Schrock's Week 10 picks: Can 49ers spring upset on Saints?

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Can the sinking 49ers upset the surging Saints? Will Derek Carr and the Raiders keep the good times going against the Broncos? Josh Schrock makes his picks for every Week 10 game.

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Week 9 of the NFL season gave us surprise after surprise.

The New Orleans Saints hammered Tom Brady and the Buccaneers, Josh Allen and the Bills ripped the Seattle Seahawks and those "never say die" Raiders just keep on winning.

As we head toward the home stretch, the playoff picture is starting to come into focus.

Unfortunately, that doesn't involve the 49ers. The 49ers have over $80 million in salary-cap space on IR. They have been swimming against the tide since Week 1 and now appear close to capsizing. Kyle Shanahan's team was clubbed by Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers last week and now has to face the red-hot Saints.

That first-place schedule isn't so fun when you're trotting out the C-team.

Week 10 will also see Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals face the Bills and Justin Herbert and Tua Tagovailoa will lock horns in a much-anticipated rookie showdown.

It was an admittedly brutal Week 9, but let's lick our wounds and get back on the horse.

Record: 55-61 ATS (77-39-1 SU)

2/15

Line: Titans -1.5

Playing Nick Foles and Matt Nagy woke up the Titans' horrid defense. But can they string together two straight strong defensive efforts to take a stranglehold on the AFC South?

The Colts' defense is legit, but Philip Rivers' inconsistencies have cost them games. After turning himself into a meme against the Ravens (TURF MONSTER!), Rivers bounces back and has one of his last great games in a must-win for the Colts.

Pick: Colts 23, Titans 20

3/15

Line: Packers -14

Jake Luton played well in his NFL debut against a bad Texas defense. But now it gets a little bit harder.

The Packers' run defense has been an issue all season, but James Robinson and the Jaguars aren't equipped to take advantage. Aaron Rodgers covers this in his pajamas.

Pick: Packers 31, Jaguars 14

4/15

Line: N/A

There's no line because Baker Mayfield currently finds himself on the Reserve/COVID list. He's expected to be cleared by Wednesday after coming in close contact with a staff member who tested positive.

If he's back and there's not another windstorm, I expect the Browns have made the most of their bye week and take advantage of an atrocious Texans defense. Mayfield, Jarvis Landry and Co. have a big day in the Dawg Pound.

Pick: Browns 27, Texans 24

5/15

Line: N/A

We don't know if Alex Smith or Dwayne Haskins is going to start for the Football Team. Who knows if that matters.

The Lions are a terrible football team, but the WFT can't even beat Daniel Jones.

There should be very few eyeballs on this game, with both teams being dead in the water.

I'll hold my nose and take the team with an established quarterback.

Pick: Lions 23, WFT 20

6/15

Pick: Eagles -3

The Giants are 5-17 in their 22 games. Four of those wins have come against the team that resides in the nation's capital.

But they get the Eagles this week.

It's always dicey betting on a turnover machine like Carson Wentz, but Danny Dimes is the president of the turnover club (no voter fraud here), so I think the Eagles should pick up a cover and a win.

Pick: Eagles 20, Giants 16

7/15

Line: Bucs -6

The Bucs looked like run over dog poop Sunday night when the Saints rolled into Tompa Bay and smacked them around for three hours.

It was one of, if not the most embarrassing primetime loss of Tom Brady's career and history tells us he'll respond accordingly.

The Panthers are a frisky team that just gave the Chiefs all they could handle. But Christian McCaffrey left that game with a shoulder injury and is day-to-day.

Carolina has played several playoff teams close, but I'll pick the Bucs to put it on them here in a get right spot.

Pick: Bucs 31, Panthers 23

8/15

Line: Dolphins -2.5

It's incredible the way the Chargers find a new and excruciating way to lose every week. The Bolts are a 2-6 team that very well could be 8-0.

Justin Herbert has been fantastic, but he can't play defense, kick field goals or field punts, all things the Chargers are struggling to do competently.

Tua Tagovailoa put on a show in his second career start and the Dolphins are surging behind a good defense and one of the best coaches in the NFL.

