By Peyton Schultze

All eyes will be on the Los Angeles Lakers in the early stretch of the season with the addition of Russell Westbrook to an established, veteran team (via FanDuel).

With all four major sports in action in the upcoming week, we’ve decided to combine the biggest events in sports into one major release. With our Week 7 Weekly Wonder combining with season previews for the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Kings, we present our first annual “Oktoberfest” issue as the weather starts to change and championship aspirations heighten.

Week 7 Weekly Wonder Game Picks

Despite some early first-half struggles, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs were able to escape Washington with a key win to keep their playoff hopes alive in the AFC (via Sports Illustrated).

⭐ *Game of the Week*

Sunday: Kansas City (-4.5) @ Tennessee, 10:00 am PT, CBS

It has been such an up-and-down season for Kansas City through the first six weeks, even with each and every quarter played so far. Take last week, for example: Quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw one of the ugliest interceptions of his career in the first half, yet responded with some prolific play in the second half to get Kansas City a crucial win. Unfortunately, their opponent this week has similar tendencies that make them unpredictable from week-to-week, setting up what could be a wild Week 7 matchup between these two teams. Yet Tennessee has played Mahomes and the Chiefs very well since he became the full-time starter and are just coming off a big home win over the Bills, spelling some concerns if the Chiefs will once again fall under .500 on the season. The Chiefs will move the ball easily on offense against this putrid Titans defense, but expect Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry to gash the Kansas City defense all day long on Sunday as well. This game could easily come down to a time of possession affair, and with the Titans always looming as a lethal threat on the ground and with their solid play-action passing game, they actually have a slight advantage at home this weekend between two AFC playoff hopefuls.

Tennessee: 34 Kansas City: 31

⚡ *Upset of the Week*

Sunday: Carolina (-3.0) @ New York G. , 10:00 am PT, FOX

The status of quarterback Daniel Jones came as a late weekend surprise for the Giants, but it did not show up as a positive impact whatsoever in a blowout loss for the G-Men. However, New York had played slightly better football recently before the Jones injury was suffered in Dallas, while the Carolina Panthers are going in the complete opposite direction after three straight losses. Playing this game in the ever-so-friendly confines of the Meadowlands seems to only help make this upset pick even easier for the Giants, especially if this defense can force Sam Darnold into some of the recent struggles that the Panthers’ offense has faced recently. If Jones can cut down on the turnovers that plagued this team last week against the Rams, the Giants seem like they could walk away from Week 7 with a key win to keep their fringe playoff hopes alive in the NFC East.

New York G.: 27 Carolina: 20

🔒 *Pick of the Week*

Sunday: Cincinnati @ Baltimore (-6.5), 10:00 am PT, CBS

Cincinnati has been one of the surprise stories of the 2021 season so far, but one has to wonder just how much more early season magic this team has left. That will certainly be put to the test against Lamar Jackson and the Ravens, a team that has completely dominated the Bengals during Jackson’s tenure and looked as good as they have all season long on defense last weekend against the Chargers. The Bengals may be able to limit a Ravens’ passing attack that has feasted on defenses as of late, but containing this overpowering Baltimore rushing attack has been a problem for every defense so far this season. This may be a true wakeup call for Bengals’ fans on Sunday, and we’ll take the Ravens in a huge victory to keep them in a prime position at the top of the AFC North.

Baltimore: 34 Cincinnati: 23

🚨 *Stay-Away Game*

Washington @ Green Bay (-9.5), 10:00 am PT, FOX

Green Bay’s slow starts on offense in the first halves of games this season makes this a very scary spread to tackle face on, especially after Washington competed with the Chiefs last weekend until Kansas City finally controlled the game late in the 4th quarter. Yet the concern for this game remains that extra half-point in the spread, which could really come back to bite potential bettors interested in this game. The hope is that Washington’s defensive concerns continue this weekend against one of the best offenses in the league with the Packers, yet Green Bay has proven to at least play down to their opponents quite a bit so far in the 2021 season. Although Aaron Rodgers and the Pack should be able to win this game outright, this may be an easy choice for a stay-away game in this NFC battle, and it would not be a surprise if Washington took this game down to the final minutes inside of Lambeau Field on Sunday.

Green Bay: 27 Washington: 21

Los Angeles Lakers Preview

Frank Vogel once again leads a Lakers’ charge headlined by LeBron James as they seek their second title in the past three seasons (via Silver Screen and Roll).

Head Coach: Frank Vogel

Projected Starting 5:

PG Russell Westbrook

SG Talen Horton-Tucker * injured

SF Trevor Ariza * injured

PF LeBron James

C Anthony Davis

Bench:

PG Rajon Rondo

PG Kendrick Nunn

SG Avery Bradley

SG Austin Reaves

SG Wayne Ellington

SG Malik Monk

SF Kent Bazemore

SF Sekou Doumbouya

PF Carmelo Anthony

C Dwight Howard

C DeAndre Jordan

The Lakers feature at least four future Hall of Fame players, giving them a real chance at separating themselves from other contenders in the Western Conference this season (via Silver Screen and Roll).

The Lakers did not finish the 2020-2021 season the way they wanted to whatsoever.

After countless regular season injuries and barely squandering into the playoffs with a narrow play-in victory over the Golden State Warriors on a clutch go-ahead three from LeBron James, the Lakers stumbled into the playoffs against the eventual Western Conference champion Phoenix Suns. As the 7th seed in the conference and after building an initial 2-1 series lead, the Lakers then lost three consecutive games to Devin Booker and company to give the Suns an easy path toward the NBA Finals and cutting the Lakers’ disappointing season very short.

