2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 18

For the final time this season, the coalition is back to pick NFL games.

I alluded to this last week, but at this point I think we can concede the group title to Adam. While we each dominated Joe, with me sweeping our three disputed games and Adam taking four of five, Adam and I split our six disputed games for Week 17. The result is that Adam has a lead that, unless I cheat, go contrarian over the final 16 games, then get absurdly lucky, he's winning this thing. And I won't do that, so early on, congratulations to him.

Adam celebrated (I guess), with a long trip back home to Dallas, so due to that I only have his teams for this week, so we'll skip the writeups for Week 18. Joe has not provided them to me as of Friday night, but his will be added if I get them ahead of kickoff.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. Adam missed his lone hero pick of Week 17 for a change, so his barb over text about skill did not carry over into the small Week 17 sample size while I hit on my lone one. As a group, we've hit at about a 59 percent clip on hero picks, though Adam does buoy that fairly heavily with his 19-8 mark in such games; the rest of us combine for a 31-27 record. The other stat line to help explain Adam's lead comes from split decisions, where Adam has the best mark to help boost his stock. Meanwhile, we went 0-3 on consensus picks, keeping us just above .500 for the year.

For our final go this season, Adam and I disagree on four games out of 16. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick ‘Em: Week 17

The coalition returns for its penultimate week of picking NFL games for the season!

The holidays threw everything for a loop so this is getting posted late, but the stockings were hung by the chimney with care, with the hope the football picks would soon be there.

It ended up being a solid week for me, but nonetheless Adam took three of four disputed games from me and four of five from Joe. For reference, I took two of three from Joe. Adam's lead in the group is now up to double digits, so I think he can start planning the parade again.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. The BS continues to be real as Adam hit on another two of his three hero picks last week, bringing him to a staggering 73 percent hit rate on those games with the highest volume out of any of us. Call it luck, call it skill, call it whatever, but that's a big reason for his sizable advantage. Meanwhile in consensus games, we're all still hitting around where we've been all season, so I can't complain on the whole.

As we look ahead to the Week 17 slate, including a number of holiday games, Adam and I disagree on six games, Joe and I on three, and the two of them on five out of 16.

From all of us at Confessions of a Sportscaster, have a Merry Christmas! Let's get to it.

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 16

Just three weeks remain in the 2025 NFL season, so our quest of picking NFL games against the spread is nearing its conclusion for the year.

My attempt at a comeback hit a snag last week, as Adam took four of the six disputed games with me and Joe took three of four; the two of them split their six disputed games. As a result I find myself in the middle of the pack while Adam sustains his sizable lead in the group.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. Hero picks remain the name of the game here, as Adam continues his BS with yet another hit, this one on his late change because Phillip Rivers. I missed my two last week as my attempt to take the points on a couple high line games backfired. Meanwhile we all only hit on one out of three consensus games, but we've picked enough that we're still hitting on an excellent clip in those.

And so with time running out as we enter Week 16, Adam and I disagree on four games, Joe and I on three, and the two of them on five out of 16. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 15

We're coming down to the home stretch of the 2025 NFL season, which means the coalition is getting down to the nitty gritty part of the season.

The gap narrowed ever so slightly as I took four of seven disputed games from Adam last week; I also took two of three from Joe and the two of them split their eight disputed games. This seems about par for the course when we have a ton of disputed games, and as such Adam's lead in the group is holding pretty close to what it's been at seven games with 64 to play.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. It was a good week for hero picks on the whole, as Adam's BS continues with a 3-1 mark on the week, while Geoffrey hit on both of his. We also had a fair number of even splits last week, and I got back into more of a positive mark in those games, and consensus games continue to hit at around the clip we've been at for most of the year.

So as we look ahead to Week 15, Joe and I disagree on four games out of 16, while Adam disagrees with each of us on six games. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 14

Well, the good news is I had my Thanksgiving heater. The bad news is it didn't really carry over as we move into the home stretch of the coalition picking 2025 NFL games!

Adam retains his lead over the group thanks in part to taking two of three disputed games with me last week despite his being on a cruise, though we each swept our sets of disputed games with Joe (two for me, three for Adam). His lead remains about where it has been for a good chunk of the season. That 15-1 Week 2 gave him the cushion and we just haven't been able to catch up yet.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. We had a decent consensus week once again to keep our pace, but it was a great week for hero picks, as in the six games last week where someone went hero, five of them hit; this included Adam hitting on yet another one as he's 13-5 when he does so this season.

As we move on to this next week, Joe and I are pretty well aligned with just three disputed games out of 14. Adam is a little more out there though, disputing seven games with me and eight with Joe. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 13

My day job and the column always collide around this time of year. I get into the "Accelerated deadlines" mode with ads, and with early football on Thursday we bring you the Week 13 edition of the coalition's picks a little early!

