# Sam Kienzle: Iowa Sam had the Patriots winning and covering 20-13 in Denver and the Rams winning outright at Seattle 24-21, sticking with their preseason pick of the Rams as Super Bowl champions. They also took the Falcons for most wins next season. **Claimed:** Jan 24, 2026 **Pundit:** Sam Kienzle — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/sam-kienzle **Outlet:** The Dan Patrick Show (podcast) — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/the-dan-patrick-show-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air or in an interview **Original:** https://omny.fm/shows/covinoandrich/hour-2-championship-picks-abba-brainwave 4 claims — 2 score predictions, 1 season win total and 1 super bowl pick — the 3 we can check each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call. It names 3 players and teams, each linked to their own record. All 3 calls we can check have settled, averaging 46 out of 100, against 47.7 for a naive guess at the same calls. The other one was too vague to check, so it is not graded. > I picked the La Rams as a Super Bowl champion. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Los Angeles Rams 24 — Seattle 21** - Kind: Score Predictions · About: Los Angeles Rams - Verdict: scored 47.62 out of 100, against 95.3 for a naive guess - Line: Closing line (Jan 25, 2026): Seahawks by 2.5, total 45.5 · this 24–21 calls a Rams win (by 3; the line gave the Rams 44%) and fewer points (45). Source: nflverse; context only, never part of the grade. - **Los Angeles Rams to win the Super Bowl** - Kind: Super Bowl Picks · About: Los Angeles Rams - Verdict: scored 0 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess - **New England Patriots 20 — Broncos 13** - Kind: Score Predictions · About: New England Patriots - Verdict: scored 90.48 out of 100, against 47.69 for a naive guess - Line: Closing line (Jan 25, 2026): Patriots by 3.5, total 43.5 · this 20–13 calls a bigger Patriots win (by 7) and fewer points (33). Graded on the margin called, not on the spread. Source: nflverse; context only, never part of the grade. - “I mean, I'm gonna go with the Falcons because if they have beat On Robinson and they have a head coach” - Kind: Season Win Totals · About: Atlanta Falcons - Verdict: too vague to check ## Who this take is about - Los Angeles Rams — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/rams - New England Patriots — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/patriots - Atlanta Falcons — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/falcons ## What others said about the same people - Alex Curry on Kirk Cousins: Curry expects Fernando Mendoza to be taken No. 1 overall by the Raiders and to be thrown into the starting lineup immediately, and they say Kirk Cousins will be released by Atlanta within weeks. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2c6097f9-30ad-42dc-863f-e507225b7edc (scored 100) - Alex Curry on Kirk Cousins: Curry expects Fernando Mendoza to be the No. 1 overall pick and land with the Raiders, and they say Kirk Cousins will be released by Atlanta. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/1c269ea1-7c35-4039-827d-ec1130aa0e04 (scored 100) - JP Acosta on Kirk Cousins: Acosta expects John Harbaugh's Giants to jump to roughly seven wins in year one, and forecast several offseason moves: Aaron Rodgers returning to Pittsburgh, Daniel Jones returning to the Colts, Kirk Cousins being released by Atlanta, and Brandon Aiyuk leaving San Francisco. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/17ab1ec5-a2f1-41c6-a6df-a0e6d949351b (scored 100) - Gregg Rosenthal on Kirk Cousins: Rosenthal gave their award ballot: Drake May atop their MVP list (though they expect Matthew Stafford to actually win), Myles Garrett for Defensive Player of the Year, Bijan Robinson for Offensive Player of the Year, Tetairoa McMillan for Offensive Rookie of the Year, Carson Schwesinger for Defensive Rookie of the Year, Mike Macdonald for Coach of the Year and Broncos O-line coach Zach Strief for Assistant Coach of the Year. They also expect Kirk Cousins to be cut by Atlanta. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d3a0da31-6e2f-4298-b5a5-b887333d3fd6 (scored 100) - Colin Cowherd on Matthew Stafford: Cowherd predicts Matt Stafford stays with the Rams rather than moving on, and says Travis Hunter may underachieve because they're being asked to play both ways — Cowherd doubts they're a No. 1 receiver and would slot them as a No. 2 receiver while being a No. 1 corner. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/005e6ad1-bc95-49da-9db2-3a9da2d5041d (scored 100) - Colin Cowherd on Matthew Stafford: Cowherd believes Matt Stafford's public negotiation posturing means he ultimately stays in Los Angeles, and he flags Travis Hunter as a high draft pick who could underachieve because trying to play both cornerback and receiver full-time will hurt him. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2c1faeb3-7adb-456d-bd42-275be95269e8 (scored 100) ## More score predictions The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Jordan Dajani on Washington Commanders: Dajani picks the Commanders to edge the Giants 21-20 on Thursday and the Chiefs to beat the Falcons 26-20 in Week 10. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/46f7646f-2c64-4827-a522-67975af79fb6 (scored 95.24) - Tyler Sullivan on Washington Commanders: Sullivan takes the Commanders 24-21 over the Giants on Thursday night and calls for a Steelers upset of the Bengals, 27-24, in Week 10. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/1bb32676-c3b3-4b8e-8a03-b58396cf98bf (scored 100) - Pete Prisco on New York Giants: Prisco picks the Giants to beat the Commanders 23-14 on Thursday night and the Lions to beat the Patriots 30-24 in Munich. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/e142b910-0967-4de9-9429-c342bc079205 (scored 35.71) - John Breech on Washington Commanders: Breech picks the Commanders to upset the Giants on Thursday night, 24-17, and takes the Texans to beat the Browns 24-16 in Week 10 behind a pass rush that should batter Deshaun Watson. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/9fddc8e1-3823-4252-bdd7-f81ef11b1da3 (scored 90.48) - Jared Dubin on New York Giants: Dubin picks the Giants to beat the Commanders 20-14 on Thursday night and takes the Packers over the Vikings 17-14 in a low-scoring Week 10 game. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/04562aeb-eccf-4266-be8e-32a3aacfd6fc (scored 42.86) - Jared Dubin on New York Giants: Dubin picks the Giants to beat the Commanders at home on Thursday night, projecting a 20-14 final score. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b6c19276-74df-4775-8a6e-f67c6d94b773 (scored 42.86) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=sam-kienzle