Close Calls - Preseason Week 1
By Joe Nelson
VegasInsider.com
Glancing at the scoreboard won’t tell you the whole story in most games. Here are some of the games that went down to the wire relative to the spread in the fourth quarter last week in the opening weekend of the NFL preseason, including several last second scores that changed results.
Atlanta Falcons (-3) 23, Washington Redskins 17 (37): The Falcons led 23-3 about halfway through the third quarter, but Washington answered to make it 23-10. An Atlanta fumble to start the fourth quarter tilted the trajectory of the game as the Redskins scored another touchdown on a short field to get within six, also pushing the total ‘over’ in the process. After the Falcons missed a late field goal that would have sealed the win, Washington wound up failing on four tries to advance as Atlanta held on in a game where they had a significant yardage edge.
Philadelphia Eagles (-3) 17, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9 (37½): The Eagles struck early with two touchdowns in the first five minutes with the first score coming after the Buccaneers fumbled on the opening kickoff. Tampa Bay would find the end zone, but a missed extra-point kept the score at 14-6 where it stayed until well into the second half. After a Philadelphia field goal early in the fourth quarter, the Buccaneers did the same to keep the margin at eight points, whereas a touchdown would have had a chance to change the spread result as going for two would have been likely. In the final minute, an interception in the end zone ended Tampa Bay’s quest to tie the game or at least spoil the spread result with the Buccaneers featuring five turnovers in the head coaching debut of Dirk Koetter.
New York Jets (-3) 17, Jacksonville Jaguars 13 (36½): The Jaguars took an early 10-0 lead, but by halftime, they barely clung to an underdog cover trailing 14-13 with an 84-yard kickoff return being a big play for the Jets to set up a touchdown just before the half. New York extended the lead to 17-13 with a field goal in the third, but the Jets also missed two field goals to leave the door open. Behind rookie Brandon Allen, Jacksonville reached the New York 14-yard line in the final minute of the game, but an interception ended the threat and sealed the win for the Jets and the ‘under’ in a game where the Jets were out-gained by 131 yards.
Baltimore Ravens (+1) 22, Carolina Panthers 19 (36½): The 2015 NFC champions started off hot with a 3-0 lead that nearly turned to 10-0, but a penalty on Cam Newton for being on the field cost the team a defensive touchdown. Derek Anderson led the Panthers to the end zone a few plays later, but by halftime it was 14-13 Ravens to the chagrin of ‘under’ players as 10 points were scored in the final minute of the first half. Baltimore extended the lead to 22-13 in the third, but back-to-back Baltimore turnovers gave the Panthers two field goals to climb within three points as a slight road favorite. Wil Lutz missed a 53-yard field goal attempt for Baltimore and it looked like the Panthers would take the lead with first-and-goal with over three minutes to go in the game. Being that it was the preseason, the Panthers went for it on fourth and goal from the 4-yard line with an incompletion ending the threat.
New England Patriots (-4) 34, New Orleans Saints 22 (38): With eyes on Jimmy Garoppolo and the revamped Saints defense, it was the New England defense that made the biggest mark on this preseason game. Jamie Collins opened the scoring with an interception return touchdown, but the Saints would take a 16-8 lead in the second quarter. New England pulled ahead to 24-16 in the third quarter, but the Saints lined up to tie the game only to fail on their two-point conversion after succeeding on the conversion attempts on two first half touchdowns. The New Orleans defense forced a punt, but Luke McCown wound up being sacked on a key third down play and his fumble was returned for another defensive score for the Patriots to put the game away as the Saints had 26 first downs offset by four turnovers.
Miami Dolphins (+2) 27, New York Giants 10 (36½): A 10-0 1st quarter lead for the Giants was quickly erased as the Dolphins scored 17 points in the final five minutes of the first half with the key play being Ryan Nassib fumbling on a sack with the ball returned to the 5-yard line. That play was also the key play in pushing the pace towards the ‘over’ although after just three points in the third quarter both total results were very possible. Another New York fumble set up the Dolphins in great field position with Miami scoring about halfway through the final frame to seal the win and push the total just barely ‘over’.
Detroit Lions (+3) 30, Pittsburgh Steelers 17 (35): A scoreless first quarter was promising for the ‘under,’ but that changed quickly with a defensive touchdown opening the scoring that eventually led to 27 points in the second quarter. Detroit took a 16-14 lead with a field goal in the third quarter, a lead the Steelers got back early in the fourth quarter with their own 3-point kick. The side and total results were confirmed on the ensuing kickoff as Dwayne Washington went 96 yards for a touchdown for the Lions and Detroit connected for the two-point conversion to lead 24-17. Another late Lions touchdown behind rookie Jake Rudock padded the final score although the statistics also presented a pretty dominant result for Detroit with nearly a 200-yard edge.