I called for the Thanksgiving heater to come a little early last week, and it did: I took six of eight disputed games from Adam and five of six from Joe; the two of them split their six disputed games. Adam advised me to cool my jets, and he has a point: he still holds a seven game lead, but there is a four way tie for second place now, and just ten games separate first from last place.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. We had no consensus picks last week, which was rare and might have partially explained why most of the group had a down week. As a whole, we went 4-0 on hero picks in Week 12, with the asterisk that three of them were mine and Adam had the fourth. The hit rate on these for the group as a whole is a hair over 60%; that is the best overall group rate since we started tracking these stats in 2016.

As I try to carry on momentum from last week, I won't be able to dig much into the deficit if I do at all as groupthink largely prevails. Adam disagrees with Joe and I on three games apiece, Joe and I dispute just two of the 16 tilts this week.

From all of us at Confessions of a Sportscaster, have a Happy Thanksgiving! Let's get to it.

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 12

The coalition is back for another go at it as we continue our quest to pick NFL games against the spread!

It was a fairly even week across the board. Joe and I split our two disputed games last week, while we each edged out Adam by the narrowest of margins; I took three of five while Joe took four of seven. Unfortunately for us that was just a dent as Adam's lead in the group remains pretty firm.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. Adam again sent a note in our group text about this, this time asking why we're so bad on consensus picks. I'm... not sure what he was talking about, as we split the four this week and keep our pace of a narrow majority hitting. The hero picks this weeks were also split, with Tom hitting on his lone try while Geoffrey went 1-2 in his. Adam's strong performance remains pretty heavily the basis for his current lead, which sits at seven games on the closest person and just 11 with me bringing up the rear.

As I continue to hope for my Thanksgiving heater, it may come this week as I dispute a whopping eight of 14 games with Adam. Joe has six disputed games with each of us. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 11

As the coalition returns for Week 11, I find myself still waiting for a heater that may never come.

I treaded water, I guess, as I split my four disputed games with Joe and only lost two of the three disputed games with Adam; Adam took four of seven from Joe last week. As a result I continue to fade from Adam, whose lead narrowed a bit on the whole but he still has a sizable lead on the rest of the group.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. Adam sent a very #FirstWorldProblems text early Sunday afternoon complaining about missing on his second of two hero picks to start Week 10 by just half a point and bringing everyone all square for the week to that point. He still has the most successful hero picks on the season, but not the best rate even discounting Joe's perfect mark on a single game as Tom nailed both of his Week 10 hero picks. An even week on consensus picks also keeps us in the black on those games to help buoy everyone's records.

As we move ahead to Week 11, I have a chance to cut into the deficit as Adam and I disagree on five games. Joe and I dispute just two, while the two of them disagree on seven out of 15. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 10

The coalition returns as we get ready to make the turn into the second half of the 2025 NFL season, and we have more picks to make.

Adam is back on his BS again... that, or I just had a really bad week. He swept all disputed games with both Joe and I, while Joe swept our two disputed games. As a result I'm now pretty cleanly in last place and hoping for my prophesied Thanksgiving heater coming a couple weeks early so I can get back into things. Adam, with his dominant showing, has now opened up a seven game lead for first place.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. We continue to do well in consensus games as we hit a bunch later in Week 9. Adam's lead largely stems from, like I said, his usual nonsense in hero picks as he hit on both of his from last week. As a group, we are 17-22 in such games, but just 7-18 if you take Adam out of the equation.

The desperate comeback is going to have to be a gradual one, as Adam and I disagree on just three games this week. Meanwhile Joe and I dispute four, and the two of them differ on half of 14 games. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 9

The coalition is back at it as we near the halfway point of the 2025 NFL season!

It was the most groupthink week I think we've ever had last week, that even included a couple late changes reducing it even further. It worked out for us, as we all split our two disputed games with each other. As a result, Adam's lead among the columnists remains where it was and just seven games separates first from last place among the entire group.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. Due to the groupthink there were quite a few consensus picks last week, and we continue to have some good success there. And as a group, hero picks have hit at a very good rate, with Adam's usual success in those games being a large reason why he's at the top of the leaderboard.

So as we move on to this next week, Adam and I disagree on five games, Joe and I on just two, and the two of them on three out of 14. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 8

The coalition is back at it as we enter Week 8 of the 2025 NFL season!

Adam mentioned over text when I passed along our disputed game count for last week that it was a heavy one and that he expected we'd split. Sure enough, he and I split our six disputed games; Joe had a better week though as he swept our two disputed games and took five of eight from Adam.

