Here at Fantasy Life, we support scratching your NFL itch in whatever way possible. For some people, that might be betting on spreads. However, that’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

Instead, some people might enjoy picking games without the spread. Pick’em contests—where you simply pick the winner of each game each week—remain a popular way to compete against your friends without having to dive headfirst into the world of sports betting.

Each week, Geoff Ulrich and myself are going to walk you through our favorite ways to approach these contests. Which games should you eat the chalk, where should you look for leverage, and which trendy upsets should you avoid?

Let’s dive into all 14 games for Week 10.

Bengals at Ravens

LaMarca: Bengals (1/10 confidence). I still think the Ravens are the best team in the AFC, but this is a good spot to look for some leverage on the field. The Bengals always show up as underdogs, and Joe Burrow is playing some of the best football of his career. Cincinnati nearly picked up the win when these teams met earlier this season, so maybe they can get across the finish line in Baltimore.

Geoff: Bengals (2/10). Joe Burrow is playing at an MVP level. They’ve replaced the inefficient Zack Moss with the explosive Chase Brown. Trey Hendrickson has six sacks in his last three games. Mike Gesicki looks like Tony Gonzalez. The Bengals can surprise the Ravens and get back in the playoff picture. 

Giants at Panthers (Germany)

LaMarca: Giants (6/10). The Giants aren’t a good team, but I don’t think they’re awful, either. They’re way better than the Panthers, despite Carolina managing to beat a depleted Saints squad in Week 9.

Geoff: Giants (8/10). The Giants have a far better roster. They don't win as much as they should because of Daniel Jones, but they won’t need Jones to do much against the Panthers this week. Tyrone Tracy might rush for 2-3 TDs in this spot and be one of the best fantasy producers of the week. 

Patriots at Bears

LaMarca: Patriots (3/10). I really like this as an upset spot. The Bears’ offensive line has been horrendous of late, which has resulted in minimal offensive production in good matchups vs. the Commanders and Cardinals. The Patriots have shown signs of life with Drake Maye under center, so I think they’ll give the Bears everything they can handle.

Geoff: Patriots (2/10). At the risk of copying my co-writer on every pick, I also like the Patriots to pull the mild upset this week. The Bears feel like they are starting to fall apart. On top of players like DJ Moore expressing their unhappiness, they’ve regressed after a couple of big games on offense and got run all over last week by James Conner on defense. Drake Maye is gonna tug at the seams of this Bears team and perhaps tear apart the Eberflus era for good. 

Bills at Colts

LaMarca: Bills (5/10). This is another spot where I think the underdog is live, but I like them on the spread more than straight up. The most likely scenario is the Bills win a close game. Josh Allen is looking like the MVP through the first nine weeks, while the Colts can’t even figure out who they want to start at quarterback.

Nov 3, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) runs with the ball against the Miami Dolphins during the second half at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Geoff: Colts (2/10). I guess it’s upset week, cause I am again going with another underdog. This is a tough spot for the Bills, who went to OT last week against the Dolphins and allowed a bunch of yards on the ground. Now they have to face what will likely be a revved-up Jonathan Taylor after getting shut down and seeing very few touches against Minnesota. The Colts should bounce back and have a shot to knock off an AFC elite. 

Broncos at Chiefs

LaMarca: Chiefs (8/10). It’s new week, same story for the Chiefs. I like the Broncos to cover the spread—just like the Raiders and Buccaneers have done in back-to-back weeks vs. KC—but I don’t think the Chiefs are in any real jeopardy of losing.

Geoff: Chiefs (7/10). The Broncos will be up for this game after getting blown out by the Ravens last week, but I am not picking against the chosen one. Denver just doesn’t have the kind of talent to hurt the Chiefs' defense, so even if the Broncos' defense does slow down Mahomes, I still see KC pulling out a close win. 

Falcons at Saints

LaMarca: Falcons (9/10). What could possibly compel anyone to pick the Saints at this point? They have one of the worst defenses in football, and their receiving corps is in shambles. Derek Carr may have fooled some people with his hot start to the year, but does beating up the Panthers and Cowboys look that impressive in retrospect? He’s the same guy he always was, and with minimal supporting talent, I don’t see how they compete with the Falcons.

Geoff: Falcons (4/10). I mean, I am not picking the Saints, but it would be the most Falcons and Kirk Cousins thing ever to lose to a Saints team with no WRs and nothing to play for. Division games can be tricky—so this is a low confidence pick for me—but I will assume that the better and deeper team pulls this out in the end. 

