NFL Picks Week 9: Underdogs That Won't Let You Down

It's easy to root for underdogs. Picking them, on the other hand, is significantly tougher.

Indeed, underdogs are projected to lose for a reason. More often than not, they are inferior teams. Knowing this, it can be hard to put your money where your mouth is.

All of this being said, there are a couple of underdogs that I like to get the job done in Week 9. A couple are going to win, and a couple are going to make things too close for their opponents to cover.

Let's take a look.

Note: all odds according to Sportsbook.

St. Louis Rams (+2) at Arizona Cardinals

The Rams are fresh off a huge upset win over the New Orleans Saints, and the encouraging part is that they showed a burst of energy that we hadn't seen from them before.

As such, you have to like the Rams as a good upset candidate on the road against the 1-6 Cardinals, and you have to like them even more upon reading this news from ESPN's Adam Schefter:

If Kolb can't go, John Skelton will be under center for the Cardinals. That's a really bad thing for them, and a really good thing for the Rams.

Rams 24, Cardinals 15

Cincinnati Bengals (+3) at Tennessee Titans

This is one that I actually think the oddsmakers have all wrong. It should be the 5-2 Bengals who are favored to win, not the 4-3 Titans.

The reason I don't like the Titans to win is because I have absolutely no faith in their offense, and I have even less faith in it going up against Cincinnati's tough defense. I think you can expect another tough day for Chris Johnson, another tough day for Matt Hasselbeck, and ultimately a good day for the Bengals.

By the way, you have to dig this news from Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean:

Benson's return can only help.

Bengals 28, Titans 17

Seattle Seahawks (+11.5) at Dallas Cowboys

I'm going out on a bit of a limb with this one, but you'll have to excuse me if I don't like the Cowboys to cover a double-digit spread. They've won by double digits just once this season, and that was against a Rams team that made it too easy for DeMarco Murray. 

The Seahawks are not going to extend Murray that same courtesy, as they actually have a pretty decent defense. Moreover, we all know how inconsistent Dallas' offense can be, and this could very well be a game in which they struggle to score points.

The Seahawks will have to hold Dallas' offense under wraps. This tweet from ESPN's Mike Sando should tell you why:

Hey, maybe they're due.

Cowboys 20, Seahawks 13

New York Giants (+9) at New England Patriots

I've already said a couple of times this week that this game is going to be a shootout, and I'm not about to change my tune.

We know the Patriots can score. They've hit a bit of a lull in their last two games, but it would be foolish to think that it will last. Tom Brady is not going to stay bottled up for long.

But the quarterback to watch in this game is Eli Manning. He'll be facing the league's worst pass defense, and he is coming off a very hot month of October. This tweet from ESPN Stats and Info tells you everything you need to know:

I don't think Manning will lead the Giants to a win when all is said and done, but he'll definitely stay hot enough to make it close.

Patriots 35, Giants 28