Place Your Bets: NFL Week 14

After getting back to winning ways last week, SportsJOE is looking to consolidate its NFL profits in Week 14.

New England Patriots @ San Diego Chargers (OVER 51 points) At 8-4, San Diego currently in possession of a wild card in the AFC but have arguably the toughest run-in of any team in football and a slew of teams chasing at 7-5, Philip Rivers and co don’t have much wiggle room when it comes to a play-off place. It was a big relief then, when they got their offence back in sync during last week’s come-from-behind win in Baltimore and Rivers will need to trade scores with Tom Brady and the Patriots offence that has failed to put up 30-plus points only twice in eight games. Houston Texans @ Jacksonville Jaguars (Texans -6)  The Jags came from 21 points down to pick up their second win of the season against the swooning New York Giants last week, but they are unlikely to find JJ Watt and the Texans quite so generous. With double-digit wins over Tennessee (twice), Cleveland, Oakland and Washington, the Texans have feasted on the league’s poorer offensive teams and Jacksonville certainly fits in that group as rookie quarterback Blake Bortles continues to acclimatise to the pro level. Baltimore Ravens @ Miami Dolphins (Miami -2.5) This is about as close as it gets to win-or bust for both sides in Week 14, as the loser of this battle between a pair of 7-5 sides faces giving up crucial ground in the AFC wild card race as well a vital head-to-head tiebreaker. The loss of defensive line Haloti Ngata to a four-game drug suspension is what swings us in the direction of the Dolphins, who can exploit Ngata’s absence with their top-10 rushing attack and a quarterback in Ryan Tannehill that can take advantage of the extra time in the pocket if Baltimore struggles to generate a pass rush. All odds via Ladbrokes