Pick'em Mode
Week 5Optimized Hybrid
Uses XGBoost model predictions for close games, Vegas favorites for lopsided matchups. Backtested 2018-2024: 73.8% of max points.
41
Points Earned
105
Points Possible
39.0%
Percentage
7-7
Record
0
Pending
14
pts
DET *
CIN
CIN -10.5
Strong favorite
Correct
+14 pts
37 - 24
13
pts
SF
LA *
SF -8.5
Clear favorite
Wrong
+0 pts
26 - 23
12
pts
TEN
ARI *
TEN -7.5
Clear favorite
Wrong
+0 pts
22 - 21
11
pts
NE
BUF *
NE -7.5
Clear favorite
Wrong
+0 pts
23 - 20
10
pts
LV
IND *
LV -7.0
Clear favorite
Correct
+10 pts
6 - 40
9
pts
DEN
PHI *
DEN -3.5
Slight favorite
Wrong
+0 pts
21 - 17
8
pts
TB
SEA *
TB -3.5
Slight favorite
Wrong
+0 pts
38 - 35
7
pts
MIN *
CLE
CLE -3.5
Slight favorite
Correct
+7 pts
21 - 17
6
pts
KC *
JAX
JAX -3.5
Slight favorite
Wrong
+0 pts
28 - 31
5
pts
WAS
LAC *
WAS -2.5
Slight favorite
Wrong
+0 pts
27 - 10
4
pts
HOU *
BAL
BAL -2.5
Slight favorite
Correct
+4 pts
44 - 10
3
pts
MIA
CAR *
CAR -1.5
Toss-up
Correct
+3 pts
24 - 27
2
pts
NYG
NO *
NYG -1.5
Toss-up
Correct
+2 pts
14 - 26
1
pts
DAL *
NYJ
DAL -1.5
Toss-up
Correct
+1 pts
37 - 22
How Pick'em Scoring Works
- Pick the Winner: For each game, pick which team will win straight-up (no spread).
- Rank by Confidence: Assign confidence rankings 1-14 to each pick.
1= least confident,14= most confident. - Earn Points: If your pick is correct, you earn points equal to your confidence ranking.
- Strategy: This page uses the Optimized Hybrid strategy:
- Close games (spread < 3 pts): Trust the XGBoost model predictions
- Lopsided games (spread ≥ 3 pts): Trust the Vegas favorite
- Backtest Result: This hybrid strategy scores ~73.8% of maximum possible points over 7 years (2018-2024), outperforming "always favorite" by +1.3 percentage points.