NFLX 2.

[MrChristo]

2-2 last week with a total of 6 picks in the two losses! (All by starters too. :moon: )

Cinci @ NE under 37

No Palmer (Carson anyway). O'Sullivan was good last week, but has been inconsistant in camp, and will find the NE first string D a bit tougher than the NO two's.
Palmer Jr. will likely take the whole second half, and he struggled to move the chains last week with no points, 4 x 3 and outs and a pick.
Brady will only get a couple of series (as opposed to a half last week)...O'Connell has been poor in camp, and was 15/32 140, 1, 2 last year in pre-season...
...Walter was better, but again, he played in all 4 Oakland X games last year and didn't score.
And...

...It doesn?t matter if your offense has Tom Brady or Brady Quinn at quarterback, running the football is a necessary, often vital, component.

In the Patriots? preseason opener last Thursday against the Philadelphia Eagles, the focus was on Brady?s comeback and the timing in the passing game. Lost in the afterglow of Brady?s return to the field was the lack of synch and productivity in the Patriots? rushing attack.

In the first half, when the Patriots used their regulars on offense, the Patriots rushed 10 times for 24 yards. They finished the game with 29 carries for 95 yards (an average of 3.3 yards per carry). Following the 27-25 win over the Eagles, Belichick said he thought the running game wasn?t consistent.

When the Patriots take the field at Gillette Stadium tonight against the Cincinnati Bengals, New England will try to get its running game up and running...
...?We definitely need to work on that aspect of our game,?? said Belichick.

...The Bengals could provide a good test because one of the primary goals for Cincinnati this year is to play better run defense. The Bengals ranked 21st in the NFL last year, allowing 120.1 yards per game, but in a 17-7 preseason loss to New Orleans last week, they surrendered only 86 yards on 30 carries.

:toast:

Good Luck all

 

[AR182]

hey mr c...

good to see that you are on the under in the cin/ne game...

good luck

 

[MrChristo]

Thanks AR... :toast:

...nice win for us both.

OVER 37.5 (1.85) [Just because I waited too long and now it's mostly 38.5 :cursin: ]

New stadium syndrome! Big 'competition' between the Dallas boys as to who scores the first TD in the new stadium...
Romo and Kitna both will be trying for big plays, and in Phillips' time, they have av'd 23 ppg at home anyway.
Not only have Tenn played 2 games, but they've scored well in both (21, 27)...Starting offense is slated to play the whole first half, Collins and Young about a quarter each, with every chance Young continues into the 3rd.
And, how bad is the Dallas D?...One game isn't a lot to go on I know, but anyone who gives up 16/28, 241 yards and 2 TD's to Gradkowski and Frye...
...not to mention nearly 7 ypr!!! :scared
Big numbers. Should be some points here.

Minni v. KC under 37

This number got a nice little boost for the Favre factor...but he'll only play one series, leaving Jackson and Booty to go the distance (no Rosenfels), who threw for a combined 2.8 ypp last week!
Plenty of threats on the ground, but KC have made a big point of improving ther run D, allowed less than 4 ypr last week, and only 280 total to a pretty offensive minded (and talented) Houston.
Cassel to play the first half, but has been struggling for consistancy, combined with a lack of weapons means it's still going to be a struggle for the Chiefs to score.
Croyle has been pushing for the no. 1 spot, but again, without the weapons he didn't have a completion over 14 yards last week.

SL +3

Although Spagnuolo has emphasized that evaluation is more important than results in the preseason, he conceded that his first home game on the St. Louis sideline is something special.

Getting a FG on a new head coach in his first home game...
...against a pretty crappy Falcons team.
New coach themselves, but same old Atlanta last week?...They scored just 17, 9, 17 & 10 last pre-season with effectively the same QB rotation...and last weeks score was a bit misleading with just 14 FD's and 115 yards in the air. (228 total!)
Boller to play the whole first half (hence the line I guess! :142smilie ), but any team who allows Detroit to run for nearly 5.5 ypc, and Drew Stanton to go 8/13, 114 and a TD really should allow some points to Berlin and Null after HT.
I have to think Spagnuolo is playing to win this one.

Good Luck all

 

[Flashlight]

nice call on ne cinn under

 

[MrChristo]

Washington v. Pits under 33

Happy to take the low number with the 'Skins again. Still have huge problems on their O-line and now facing one of the best D's in the NFL, their 11 FD, <200 yard game last week (no score of course!) could well repeat.
They gave up 23 points, but 1) Baltimore threw the ball 50+ times! Which Pittsburgh clearly won't...their run D was pretty good and they have good depth on the D-line...
..2) Zorn was particularly angry with the amount of missed tackles last week, which I'm sure has been a major focus all week.
Rothlesberger unlikely to play, Batch, Dixon wth nothing to prove...
...not one of the last 4 meetings has hit 30, inc. 2 (relatively) recent pre-season games.

Jax v. TB under 34

Much like Washington, Tampa are having massive problems with their line and may struggle to much happening against this Jags D.
A high scoring game last week was a bit of a mirage with a safety, pick 7 and 2 big TD runs late.
Bucs are very happy with their secondary, and if they can keep the Jags WR's under control, they could struggle to move the ball aswell, given their run game last week was non-existant. (66/21)
Jags have had a very light camp, and just like last week, I think they'll be happy just to get through unscathed.

Houston -3

NO will be starting with a 3rd string LT with Jamaal Brown missing and also the number 2 guy (whoever that is! :142smilie ), so you'd think they'll play a pretty conservative offense, even tho Brees will play for the first half.
Harrington looks like playing the whole second, giving Brunell the day off...and Joey, well...he's still pretty ordinary isn't he!
No Bush, and by all reports the second string O-line has really been struggling to gel, which won't help Harrington's cause.
Shaub will play the first half, off a 7/7 70 yard game...and faces a NO D who gave up 23/33 for nearly 300 yards last week.
He went 14/16 for 187 and 2 TD's in the first half of this game last year in a 31-27 win (@ NO)...
Just think NO won't be able to keep up here with the personel they have out.

Good Luck all

 

[MrChristo]

SD +3

Charger starters to play the entire first half, while Arizona...Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt
plans to play his starters well into the second quarter, with maybe the exception of Warner, who will leave earlier if the offense is successful.

Playing well makes Whisenhunt's decisions about playing time easy. It's when a team struggles in the preseason that coaches start to second-guess themselves, he said.

"You're worrying about the continuity of both your offense and your defense," Whisenhunt said, "and you have a tendency to want to play them longer.

"Then when the game is over, and they've played 25 to 30 snaps, you want to smack yourself upside the head because that's not what you want to do."...look like pulling them early.
Neither Leinart or St. Pierre got on the board last week, and SD's D will be much improved against the pass, so they might struggle here again.

SD do actually play some decent pre-season D, allowed just 17, 17, 7 and 17 last year...only 250 yards last week...
...and they play well on the road, won both away games ats last year, won both SU in 2007, inc. a 33-31 win here. (Rivers 20/29, 282, 2 TD)
Cards are the opposite, hving lost their last 4 home games SU.

 

[MrChristo]

Bills @ GB OVER 37

Not really sure why this one has dropped to 37, but I'll take it now.
Edwards and the starters playing for most of, if not all of the first half...no huddle...Edwards 10/10 last week, and good things coming out of camp about Fitzpatrick! :scared
Both games have gone 'over' so far...
Green Bay offense scored 14 points in the first quarter last week, but then weren't ever tested by the horrible Brownies.
Looking for :director: both teams to score this week.