Thursday Night Football, Bills vs. Jets picks, picks against the spread, open thread

Thursday Night Football is back and it is a potentially entertaining game. The Buffalo Bills, led by head coach Rex Ryan, take on the New York Jets, whom Ryan coached until he was fired this last offseason. The Jets now have Todd Bowles as their head coach, whom we know well as he was the defensive coordinator for the Cardinals for two seasons.

Jets starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick played for the Bills. Linebacker IK Enemkpali was cut by the Jets when he punched Geno Smith and broke his jaw. He was then signed by the Bills and he will be an honorary captain for the game. Fun!

The two teams are evenly matched, both being strong defensively. New York has a vet leader in Fitzpatrick and a dynamic receiver in Brandon Marshall.

What are our picks for this game as a staff? We are heavily leaning toward the Jets.

Jess Root: Jets
Seth Cox: Jets
Jesse Reynolds: Jets (he says it is a tossup)
Shaun Church: Jets
Michael Ferguson: Bills
Randy Fields: Jets
Tyler Derby: Jets
Alex Mann: Jets
Robert Norman: Jets

At least it is not a unanimous pick, as this always seems to be a bad omen.

In terms of the spread, the Jets are 2.5-point favorites at home. Because they seem to be more steady than the Bills, I think they are the better bet. Jets -2.5.

Now use this as our open thread. Go Jets! We all want Todd Bowles to win, right?