NFL - 2022-2023 Season - Predictions

[ABer]

Here is my first prediction for the new season. This is the first week two game between the LA Chargers at the KC Chiefs. The Chiefs are heavily favoured to win. This gives the ascendant, its ruler and the bound lord of the ascendant degree to the Chiefs. The Chargers take the descendant, its ruler and the bound lord of the descendant degree.

My algorithm gives each side seven points. This doesn't necessarily mean a tight or tied game. It means that the algorithm outcome isn't sufficient to determine the winner. The astrologer has to come in with additional interpretation of the data.

In this case, the bound lord of the descendant in the first WSH looks promising for the Chargers. Although it is retrograde, it is moving quickly. It is strengthened by being in its own bound in a fiery sign. Venus, lord of the seventh, doesn't look so promising. It is in its fall in Virgo, in a poor house, the sixth. However, it is in its own bound which gives it some redemption. I like the fact that the antiscion of Venus is on the ascendant, and the antiscion of the ascendant is on Venus. Both of the Charger's rulers have a direct association with the Chief's house. Being a home game for the Chiefs makes this particularly relevant in my view.

The Chiefs' significators are Mars and Mercury. Mars is configured with the ascendant from the third house. This is a good placement, but is marred somewhat by being a cadent place. Mars has no dignity, but is ruled by the bound lord of the Chiefs' angle - Mercury.  Mercury is strengthened by being in its own bound, in the descendant sign - associated with the Chargers. Quarterbacks are often represented by Mercury in the chart, and on the face of it, this looks good for Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs' passer.

However, we have to dig a bit deeper here. Mercury is retrograde and slow - Mahomes is going to find it difficult to get his game going. Mars, the lord of the ascendant, is also slow. Mercury is backing away from Mars, and Mars in the bounds of Venus. Venus and Jupiter, the two classical benefics, signifying the Chargers, are moving quickly.

The Moon, indicating the passage of play, is applying by sextile to Jupiter, and then to trine Fortune. Fortune is in Leo, ruled by the Sun, and in the bounds of Venus. Note that the antiscion of the Sun conjoins Jupiter and vice versa.

In my view the Chargers are on an upset here. The astrology of this match is very similar to that of the final match of week one - Broncos at the Seahawks. In this case the fancied Broncos lost in a tight game to the Seahawks.

A tough game to start!

Postmatch

The Chiefs fought back from a ten point deficit in this one. However, my prediction was incorrect. On to the next game!

I will compare my efforts with the Pickwatch experts:

Experts 1 Astrologer 0

Afterthoughts

This game highlights the question around retrogradation. I'm fairly sure that retrogradation is not that important in sports prediction. My  algorithm only takes account of the retrograde movement of the inner planets Mercury and Venus. It could be that this is overweighted at the moment, or may not be relevant at all. Either way, a reduction in this score would have given the correct prediction. This is one to watch.

[ABer]

Bears @ Packers - 18 September 2022

This game is a Sunday night home match for the Packers. The data gives the Packers a slight advantage, although neither team seems to have clear astrological support. The Packers have Venus in their corner, and it is well placed in the fifth WSH. However it is peregrine (without dignity) and is actually its fall. Venus is in the bounds of the greater benefic Jupiter. Venus is swift in motion giving it some advantage.

The Bears have malefic Mars in their corner. Mars is also peregrine, and in the second WSH. The red planet is in the bounds of the Packers' Venus. Mars is slow but it rules the hour. This being a night chart, Mars is less malefic than it might first appear. In general, this Mars is a less favourable placement for the planet compared to the Packers' benefic Venus but it has some merits.

The Moon, indicating the flow of the match, is in its own sign and in the bounds of Venus, and moves from the square of Jupiter to the sextile of Venus. It doesn't form a relationship with Mars at all.

On balance, the Packers look to have the edge here. I tend to agree with the 96% of pundits who favour the home team. Packers to win, but perhaps not convincingly; the Packers should worry about being complacent, a potentially Venusian weakness. If the Bears do win, it will take an intensely physical effort (Mars) from them, fought over the full four quarters.

