(*) Denotes Best Bets
Tennessee (0-2) @ nyj (2-0) -2.5
The Titans are in desperate need of a win and they are way too good of a team to start 0-3 while the Jets are bound to come back to earth sooner or later and what better time than following a huge emotional win over division foe New England.
*Titans 20-16
nyj 24-17
Holy crap Mark Sanchez. God I hate that he plays for “them”. “They” just happen to look like they are for real. That defense is just fun to watch which is painful to say. So much for desperation as the Titans fall again knowing full well that no team has ever made it to the Super Bowl starting 0-3 while only 3 teams have ever even made it to the postseason.
Jacksonville (0-2) @ Houston (1-1) -3.5
Houston found their groove offensively and the Jags have struggled in all areas especially defensively where the Cardinals lit them up last week. Matt Schaub will do the same this week.
*Texans 27-17
JAGUARS 31-24
Maurice Jones-Drew ran wild scoring 3 touchdowns including a 61 yarder giving the difficult to guage Jags their much needed 1st victory. Equally confusing Houston has looked great at times offensively while their defense just can’t seem to stop anyone. Costly turnovers held the Texans to 24 points including a late goalline fumble costing them a chance for OT.
NY Giants (2-0) @ Tampa Bay (0-2) +6.5
It’s the second consecutive road game on the heels of a short week duel with division rival Dallas. That’s tough and the Bucs will try to take advantage of that but in the end the Giants eek out the win.
Giants 24-20
GIANTS 24-0
The Giants took care of business by completely dominating the Bucs who didn’t obtain their first 1st down until late in the 3rd quarter. With Detroit finally winning Tampa Bay looks to be the front runner of earning the dubious distinction of being the leagues worst team although Oakland, St. Louis, Clevaland and Kansas City might have something to say about that.
Cleveland (0-2) @ Baltimore (2-0) -13.5
Baltimore looks amazing on both sides of the ball and I have no reason whatsoever for taking Cleveland to cover considering the Browns offense is dreadful but that many points just makes me think a back door touchdown will cover.
Ravens 27-17
RAVENS 34-3
Granted, Cleveland is terrible in all phases of the game but it’s really difficult to ignore the dominating fashion that the Ravens are playing on both sides of the ball. The real test will come in New England next week but you can bank on seeing Baltimore in the playoffs and likely with at least one home game and a BYE.
Washington (1-1) @ Detroit (0-2) +6.5
Could this be the week the Lions get out of the doldrums? Eventually they will win and they are clearly a much better team than last year and with the struggles of the Redskins offense this is a golden opportunity to get that elusive W.
Lions 23-20
LIONS 19-14
I am a genius! Ok, I admit it was hardly an earth shattering prediction but still. Mathew Stafford really looks like he has all the tools to be very successful and from top to bottom the Lions really are much improved and clearly heading in the right direction. As for the Redskins, they are clearly not.
Kansas City (0-2) @ Philadelphia (1-1) -10.5
If it were any other team than the Chiefs than I would call you crazy if you said that Kevin Kolb and a banged up Michael Westbrook and DeSean Jackson would blow a team out. I think they do. The Chiefs are not very good.
Eagles 24-13
EAGLES 34-14
Even without Michael Westbrook and Donovan McNabb the Eagles easily dismantled the lowly Chiefs. While the Eagles look poised to make yet another NFC Championship push the Chiefs look to be competing with Tampa Bay, Oakland, Cleveland and St. Louis for the #1 selection in next April’s NFL Draft.
Atlanta (2-0) @ New England (1-1) -4.5
I’m not convinced the Patriots are just average. I think once they iron out the kinks they will be very dangerous and put up a ton of points. The Falcons look great but Matt Ryan will have to face the crafty Bill Belichek defensive scheme.
Patriots 27-21
PATRIOTS 26-10
Anyone else get the feeling that the Patriots are still trying working things out? If so, look out because Atlanta is a very good team that Tom Brady and New England hammered while it still felt like the Patriots were “off” of their game. New England and Baltimore next week is must see tv!
Green Bay (1-1) @ St. Louis (0-2) +6.5
St. Louis could find some success on the ground but even then they are so outmatched that they will struggle to find points while the Packers should be able to score plenty with an angry Aaron Rodgers hoping to redeem last weeks embarrassing loss at Lambeau to the Bengals.
*Packers 31-10
PACKERS 36-17
Poor Steven Jackson. Now the Rams may have to play without quarterback Marc Bulger and #1 receiver Laurent Robinson who both went down with injuries. Aside from SJAX the Rams are not good on offense yet they somehow managed to score 17 points on the Packers defense. I would be a little concerned in Green Bay who was coiming off a home loss to the Bengals last week.
San Francisco (2-0) @ Minnesota (2-0) -6.5
The Vikings rarely blow people out and with each team looking to pound the ball it’s really anybody’s game that could be decided by an untimely turnover. Adrian Peterson and Frank Gore all day long.
