My selection is on the ‘under’ between New Orleans and Chicago at 4:25 pm et on Sunday.

This is the lowest total on this week’s board, but it’s warranted in my opinion. The Saints keep rolling along without QB Drew Brees but their success certainly hasn’t come on the strength of their offense. In a favorable matchup against the Jaguars last Sunday they managed only 13 points with QB Teddy Bridgewater resuming his role as game manager, throwing for 240 yards and a single touchdown while RB Latavius Murray led the backfield in rush yards with only 44. Alvin Kamara remains banged-up and there’s some doubt whether he’ll even be able to play on Sunday. Either way, I have little confidence in the Saints putting many points on the board against an elite and rested Bears defense that should be in a foul mood following a loss to the Raiders in Oakland. On the flip side, the Bears will welcome back QB Mitchell Trubisky but I’m not counting on big returns against a quality Saints defense. Chicago’s offense has little upside right now and with Saints CB Marshon Lattimore likely to erase WR Allen Robinson and RB David Montgomery still trying to carve out a true lead back role, we can anticipate another (far) less-than-explosive performance at Soldier Field. This one has slugfest written all over it. Take the under (10*).

My selection is on the ‘over’ between Arizona and New York at 1 pm et on Sunday.

We have another shootout waiting to happen in a game involving the Cardinals on Sunday afternoon. After cashing with the ‘over’ in last week’s win over the Falcons, there’s no reason to jump ship here. Arizona has the perfect make-up as an ‘over’ team in today’s NFL. The Cardinals offense can move the football in a myriad of different ways and plays up-tempo regardless the situation. Their defense is one of the weakest in the league. I’ll get back to that in a moment. Here we can expect Arizona to absolutely throttled a weak Giants defense that allows just under five yards per rush and have done nothing to slow any opposing pass game with a pulse this season. The Giants offense continues to boast plenty of upside with rookie QB Daniel Jones under center. This week Jones will get some much needed help with the return of do-it-all RB Saquon Barkley. Running backs have absolutely terrorized the Cards defense this season, both on the ground and through the air. Arizona will get CB Patrick Peterson back from suspension this week but how effective he’ll be remains to be seen. I don’t think it’s simply a matter of his return curing all that ails this defense. Take the over (10*).

NFL AFC South Game of the Month. My selection is on Indianapolis minus the points over Houston at 1 pm et on Sunday.

The Texans upset win in Kansas City is still fresh in the minds of bettors while the Colts win on that same field the week previous has been all but forgotten, leading to a favorable line for the home side in this AFC South showdown on Sunday. The bye week came at the right time for Indianapolis as it is expected to have MLB Darius Leonard and WR T.Y. Hilton back at full speed this Sunday. Meanwhile, the Texans defense is in a really tough position with an injury-ravaged secondary, preparing to face Hilton, who has been a real thorn in their side over the years. While I have a lot of confidence in Texans QB DeShaun Watson, not to mention WR DeAndre Hopkins, I have little confidence in anyone else on the Houston offense, nor in play-caller and head coach Bill O’Brien. I simply see this as an excellent spot to fade the Texans off a huge win last week as they head on the road to face a better-coached, and still underrated Colts squad on Sunday afternoon. Take Indianapolis (10*).

My selection is on the ‘under’ between Minnesota and Detroit at 1 pm et on Sunday.

With the Vikings coming off a high-scoring affair against the Eagles last week this is an ideal spot to jump back on the ‘under’ as they hit the road to face the Lions, who are playing on a short week following Monday night’s highly-disappointing loss in Green Bay. We’ve seen Minnesota really open up its offense in the last couple of weeks with WRs Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs taking turns going off. Here, I think we can count on a return to form from the Vikings offense as they’ll likely lean heavily on RB Dalvin Cook and even backup Alexander Mattison, who played a key role in last week’s victory. The Lions run defense has struggled at times, including on Monday night when it allowed Packers RB Jamaal Williams to run wild. I do look for Detroit to bounce back in that regard here at home, however, and feel that the Lions pass defense does match up well against the Vikes dynamic tandem of Thielen and Diggs. Detroit got off to a nice start offensively at Lambeau Field on Monday but couldn’t sustain it – a common theme with this offense over the years. Here, the Lions face the unenviable task of playing on a short week against one of the league’s best defenses. Note that Minnesota excels at pressuring opposing quarterbacks and has held opposing running backs well south of four yards per rush this season. Detroit simply has too few reliable options in its passing game to worry me all that much against a good, but not great Vikes pass defense. Take the under (10*).

My selection is on Jacksonville minus the points over Cincinnati at 1 pm et on Sunday.

This is a dream bounce-back matchup for the Jaguars off last week’s ugly home loss against the suddenly defensive-minded Saints. The Bengals sit at 0-6 on the season and come in off another tightly-contested loss against Baltimore last week. Off that physical affair on the road I’m not sure how much this injury-riddled squad will have left in the tank this Sunday, nor do I believe its motivation will be all that high against the Jags. No team pressures the quarterback less than the Bengals and that should open the door for a big game from Jags QB Gardner Minshew, who fell out of favor with the bandwagon crowd following last week’s brutal performance against the Saints. Even if Minshew can’t get things going through the air, RB Leonard Fournette should have no trouble exposing a truly awful Bengals run defense. Meanwhile, Jacksonville’s defense catches a favorable draw here against Cincinnati and its dreadful offensive line. Look for the Jags pass rushers to find their way into the Bengals backfield all afternoon long. WR Tyler Boyd is one of the Bengals only offensive pieces that catches any sort of favorable matchup in this one. Yes, Jacksonville dealt CB Jalen Ramsey earlier in the week but he hadn’t been on the field since September anyway. If anything, I see last week’s loss to the Saints as a rallying point for the 2-4 Jags. Take Jacksonville (10*).

NFL NFC Total of the Year. My selection is on the ‘over’ between Los Angeles and Atlanta at 1 pm et on Sunday.

This projects as potentially one of the highest-scoring shootouts of the entire season as both offenses come in ready to fully expose the weaknesses of the opposing defenses. The Rams secondary is an absolute mess right now and don’t let their early week acquisition of CB Jalen Ramsey steer you otherwise. Ramsey hasn’t suited up since September and now comes in following a limited week of practice with his new team. His reward will be lining up against Falcons all-world WR Julio Jones who is finally in line for a big breakout performance on Sunday. While the Falcons have been awful in the win-loss column, their offense continues to churn along with QB Matt Ryan posting monster numbers. Nothing changes against the Rams truly disappointing defense this week. On the flip side, we’ve also seen the Rams offense sputter due in large part to the inefficiency of QB Jared Goff, not to mention their offensive line’s inability to pass-protect. That should change here as the Falcons defense has done nothing to pressure opposing quarterbacks. Given a clean pocket I’m confident Goff can tear apart this struggling Falcons defense. After last week’s debacle it’s unlikely the Rams will lean heavily on their ground attack here, instead electing to attack the Atlanta defense through the air. Count on big performances from Kupp, Woods, Cooks et al as this one develops into a back-and-forth shootout. I’m not sure the oddsmakers can set the total high enough. Take the over (10*).