Tom Sorensen’s NFL picks: Honest, ethical because of you

I’ll make my picks all season in this space unless I get injured, in which case Jonathan Jones will grudgingly take over. So I won’t get injured.

I pick every game every week and include a Lock. The Lock is the lone game in which the line technically is involved. A Lock is all but a guarantee. Unlike the touts, I’ll admit when I get it wrong. I do that because I’m ethical and because you’d remember.

When there’s a Thursday game, I’ll pick it via Twitter or in the previous Sunday’s column. Last Sunday, I picked New England to beat Pittsburgh by 4.

The home team is in CAPS.

Carolina 23 JACKSONVILLE 17: Since the season-ending training camp injury to top receiver Kelvin Benjamin, the Panthers fan base has manufactured reasons to panic. The Panthers don’t have a No. 1 receiver so they must go out and sign somebody famous no matter how old he is. I’ve heard peripheral fans say it. I’ve heard people that know football say it, too. How many times have people said or written that Philly Brown was going to be cut? He was never going to be cut. I wrote that. He was going to start. I wrote that, too. The Panthers will be fine. They’ll be fine enough to beat Jacksonville, anyway, and isn’t that what matters to most of you?

Lock of the week

Indianapolis (minus-2½) 27, BUFFALO 20: If Rex Ryan magic existed he’d still be working in New York.

The rest

There’s no place like home doesn’t apply this week. Eight road teams are favored and I have nine of them winning.

Green Bay 27, CHICAGO 16

Kansas City 21, HOUSTON 20

Seattle 23, ST. LOUIS 17

N.Y. JETS 13, Cleveland 9

Miami 26, WASHINGTON 17

ARIZONA 29, New Orleans 20

SAN DIEGO 30, Detroit 23

Cincinnati 20, OAKLAND 16

DENVER 31, Baltimore 23

TAMPA BAY 17, Tennessee 16

DALLAS 31, N.Y. Giants 20

Philadelphia 33, ATLANTA 30

Minnesota 17, SAN FRANCISCO 16

This story was originally published September 12, 2015 at 2:30 PM.