So general manager Rob Pelinka went out and acquired All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook to help command this Los Angeles charge for the 2021-2022 season, one that Laker fans are hoping ends in the organization’s record-breaking 18th world title. Westbrook adds a certain pedigree of leadership and intensity that this Laker team seamed to lack throughout last season, especially as the franchise’s two premier cornerstones in James and Anthony Davis dealt with major injuries that kept them out for significant amounts of time. But Los Angeles didn’t just stop at adding Westbrook, bringing aboard the legendary scoring prowess of Carmelo Anthony in addition to a ragtag group of former Lakers and key veterans such as Trevor Ariza, Dwight Howard, Malik Monk, Rajon Rondo, DeAndre Jordan and Wayne Ellington.

However, that doesn’t mean that the Lakers did not deal with some significant losses over the course of the offseason. In the deal for Westbrook, the Lakers parted ways with two cogs from their championship team in the bubble with Kyle Kuzma and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, while also losing fan favorite Alex Caruso to the Chicago Bulls in free agency. While the team will especially miss the defensive presence of Caldwell-Pope and Caruso, the Lakers were able to bring back promising young guard Talen Horton-Tucker in an attempt to keep some key young pieces on-board, but they will be without “THT” for at least the first month of the season with a hurt thumb. This places even more of an emphasis on the Lakers’ concerns across their roster regarding their average age, as many veteran players with taxed minutes over the course of their careers will be forced into action early this season and with some major minutes on their shoulders, especially in the cases of James and Anthony.

This turns the attention toward head coach Frank Vogel’s biggest concern of the 2021-2022 season: the health of Anthony Davis. As AD likely makes a transition toward the center position after putting on some pounds in the offseason, the Lakers will desperately need their star to stay on the court and emerge as the team’s top option on offense over the course of the entire season. LeBron will continue to do what he’s always done and dominate the game at nearly every level, while Westbrook will bring much-needed energy to the court on a nightly basis despite key limitations from behind the arc, but Davis will be the key to getting this Lakers’ team over the top in the upcoming season. If he can play at least 70 games this season and average around 28 points per game and 9 rebounds over the course of the year, there is a strong chance that the Purple and Gold could enter the postseason as a top-two team in the conference with their eyes set on postseason success as representatives of the sport’s most polished organization.

First Game: October 19th, 2021 vs Golden State Warriors (STAPLES Center)

Team Record Prediction: 57-25

Los Angeles Kings Preview

The Kings still have their veteran core featuring Drew Doughty and Dustin Brown, two players who are a key part of the leadership of this team (via LA Kings Insider).

Head Coach: Todd McLellan

Goalies:

Cal Petersen

Jonathan Quick

Defense:

Drew Doughty (A)

Matt Roy

Mikey Anderson

Sean Walker

Olli Maatta

Alexander Edler

Tobias Bjornfot

Forwards:

Anze Kopitar (C)

Dustin Brown (A)

Phillip Danault

Alex Iafallo

Carl Grundstrom

Adrian Kempe

Trevor Moore

Viktor Arvidsson

Andreas Athanasiou

Lias Andersson

Jaret Anderson-Dolan

Arthur Kaliyev

Austin Wagner

Vladimir Tkachev

Gabriel Vilardi

Rasmus Kupari

Brendan Lemieux

Blake Lizotte

Quinton Byfield * injured

Anze Kopitar is still one of the best forwards in hockey, as evident in his opening night hat trick against the Golden Knights (via Heavy).

In one last stretch with their key veteran players at the helm, the end may be near for the Los Angeles Kings.

Or maybe it’s just the beginning of a new generation of Kings’ hockey, with some of the team’s older names continuing to age and produce on their last legs with help from many of their young guns. That is exactly where the Kings find themselves entering the 2021-2022 season, as playoff expectations have settled in and created some urgency to get back into the playoffs after a big offseason that helped to add to their goal scoring depth. A similar shift of ideology within the team’s roster has already begun at goaltender, with Cal Petersen stepping into the team’s primary goalie role over Los Angeles legend Jonathan Quick, and Los Angeles expects Petersen to be even better this year than he has shown in some of the past several seasons.

Yet this Kings’ team is still foundationally set by their legendary trio of Anze Kopitar, Drew Doughty, and Dustin Brown. Those three headline the organization as longtime members, with Kopitar continuing to show why he is still one of the best players in the league, but all three appear to be in one of the final runs of their careers. However, in comparison to prior seasons where Kopitar and Brown have had to carry the offense, the Kings went out in the offseason and acquired Viktor Arvidsson and Phillip Danault to help boost their scoring numbers. These two scorers, in addition names like Alex Iafallo and Adrian Kempe, will help take the load of Kopitar and Brown especially, while Doughty can help lead the defense in the back end with studs such as Tobias Bjornfot, Mikey Anderson, and Matt Roy.

So will the Kings be a contender in the Western Conference this season? It seems unlikely, but fans will be desperate for at least a playoff appearance after several years of mediocrity in the conference. In addition, with an exciting crop of young players such as currently-injured forward Quinton Byfield, Los Angeles should only continue to get better over the course of the season. It is finally time for the Kings to get back to their winning ways, and with a wide open Pacific Division full of fringe contenders, this is their best shot in years of competing for a Stanley Cup.