Vikings 20-17
So much for the AP Frank Gore mathcup as Gore left and did not return after one carry injured his ankle. AP was held under 90 yards and had the game won until good ole #4 stole the limelight yet again with a last second laser to the back of the end zone to the normally inactive Greg Lewis who was only even in the game because Percy Harvin was so exhausted after running 7 consecutive go patterns. Welcome to the NFL kid. The 49ers got Favred. Plain and simple.
Chicago (1-1) @ Seattle (1-1) +1.5
Both teams are banged up but the Bears still have their offense in tact while the Seahawks will be without quarterback Matt Hasselback meaning Seneca Wallace gets the start. No way I can pick Seneca Wallace to beat the Bears.
Bears 27-13
Boy was Jim Mora pissed off that Olindo Mare missed two field goals. Assume Mare is on unemployment very soon. Truth is the Seahawks defense is really to blame not being able to stop Jay Cutler and the Bears offense when they needed to late. Penalties and missed kicks certainly didn’t help matters though.
New Orleans (2-0) @ Buffalo (1-1) +5.5
This one has all the makings of an old fashioned shootout. Drew Brees couldn’t be any hotter while Trent Edwards is holding his own and instilling confidence in the entire Bills organization. At some point the Saints have to play just average so I’m guessing it’s here.
Saints 31-27
SAINTS 27-7
T.O. was held without a reception for the first time in 12 years so it’s safe to assume we can expect a blowup in the very near future. This one was close well into the 3rd before the Saints offense found their groove and started moving the ball — on the ground! If that continues then the Saints become downright scary.
Pittsburgh (1-1) @ Cincinnati (1-1) +4.5
The Bengals broke into the win column in a big way by winning at Lambeau and this one against division and Super Bowl champ Pittsburgh would go a long way in proving to the rest of the league that the Bengals mean business. That’s enough to keep it close anyway.
Steelers 21-20
BENGALS 23-20
Don’t look now but the Cincinnati Bengals are for real and one fluky Broncos touchdown from a 3-0 start. Carson Palmer looked like the All Pro that he is on an impressive game winning drive in the closing seconds against the mighty Steelers defense albeit without star safety Troy Polamalu. The Steelers will be fine despite their 1-2 start and the Bengals are looking strong as playoff contenders.
Miami (0-2) @ San Diego (1-1) -6.5 The Dolphins are in desperate need of a win and a desperate team is a dangerous team. Miami played great last week against the Colts but let the win slip away so they will look to do many of the same things to try and keep Philip Rivers and the high-powered Charger offense sidelined.
Dolphins 31-23
CHARGERS 23-13
Great googly moogly.
Denver (2-0) @ Oakland (1-1) -0.5
Both these teams appear better than expected actually making this game remotely interesting. The Broncos look great and defense and the Raiders look horrible on offense so it stands to reason Denver would be the clear favorite yet Oakland is favored at home. Hmmm..
Raiders 24-21
BRONCOS 23-3
The Broncos are surprisingly 3-0 and they have looked good defensively and running the ball thus far but I wouldn’t get too carried away as they beat up on Cleveland and Oakland and they had nothing offensively until that Brandon Stokely miracle last second touchdown took out the Bengals in week 1. Oakland is heading for yet again another top 5 draft pick for the umteenth straight year.
Indianapolis (2-0) @ Arizona (1-1) -1.5
It doesn’t take a genius prognosticator to tell you that the ball will be thrown a lot in this one. Kurt Warner found his groove last week and Peyton Manning never loses his. This one might be going down to which team has the ball last but I actually think Arizona rolls.
Cardinals 27-17
COLTS 31-10
Peyton Manning could lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to an 8-8 record and I’m beggining to think he could drive and score with 10 girl scouts. What else can you say other than the Colts are the Colts and will be a tough win for anyone. The Cardinals are wildly inconsistent at best. The fact that this offense has played so poorly in 2 out of 3 games is mind boggling and must have Cardinals fans worrying.
Monday, September 28
Carolina (0-2) @ Dallas (1-1) -9.5
The Panthers are looking to get in the win column by running DeAngelo Williams and James Stewart as much as possible which won’t be easy as Dallas is home for the second consecutive week and coming off a tough loss to the Giants. Tony Romo will look to silence the naysayers.
Cowboys 31-23
COWBOYS 21-7
The Cowboys potentially potent offense has yet to click on all cylinders which was evident after Carolina held them at the 1 yard line twice forcing field goals. It now looks like the Cowboys may be without both Marion Barber and the electrifying Felix Jones who tweaked an ankle Monday night. The Panthers start out 0-3 after winning the division last season and can’t be real happy with how they’ve started this year.
This Week ATS: 7-9
Season to Date ATS: 23-25
Last Week Best Bets: 1-2
Season to Date Best Bets: 2-7
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