Postmatch

This looks like a relatively easy win for the Packers, having scored heavily in the second quarter of the game.

Experts 1 Astrologer 1

Running total (2 matches)

Experts 2 (100%) Astrologer 1 (50%)

[dbozics]

Welcome back Ed and thank you for posting your predictions. Wishing you a successful NFL season ahead

[ABer]

Thanks - I'm looking forward to it. I'm aiming to look at 2 or 3 games a week. Best wishes.Ed

[ABer]

Titans @ Bills - 18 September 2022

This is a Monday night match, with the Bills, hot favourites to go long in the play offs, hosting the Tennessee Titans. The Bills are clear favourites with the pundits in this game.

The astrology tends to bear this out, with the Bills' lords scoring more highly than those for the Titans. Both have Mars as the bound lord of their angle, sitting in the fourth WSH. This suggests a competitive, hard fought match with two teams who are each other's equal. The rulers of the angles, Jupiter for the Bills, Mercury for the Titans, are both in places that don't aspect the horizon by WSH. This suggests again that this may be a much more even match that the pundits anticipate.

I've discounted the retrograde motion of Mercury (weighting = 1) but even if we eliminated this variable the Bills would still be ahead.

I think the Bills will win, because of their dignified ruling planet. However, the Titans can't be counted out based on the pundits' expectations. This is likely to be a competitive, hard fought match.

Postmatch

This was a convincing win for the Bills, who are living up to their pre-season hype as genuine SB contenders.

Experts 1 Astrologer 1

Running total (3 matches)

Experts 3 (100%) Astrologer 2 (66%)

[ABer]

Vikings @ Eagles - 19 September 2022

This should be an interesting Week 2 game. Both teams have improved since last year and seem competitive. The Pickwatch pundits are evenly split on this outcome. Overall the experts favour the Eagles, but not by much.

The astrology does not give us much to go on. The Eagles, as favourites, have the lesser benefic, Venus, as a dual lord; the Vikings have Mars as dual lord.

Venus has no dignity and is, in fact, in fall, being opposite the sign of its exaltation, Pisces. Venus is well placed in the WSH fifth. Venus is moving rapidly, but is drawing closer to the Sun. It is currently under the Sun's beams.

Mars is peregrine, and in a less helpful place, being in the WSH second. This is not a disaster, but the second is not configured with the horizon so, in theory, Mars has less chance to influence the match. Mars is free of the Sun's beams. However it is moving slowly.

Interestingly, Mars is embraced by the benefics by aspect - Jupiter and Venus aspect Mars by sextile, and no other planet intervenes to disrupt this embrace. Both Venus and Jupiter are separating from Mars. Venus is faster than the slow moving Mars, and Jupiter is retrograding, albeit more slowly than Mars.

This is a very tough match to call. I agree with the pundits in the sense that this game could be won by either side. I expect a very physical game from the 'dogs (Vikings) and if they are to win they will have to overpower (Mars) the Eagles in every aspect of play. Their defensive line is likely to be the key to the game. The Eagles need to guard against complacency and will need to be highly competitive and creative (Venus) to keep the Vikings out.

In the end I will put my faith in the algorithm and say that the Eagles will win. However the Vikings have a very good chance and could upset the home team with a win.

Postmatch

An Eagles win!

Experts 1 Astrologer 1

Running total (4 matches)

Experts 4 (100%) Astrologer 3 (75%)

[dbozics]

Talk about a day of comebacks in the NFL
Jets, Dolphins & Cardinals
Your GB prediction was spot on, a win but not convincing at all! 😎

[ABer]

Bengals @ Cowboys - 18 September 2022

This is an interesting match. Although I did not offer a prediction, I was interested to see what the astrology said about the outcome. The Bengals were heavily favoured by Pickwatch pundits to win this match, with a huge 97% of them favouring the Cincinnati team. However, the astrology clearly says something different. If I had looked at this match, it is clear that the Cowboys were destined to win.

