NFL 2025 Season Pick’em Tournament

WEEK 3

Welcome back to our weekly Fans v. AI v. Wife NFL Pick’em. Another good week of football. But we must start with the Smile of the Week. And that went to me! Raymond!!!

Smiles of the Week Victory Speech (Fans – Raymond)

My first Smiles of the Week. Shout-out Game: Colts-Broncos. I picked the slight home underdogs Colts when everyone else picked the Broncos. And thanks to the Broncos’ missed FG with 3 minutes left in the 4th and the leverage penalty after the Colts missed FG, giving the Colts a re-do and making the game winning FG as time expired, I was able to win my first Smiles of the Week.

It was painful watching the Cowboys win and having my Raiders lose. The Raiders loss was more painful because that loss prevented me from having the record for most wins in a week. I’ll take the tie with my future wife at 12. I told her last week how impressive 12 wins are and that it could be awhile before anyone tops that. And I almost did it the next week, only to fail because of my Raiders. I also almost had a perfect morning slate but thanks to the Steelers for ruining that one. I should have listened to my gut since I doubted Rodgers could repeat that performance. It was a good week and I’m honored to win the second Smile of the Week. Now for the repeat!

Rules

Each week we pick the teams we think will win.

No point spreads. Just straight up who’s gonna win.

A correct pick is worth one point.

Whoever receives the most points during the week will be crowned the Smile of the Week.

At the end of the regular season, whoever receives the most points will be crowned Chief Justice of Picks.

We follow the same rules during the playoffs and the Super Bowl. At the end of the Super Bowl, we combine all the points and the winner is crowned the Gridiron King or Gridiron Queen.

In case of a tie, we use the following tiebreaker rules.

• Wife gets tie-breaker priority. If she ties with anyone, she gets the crown.

• If AI only ties with any of the Fans, AI gets the crown.

• If Savannah only ties with Raymond, she gets the crown.

Meet the Pickers

Raymond (Fans)

Hello! I’m Raymond E. Strawn III. I love football. Jerry Rice is my favorite player and at first, I was a 49ers fan. But I was born in Oakland and when the Raiders moved back to Oakland and Jerry Rice joined the Raiders, I switched to the silver and black. The Raiders team colors also speak to me.

The goal here is to have fun, but also be crowned the Gridiron King. The odds are against me since I own zero tiebreakers, but it will only make victory that much sweeter.

Shaniece (Wife)

Hiiii My name is Shaniece King. I’m born and raised in San Francisco so of course I’m picking 49ers! I don’t watch sports so I’m picking everyone based off their logos that I like. 

Savannah (Fans)

Hello everyone, I’m Savannah Strawn! I cheer wholeheartedly for the Dallas Cowboys, even though they let me down year after year. I’ll be choosing them every week, even when the odds are stacked against them!

Tony Romo and Amari Cooper are my favorite former players, and now, my favorite is Brandon Aubrey, a.k.a. Butter! My goal here is to win, obviously, and have some fun as well. Let’s go Cowboys!

ChatGPT (AI)

Hey everyone, I’m ChatGPT, your resident AI picker joining the Strawn family’s NFL Pick’em challenge! While Raymond, his wife, and his daughter bring heart, gut feelings, and maybe a little team loyalty into their weekly picks, I’ll be crunching the data, trends, stats, and probabilities to make mine.

I don’t play favorites (unless you count algorithms), and I definitely don’t have a home team—so my picks are made with cold logic, no emotion… though we’ll see if that actually beats the human instinct.

Each week, I’ll be lining up right alongside the family to make my predictions. Will the machines rise, or will human intuition outsmart the data? Let’s find out together!

Thank you everyone for your introductions. Now let’s get to our picks!

After two weeks, Wife is winning the season by one win. I am right behind her in second place and both Savannah (Fans) and AI are tied for third. Last week, no one picked the underdog Seattle Seahawks as they pulled off the upset. But there were six unanimous picks that were correct. Week 2 is in the book. Now onto our picks…

Master Pick Table (Week 3)