The bad news for me now is that I'm tied for the bottom of the group standings, though not for having a bad week. It was just that others had a better week, as six games still separate me and Adam, though his lead for the whole group is down to just four games.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. After hovering around .500 in consensus picks, we hit on all four of ours this past week, which was a big reason why the whole group finished above .500 for the week. Adam's lead once again stems from his continued success in hero picks, though he split his two from last week.

As we look ahead to the new week, we have one of the more groupthink-laden set of picks in column history. All told, we disagree with each other on just two games apiece. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 7

As the NFL season rolls on, so to does the coalition's quest to pick NFL games against the spread.

This past week was kind of a mixed bag. Joe was tied for the week's best mark in the group as he took three of four from me and three of five from Adam, Adam took four of seven from me. As a result, Adam moves a tiny bit further ahead of me while Joe pulls into what is now a three way tie for second, with the rest of the group just one game behind us.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. The status quo of the group remaining just a hair above .500 on consensus picks continues; meanwhile it was a good week for hero picks, with four of the five from last week hitting, raising the group's record when going hero to 17-11 through six weeks. Geoffrey is the only one below .500 in such games, and Adam's lead is largely based on his usual nonsense of picking the most hero games and winning more often than not.

As we look ahead to Week 7, Joe and I disagree on just two games, while Adam is more in his usual range of six disputed with me and eight with Joe out of 15. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 6

The coalition returns for Week 6 of the NFL season, and I think it's official: The Great Reversal has begun.

I say this mainly because it was a pretty rough week for the group as a whole. No one finished above .500 for the week, a couple folks are now below .500 for the season, and yet just seven games separate first from last place. This bears out what happened in the column last week: Joe and I split our two disputed games, while Adam narrowly won the week, taking five of nine from each of us.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. As you would figure from the nine disputed games figure, Adam had several hero picks this week, but he ended up missing on a couple. As tends to be the case, his volume is higher than the rest of the group and he's hit on enough that it's helped him to first place. I hit on my first hero win of the season (albeit in a much smaller sample size). Meanwhile our consensus game rate remains at just a hair over .500.

So as we look ahead to this week, Adam and I disagree on seven games, Joe and I on four, and the two of them on five out of 15. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 5

The coalition is back at it for Week 5 of the NFL season! Bye weeks finally come into play, and part of me wonders if Adam's theory of The Great Reversal has hit for the season yet.

Maybe that's just me rationalizing after the fact. Despite me having a wonderful oh-for-the-early-slate, I rebounded enough so that Adam only took four of seven disputed games from me; he took three of five from Joe, and Joe and I split our six disputed games last week.

My first sub-.500 week of the year drops me four games back of the lead at this early stage, yet I'm still in a big group tied for second. At this point, just six games separate first place from last place, and everyone is at least at .500 for the year to date.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. Adam hit on another hero pick, putting him at 3-1 in such games on the season to date, which seems to be in keeping with his hit rate on those. We're also staying just above .500 as a group on consensus picks, which is part of why our overall records are doing okay to this point.

As we look ahead to Week 5, this could either go really well, or really really badly. Joe and I disagree on just two games, which is pretty low for us. And then there's Adam... we each disagree with him on nine of the 14 games this week. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 4

The coalition returns to action in good shape as we enter our fourth week of picking NFL games against the spread!

A week after Adam went on an all-time heater, he regressed to the mean. Adam, Joe, and I all evenly split our disputed games with each other, which I think might also be a first in contest history.

Interestingly enough, the entire group almost all matched scores for Week 3, with the exception of Jim who finished just a game back of everyone this week. But the entire group remains above .500 through three weeks, with Adam holding onto his three game lead that he built on the back of the aforementioned heater.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. Consensus picks came back to earth a little bit this week, though we remain above .500 there. We're a combined 5-8 as a group on hero picks to date, which is probably about on par with where we usually end up. Adam, for his part, is 2-1 so far including a split last week.

As we look ahead to the new week, Adam and I disagree on seven games, Joe and I on six, and the two of them on five out of 16. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 3

The coalition returns for Week 3 of picking NFL games, and we have some history to discuss.

I dug back through the archives, and I went back far. In Week 12 in 2018, I went 13-2 against the spread. For nearly seven years, that record has stood as the best single week mark in contest history.

I bring this up because, while I took four of seven disputed games from Joe, Adam swept his disputed games with both of us last week. This is not unheard of; we've had sweeps pop up from time to time in this contest. But were it not for Kaleb Johnson (my finger pointing) and "A A Ron" (Adam's) among others... Adam would have had the first perfect week in this column's history. Instead, he'll have to settle for the mark being at 15-1.

Needless to say, his historic performance has him catapulted into first place in the group, with me just three off his pace and seven games separating the entire group.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. It's a pretty small sample size of hero picks through two weeks, but we're picking at around our usual clip in those games. We're also in good shape on consensus picks through two weeks (with, again, that Seahawks-Steelers game being the only thing that stood between Adam and immortality).