The lords for the Cowboys are Moon, ruler of the descendant, and Jupiter, bound lord of the degree of the descendant. The lord for the Bengals is Saturn, being ruler of the ascendant and bound lord of the degree.
 
Immediately we see that the Moon and Jupiter are dignified. We also see that both a well positioned with respect to the horizon - the Moon is in the descendant sign, and Jupiter is by square (WSH) with the descendant sign. This suggests that the Cowboys would have to work hard to win, but the potential is there for an upset.

Saturn is also dignified, and gets extra points for being the bound lord and ruler. However it is in the second WSH, which is not configured by aspect to the horizon. It is not the worst of the 'evil' houses, but there is no direct relationship with the horizontal axis. Interpretatively this means that Saturn although digified has a much reduced chance to influence the outcome compared to the Cowboys' Moon and Jupiter combination.

The partile trine between Moon and Fortune may also be relevant in this context.

Conclusion: a Cowboys upset is clearly indicated, despite the pundits' view that the Bengals were almost certainly going to win.

[ABer]

Thanks for the feedback. It's early days! Still loads to learn. The Bengals-Cowboys match analysis is interesting - wish I'd had a go at that one!

All the best. Ed

[dbozics]

Great round of NFL Ed 👍
Bills are looking like a Super Bowl team. I am looking forward to Packers vs Buccs game 😉

[ABer]

Week 3 Begins!

Steelers @ Browns

This is the first match of week 3. The experts are wavering on this one, with around 60% favouring the Browns. However, the astrology for this match is much clearer - the Browns will win!

The Browns have Mars as their ascendant lord and bound lord. Moreover, Mars is in its own bound. Mars is also aspecting the horizon, albeit from the declining third WSH house. This somewhat diminishes the power of Mars, but this is nevertheless a potent significator. Mars is moving slowly towards its station, but this does not seem to have decisively impacted any matches. In fact an argument could be made that it the slowness is intensifying the significance of the planet by focusing its energy on a limited range of degrees in the zodiac.

The Steelers have Venus as their dual significator. However this planet has very little support symbolically. It is not in a conducive sign, being in Virgo (fall). It is in the bounds of Mars - one could say it is 'possessed' by Mars. Venus is also drawing close to the Sun; it is now combust and in a serious state of debilitation. Most importantly the planet does not have any relationship with the horizon and cannot, therefore, influence the game. It would take a miracle from an astrological point of view for the Steelers to overturn this game and win as underdogs.

In my view the pundits are being unnecessarily cautious here - Browns to win. We'll see!

Postmatch

The Browns with a convincing win, overpowering the Steelers in the 4th quarter.

Experts 1 Astrologer 1

Running total (5 matches)

Experts 5/5 (100%) Astrologer 4/5 (80%)

[ABer]

Week 3 - Jaguars @ Chargers, 25/9/2022

This match sees the Jaguars on the road at Sofi Stadium in Los Angeles. They are playing the highly favoured LA Chargers. The Pickwatch pundits favour the Chargers to win this with 96% of experts backing them. This looks like a 'slam dunk' for the Bolts.

However, the cosmos, it seems, has other ideas. The astrological prediction has the Jags on an upset. The 'dogs have Mercury and Mars in their corner, both configured with the horizon. They have their own bound lord in their angle. Both rulers are in reception, Mars ruled by Mercury and Mercury in the bounds of Mars. Mercury is combust, but moving away from the Sun as it is retrograde in motion. It is unclear at this stage whether the retrogradation of Mercury is a factor in sports astrology. In any event, even with this factor, the Jaguars have a significant astrological advantage.

The Chargers have some support, with their lords, Jupiter and Saturn, both in dignity and configured with the horizon. Saturn is in the bounds of Jupiter.

