NFL Sports Debate.

2016 Regular Season Record ATS:

Dan Salem: 14-19-1
Todd Salem: 16-17-1

Todd Salem: What a mess the first playoff game of the year will be. Matt McGloin versus Brock Osweiler! Set your DVRs! And that’s the best-case scenario. We could see Connor Cook against Tom Savage instead. It is going to be ugly and, I assume, close, with both defenses dominating. I’ll take the extra half point. Remember, the Raiders were elite on the road against the spread this season.

Dan Salem: I’m taking the home team, the Houston Texans -3.5, points because Houston enters with an exceptional defense, while Oakland enters on wounded knee. I understand your logic for grabbing more than a field goal, but that assumes the Raiders can score on the Texans. Playing in Houston, that will not be the case. Give the points and take the home team.

Todd Salem: I am horribly terrified of the Seahawks “turning it on” now that we have reached the postseason. On the other hand, this team hasn’t looked good in a long while, especially on offense. Detroit has kept games close for the entire season. Why would a playoff game suddenly be different? It won’t be.

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Dan Salem: We agree with our pick of Detroit and eight points, yet I’m infinitely more confident in the Lions actually winning this football game. Seattle has not been a slam dunk to win at home this season, and has consistently played down to its competition all year. Detroit is due for a rebound after nearly beating the Packers last weekend. They will prove their season wasn’t a fluke. Take the points and roll with the Lions.

Todd Salem: This is a high line for Round 1, but it is also the most lopsided matchup of the first round. Pittsburgh is clearly better than Miami; it will be at home; it will also have some semblance of revenge/gameplan alterations on its mind after the regular-season upset that was the Dolphins over the Steelers. If the two teams hadn’t faced each other, I may grab the points, but a rematch favors the Steelers in my mind.

Dan Salem: I’m grabbing the Miami Dolphins +10 points in this game and loving it. While Pittsburgh is certainly the better team, I doubt they can put a stop to Jay Ajayi and the Miami offense completely. The Dolphins have been underrated all season and did not look significantly worse with Matt Moore under center. 10 points is a lot, so take them in this game.

Todd Salem: This is the hardest game on the board. Are the Giants actually as good as their record indicates? Is Green Bay beyond all its issues that submarined its season early? It will also be a matchup of strength against strength and weakness against weakness. I am laying the points because, to me, Green Bay’s weakness is more easily overcome than New York’s. The Giants can’t score. No matter how good the defense performs, a lack of points becomes an issue to winning and/or covering.

Dan Salem: I’m taking the New York Giants +4.5 points in this game because I’m afraid they are about to turn things on. I’m not sure if Green Bay’s luck actually runs out in round one, yet their winning streak feels ready to end and I do believe this is a close football game. The Giants can keep it within a field goal, playing another extremely tight contest. That means 4.5 points is plenty for the win against the spread.