Those who play NFL survivor pools are quickly learning in 2024 to stop picking the most obvious answers.
Survivor pools are one of the most popular games that can be played throughout a football season. The premise is simple — pick one team every week that you believe will win, and you stay alive. In most leagues, it is restricted so that you can only pick a team once during the regular season. However, you're eliminated as soon as you pick wrong even once.
For the second consecutive week, the most popular selection did not come through for their users, as Baltimore fell 26-23 to Las Vegas. The loss stunned NFL fans, and eliminated nearly a third of entries in the popular fantasy game.
After the Bengals were stunned by the Patriots in Week 1 , the Ravens lost on a go-ahead field goal by Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson in the final minute, dropping Lamar Jackson and Co. to 0-2 on the season. Baltimore was hoping to bounce back after a close loss to Patrick Mahomes and Kansas City in the NFL season opener, but instead dropped to 0-2.
While the Ravens have a week to regroup before their next challenge — a matchup in Dallas against the 1-1 Cowboys — the same can't be said for those who rallied behind John Harbuagh's team. For those who picked the Ravens in their survivor pools, it marks the end of their competition.
MORE: Why the Ravens-Raiders game was delayed in Week 2
Just how many people picked the Ravens in survivor pools? The Sporting News has the answer.
How many people picked Ravens in NFL survivor pools?
Another week, another top pick in NFL survivor pools disappointed.
The Ravens were the most popular pick among a number of platforms for the survivor pool competitions, including a whopping 40 percent on Cover , 29 percent on Yahoo Sports , and 29 percent in CircaSports . It put thousands out of the fun in just the second week of action.
Like the Patriots in Week 1, the Raiders were also one of the least-picked teams in the competition, meaning that there were only a few people whose bold dare to take Las Vegas paid off.
NFL survivor Week 2 picks grid: Best and most popular picks
This is what TSN's Sloan Piva had to say on the Ravens-Raiders game, who pointed out the trend connecting the game with the Bengals-Patriots last week.
The first thing that comes to mind after checking out the grid: Baltimore has PoolGenius's top odds and ranks as the most popular pick in Week 1. That's notable, because Cincinnati had the top win probability and biggest popularity last week, and the Bengals ultimately lost to New England. Thirty-seven percent of survivor-pool entrants either got eliminated or took their first strike of the season.
Here was how the NFL survivor Week 2 picks grid for The Sporting News looked like entering Week 2.
All odds and data courtesy of PoolGenius .
| Team | PG odds | Popularity |
| Ravens vs. Raiders | 80% | 31% |
| Lions vs. Buccaneers | 80% | 5% |
| Texans vs. Bears | 72% | 10% |
| Cowboys vs. Saints | 71% | 5% |
| Chiefs vs. Bengals | 69% | 3% |
| Eagles vs. Falcons | 69% | 8% |
| Chargers at Panthers | 68% | 21% |
| 49ers at Vikings | 68% | 3% |
| Jets at Titans | 64% | 3% |
| Colts at Packers | 62% | 2% |
| Seahawks at Patriots | 61% | 1% |
| Jaguars vs. Browns | 59% | 2% |
| Dolphins vs. Bills (L) | 56% | 0% |
| Commanders vs. Giants | 52% | 3% |
| Steelers at Broncos | 52% | 1% |
| Cardinals vs. Rams | 50% | 0% |
| Rams at Cardinals | 50% | 1% |
| Broncos vs. Steelers | 48% | 0% |
| Giants at Commanders | 44% | 0% |
| Bills at Dolphins (W) | 44% | 0% |
| Browns at Jaguars | 41% | 0% |
| Patriots vs. Seahawks | 39% | 0% |
| Packers vs. Colts | 38% | 0% |
| Titans vs. Jets | 36% | 0% |
| Vikings vs. 49ers | 32% | 0% |
| Panthers vs. Chargers | 32% | 0% |
| Falcons at Eagles | 31% | 0% |
| Bengals at Chiefs | 31% | 0% |
| Saints at Cowboys | 29% | 0% |
| Bears at Texans | 28% | 0% |
| Raiders at Ravens | 20% | 0% |
| Buccaneers at Lions | 20% | 0% |
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