And so as Adam attempts to follow up on the heater to end all heaters, he disagrees with Joe and I on six games, while Joe and I dispute four of the 16. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 2

One week of NFL football is in the books, and the coalition returns for more!

We ended up with one more person in the group this year as my friend Tom also joined in last minute. He joined the group a couple years ago and is back at it this year with us, just on the picks side.

Meanwhile in the column, after talking all sorts of crap in our group chat Adam ended up with an okay start, though he is tied for last among the six of us at present. I took four of six disputed games from him and four of seven from Joe; Joe took four of seven from Adam in the first week. Despite my column lead, I currently trail the group by one as Jim is our early leader in the clubhouse.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. This is a continuation of the tracker I've used for the last several years originally built by Adam. This first week was pretty heavily tilted to 4-2 splits with games and no 3-3 even splits yet. Adam, Jim, and I have yet to go hero so far, with the other three guys splitting four hero picks in the opening week.

As we now look ahead to Week 2, Adam and I disagree on five games, Joe and I on seven, and the two of them on six out of 16. Let's get to it!

2025 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 1

We interrupt your NBA/ABA Tournament of Champions... to bring you the longest running feature on Confessions of a Sportscaster.

The first full fall after I'd started COAS, I'd had the idea of picking NFL games against the spread. After a couple seasons of a partnership for that, I went somewhat solo in that every pick appears here, but it's never been something I've wanted to do alone. And so for the 14th season, I'll be picking games with a coalition.

Returning once again are good friends Adam Quinn and Joe Klecka. Adam won the column last year by a fairly narrow margin, ending my run of Even Year Magic. Just four games separated the three of us in total, and we all finished above .500. I can't complain.

So as we've done in years past, after ESPN announces its initial lines on Tuesday afternoons, the three of us will make our picks independently. Adam and I will provide a rationale, whether it be based on on-field observations, statistics, hatred of throwback uniforms, or the moon (no, really).

In addition to the three of us, we are once again joined by 2024 group champion and my co-host from Then There Were Two: A History of the World Series Geoffrey Clark, along with Joe's uncle Jim. My son Matthew opted out for this season despite having a pretty good 2024.

As we get back to it, Joe disagrees with Adam and I on seven games apiece, while Adam and I dispute six out of the first 16. Let's get back to it!

2024 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Epilogue

I was hoping to have multiple titles to celebrate this week, but alas, it was not meant to be.

We close out the 2024 contest as Adam only ended up taking six of our ten disputed games this week and five of seven from Joe, while I took two of three from Joe. With Adam leading the column coming in, that means for the second year in a row, he is our column champion.

The race at the top was tight going into Week 18 as well, and ultimately the difference there between staying tied and a two game final margin was Geoffrey riding the Steelers as home underdogs. He just barely hit that hero pick, and as a result Geoffrey takes home his second consecutive group championship in this contest.

You can view how we all ended up picking in relation to each other here. Group-wise, it was a pretty successful year. We hit on consensus picks at the best rate we ever have, and did a decent job on hero picks; we had as many as a group combined this year as Adam hit on in 2023 by himself. Six of the seven people in our group finished the year over .500, with Matthew being the only one below, and even then, he was only six games under. Not bad for a seven year old.

Congratulations once again to Adam on his column title, and to Geoffrey on his group title! We'll see you for the 2025 contest!

Records This Season
Lucas: 139-133 (7-9 last week)
Adam: 142-130 (9-7 last week)
Joe: 138-134 (6-10 last week)
Geoffrey: 151-121 (8-8 last week)
Jim: 149-123 (6-10 last week)
John: 140-132 (8-8 last week)
Matthew: 133-139 (7-9 last week)

2024 COAS Pigskin Pick 'Em: Week 18

And so it all comes down to this.

A few playoff spots are still up for grabs in the NFL, and as far as the coalition goes, there are a couple races up for grabs. Taking all of Week 17 into account (as we split it into two parts), Adam and I split our two disputed games, while Joe took five of seven from each of us. As a result he's come roaring back into a giant bunch in the middle of the pack.

That pack of us is really only fighting for the column title at this point, as we are well off the pace at the top. That title is a two-horse race between Geoffrey and Jim, who have caught fire as the season has gone along.

You can view how we've all picked in relation to each other here. I think the thing I'm most happy with, besides leading the hero win rate race even with a small sample size, is that barring a collapse we're looking at a phenomenal consensus win rate. Unless we go 0-5 this week, we'll finish above .500 for the fourth time in the last five seasons, and we're currently on track to finish with the best mark in that category since we started keeping track in 2016.

And so as we look ahead to the final round, Adam and I disagree on a whopping 10 games, Joe and I on just three, and the two of them on seven games out of 16. For the final time this season... let's get to it!