Excuse me? There’s no way Man is losing to Man’s best friend, Luna the Maltipoo.
So said USA TODAY’s Tyler Dragon when he and the dog met this week in Southern California. They’re battling down to the wire – the Super Bowl – in USA TODAY’s NFL pick ‘em contest that pits Man vs. Machine vs. Dog.
The Machine, a computer-run statistic model created by University of Pittsburgh associate professional Kostra Pelechrinis, is out of the running. So is USA TODAY’s Jarrett Bell.
Luna is 11-1 on her picks. Tyler is 8-4. But with a March Madness-style scoring system in use, Tyler has kept in striking distance.
Tyler has picked the Eagles. Luna has picked the Chiefs. The correct prediction will determine the contest champion.
Expert Super Bowl picks: Unique betting insights only at USA TODAY.
“Luna, it’s nice to finally meet you,’ Tyler told her during a recent meeting. ‘But there’s no way in heck I’m losing to a dog.’
We’ll see about that. Bring on the Super Bowl!
Our experts’ results, NFL playoff picks
How the ‘machine’ and Luna make their picks
Want more? See these data-driven hot picks
The scoring system
Devised by NFL predictions expert David Glidden, it will work like this:
Each week, the competitors will turn in full brackets with picks for games in every round, including the Super Bowl. A perfect bracket from start to finish would earn 1,000 points, but competitors likely will have to adjust those brackets week to week.
Thirty points will be earned for each team correctly picked to win a wild card game, 35 points for a Divisional round game, 50 points for a Conference championship game and 75 points for the Super Bowl.
Then we’ll have an official winner and the answer to our burning question: Is it Man, Machine or Dog who we can trust most with NFL playoff predictions?
Let the games and predictions begin!
Odds for Sunday’s playoff games
Below are BetMGM’s betting lines for next weekend’s games as of Thursday morning. A plus before the number signifies the amount a bettor would win on a $100 bet. A minus signifies the amount a bettor must bet to win $100.
Washington Commanders (+240) at Philadelphia Eagles (-300) favored by 6 points
Buffalo Bills (+110) at Kansas City Chiefs (-130) favored by 2 points