Buyer's Remorse - Week 7
By BetOnline.ag
Fourteen games. Two shutouts. Two actual upsets. Two pushes. And the Atlanta Falcons completely soiling themselves on national television against the one team that they should’ve gotten up for. If it felt like a boring weekend of football, it’s because it was.
There were gigantic blowouts from Jaguars and the Rams. The Bills rallied to sink the Bucs 30-27, while the Dolphins outlasted the rival Jets 31-28. Both of those games had three-point lines. The remainder of the schedule basically went as expected, with the Steelers, Patriots and Seahawks continuing to see their stock rise.
Out of the 14 games played so far in Week 7 NFL betting, there were also only four underdogs who covered the spread. The Chiefs lost in a thrilling, 30-31 shootout against the Oakland Raiders as -3.0 favorites on the road. And then there were these three games listed below.
Cleveland Browns +6.0 over Tennessee Titans
In keeping with the time honored tradition of the “worst games always going to overtime in 2017”, the Browns stayed tight with the Tennessee Titans in a game that seemed like an absolute layup. All of us were begging for the Titans to score a touchdown in overtime to cover the spread and put this game to rest. It didn’t happen. There’s no real point in getting in to it.
We all know that the Titans are inconsistent offensively and awful defensively. This game stalled out when the Titans attacked the goal line four straight time and get held up by the Browns. For whatever reasoned, that turned Tennessee’s exotic smash mouth run game in to a shell of itself. The Browns remain bad and the Titans remain a question mark each and every week.
Chicago Bears +3.0 over Carolina Panthers (Chicago wins 17-3)
If you want to see a millennial get coddled in a professional setting, look no further than Mitchell Trubisky. The Bears totaled 153 yards, just 5 first downs, 4 completed passes and zero offensive touchdowns. It was an appalling showing that leaned heavily on a defence that has come out of nowhere to become insanely effective.
This game was all about Cam Newton, who gave up three turnovers with two of those ending up in the hands of Eddie Jackson, who visited the painted area both times. After that, it was a couple field goals to wind out the first half and then sheer boredom.
The Panthers do not have any big play ability which is strange given that they have Kelvin Benjamin and Christian McAffery, both of whom built entire reputations on that specific skill. It just seems like Carolina has zero offensive identity this year, which is strange considering how much personality and talent Cam Newton oozes.
Chicago is now 5-2 ATS which is absolutely mind boggling. They visit the Saints next weekend prior to a bye week so the good times are probably over. The Bears have a bit of a tough run through the second half, and if you’ve been insane enough to capitalize on their good fortunes then good for you.
It’s had to trust a team that won’t take the training wheels off a rookie quarterback, especially when their defensive output is completely average (14th in points against, 15th in takeaways, 7th in total yards against). Don’t be fooled by Chicago allowing blanking offences led by Flacco and Newton over the past two weeks.
Los Angeles Chargers +1.0 over Denver Broncos
Melvin Gordon found out firsthand why the Denver Broncos haven’t allowed a rushing touchdown all season. After getting absolutely embarrassed by the New York Giants, the front-seven of the Broncos stepped up and did a very good job of limiting the Chargers. For his part, Gordon had just 38 yards rushing while Rivers was pedestrian with 183 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
It’s not like the Broncos secondary is a big issue. They got exposed by Phillip Rivers, a guy who routinely haunts his division rivals. The bigger problem is the offence, which now ranks 15th in total yards, passing yards and rushing yards. That’s the definition of average. Where they lack is closing. Over the haul of the season, Denver’s averaged 18.0 points per game, which is 24th in the league, but they’ve been downright abysmal in their last four games. Siemian’s offence has put up just 8.0 points in their last four games. Brutal. Untrustworthy. Garbage.
AS for the Chargers, they’re making a direct push for the top. After starting the year with a 0-4 SU and 0-3-1 ATS pace that saw a point differential -5.3 points against, they’ve become a grindhorse in the other direction. The Chargers are 3-0 SU and ATS in their last three games as they turn the tide heading in to an awesome showdown with the New England Patriots. The Chargers are wonderfully balanced despite being a bit lacking in the linebacker department.