It was a week of inevitabilities…
Confusing nicknames
I’m not sure how many times I’ve repeated this, but you can tack on one more: The picks sheet had a few self-applied nicknames on there that were not entirely obvious. The winner was “Crazy Franklin Face.” Not far off was “NostraTIMus,” which I thought was Dad’s at first. At least Joe had the presence-of-mind (worst sports term, by the way) to attempt a far-fetched nickname, but also provide his actual name: “Ochocinco (Joe).” No points for poetry, but much appreciated nonetheless.
Ciara, zero points
If I had to draw up a ratio such as this one – “Total computer usage: Amount of picks submitted” – and apply it to every player, Ciara’s career score would be astronomically high. I would literally LOL at how high it would be. In fact, her score for this season would be undefined! Don’t be surprised if you find me ROTFL over that.
Pat, first place
My only regret is twice picking incorrectly.
Patriots 25, Bills 24
That’s 12-in-a-row over Buffalo. My favorite part: The Bills finding yet another improbable way to blow a Monday night game. My other favorite part: The uniforms…and the fact that they were referred to as the “Boston Patriots” all night. But my real favorite part: Tom Brady telling his teammates in the huddle that they were going to win, despite being down 11 with 5:32 to go.
But my actual favorite part: After the final preseason game, I had the displeasure of recording Ben Watson’s post-game interview with the media, when they were not-so-subtly insinuating that he might be cut. He just stood there dejectedly and said things like this: “Whatever happens, happens. You have to prepare your family for anything.”
A week-and-a-half later, this happened.
McManus Picks 
I hope you figured out who Nannie Jr was