This weekend in the Minneapolis Star Tribune Mike Tice said his starters will get their most playing time yet in the final exhibition game vs. Pittsburgh. He said they will definitely play into the third quarter.
In yesterday's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, it was reported that Pittsburgh's starters would play "one or two series" based on a quote by Bettis. The line was PIT -3 and the Vikes looked good at least for a 1st half play, but today Cowher was quoted as saying the Steelers will play their starters for most of the first half. His reasoning is that the Steelers have lost their opening regular season game each of the last two years and he felt his team was out of sync because they only played a series or two in the final preseason game.
What does this mean from our perspective? First of all, any first half advantage for Minny is now basically gone. A game advantage *might* be there if these reports are true because the Vikes should get at least one 3rd quarter series of starters vs. backups. Who knows if that is worth playing. What it does indicate is that the first half over could be a play here. It is clear that both coaches are treating the first half like a legitimate primer for the regular season. The nice part is that there is no earthly way either coach will play any kind of sophisticated defense which would allow the Bears or Patriots to pick up something for the week 1 games.
Clearly the line has been adjusted upwards somewhat, because a 40 total for the final preseason game is rediculous. In this case, however, we may still have an edge on a first half over bet at 20. I am going to continue to look at this game and check the local media reports but I wanted to get this info out early so you guys have a chance to look at it.
In yesterday's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, it was reported that Pittsburgh's starters would play "one or two series" based on a quote by Bettis. The line was PIT -3 and the Vikes looked good at least for a 1st half play, but today Cowher was quoted as saying the Steelers will play their starters for most of the first half. His reasoning is that the Steelers have lost their opening regular season game each of the last two years and he felt his team was out of sync because they only played a series or two in the final preseason game.
What does this mean from our perspective? First of all, any first half advantage for Minny is now basically gone. A game advantage *might* be there if these reports are true because the Vikes should get at least one 3rd quarter series of starters vs. backups. Who knows if that is worth playing. What it does indicate is that the first half over could be a play here. It is clear that both coaches are treating the first half like a legitimate primer for the regular season. The nice part is that there is no earthly way either coach will play any kind of sophisticated defense which would allow the Bears or Patriots to pick up something for the week 1 games.
Clearly the line has been adjusted upwards somewhat, because a 40 total for the final preseason game is rediculous. In this case, however, we may still have an edge on a first half over bet at 20. I am going to continue to look at this game and check the local media reports but I wanted to get this info out early so you guys have a chance to look at it.