49ers at Buccaneers

LaMarca: 49ers (9/10). I still believe in the 49ers, who could get Christian McCaffrey and Jauan Jennings back from injury this week. This is also an absolutely brutal spot for the Buccaneers, who will have to play on short rest against a team that is coming off a bye week.

Geoff: 49ers (10/10). Just an absolute killer (bad) spot for Tampa Bay. They played on Monday Night against the Chiefs in a game that went to OT where their defense faced a ton of rushes from Kareem Hunt, and got crushed late. The 49ers are off a bye and far healthier. I think San Fran wins going away. 

Steelers at Commanders

LaMarca: Steelers (3/10). In Mike Tomlin we trust. Tomlin and Russell Wilson both have elite records for their careers as underdogs, and they have the added benefit of a bye last week. The Commanders are legit, but their offense didn’t look nearly as proficient against the only good defensive team they’ve faced this season (the Bears). If they can’t score at their usual rate, I like the Steelers’ chances of pulling off the upset.

Geoff: Commanders (3/10). I’m not picking against Jayden Daniels at this point. You can if you want. 

Vikings at Jaguars

LaMarca: Vikings (5/10). The Jaguars are playing a little bit better of late, but the Vikings are still the better team. They could’ve won by more last week vs. the Colts, winning the yardage battle 415-227.

Geoff: Vikings (7/10). The Vikings are a good team I’ve underrated most of the season. The Jaguars are the opposite and find ways to blow games, even when they get some lucky breaks (see last week against the Eagles). The Vikings' pass rush also got back on track vs. the Colts and might knock Trevor Lawrence (who lost his top O-lineman to the Vikings in a trade last week) from this game. 

Titans at Chargers

LaMarca: Chargers (8/10). How do the Chargers continue to play cupcake after cupcake? I still have no idea if this team is good, bad, or somewhere in between. We’re not going to get any additional answers this week as they steamroll another bad team into oblivion.

Nov 3, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) throws the ball against the Cleveland Browns during the second quarter at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

Geoff: Chargers (7/10). If Levis plays he likely gives the Titans' offense a bit of a jolt, but he also gives the Chargers' defense a boost as well. Justin Herbert is healthy and has played very well the last two weeks. The gap between the two QBs is too high for the Chargers to blow this.

Eagles at Cowboys

LaMarca: Eagles (10/10). The Eagles are starting to roll, and the Cowboys are cooked. It’s been a disastrous season, and with their QB out for multiple weeks, don’t be surprised if they wave the white flag.

Geoff: Eagles (9/10). The Eagles are starting to look like bullies again and are in a clear revenge spot after the Cowboys embarrassed them last season. Dallas is down their starting QB, and their best WR is hurt. Even if Parsons returns, I expect the Eagles to run it up this week.

Jets at Cardinals

LaMarca: Cardinals (2/10). The Jets may have figured a few things out last week, but they took advantage of a Texans offense that was stuck in the mud. That won’t be the case in Week 10, with Kyler Murray leading a frisky Cardinals roster to a 5-4 record. 

Geoff: Jets (2/10). I know we can’t trust the Jets, but what have the Cardinals done to earn our respect? They’ve beaten mostly weak teams and have a -7.0 point differential on the season. The Jets' passing game clicked nicely last week, and they face one of the worst secondaries in the league this week. I think this game is close and higher scoring but the Jets prevail. 

Lions at Texans

LaMarca: Lions (5/10). The Texans feel undervalued if they can get back Nico Collins this week. His absence has had a major impact on their passing attack, but they’ve had no problems moving the ball with him in the lineup. Still, I don’t want to step in front of the buzzsaw that is the Detroit Lions at the moment.

Geoff: Lions (6/10). The Texans' defense is solid but they aren’t impenetrable, as Garrett Wilson and the Jets playmakers showed last week. Now they face the most efficient QB in the league and a power run game that can move the ball against anyone. Even if the Texans get Nico Collins back, Detroit likely does enough to come out of this admittedly tough road spot in Week 10 with a win. 

Dolphins at Rams

LaMarca: Rams (2/10). This should be a fun game with two teams that can hang plenty of points on the scoreboard. The Rams were lucky to escape with a win last week, but I still believe in their offense moving forward. When they’ve had a healthy core of Matthew Stafford, Kyren Williams, Cooper Kupp, and Puka Nacua, they’ve been one of the three best offenses in football per EPA.

Geoff: Rams (7/10). The Dolphins find ways to lose games. The Rams find ways to win games. I don’t expect that to change this week.