2023 NFL Pick Em Confidence Pools: Week 14 Predictions

NFL Week 14 kicks off tonight with some Thursday Night Football action between the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers. Maybe action is a strong word, but it’s football nonetheless and it’s time to get those picks in for Confidence Pools. Remember, we are making football picks straight up. There is no “against the spread” here so that actually alleviates some of the pressures and concerns with betting. Think of it as money line action and you can lay the big points on the lines you wouldn’t normally bet because of a lack of value. We’ve been cruising along nicely, just outside the top 10 but we took some extra chances last week that did not pan out. Stupid New York Jets. If you can’t beat Arthur Smith’s stupidity, then what are you as an organization? But I digress. Let’s just get to this week’s picks.
- Season Record: 119-74-0
- Season Points: 1,016
Game | Pick | Confidence # | Money Line |
Tennessee Titans at Miami Dolphins | Dolphins | 15 | -800 |
Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers | 49ers | 14 | -550 |
Los Angeles Rams at Baltimore Ravens | Ravens | 13 | -350 |
Green Bay Packers at New York Giants | Packers | 12 | -350 |
Carolina Panthers at New Orleans Saints | Saints | 11 | -225 |
Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears | Lions | 10 | -175 |
Jacksonville Jaguars at Cleveland Browns | Browns | 9 | -175 |
Houston Texans at New York Jets | Texans | 8 | -210 |
Denver Broncos at Los Angeles Chargers | Broncos | 7 | 120 |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons | Buccaneers | 6 | 100 |
Minnesota Vikings at Las Vegas Raiders | Vikings | 5 | -155 |
Buffalo Bills at Kansas City Chiefs | Chiefs | 4 | -125 |
Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys | Cowboys | 3 | -175 |
Indianapolis Colts at Cincinnati Bengals | Colts | 2 | -110 |
New England Patriots at Pittsburgh Steelers | Patriots | 1 | 200 |
Player News
Jacksonville’s Demetrius Harvey reports, Jaguars RB Travis Etienne “is expected to remain the team’s top back,” but he could take “a bit of a backseat as a rusher as the team’s running game and his receiving ability evolve.”
Harvey believes “there will be competition for playing time” that includes Bhayshul Tuten, Tank Bigsby and LeQuint Allen, notably detailing the latter three players in that order. If the Jaguars feature three or more running backs, these players will be difficult to trust on a weekly basis, though Etienne’s potential pass-catching involvement provides at least mild stability.
Commanders head coach Dan Quinn has “been spending more meeting time” with Jayden Daniels, to help learn “defensive tendencies” and develop “beyond the no-huddle” offense.
The Commanders huddled up on just 459 offensive snaps last season, the fewest in the NFL, though they promisingly averaged the fifth-most EPA per play (0.104) and EPA per dropback (0.204). NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe adds that Daniels has been bulking up this offseason, “to handle the workload this year.” Daniels remains a high-end QB1 entering year two.
ESPN reports that “the Chiefs” have requested an extension to an end-of-June deadline for a stadium financing package from the state of Kansas.”
Per the report, the request indicates that the Chiefs’ “potential move across the state line from Missouri is a legitimate possibility.” Some initially thought that the Chiefs and Royals, who both play at the Truman Sports Complex on the east side of Kansas City, Missouri, would use the Kansas offer as leverage for a better deal from Missouri, but the two organizations appear to be seriously considering a move to Kansas. Both teams’ leases expire in January 2031. The Kansas Legislative Coordinating Council will consider the Chiefs’ request at a meeting on July 7th.
NBC Sports’ ProFootballTalk reports that “the NFL has shared on an annual basis salary data for every non-player position” up until this season.
Per multiple sources, NFL teams were sharing salary data “for every job in every NFL team,” from head coaching and general manager positions, on down to area scouts and assistant athletic trainers. PFT’s Mike Florio adds, “the official position is that the information is no longer being provided for legal reasons,” ostensibly because sharing such data could theoretically provide the employer with an advantage in negotiations. Florio does not believe the practice has ended, however, saying, “the unavailability of the spreadsheet doesn’t mean the practice of coordination/collusion has ended.”
PFT’s Mike Florio reports, System Arbitrator Christopher Droney concluded, “the NFL Management Council, with the blessing of the Commissioner, encouraged the 32 NFL Clubs to reduce guarantees in veterans’ contracts at the March 2022 annual owners’ meeting.”
Florio and Pablo Torre worked together to unearth Droney’s January 14, 2025 ruling, which “both the NFL and the NFL Players Association” refused to release. Florio reminds us that the owners’ meeting in question “happened only days after the Browns gave a five-year, fully-guaranteed, $230 million contract to quarterback Deshaun Watson” and only two years after the NFLPA tried, again, “to make all player contracts fully guaranteed” via the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. Following Watson’s deal, “the league didn’t want to concede full guarantees on a piecemeal basis, with one team at a time giving players fully-guaranteed deals until they became the norm.” Ultimately, and perhaps surprisingly, Droney ruled that he did not find a “‘clear preponderance’ of the evidence” that NFL teams accepted and acted on said encouragement.
The NFL suspended free agent K Justin Tucker without pay for the first 10 weeks of the 2025 regular season for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.
Tucker was released by the Ravens in early May, roughly three months after 16 massage therapists accused Tucker of sexual misconduct. The suspension is the culmination of a multi-month investigation conducted by the NFL. Per ESPN’s Jamison Hensley, Tucker may still sign with a team and “attend training camp and play in preseason games before the suspension starts Aug. 26.” He will be eligible for reinstatement on Tuesday, November 11th.