Week 3 of the NFL season is upon us, and it’s not too late to join an NFL survivor pool. You can enter the DraftKings $50K+ 3rd Chance NFL Survivor pool for just $10 here.
Whether your pick lost in Week 2, or you just didn’t get the chance to join a survivor pool, you can join this third-chance survivor pool. In this survivor pool, you need to pick a team to win straight-up every week. However, once you use a team, you cannot use it again. You are eliminated from the pool if one of your picks loses. The players who survive the regular season without losing will split the grand prize of at least $50,000.
Week 3 Strategy
I am attempting to survive the entire season in this weekly series. So, while I will give my thoughts on the best pick to make each week, I will also be treating it like a survivor pool and not picking the same team more than once. So far, I have used the Broncos and the Cardinals to survive the first two weeks. In this piece, I will give out my best pick, a bold pick and a popular pick to avoid.
After making it through the first two weeks alive, there are several strong options for Week 3. There are big divisional favorites like the Bills over the Dolphins and the Falcons over the Panthers, however I try my best to avoid divisional matchups as they are riper for upsets. Additionally, this early in the season, I am trying to save some of the NFL’s best teams, like the Bills and Ravens. Here are my Week 3 survivor pool picks:
Week 3 Survivor Best Pick
Packers over Browns
My favorite pick for this week is the Packers over the Browns. The Packers are proving to be one of the best teams in the NFL so far this season. While you want to save some great teams for later in the season, sometimes a spot is too good to pass up. The Packers are firing on all cylinders and coming off a Thursday Night Football game, meaning they are on extra rest. Meanwhile, the Browns have played really poorly. They couldn’t get any stops against the Ravens last week, and it will likely be the same against the Packers. Joe Flacco has not played well at quarterback, and the Browns have no real running game. The Browns could make the change to one of their rookie quarterback for a spark, and rookie Quinshon Judkins is getting up to game speed. However, at their current iteration, it’s hard to see the Browns pulling off the upset over the Packers. While Green Bay is healthy and on extra rest, this is the time to use them against a bad Browns team.
Week 3 Survivor Bold Pick
Commanders over Raiders
The Commanders are just 3.5-point favorites against the Raiders this week. While there are much bigger favorites in other spots around the league, the Commanders could be worth a play this week. The NFC East is a tough division, and it would be unwise to use the Commanders in any divisional matchup. However, this week they are at home and on extra rest after playing on Thursday Night Football last week. They took a loss to the Packers in primetime, but they were simply outclassed on the road. They will be back in Washington for this game against a Las Vegas team that has a lot of issues. The Raiders will be on short rest for this game after playing on Monday Night Football. They were dominated by the Chargers and unable to get any offense going. The Raiders rank 29th in the NFL in offensive EPA/play after Week 2 and Washington should outscore them at home on Sunday.
Week 3 Survivor Favorite to Avoid
Buccaneers over Jets
The Buccaneers have survived by the skin of their teeth through two weeks. They avoided overtime due to a missed field goal by the Falcons in Week 1, a game where they were substantially out-gained. Then in Week 2, they required a dramatic late touchdown drive in the final seconds to beat the Texans. Their offense that was so sharp last year does not look the same without Liam Coen, Tristan Wirfs and Chris Godwin. The Jets were thoroughly outclassed by the Bills in Week 2, but their offensive down-to-down numbers were still solid. There is a chance that Justin Fields will miss this game with a concussion. That would mean Tyrod Taylor would be the Jets’ starter. That is not a downgrade at quarterback, as Taylor has been one of the league’s top backups over the past few years. The offense would also look much different with Taylor than it has with Fields. That element of surprise will make it hard for the Tampa Bay defense to game plan, making this a possible upset spot in Week 3.
