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CSC Staff Picks, Week 17: Saints expected to win, but playoff position unclear

Here are our staff picks, including mixed predictions of the Saints playoff seeding

By Chris Dunnells
Carolina Panthers v New Orleans Saints Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images

With the 2020 NFL season now entering Week 17, we’re continuing our new weekly bit where some of the staff here at Canal Street Chronicles tries to pick winners and losers for every NFL game each week.

In Week 16, the New Orleans Saints were able to clinch their fourth-consecutive NFC South title by beating the Minnesota Vikings on Christmas Day. Unfortunately, the rest of the week’s slate of game didn’t help the Saints too much, but a win by the Seattle Seahawks over the Los Angeles Rams at least set up the Saints with an opportunity to wind up with the #1 seed in the NFC.

The CSC staff is torn on whether that will actually happen, with the staff unanimously picking the Saints to beat the Carolina Panthers and the Seahawks to beat the San Francisco 49ers, but expectations are mixed on the Chicago Bears’s ability to upset the Green Bay Packers.

Here are our live-updating picks:

We have another guest this week joining us to make selections, and this week, and this week it’s Rachel Whittaker Jones, a sports journalist pursuing a master’s degree in public relations through the University of Florida.

Here are Rachel’s picks this week:

Saints over Panthers; Bills over Dolphins; Ravens over Bengals; Browns over Steelers; Vikings over Lions; Patriots over Jets; Giants over Cowboys; Bucs over Falcons; Packers over Bears; Raiders over Broncos; Colts over Jaguars; Chargers over Chiefs; Titans over Texans; Cardinals over Rams; Seahawks over 49ers; Washington over Eagles

Here’s how past guests have done:

  • Former Saints cornerback Delvin Breaux, Week 1: 12-4 (.750)
  • Former Saints General Manager Randy Mueller, Week 2: 13-3 (.813)
  • True Blood actress Kristin Bauer, Week 3: 7-8-1 (.467)
  • The Athletic’s Jeff Duncan, Week 4: 8-7-1 (.500)
  • Former WWE superstar “Kelly Kelly,” Week 5: 9-5-1 (.643)
  • SB Nation’s Jeanna Kelley, Week 6: 7-7 (.500)
  • Former CSC Managing Editor Dave Cariello, Week 7: 9-5 (.643)
  • Former LSU offensive lineman T-Bob Hebert, Week 8: 7-7 (.500)
  • Sports Illustrated John Hendrix, Week 9: 10-4 (.714)
  • Former Saints linebacker Nate Stupar, Week 10: 6-8 (.429)
  • Hall of Famer Morten Andresen, Week 11: 6-8 (.429)
  • Bold and the Beautiful’s Windsor Hamilton, Week 12: 11-5 (.688)
  • ESPN’s Bomani Jones, Week 13: 9-6 (.600)
  • Big D & Bubba’s “Bubba,” Week 14: 11-5 (.688)
  • WAFB’s Farrah Yvette, Week 15: 11-5 (.688)
  • Deadly Class’s Benjamin Wadsworth, Week 16: 10-6 (.625)

Check back next week as we continue our weekly selections. Special shoutout to Rachel Jones for joining us this week. Check out her New Orleans Saints blog at http://rachelwjones.me, and stay tuned for her upcoming podcast, Black and Gold Rush, launching in 2021! Follow Rachel on Twitter @RachelW504.

Also, thanks to Tallysight for helping keep track with all of our picks each week and offering this super awesome graphic.

Make sure you follow Canal Street Chronicles on Twitter at @SaintsCSC, on Instagram @SaintsCSC, “Like” us on Facebook at Canal Street Chronicles, and make sure you’re subscribed to our new YouTube channel.

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