Mike Martz is taking time off to deal with his health issues. I wish him luck. But it?s too bad for the Rams that Martz didn?t take Sunday off because his team was unprepared and poorly coached in a 37-31 home loss to the Seahawks.
Imagine how many points the Seahawks might have scored if they had their two best wideouts, injured Darrell Jackson and Bobby Engram. It takes a combination of lesser talent and poor coverage schemes to give up nine catches and 137 receiving yards to Joe Jurevicius.
It?s scary to think about the numbers Peyton Manning and Co. can put up at home against the Rams when they host them next Monday night. The line was Colts -13 ? Monday afternoon and probably will go higher. Wise guys already have bet the total up a point from 50 ? to 51 ?.
Oddsmaker Cesar Robaina, though, cautions against laying too many points with Indy.
?The public will be all over this favorite,? said Robaina, an oddsmaking consult for Caliente sportsbooks in Mexico and former odds manager for Las Vegas Sports Consultants. ?But I made it 11.
?It?s the Colts? first test against a good offense. St. Louis should play well being indoors where they are used to playing. The head coach (Martz) is a moron, but getting that many points you have to think about taking them.?
With such a weak passing attack and undisciplined defense, it?s difficult to make the Ravens more than a four point favorite against any team at home, and that includes the surprising 2-2 Browns. Robaina made Baltimore -4 ? against Cleveland. The line is slightly higher at 5 ?.
So is there value to the underdog?
?It?s hard to believe Baltimore can score more than 17 points,? Robaina said. ?The Ravens have serious problems. They have no quarterback or wide receivers. That?s a bad combination. Defenses just put eight in the box to stop them.
?(Romeo) Crennel has made a huge difference for the Browns. They play with heart and Trent Dilfer is an upgrade on the quarterbacks they?ve had. The key is if Baltimore gets ahead because the Ravens definitely can?t play from behind.?
One of the tougher lines oddsmakers had to make this week was on the Panthers-Lions matchup. Some opened Detroit the favorite. For a while the Panthers became the favorite, but by Monday afternoon the Lions were back to being favored with some places at pick.
Robaina recommended to his clients that Detroit open a favorite. That doesn?t mean he believes they are better than the Panthers.
?I made Detroit a favorite because of the public,? he said. ?But the Lions (35-17) victory over the Ravens was very misleading. They were handed 21 points.?
For the first time this season, the Bears are favored. That?s because they host the Vikings, who have multiple defensive injuries, a makeshift offensive line and Daunte Culpepper has 10 interceptions in four games playing on a bad knee.
Some books opened Chicago -1 ?. The Bears are currently up to -3.
?I made the Bears -2,? Robaina said. ?Their offense is pathetic, but the Vikings just have so many problems.?
Not only do the Vikings miss Randy Moss, but also injured center Matt Birk. Culpepper has been sacked an average of five times a game as the Vikings have been starting a backup center and rookie guard.
Minnesota went into its bye last week ranked 29th in defense, allowing an NFL-worst 178 yards rushing. The Bears have defeated the Vikings the past four times in Chicago. The Vikings have been outscored, 67-18, on the road. This is their first game on grass, where they have failed to cover 22 of their last 34.
Now does the line move make sense?
The Redskins may have earned more respect losing to the Broncos than they did building up a 3-0 record. The Redskins won those games by a combined six points, but fell just short of forcing overtime on the road against the Broncos.
So bookmakers opened Washington +6 against the Chiefs instead of +6 ? or seven. But it?s the second straight road game for the Skins and the Chiefs have had two weeks to prepare and get healthy.
Star offensive left tackle Willie Roaf, a 10-time Pro Bowl player, is expected to be ready after missing the Chiefs? last game with a hamstring injury. His presence should boost the passing game by freeing tight end Tony Gonzalez from blocking duties. The Chiefs also get back suspended cornerback Eric Warfield.