Minnesota Vikings (+1) 17, Cincinnati Bengals 16 (35): Mike Zimmer’s excellent preseason track record continued as the Vikings led the majority of this game, a bit of a homecoming for Zimmer who was a long-time assistant under Bengals coach Marvin Lewis. Minnesota led 17-7 heading into the fourth quarter as a slight underdog and the Bengals did not score again until late in the final frame. With the line closing at just +1 for the Vikings and the total closing at 35, the final minutes were uncomfortable for all involved as a Minnesota 17-10 lead turned into 17-16 after an impressive 80-yard punt return touchdown from rookie Alex Erickson for the Bengals. With less than three minutes to go, the Bengals went for two in a play that was critical on the spread and total results with the Vikings and the ‘under’ just barely holding on with the attempt failing.
Oakland Raiders (+3) 31, Arizona Cardinals 10 (37): The Raiders quickly jumped ahead in this matchup and a seven-point lead was doubled late in the third quarter as the spread result for the underdog Raiders was rarely in doubt. The total that looked on pace for an easy ‘over’ after a 20-point first quarter stalled with just 34 points well into the fourth quarter. With just over three minutes to go Oakland running back George Atkinson III broke a 35-yard run for a touchdown to confirm the ‘over’ in a game that featured over 700 total yards for a very productive outing by preseason standards in Week 1.
Seattle Seahawks (+3½) 17, Kansas City Chiefs 16 (36): The Chiefs relied on mostly field goals, but a 16-6 lead was the result through three quarters and the Chiefs still led by seven after Steven Hauschka connected from 50 yards with just over three minutes to go in the game. Rookie Trevone Boykin was handed the reins of the Seattle offense for most of this game and as time expired he hit rookie Tanner McEvoy for a touchdown with Seattle then successfully rushing for the two-point conversion and the win.
Indianapolis Colts (+2½) 19, Buffalo Bills (36): Andrew Luck sat out for the Colts and a safety for the Bills opened the scoring. At halftime, the score was 9-9 and the slight favorite Bills were just barely covering through three quarters with a 12-9 lead. The Colts connected for a big 57-yard pass play early in the fourth quarter to lead by four and Indianapolis added a field goal with just over a minute to go to seemingly lock up the game. Behind rookie Cardale Jones, the Bills managed to 83 yards in the final minute for a touchdown as time expired, shifting the total result to the ‘over’ though the Bills wound up failing going for two and the win.
Los Angeles Rams (-6) 28, Dallas Cowboys 24 (35½): The Rams clearly wanted to win their Los Angeles return, but the game started with the worst possible scenario as the opening kickoff was returned for a touchdown for the Cowboys. Dallas would take a 24-7 lead at the half to seemingly take complete control of the game with turnovers hurting the cause for the Rams. Behind Sean Mannion, the Rams rallied with a third quarter touchdown locking up the ‘over’ and Los Angeles was within three after an 80-yard touchdown drive early in the final frame. Just after the two minute warning, the Rams found the end zone again on a drive that included a big fourth-down conversion. With the successful extra-point, the Rams were past the early spreads of -3 or -3½ but this game featured a significant line move with Los Angeles closing as high as -6 and those that were looking for the middle got it as a final drive from Dallas couldn’t get past midfield.
Tennessee Titans (-3) 27, San Diego Chargers 10 (37): The Titans eventually posted 437 yards in this game, but they had just a modest 17-10 lead into the fourth quarter. Bishop Sankey would break a long run to eventually push the lead to 27-10 for the Titans, hitting the ‘over’ for many that got on the game early in the week. The score didn’t change in the final 10 minutes as the total wound up right on the closing number.
Houston Texans (+3) 24, San Francisco 49ers (39): The 49ers led 13-7 at the half, but wound up not scoring again as the Texans overcame a substantial yardage deficit to win on the road, outscoring the 49ers 17-0 in the second half. The total opened at 35 but was past 37 by game day, eventually closing at 39 with many eyeing the high scoring preseason track record of new 49ers coach Chip Kelly. 37 was right where the game landed with a 49ers drive reaching the Houston 32-yard line in the 4th quarter the biggest threat with a holding penalty pushing San Francisco backwards from there.