I want to see the Dolphins do it again before I buy-in. The Chargers still have a playoff prayer if they make a run. Herbert outduels Tagovailoa and the Chargers defense makes just enough stops to seal the win.

We're riding with the Bolts one last time.

Pick: Chargers 27, Dolphins 24

9/15

Line: Cardinals -2

The Cardinals were a win away from being tied atop the NFC. Despite their issues on defense, Kyler Murray and Kliff Kingsbury have them in the thick of the NFC West race.

Buffalo is fresh off an offensive explosion against a bad Seahawks defense. Lost in the win is that the Bills' defense was equally torched, but managed to force four turnovers.

You don't want to face Murray with a leaky defense. The Cardinals bounce back with an impressive win.

Pick: Cardinals 31, Bills 27

10/15

Line: Steelers -7.5

Pittsburgh remained undefeated after winning its tickle fight against Garrett Gilbert and the Cowboys. The Steelers have been getting out to slow starts all year and it's finally going to bite them this week.

Ben Roethlisberger went on the reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday but he can clear it and still play Sunday like Matthew Stafford did last week.

Joe Burrow has covered in all but one (or two depending on the line you got) games this season. The Bengals are frisky. There's a high chance Cincinnati's poor offensive line gets Burrow killed in this game, but I'll ride with the Ohio gunslinger pulling off the upset.

Pick: Bengals 28, Steelers 27

11/15

Line: Rams -2

At first glance, you probably want to dump a bucket of money on Russell Wilson to cover this and probably win outright.

Hard to blame you.

The Rams have beaten all four NFC West teams and the Bears and haven't looked impressive in doing so. The Seahawks are coming off a loss to the Bills and will fall into third place in the NFC West with a loss and a Cardinals win.

I'll take the Seahawks but I wouldn't lay a penny on their defense.

Pick: Seahawks 31, Rams 30

12/15

Line: Ravens -6.5

Lamar Jackson finally beat a team he might see in the playoffs. That's a step, but the Ravens have real problems on offense. Their running game has been ineffective all season, they are playing with a battered offensive line and Jackson hasn't progressed as expected.

Those issues pale in comparison to what's going on in New England. After early-season success, Cam Newton has been shaky since coming off the reserve/COVID-19 list and has little to work with on offense.

The Ravens embarrassed the Patriots last season, and they are exactly the type of team who can bully a Patriots team with a bad front seven.

Pick: Ravens 26, Patriots 17

13/15

Line: Vikings -2.5

It turns out the Bears were indeed fraudulent.

Matt Nagy's offense hasn't looked any better with Nick Foles under center than it did when Mitch Trubisky was calling the shots. The Bears are spiraling fast and now they face a Vikings team with a bit of life and a red-hot Dalvin Cook who has been running over, around and through opponents over the past few weeks.

The Vikings turn a couple of Foles turnovers into points and Kirk Cousins does just enough to deal a crippling blow to the Bears' once-promising season.

Pick: Vikings 17, Bears 13

14/15

Line: Raiders -5

The Raiders just keep on winning. A week after beating the Browns in a windstorm, the Raiders survived an underwhelming offensive performance to narrowly beat the Chargers. Isaiah Johnson's pass break-up as time expired sent the Raiders to 5-3 and marked them as one of AFC's likely wild card teams.

Next up comes Drew Lock and the Broncos. Denver can't run the ball, which is good news for a Raiders defense has been not great against the run. Paul Guenther's defense has been worse against the pass, but I don't think Lock can take advantage of it.

Derek Carr throws for 310 yards and three touchdowns as this one is never in doubt.

Pick: Raiders 34, Broncos 24

15/15

Line: Saints -9.5

After weeks of playing mediocre football, the Saints put it all together and walloped the Bucs, asserting themselves as the best team in the NFC (for now).

The 49ers spent last week struggling with a COVID-19 situation, trying to find receivers and then got rolled up by the Packers.

There's not much good to say about the 49ers except their bye week comes after the Saints.

I'm not sure if the 49ers have enough to pull off the upset, but I think 9.5 might be a tad too high. The Saints are primed for a letdown after throttling the Bucs.

Saints win, but it's close.

Pick: Saints 30, 49ers 24

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