While the football future of Tua Tagovailoa is up in the air, we know that he won't be under center on Sunday, with Skylar Thompson getting the start instead. That has many circling the Seahawks with Week 3 NFL knockout pool picks since Miami will fly cross-country to visit Seattle with the inexperienced Thompson under center. He has made three previous starts, failing to throw a TD in the first two and tossing two picks in the third. Meanwhile, Seattle is off to a 2-0 start, so there are plenty of factors to consider for your Week 3 NFL survivor pool picks.
Seattle's two victories have come against two of the poorest offenses in the league, Denver and New England. With Miami also boasting top-five rankings in total defense and passing defense, it is no guarantee to drop its second straight game. Scanning the Week 3 NFL schedule may present other alternatives for your Week 3 NFL eliminator pool picks. Before finalizing any Week 3 NFL survivor picks, you need to see which team proven expert R.J. White is backing.
White has been SportsLine's No. 1 NFL against-the-spread expert over the last seven years, going 643-543-34 against the spread to put him up more than 46 units on those picks at SportsLine since 2017. He has also delivered a 56.7% hit rate on his Vegas contest picks over the last nine seasons and has two finishes in the money, including finishing 18th out of 2,748 entries back in 2017.
His advice can be used to crush the Survivor Pool format, which calls for picking one team to win each week but never using the same team twice. In Week 1, White correctly recommended to avoid the Bengals, who lost to the Patriots as 8.5-point favorites. Instead, White picked the Saints, who beat the Panthers by 37 points in the most lopsided game of the week. Then in Week 2, he avoided the Ravens, who lost to the Raiders as 8.5-point favorites, and instead backed the Texans, who defeated the Bears.
Anyone who followed his advice avoided two of the biggest NFL upsets of the season and advanced to Week 3.
Now, White has turned his attention to the latest Week 3 NFL odds and locked in his Week 3 survivor pool pick. You can only see who White is backing this week at SportsLine.
Top Week 3 NFL survivor pool predictions
In Week 3 of the 2024 NFL season, White is avoiding the Bengals (-7.5, 48.5), even though they are the biggest favorite of the week. Last week, the Commanders had everything go against them versus the Giants, and Washington still found a way to win. The Commanders became the first team in NFL history to not score a touchdown, allow three-plus TDs, and still win in regulation in a 21-18 victory. Teams that still find ways to triumph despite so many circumstances not in their favor aren't the teams you want to pick to lose in NFL survivor pools.
The Bengals have their own warts which make them a risky play this week. They had more total yards, two fewer turnovers, had more time of possession and were better on third downs than the Chiefs last week but still managed to lose. For the season, Cincy is one-dimensional on offense, ranking 30th in rushing, and it has lost the most fumbles (three) in the league. The Bengals may turn things around at some point, but guessing that point will be in Week 3 is too much of a risk as White is steering clear of Cincy in NFL survivor pools. See which team to pick instead here.
How to make Week 3 NFL survivor pool picks
Instead, White is backing a team whose opponent "cannot move the ball." The time to pick this team is now, and you can only see the play over at SportsLine.
Which team is a must-back in your Week 3 NFL survivor pool? Visit SportsLine now to see which team carries you to victory in Week 3, all from the expert who avoided the Bengals in Week 1 and Ravens in Week 2 and is up almost 50 units on ATS picks.
