Our NFL picks against the spread are back for Week 15 as the league prepares for the continuation of the late-season slate.
Week 14 saw the Houston Texans keep it close against the superior Dallas Cowboys despite being 17-point road dogs. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Chargers did some solid work as home underdogs against the Miami Dolphins on “Sunday Night Football.”
In this latest edition, we will focus on four games (listed below) that offer up NFL picks against the spread for Week 15 that are worth your while.
Also Read: Everything you need to know about the NFL Sunday Ticket
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
| Baltimore Ravens (+3.0) @ Cleveland Browns | 7:30 PM (Saturday) | NFL Network |
| Atlanta Falcons (+4.0) @ New Orleans Saints | 1:00 PM | FOX |
| Dallas Cowboys @ Jacksonville Jaguars (+4.5) | 1:00 PM | FOX |
| New York Giants (+3.5) @ Washington Commanders | 8:20 PM | NBC |
Baltimore Ravens ride backups to win over the Cleveland Browns
This is a hard one to pick with the Ravens’ top-two quarterbacks, Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley, questionable to go on a short week. Jackson suffered a knee injury in Week 13 and could be out for another game. Meanwhile, Huntley has to pass through the NFL’s concussion protocols to go Saturday night in Cleveland.
What we do know is that Baltimore was able to take out the division-rival Pittsburgh Steelers this past Sunday with Anthony Brown taking a majority of the snaps under center. J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards combined for 186 yards on the ground. Baltimore’s defense also dominated to the tune of three interceptions.
Despite these injury concerns, other members of the Ravens were able to return to the mix recently. That includes multiple offensive linemen. Getting these players back at this stage in the season is no small thing.
As for Cleveland, it is coming off another ugly outing in a Week 14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. The team’s offense continues to struggle with Deshaun Watson at quarterback. In what should be a low-scoring affair, we’re going with the better defense to come out on top. In the process, Baltimore remains very much alive in the AFC North race while Cleveland is put to rest for the winter.
Related: Sportsnaut’s Week 15 NFL power rankings
Atlanta Falcons keep in NFC South race with win in the Bayou
There’s something about a new guy starting under center that could inspire more confidence in a team. That should be the case when rookie Desmond Ridder gets the start over Marcus Mariota for the Falcons come Week 15.
Coming out of its bye, Atlanta had ample time to get Ridder ready to make his first regular-season start. The team is also very much alive in the disastrous NFC South, just one game behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers despite boasting a 5-8 record.
As for the Saints, embattled head coach Dennis Allen has again opted to stick with Andy Dalton as their starter over Jameis Winston. Also coming off their bye, New Orleans blew a 16-3 late-game lead against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in its last outing.
New Orleans has lost nine of 12 since opening the season with a win. The Saints are also a surprising 2-4 at home on the campaign. We just don’t like the Saints as four-point home favorites in this one.
NFL picks lock: Jacksonville Jaguars upset the Dallas Cowboys
Let’s look at what Trevor Lawrence has done for the upstart Jaguars over the past five games. The former Clemson star and No. 1 pick has been on a completely different level during this span compared to what we saw earlier in his sophomore campaign.
- Trevor Lawrence stats (past 5 games): 71.8% completion, 1,362 yards, 11 total TD, 0 INT, 111.7 QB rating
Jacksonville is coming off its second big performance in three weeks with a blowout loss to the red-hot Detroit Lions mixed in. Its 36-22 win over the first-place Tennessee Titans in Week 14 has some thinking that a late-season run could lead to a division title. Remember, Jacksonville also took care of the Baltimore Ravens back in Week 12.
As for Dallas, its 27-23 win over the 1-11-1 Houston Texans last week was about as ugly as it gets. In fact, Dak Prescott needed to lead the team on a game-winning drive to close things out at home.
When discounting a mistake-filled performance from the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth quarter of Week 13’s game, Dallas has played down to the level of its competition since blowing out the Minnesota Vikings in late November. It will come home to roost in Duval Sunday afternoon.
Related: Sportsnaut’s NFL Playoff and Super Bowl predictions
New York Giants inch closer to surprise playoff appearance
When the Washington Commanders last took to the field, they pulled out a tie on the road against these very same Giants. As for New York, it was last blown out by the one-loss Philadelphia Eagles in a game that proved this team still can’t compete with the big boys.
With all of that said, there’s a lot of backdrops to this Sunday night game in Maryland. The winner will all but guarantee itself a playoff spot as the loser finds itself on the outside looking in.
It’s in this that we expect head coach Brian Daboll and Co. to go back to the drawing board with Saquon Barkley doing his thing on the ground. Washington is giving up 111 rushing yards per game at a clip of 4.4 yards per rush.
The Giants can play ball-control football by relying on Barkley to do his thing once again in Week 15. He’s attempted an average of 13 rush attempts over the past four games. The Giants are 0-3-1 during that span. Over the course of the Giants’ first nine games, Barkley averaged 22 attempts. They went 7-2 during that span. You can do the math from here.
For full disclosure, here’s a look at how we did with our NFL picks against the spread over the previous four weeks.