Betting Notes on the AFC
By Ted Sevransky
Denver Broncos
Eddie Royal looks like Kyle Orton's go-to receiver and he was quite good here. We also saw rookie WR Demaryius Thomas (Georgia Tech) have a huge impact, a great jumpball target in the red zone. Combined with Brandon Lloyd's play last week in Jacksonville and Jabar Gaffney's deep threat speed, this receiving corps looks just fine without the 138 catches that Tony Scheffler and Brandon Marshall had last year.
And let's give Orton some credit -- he's decent, solid. No, he'll never be Tom Brady, but he's one heck of a lot better than what some teams are trotting out behind center. Orton was at his best when it mattered most - on third down and in the red zone. The Broncos converted a whopping 14 third down chances.
Kansas City Chiefs
Dustin Colquitt is a legitimate special teams weapon, a fantastic directional punter. He’s pinned opponents deep repeatedly so far this season. And these kick returners – rookies Javier Arenas and Dexter McCluster -- are as dangerous of a duo in the league. Special teams is a clear area of strength for this team.
Miami Dolphins
After not taking a single shot down the field last week, Chad Henne was firing for the end zone from his first series of the game, completing a 47-yard bomb to Brandon Marshall on Miami’s first play from scrimmage. That being said, on second and 18 following a first down sack, we saw a 'run it up the gut' play call, not exactly aggressive. It was the same story on third-and-long, even though they were in Minnesota territory.
Play calling like that tell us clearly that Miami's brain trust still don't really trust their young QB. And, needing one first down to clinch the game on the road against a pretty good defense, Miami's offense couldn't move the ball one iota. Second half drives from this offense? Four punts and two fumbles.
Oakland Raiders
Oakland’s run defense was rock solid after a rough start. They consistently blew up the line of scrimmage and were disciplined with their tackling. Darren McFadden is running over people, bruising opposing defenders and getting stronger as the game goes on.
QB Bruce Gradkowski gets the ball out of his hands faster than Jason Campbell, but he's not capable of airing it out deep like Campbell, negating the incredible speed this team has at WR.
Missed field goals, bad penalties, botched opportunities in the red zone -- yep, this is Raiders football once again, circa 2010. Yes, they won, but there’s not a lot to be proud of with this performance.
Baltimore Ravens
Ray Lewis is long on intensity and leadership, but he's running short in the speed department these days. I saw him outraced to the outside for the second time in two weeks by a running back that doesn't rank among the NFL speedsters.
What's going on with this new, revitalized passing game? Joe Flacco is showing zero comfort level with his pricey new receivers. I would grade his QB performance as an 'F' in this ballgame, no better than it was on Monday Night.
It's worth noting that I wrote the previous sentence before Flacco threw three more interceptions, including the game killer late in the fourth quarter. So much for the Ravens being an 'Over' team this year.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Troy Polamalu remains the player that he's been, even after missing most of last year with injury. He had another brilliant interception in the end zone here, saving a touchdown. olamalu is an absolute game changer on defense -- still. Pittsburgh is 17-3 SU in games where Polamalu has at least one INT. Any questions about this defense have been answered over the last two weeks -- this is a prototypical Steelers defense. I’m very impressed with this secondary; not a unit of strength last year.
Multiple offensive line injuries continue to be a significant concern. Even with a +6 turnover edge, the Steelers managed only seven first downs for the game, and had to hang on in the closing seconds to secure the victory.
Houston Texans
This defense gave up chunks of yards in the passing game for a second week in a row. This is not a good secondary by any stretch of the imagination. And when you allow three long scoring drives to start the game, only forcing two third downs in the process, the defense doesn't deserve many complements.
Are these the slowest linebackers in the league? They certainly miss last year's defensive rookie of the year, Brian Cushing, sitting out the first four games thanks to an NFL mandated suspension.
Tennessee Titans
Jeff Fisher isn't buying into the hot trend of going for it on fourth down early instead of taking the field goal. Facing a fourth and short from the three yard line, Fisher trotted out Rob Bironas and took the field goal, despite the fact that the Titans were down by a touchdown at the time. Over bettors and chalk bettors love coaches who go for it; Fisher is not loved by either group.
Vince Young is still making crucial mistakes; albeit against an aggressive, confusing defense. Young committed the first red zone turnover for the Titans in 24 games, followed by three more turnovers and a special teams touchdown allowed -- very, very sloppy.