- Aug 1, 2003
- 182
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A 2-1-1 week last week. That brings the season total to 4-3-1 +0.70%. All side opinions and best bets went 9-6-1, after going 10-5-1 during week one. That brings the two week total to 19-11-2 this season on all side opinions and best bets.
Home team in caps.
NEW ENGLAND -6.5 NY Jets 37.5
Jets have won five straight games here. You would have to go back seven years since NE actually defeated the Jets by more than today's spread and only twice in the last ten years have they done so. Having said all of that, this Jets team is not good. And they now have injuries in the secondary, which won't help them. The Jets managed a whopping 1.9 ypr last week and 21 yards rushing. They did pass the ball very well against Miami, throwing for 366 yards and 8.0 yps. For the year, the Jets are now averaging 2.4 ypr against teams allowing 3.1 ypr and they are passing for 6.6 yps (which looks good) but that's against teams allowing 6.5 yps, making them about average throwing the ball. On defense the Jets are allowing 4.4 ypr against teams averaging 4.3 ypr but their pass defense has been horrible, allowing 7.6 yps against teams averaging just 7.0 yps. Their numbers, overall, suggest a pretty average team. They take on a NE team who beat Philly last week, but NE was +4 in the turnover margin, which greatly aided their efforts. NE is still struggling to run the ball and they only gained 2.1 ypr last week on 62 yards. For the year, they are very average, gaining 3.3 ypr against teams allowing 3.4 ypr. And they aren't throwing the ball any better, averaging just 4.6 yps against teams allowing 5.0 yps. On defense, their pass defense continues to excel, allowing 4.5 yps against teams averaging 5.5 yps, which will make it very difficult for the Jets to throw the ball. But their rush defense is once again giving up yards as they are allowing 4.1 ypr against teams averaging 3.7 ypr. I have no situations on this game but it's very difficult to cover a fairly large number with a poor offense and series history dictates the Jets here as well. NEW ENGLAND 17 NY JETS 14
Pittsburgh -4.5 CINCINNATI 45.5
Nothing too telling with this series history. Pittsburgh has done well here in Cincinnati and, on occasion, Cincinnati has pulled the upset. I had KC last week and got the cover, but truth be told, Pittsburgh did well, from a stats standpoint. The Pittsburgh problems last week were due to special teams (a returned kick off for a touchdown) and an interception returned for a touchdown (although Pittsburgh had one themselves). But the Steelers gained 380 yards at 5.7 yppl to Kansas City's 282 at 4.9 yppl. The Steelers defense has played pretty well this year, allowing just 4.1 yppl to teams averaging 5.1 yppl. Their passing game has also been very solid, averaging 6.8 yps against teams allowing 5.3 yps. But their rushing game is just average, gaining 3.2 ypr against teams allowing 3.2 ypr. Overall their offense is gaining 5.4 yppl against teams allowing 4.6 yppl. They now take on a Cincinnati team who is 0-2. But this isn't the same 0-2 Bengals team that we are used to. Yes, Cincinnati lost to Denver in week one, 10-30, but they played the Broncos pretty tough, from a stats standpoint, gaining 4.7 yppl to only 4.4 yppl for Denver. In that game, they held the Denver passing game to just 109 yards passing at 4.2 yps. Last week they did it again to Oakland, limiting the Raiders to just 103 yards passing at 3.7 yps. They did allow the Raiders to rush for 134 yards at 6.7 ypr and for the season, they are allowing teams to rush for 5.3 ypr but against teams averaging 5.3 ypr so they are about average defending the rush. Their pass defense, as mentioned, is allowing just 3.9 yps against teams averaging 5.2 yps. I have no situations favoring either team in this game and the match-up could favor Cincinnati with their pass defense against the Steelers good passing offense. But, as much as I don't think Cincinnati is as bad as the past, I still side with Pittsburgh, until Cincinnati proves they can actually win these games. PITTSBURGH 27 CINCINNATI 18
INDIANAPOLIS -8 Jacksonville 43
Another game with not much interest for me from a side perspective. Indy has looked decent so far, based on their convincing win over Tennessee last week, but they struggled the week before against, what I consider to be a poor Cleveland team. Jacksonville played Indy tough in their last game of the season last year, losing here 13-20, but they were manhandled by Buffalo last week, allowing 371 yards at 6.1 yppl, while only gaining 287 yards at 4.0 yppl. Jacksonville allowed Buffalo to throw for 328 yards at 12.1 yps. For the season, they are now allowing 7.3 yps against teams averaging 6.5 yps. They'll face Indy, who is averaging 5.6 yps against teams allowing 5.2 yps so Indy should have some success in the air. The Jacksonville offense is just above average, gaining 5.0 yppl