3* BEST BET
Look what we have here. An NFL powerhouse in a nasty mood, meeting a team trying to reestablish its once-proud identity. No, we?re not talking about the Colts. We?re talking about the 3-0 Chiefs, the NFL?s only team to remain unscathed this season. The question begs whether or not the week of rest Kansas City had last week was a momentumbreaker or a time to better strategize. We remember all too well Denver?s 6-0 surprise start last year, only to be foiled thereafter by the
dreaded Bye Week. We put our trusty historical database to work on this stratagem and what we found was surprising, to say the least. It seems that teams who open the season 3-0 or better have excelled with a week of rest when taking on an opponent off a loss, going 13-4 SU and 12-5 ATS overall since 1980, including a 10-1 SU and 9-2ATS run the last 12 years. FYI: the only team to lose in this scenario since 1998 was ? you guessed it ? last year?s Broncos. And, for what it?s worth, the last nine dogs to take the field off three straight up underdog wins in a row are 6-3 SU and 7-2 ATS. These same three-straight dog winners are also 3-0 ATS when taking points from a foe that lost straight up as a favorite in its last game.
Oh yeah. In case you were wondering, Peyton Manning is 8-17 ATS in his NFL career in games off a SU favorite loss, including 1-7 ATS when favored by seven or more points. History lesson over.
In stunning fashion, the Chiefs remain on the warpath :00hour :00hour :00hour