Like last week, there are some extremely low totals. The Jets-Bills, Dolphins-Buccaneers and Browns-Ravens are all in the 32 ? to 34 range.
Imagine how many points the Seahawks might have scored if they had their two best wideouts, injured Darrell Jackson and Bobby Engram. It takes a combination of lesser talent and poor coverage schemes to give up nine catches and 137 receiving yards to Joe Jurevicius.
It?s scary to think about the numbers Peyton Manning and Co. can put up at home against the Rams when they host them next Monday night. The line was Colts -13 ? Monday afternoon and probably will go higher. Wise guys already have bet the total up a point from 50 ? to 51 ?.
Oddsmaker Cesar Robaina, though, cautions against laying too many points with Indy.
?The public will be all over this favorite,? said Robaina, an oddsmaking consult for Caliente sportsbooks in Mexico and former odds manager for Las Vegas Sports Consultants. ?But I made it 11.
?It?s the Colts? first test against a good offense. St. Louis should play well being indoors where they are used to playing. The head coach (Martz) is a moron, but getting that many points you have to think about taking them.?
With such a weak passing attack and undisciplined defense, it?s difficult to make the Ravens more than a four point favorite against any team at home, and that includes the surprising 2-2 Browns. Robaina made Baltimore -4 ? against Cleveland. The line is slightly higher at 5 ?.
So is there value to the underdog?
?It?s hard to believe Baltimore can score more than 17 points,? Robaina said. ?The Ravens have serious problems. They have no quarterback or wide receivers. That?s a bad combination. Defenses just put eight in the box to stop them.
?(Romeo) Crennel has made a huge difference for the Browns. They play with heart and Trent Dilfer is an upgrade on the quarterbacks they?ve had. The key is if Baltimore gets ahead because the Ravens definitely can?t play from behind.?
One of the tougher lines oddsmakers had to make this week was on the Panthers-Lions matchup. Some opened Detroit the favorite. For a while the Panthers became the favorite, but by Monday afternoon the Lions were back to being favored with some places at pick.
Robaina recommended to his clients that Detroit open a favorite. That doesn?t mean he believes they are better than the Panthers.
?I made Detroit a favorite because of the public,? he said. ?But the Lions (35-17) victory over the Ravens was very misleading. They were handed 21 points.?
For the first time this season, the Bears are favored. That?s because they host the Vikings, who have multiple defensive injuries, a makeshift offensive line and Daunte Culpepper has 10 interceptions in four games playing on a bad knee.
Some books opened Chicago -1 ?. The Bears are currently up to -3.
?I made the Bears -2,? Robaina said. ?Their offense is pathetic, but the Vikings just have so many problems.?
Not only do the Vikings miss Randy Moss, but also injured center Matt Birk. Culpepper has been sacked an average of five times a game as the Vikings have been starting a backup center and rookie guard.
Minnesota went into its bye last week ranked 29th in defense, allowing an NFL-worst 178 yards rushing. The Bears have defeated the Vikings the past four times in Chicago. The Vikings have been outscored, 67-18, on the road. This is their first game on grass, where they have failed to cover 22 of their last 34.
Now does the line move make sense?
The Redskins may have earned more respect losing to the Broncos than they did building up a 3-0 record. The Redskins won those games by a combined six points, but fell just short of forcing overtime on the road against the Broncos.
So bookmakers opened Washington +6 against the Chiefs instead of +6 ? or seven. But it?s the second straight road game for the Skins and the Chiefs have had two weeks to prepare and get healthy.
Star offensive left tackle Willie Roaf, a 10-time Pro Bowl player, is expected to be ready after missing the Chiefs? last game with a hamstring injury. His presence should boost the passing game by freeing tight end Tony Gonzalez from blocking duties. The Chiefs also get back suspended cornerback Eric Warfield.
Like last week, there are some extremely low totals. The Jets-Bills, Dolphins-Buccaneers and Browns-Ravens are all in the 32 ? to 34 range.