against teams allowing 4.7 yppl and they'll face an Indy defense, which is slightly below average, allowing 4.6 yppl against teams averaging just 4.3 yppl. I've never been a big fan of laying points with a below average defense and that is what we have here with Indy. We also get a little extra value with the Jacksonville debacle last week and Indy's big win over Tennessee last week. Indy qualifies in a letdown situation that is 105-44-4 playing against them. Unfortunately, Jacksonville doesn't qualify in the best part of that situation to make them a play. The situation is very strong, however, and should be enough to keep you off of Indy. My projected final score also indicates only about a seven point victory for Indy. This game also qualifies in a 74-42-3 under situation, including a subset that is 52-17-2. And it also qualifies in a terrific 216-117-6 under situation. Using my yards scoring predictor, I only show about 32 points being scored in this game. That's enough to get me on the under here. INDIANAPOLIS 21 JACKSONVILLE 14
Minnesota -3.5 DETROIT 46.5
Don't look now but the Vikings have actually won five straight games. Included in their five game winning streak (dating back to last year's final three games) is a season ending win here over Detroit, 38-36. I had the over in that game as well as the Lions. Detroit got a score and missed the two point conversion on the next to last play of the game for the cover. The Vikings out played Detroit in that game but couldn't hold on to the cover. Mike Tice said last week his team has had troubles with the Bears linebackers in the past. This week, he said he thinks his team has the advantage over the linebackers and their secondary. He said they have had trouble pass blocking against the Lions front four but doesn't feel they have had problems rushing the ball. The Vikings offense has been good this year, gaining 5.4 yppl against teams allowing just 5.0 yppl and they are above average in both, rushing and passing. Most surprisingly is their defense, which is allowing 4.9 yppl against teams averaging 4.3 yppl. Now, that doesn't look that good but they are allowing just 19 points per game against teams averaging 19 points per game. The reason is they are not turning the ball over so frequently like they did last year. Couple a somewhat respectable defense with the decline in turnovers and this defense can hold it's own, especially when the offense is playing ball control offense. The problems for the Lions are the same problems as last year. Yes, they won their first game of the year over Arizona but they were badly out played in that game, from a stats standpoint. They were able to return punts and get defensive scores to make the final score look worse than it actually was. But their offensive is terrible as is their defense. On defense, the Lions have allowed 5.9 yppl against teams averaging 5.2 yppl. That's not too far from the Minnesota defense but the difference is their defense is allowing 28 points per game against teams averaging 20 points per game. This simply means their offense is also contributing to their poor defense. Both the Lions rush defense and their pass defense are horrible. On offense, Detroit is averaging just 4.4 yppl against teams averaging 4.9 yppl. If Minnesota doesn't turn the ball over and help Detroit, there is no way Detroit can win this game. I'm very well aware that Detroit has played some close games against Minnesota here over the years and many of the games Minnesota has won here were only by two points or so. And, I'm also aware that every game played here for the past nine years has totaled at least 46 points. And this game could also go over the total rather easily but I won't be there this time. First, as stated, the Vikings defense is actually playing a little better as of late. And if their offense isn't turning the ball over to help the Detroit offense, Detroit may not score as many points. The Detroit offense simply isn't very good. And while Mike Tice will do whatever it takes to score, he is very happy running the ball more, to keep Culpepper out of situations that will hurt his game. Tice does expect a high scoring game but there are some things this year that are not as favorable as last year when I took the over. Minnesota also qualifies in some great situations, including an early season situation, which is 93-46-5 and that situation went 4-1-1 last week. They also qualify in a fundamental rushing situation (which went 7-0-1 last week) and is now 496-380-30 including the best subset of that situation which is 132-54-7 (3-0-1 last week with Indy, KC, Denver and SF). If the Vikings don't turn the ball over, the Lions defense isn't good enough to consistently stop them. And the Vikings defense is improved enough to stop a very below average Lions offense. MINNESOTA 30 DETROIT 17
BEST BETS
YTD 4-3-1 +0.70%
3% MINNESOTA -3.5
2% JACK/INDY UNDER 43
2% STL/SEA UNDER 47.5
Home team in caps.
