Total Pro Sports
ESPN’s computer model has switched its Super Bowl 60 pick ahead of the Divisional Round.
The NFL wrapped up its Wild Card Round on Monday night as the Houston Texans defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers to progress.
They join the Los Angeles Rams, Chicago Bears, Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers and New England Patriots as teams moving on to the next round.
The Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks await, having secured a first-round bye.
ESPN’s Football Power Index had the Seahawks winning last week, but changed its pick as of Monday.
It’s now predicting that the Rams will lift the Lombardi Trophy next month. The model has given the Rams a 20 percent chance to win, which is higher than any other team in the playoffs.
The model, which updates daily, executes 10,000 simulations of the remaining season using multiple factors. Those include results to date and the upcoming schedules.
“The Football Power Index (FPI) is a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance going forward for the rest of the season. FPI represents how many points above or below average a team is,” ESPN says.
The Rams will play the Bears this Sunday following their thrilling win over the Carolina Panthers last Saturday.
Chicago is coming off an even bigger thriller.
Ben Johnson’s side fought back from an 18-point deficit to beat the Green Bay Packers in one of the most impressive playoff wins in recent memory. He will hope to get off to a better start on Sunday.
But ESPN’s model has the Rams winning this one and going all the way.