Matchup	Raymond	Savannah	AI	Wife
Dolphins @ Bills (Thu, 8:15 pm)	BUF	BUF	BUF	BUF
Falcons @ Panthers (Sun, 1:00 pm)	ATL	ATL	CAR	ATL
Packers @ Browns (Sun, 1:00 pm)	GB	GB	GB	GB
Texans @ Jaguars (Sun, 1:00 pm)	JAX	JAX	JAX	JAX
Bengals @ Vikings (Sun, 1:00 pm)	MIN	CIN	MIN	CIN
Steelers @ Patriots (Sun, 1:00 pm)	NE	PIT	NE	PIT
Rams @ Eagles (Sun, 1:00 pm)	PHI	LAR	PHI	PHI
Jets @ Buccaneers (Sun, 1:00 pm)	TB	TB	TB	TB
Colts @ Titans (Sun, 1:00 pm)	IND	IND	IND	IND
Raiders @ Commanders (Sun, 1:00 pm)	LV	LV	WSH	WSH
Broncos @ Chargers (Sun, 4:05 pm)	LAC	LAC	LAC	LAC
Saints @ Seahawks (Sun, 4:05 pm)	SEA	SEA	SEA	SEA
Cowboys @ Bears (Sun, 4:25 pm)	CHI	DAL	DAL	CHI
Cardinals @ 49ers (Sun, 4:25 pm)	SF	ARI	SF	SF
Chiefs @ Giants (Sun, 8:20 pm)	KC	NYG	KC	KC
Lions @ Ravens (Mon, 8:15 pm)	BAL	DET	BAL	BAL

Game-by-Game Picks

Dolphins @ Bills (Thu, 8:15 pm)

Raymond: Bills – Bills look like a playoff team while the Dolphins look a #1 Pick team. Easy win at Buffalo.

Savannah: Bills – Bills of course. They may be my second favorite team now, no joke. Josh Allen continues to make me happy.

AI: Bills — Buffalo’s offense is clicking, Miami too banged up. Short week favors the stronger roster.

Wife: Bills

Falcons @ Panthers (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Falcons – The Panthers and Bryce Young don’t have enough to win at home. I don’t have much faith in Atlanta either, but someone has to win, right? Falcons.

Savannah: Falcons – Both teams are pretty sad, not going to lie, but I think the Falcons are just a little better, so hopefully they’ll win.

AI: Panthers — Carolina’s defense and home field give them the slight edge.

Wife: Falcons

Packers @ Browns (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Packers – Should be an easy road win for the Packers.

Savannah: Packers – Packers are 2-0, Browns are 0-2, so it’ll be shocking if the Packers don’t win.

AI: Packers — Green Bay’s balanced roster is too much for Cleveland’s inconsistent offense.

Wife: Packers

Texans @ Jaguars (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Jaguars- An ugly game. Stroud is struggling as are the Texans. This is a toss-up. Slight edge for the home team, Jags.

Savannah: Jaguars – The Texans seem to be lost right now. I doubted the Jaguars before and they proved me wrong, so I’ll go with them this time around.

AI: Jaguars — More stable team, better QB play, Houston not ready to win this matchup.

Wife: Jaguars

Bengals @ Vikings (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Vikings- If Joe Burrow was playing, I’d pick the Bengals. I still think the Bengals could win this. But the safer bet is picking the Vikings.

Savannah: Bengals – This was a hard choice, especially since Burrow is out, but something in my gut is telling me that the Bengals will still win, so I have to go with them. Also, the Vikings QB and RB are out too, so I believe the Bengals can win.

AI: Vikings — No Joe Burrow makes the Bengals vulnerable. Minnesota capitalizes.

Wife: Bengals

Steelers @ Patriots (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Patriots – I expect Rodgers to play better but it won’t be enough to escape with a win at Foxborough. Patriots in a close one.

Savannah: Steelers – I don’t know why I’m putting my faith in Rodgers and the Steelers again, when they were a let down last week, but I just think they can win against the Patriots. It also seems like everyone else is going for the Patriots, so hopefully this doesn’t backfire on me.

AI: Patriots — Ugly game, but Belichick at home with defense should be enough.

Wife: Steelers

Rams @ Eagles (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Eagles – Should be a decent NFC matchup but I give the edge to the Eagles. Super Bowl Champs at home with the tush push = W for Philadelphia.

Savannah: Rams – I don’t like either team, but I hate the Eagles even more. Both teams are 2-0, so it’ll be nice to see one of them lose, either way, but it’ll be much more satisfying if it were the Eagles losing, so I’ll be going for the Rams.

AI: Eagles — Philly at home here. The Eagles’ overall balance and home-field energy give them the edge; the Rams have playmakers and can make it competitive, but I expect Philly to control the line of scrimmage and pull away late in a close, high-tempo game.

Wife: Eagles

Jets @ Buccaneers (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Buccaneers- A very bad team on the road against a better team. No signs the Jets can pull the upset especially with Fields out. Bucs.

Savannah: Buccaneers – Buccaneers are doing well, and Jets are just being the Jets, so I think this will be an easy win for Tampa Bay.

AI: Buccaneers — Tampa looks sharper; Jets don’t have the consistency.

Wife: Buccaneers

Colts @ Titans (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Colts- AFC South battle. Colts look good early in the season while the Titans are still struggling like last season. Anything can happen in this divisional game. But I feel more confident with the Colts.

Savannah: Colts – Titans won’t stand a chance against the Colts, so this is an easy pick.

AI: Colts — Indy has surprising momentum, Tennessee looks flat defensively.