NEW ENGLAND -6.5 NY Jets 37.5
Jets have won five straight games here. You would have to go back seven years since NE actually defeated the Jets by more than today's spread and only twice in the last ten years have they done so. Having said all of that, this Jets team is not good. And they now have injuries in the secondary, which won't help them. The Jets managed a whopping 1.9 ypr last week and 21 yards rushing. They did pass the ball very well against Miami, throwing for 366 yards and 8.0 yps. For the year, the Jets are now averaging 2.4 ypr against teams allowing 3.1 ypr and they are passing for 6.6 yps (which looks good) but that's against teams allowing 6.5 yps, making them about average throwing the ball. On defense the Jets are allowing 4.4 ypr against teams averaging 4.3 ypr but their pass defense has been horrible, allowing 7.6 yps against teams averaging just 7.0 yps. Their numbers, overall, suggest a pretty average team. They take on a NE team who beat Philly last week, but NE was +4 in the turnover margin, which greatly aided their efforts. NE is still struggling to run the ball and they only gained 2.1 ypr last week on 62 yards. For the year, they are very average, gaining 3.3 ypr against teams allowing 3.4 ypr. And they aren't throwing the ball any better, averaging just 4.6 yps against teams allowing 5.0 yps. On defense, their pass defense continues to excel, allowing 4.5 yps against teams averaging 5.5 yps, which will make it very difficult for the Jets to throw the ball. But their rush defense is once again giving up yards as they are allowing 4.1 ypr against teams averaging 3.7 ypr. I have no situations on this game but it's very difficult to cover a fairly large number with a poor offense and series history dictates the Jets here as well. NEW ENGLAND 17 NY JETS 14
Pittsburgh -4.5 CINCINNATI 45.5
Nothing too telling with this series history. Pittsburgh has done well here in Cincinnati and, on occasion, Cincinnati has pulled the upset. I had KC last week and got the cover, but truth be told, Pittsburgh did well, from a stats standpoint. The Pittsburgh problems last week were due to special teams (a returned kick off for a touchdown) and an interception returned for a touchdown (although Pittsburgh had one themselves). But the Steelers gained 380 yards at 5.7 yppl to Kansas City's 282 at 4.9 yppl. The Steelers defense has played pretty well this year, allowing just 4.1 yppl to teams averaging 5.1 yppl. Their passing game has also been very solid, averaging 6.8 yps against teams allowing 5.3 yps. But their rushing game is just average, gaining 3.2 ypr against teams allowing 3.2 ypr. Overall their offense is gaining 5.4 yppl against teams allowing 4.6 yppl. They now take on a Cincinnati team who is 0-2. But this isn't the same 0-2 Bengals team that we are used to. Yes, Cincinnati lost to Denver in week one, 10-30, but they played the Broncos pretty tough, from a stats standpoint, gaining 4.7 yppl to only 4.4 yppl for Denver. In that game, they held the Denver passing game to just 109 yards passing at 4.2 yps. Last week they did it again to Oakland, limiting the Raiders to just 103 yards passing at 3.7 yps. They did allow the Raiders to rush for 134 yards at 6.7 ypr and for the season, they are allowing teams to rush for 5.3 ypr but against teams averaging 5.3 ypr so they are about average defending the rush. Their pass defense, as mentioned, is allowing just 3.9 yps against teams averaging 5.2 yps. I have no situations favoring either team in this game and the match-up could favor Cincinnati with their pass defense against the Steelers good passing offense. But, as much as I don't think Cincinnati is as bad as the past, I still side with Pittsburgh, until Cincinnati proves they can actually win these games. PITTSBURGH 27 CINCINNATI 18
INDIANAPOLIS -8 Jacksonville 43
Another game with not much interest for me from a side perspective. Indy has looked decent so far, based on their convincing win over Tennessee last week, but they struggled the week before against, what I consider to be a poor Cleveland team. Jacksonville played Indy tough in their last game of the season last year, losing here 13-20, but they were manhandled by Buffalo last week, allowing 371 yards at 6.1 yppl, while only gaining 287 yards at 4.0 yppl. Jacksonville allowed Buffalo to throw for 328 yards at 12.1 yps. For the season, they are now allowing 7.3 yps against teams averaging 6.5 yps. They'll face Indy, who is averaging 5.6 yps against teams allowing 5.2 yps so Indy should have some success in the air. The Jacksonville offense is just above average, gaining 5.0 yppl against teams allowing 4.7 yppl and they'll face an Indy defense, which is slightly below average, allowing 4.6 yppl against teams averaging just 4.3 yppl. I've