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EASY MONEY: BATSBY Sports’ initial crack at NFL ‘Survivor Pool’ picks for the 2021 season

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Aaron Donald and the stifling Rams defenders have surrendered a grand total of 32 points in their last three meetings with the Bears (two victories).

Ever hear of an NFL survivor (or ‘suicide) pool?

It’s a simple game of chance, where hyper-focused and ambitious contestants are asked to select one lead-pipe cinch for wins in Weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, etc., with the caveat of only using a particular club once per season (in victory, at least).

For example, if we had Matthew Stafford, Jalen Ramsey, Aaron Donald and the revamped Rams bouncing the Bears at home in Week 1 … by virtue of that, BATSBY Sports could not designate the L.A. Rams for victory again during Weeks 2-18.

The same holds true for the Packers (over the Lions) in Week 2. After this game, I can no longer pick Aaron Rodgers, Davante Adams, Aaron Jones and rookie Amari Rodgers to prevail the rest of the way.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE 2021 NFL SCHEDULE GRID

Now for the kicker: Any incorrect picks automatically knock a contestant out of the pool; and if any ‘suicide’ owners should be left standing in the pool by Week 18 — an implausible occurrence for me in recent years — they’re entitled to all or some of the winnings (which can be quite lucrative).

Here are BATSBY Sports’ initial picks for 2021. Adding to the degree of difficulty, we can choose teams to lose no more than twice.

(HOME TEAM IN CAPS)

2021 SURVIVOR/SUICIDE PICKS

WEEK 1 — L.A. RAMS over Chicago
WEEK 2 — GREEN BAY over Detroit
WEEK 3 — NEW ENGLAND over New Orleans
WEEK 4 — BUFFALO over Houston
WEEK 5 — TAMPA BAY over Miami
WEEK 6 — CAROLINA over Minnesota
WEEK 7 — LAS VEGAS over Philadelphia
WEEK 8 — SEATTLE over Jacksonville
WEEK 9 — MIAMI over Houston (2)
WEEK 10 — PITTSBURGH over Detroit (2)
WEEK 11 — L.A. CHARGERS over Pittsburgh
WEEK 12 — BALTIMORE over Cleveland
WEEK 13 — JACKSONVILLE over Atlanta
WEEK 14 — KANSAS CITY over Denver
WEEK 15 — INDIANAPOLIS over New England
WEEK 16 — N.Y. GIANTS over Philadelphia (2)
WEEK 17 — CHICAGO over N.Y. Giants
WEEK 18 — PHILADELPHIA over Dallas

DRAFT PREP MATERIALS

QB-STARTER RANKINGS
TOP 60 PPR TAILBACKS
TOP 75 PPR WIDE RECEIVERS
TOP 35 PPR TIGHT ENDS
TOP 125 PPR PLAYMAKERS
THE ANNUAL PPR SPECTACULAR: How to dominate your August draft
SLEEPER CELLS: 10 preferred PPR gems to target for Round 8 or higher
FREE MONEY ALERT: BATSBY’s initial picks for ‘NFL Survivor Pools’
HURRY UP AND PICK! The results of three simultaneous mock drafts (No. 9 slot)
MOCK DRAFT SIMULATION: #4 SLOT
MOCK DRAFT SIMULATION: #11 SLOT

SURVIVOR POOL RULES TO LIVE BY

a) Whenever humanly possible, please target a home team to win that particular week.

b) When in doubt, exploit presumed bottom-feeder clubs on the road (Lions, Texans, Eagles, Jaguars).

c) Historically speaking, it’s best to avoid prime-time games between teams of similar stature.

d) Don’t clamor for the Niners, Bills, Ravens, Packers, Chiefs or Buccaneers in Week 18 — out of fear of these powerhouse clubs clinching a playoff spot (and high seed) before the NFL’s final weekend.

e) Whenever feasible, avoid picking against up-and-coming clubs multiple times, such as the Bengals, Giants, Broncos or Washington Football Team.

f) The golden rule: Only pick significant home upsets from games involving intra-divisional opponents.

g) Don’t live in fear of picking a marginal team to win one week … and then tumbling back to Earth the following Sunday (and vice versa).

For example, we have the Steelers emerging victorious in Week 10, only to fall flat against the Chargers the next week.

The same holds true for the enigmatic Giants for Weeks 16 and 17.

About The Managing Editor

Jay Clemons remains the only sports writer on the planet to capture Cynposis Media’s national award for Sports Blog Of The Year (beating out NBA.com, MLB.com, PGATour.com, The Players’ Tribune in 2015), along with the Fantasy Sports Writers Association’s pre-eminent award for Best Writer (2008). Through the years, Mr. Clemons has been a key figure with numerous blue-chip sports/media brands, namely the Detroit Lions, Sports Illustrated, FOX Sports, Bleacher Report and the NBC/Universal family. With Sports Illustrated (2006-11), Clemons served a triple role with SI.com‘s heralded football coverage—editing Peter King’s famed ‘Monday Morning Quarterback’ column, penning award-winning pieces for NFL and then writing/narrating scripted videos within the NFL and baseball realms. In 2013, Clemons’ first year with the company, FOX Sports South enjoyed a monumental increase of approximately 34 million Web hits in a 12-month cycle—merely posting 11 million hits the previous year. 

Then, over a two-month span in 2014, FOX Sports South amassed 19.5 million Web hits—a 60-day record for any FOX affiliate. And in 2015, Clemons claimed the aforementioned Cynopsis Media award on FOX Sports’ behalf, the company’s only national writing award during that period. Clemons, a graduate of Michigan State University  and Wayne State University, has been an on-camera Web-TV host for Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report and FOX Sports. In 2015, he also became the first-ever sports journalism professor at Kennesaw State University in suburban Atlanta.

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