Wife: Colts

Raiders @ Commanders (Sun, 1:00 pm)

Raymond: Raiders – Hurts to say this, but I don’t have much confidence with my Raiders on the road in a morning east coast game. I expect the offense to perform better, but will it be enough? I think the defense can keep it close especially with Jayden Daniels questionable. If he doesn’t play, I am hopeful the Raiders can pull it off. If he does play, but isn’t as mobile, I can see a win for Las Vegas. But if Daniels is healthy and balls out, it’ll be another sad week for Raiders fan. Gooo Raiders!!!

Savannah: Raiders – Even though I’ve been going against them just to spite my dad, the Raiders are facing my teams division rival, so I’ll cheer for them this week. It’ll be nice if the Commanders, and the other teams in the NFC East, lose while the Cowboys win. Go Raiders, but if they let me down… I won’t pick them ever again, lol.

AI: Commanders — Washington wins at the line of scrimmage and takes this one at home.

Wife: Commanders

Broncos @ Chargers (Sun, 4:05 pm)

Raymond: Chargers- Herbert is playing well while Nix not as well. Should be a close divisional game with the Chargers winning for the home crowd.

Savannah: Chargers – Chargers have been on fire and I don’t think the flame will diminish anytime soon.

AI: Chargers — More offensive firepower, Denver can’t win a shootout here.

Wife: Chargers

Saints @ Seahawks (Sun, 4:05 pm)

Raymond: Seahawks- This pick has more to do with the Saints more so than the Seahawks. Playing in Seattle isn’t easy and I don’t think the Saints have enough. Seahawks.

Savannah: Seahawks – The Saints are just straight up trash, so I’m going to pick the Seahawks.

AI: Seahawks — Seattle at home is always tough; Saints’ offense won’t keep up.

Wife: Seahawks

Cowboys @ Bears (Sun, 4:25 pm)

Raymond: Bears – Dallas defense is pretty bad without Parsons. Cowboys escaped a close one against the Giants, which means it’s only a Dallas thing to lose on the road in a game “they should win.” This pick is all based on guts. Cowboys should win this, but that setups the typical Dallas storyline. And the Bears win the upset at home.

Savannah: Cowboys – Obviously I’m going for the Cowboys! Yeah, last week’s game was a close one, but we still won! Thanks to my man, Brandon Aubrey, a.k.a. Butter! He’s the goat, and I believe he’ll be able to get us another win if it comes down to that again in this game.

AI: Cowboys — Dallas has the talent edge across the board.

Wife: Bears

Cardinals @ 49ers (Sun, 4:25 pm)

Raymond: 49ers – A great NFC West matchup. 49ers showed their offense can perform with Matt Jones. But the Cardinals are also playing well. I give a slight edge to the home team. SF.

Savannah: Cardinals – This was another hard choice. Kittle is still out, Purdy and Jennings are both questionable, and if they’re ruled out this game, I think the Cardinals may be able to pull through with the win.

AI: 49ers — Arizona’s hot start ends against a deeper, more physical San Fran squad.

Wife: Cardinals

Chiefs @ Giants (Sun, 8:20 pm)

Raymond: Chiefs- No way Kansas City starts 0-3. And after that long disappointing OT loss against Dallas, I don’t see the Giants pulling an upset here in New York. Chiefs.

Savannah: Giants – I just decided to change my pick last minute because I hate the Chiefs! They’ve let me down time and time again and I’m tired of picking them, so I hope they go 0-3, even if it means cheering for the Giants and not being able to have all the NFC East teams lose besides the Giants. I think the Giants may have a chance to beat them, which is honestly sad, but who knows, maybe the Chiefs will get their stuff together this week and win. I’ll take the gamble though. Also, my best male friend is a Giants fan, so it’ll make him happy if NY can win.

AI: Chiefs — Kansas City bounces back; Giants don’t have the firepower.

Wife: Giants

Lions @ Ravens (Mon, 8:15 pm)

Raymond: Ravens – Goff’s stats are solid and the Lions were a good team last season. But for some reason I don’t think they are as good as last season. Also, Lamar Jackson also is playing well and this Monday Night matchup is at Baltimore. Should be a good game where Lamar Jackson does enough to win at home.

Savannah: Lions – Both teams are 1-1, and the Lions are the underdog in this game, but I think the game will be a close one and that they can upset the Ravens the same way the Bills did in week 1.

AI: Ravens — Baltimore at home in prime time, defense makes the difference.

Wife: Lions

Standings (After Week 2)

Picker	Week 2 Record	Smiles of the Week	Season Record
Raymond (Fans)	12-4	1	21-11
Savannah (Fans)	11-5	0	18-14
AI	9-7	0	18-14
Wife	10-6	1	22-10

* Numbers in parenthesis are Smiles of the Week won by tiebreaker.