never been a big fan of laying points with a below average defense and that is what we have here with Indy. We also get a little extra value with the Jacksonville debacle last week and Indy's big win over Tennessee last week. Indy qualifies in a letdown situation that is 105-44-4 playing against them. Unfortunately, Jacksonville doesn't qualify in the best part of that situation to make them a play. The situation is very strong, however, and should be enough to keep you off of Indy. My projected final score also indicates only about a seven point victory for Indy. This game also qualifies in a 74-42-3 under situation, including a subset that is 52-17-2. And it also qualifies in a terrific 216-117-6 under situation. Using my yards scoring predictor, I only show about 32 points being scored in this game. That's enough to get me on the under here. INDIANAPOLIS 21 JACKSONVILLE 14
Minnesota -3.5 DETROIT 46.5
Don't look now but the Vikings have actually won five straight games. Included in their five game winning streak (dating back to last year's final three games) is a season ending win here over Detroit, 38-36. I had the over in that game as well as the Lions. Detroit got a score and missed the two point conversion on the next to last play of the game for the cover. The Vikings out played Detroit in that game but couldn't hold on to the cover. Mike Tice said last week his team has had troubles with the Bears linebackers in the past. This week, he said he thinks his team has the advantage over the linebackers and their secondary. He said they have had trouble pass blocking against the Lions front four but doesn't feel they have had problems rushing the ball. The Vikings offense has been good this year, gaining 5.4 yppl against teams allowing just 5.0 yppl and they are above average in both, rushing and passing. Most surprisingly is their defense, which is allowing 4.9 yppl against teams averaging 4.3 yppl. Now, that doesn't look that good but they are allowing just 19 points per game against teams averaging 19 points per game. The reason is they are not turning the ball over so frequently like they did last year. Couple a somewhat respectable defense with the decline in turnovers and this defense can hold it's own, especially when the offense is playing ball control offense. The problems for the Lions are the same problems as last year. Yes, they won their first game of the year over Arizona but they were badly out played in that game, from a stats standpoint. They were able to return punts and get defensive scores to make the final score look worse than it actually was. But their offensive is terrible as is their defense. On defense, the Lions have allowed 5.9 yppl against teams averaging 5.2 yppl. That's not too far from the Minnesota defense but the difference is their defense is allowing 28 points per game against teams averaging 20 points per game. This simply means their offense is also contributing to their poor defense. Both the Lions rush defense and their pass defense are horrible. On offense, Detroit is averaging just 4.4 yppl against teams averaging 4.9 yppl. If Minnesota doesn't turn the ball over and help Detroit, there is no way Detroit can win this game. I'm very well aware that Detroit has played some close games against Minnesota here over the years and many of the games Minnesota has won here were only by two points or so. And, I'm also aware that every game played here for the past nine years has totaled at least 46 points. And this game could also go over the total rather easily but I won't be there this time. First, as stated, the Vikings defense is actually playing a little better as of late. And if their offense isn't turning the ball over to help the Detroit offense, Detroit may not score as many points. The Detroit offense simply isn't very good. And while Mike Tice will do whatever it takes to score, he is very happy running the ball more, to keep Culpepper out of situations that will hurt his game. Tice does expect a high scoring game but there are some things this year that are not as favorable as last year when I took the over. Minnesota also qualifies in some great situations, including an early season situation, which is 93-46-5 and that situation went 4-1-1 last week. They also qualify in a fundamental rushing situation (which went 7-0-1 last week) and is now 496-380-30 including the best subset of that situation which is 132-54-7 (3-0-1 last week with Indy, KC, Denver and SF). If the Vikings don't turn the ball over, the Lions defense isn't good enough to consistently stop them. And the Vikings defense is improved enough to stop a very below average Lions offense. MINNESOTA 30 DETROIT 17
BEST BETS
YTD 4-3-1 +0.70%
3% MINNESOTA -3.5
2% JACK/INDY UNDER 43
2% STL/SEA UNDER 47.5