Nevertheless, the astrology supports a Jaguars' upset. This is a real test of the algorithm. It seems unlikely that the Jags will win, given the strength of the Chargers' team, but I have to go with the cosmos on this one.

Jags to beat Chargers in shock result!

Postmatch

The Jags took the win here, as predicted.

Experts 0 Astrologer 1

Running total (6 matches)

Experts 5/6 (83%) Astrologer 5/6 (83%)

[ABer]

Week 3 - Cowboys @ Giants, 26/9/2022

The Cowboys take to the road for this week's game against the NY Giants. This is an interesting match from the pundits' point of view as they are evenly split on their choice of favourite. 51% of experts give the Giants (2-0) the edge over the Cowboys (1-1).

The astrology does favour the Giants, but with a caveat. The Giants have Mars as their ruler and Mercury as their bound lord. Both are strong by dignity. Mars remains in the bounds of Mercury, and Mars is moving slowing in Gemini ruled by Mercury. Mercury is well placed by house, but the challenge for the Giants is that Mars is not configured with the horizon. It is in the second WSH, and is not aspecting the horizon. I think this could be a major challenge for the Giants. It is also a useful test of the importance of this element of the algorithm.

The Cowboys have Venus and Mercury as their significators. Both are are combust in Virgo. Mercury has dignity by sign, but Venus is in fall. They are just past partile conjunction but remain closely aligned in the bounds of Mars. The significators are in the fifth WSH house, configured with the horizon.

I think this match is on a tight-rope. A case could be made for either side to win. The critical factor here is Mercury, the planet most closely associated with the quarterback. I expect this match to turn on the quality of play from the QBs. In the end the algorithm suggests that the Giants should win and go 3-0 so I will go with this.

Giants for the win in a tight, tense match.

Postmatch

This is a very difficult outcome to evaluate. In the end, it looks like the pundits were split 50:50 on the outcome. The Giants lost against the prediction so I will score 0-0 on the match. This outcome needs some analysis - it seems that the ill-placed Mars was a factor here, and may be under-weighted in the algorithm.

Experts 0 Astrologer 0

Running total (7 matches)

Experts 5/7 (71%) Astrologer 5/7 (71%)

[ABer]

Week 3 - 49ers @ Broncos, 25/9/2022

This is a Sunday night match. The 49ers are favoured here, with 73% of experts siding with the visiting San Francisco team.

The astrology, on the other hand, indicates that the Broncos have cosmic favour on this occasion. The Broncos have Mercury as ruler and Mars as bound lord. Importantly, the two planets are still in each others' dignities, lending mutual reinforcement. Mercury is in the bounds of Mars and Mars is in Mercury's sign. Mars is in its own bound. Both are configured with the horizon, and Mercury is in the Broncos own angle.

The 49ers have Jupiter, the greater benefic, as their ruler, with Mars as bound lord. Jupiter is ruled by Mars and in its own bounds. The challenge for the Niners is that Jupiter is not configured with the horizon, being in the WSH second, and is less able to influence the match. They have to look to the shared lord Mars for their support. Mars sits square the horizon and represents a battle of physical strength between the two teams. This will be a tough match.

In the end, this match turns on the skills of Russell Wilson, the Broncos' new QB. Mercury is the alchemist and generally represents the role of QBs in charts. If Russell Wilson can find his rhythm, he will be the difference between the two sides. Wilson has not had a strong start with his new team, but this might be his breakout match, especially if his offensive line can use their strength to give him enough protection.

Another upset prediction then - Broncos come out on top in a tough match.

Postmatch

The Broncos came through in this match, against the pundits' prediction. Another good result for astrology!

Experts 0 Astrologer 1

Running total (8 matches)

Experts 5/8 (62%) Astrologer 6/8 (75%)

[dbozics]

Incredible Ed, awesome prediction on the Chargers game.
I took the Chargers in my tipping comp. Lesson learnt never go against the cosmos 😉
It’s looking like a week of upsets with Colts, Packers, Dolphins, Jags and hopefully Broncos all winning
Cheers