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Pittsburgh vs. Cincinnati
Play: Pittsburgh
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Here’s another letdown situation for the inconsistent Bengals, they went into a tough venue last week at Lambeau Field, snuck out with a win and must now face a very tough division rival in the Steelers. Pittsburgh is one of the best coached football teams I’ve seen in years and with Big Ben losing last week, my money is on them this week.
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Steelers system on this game: When Pittsburgh team played as a -3.5 to -6.5 Road Favorite - Playing on grass surface - Scored more than 10 points in back to back games; The Steelers are 11-5-2 ATS in this spot.
Evan Altemus
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Atlanta vs. New England
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New England has heard all week about how their offense has struggled. Tom Brady has obviously been out of rhythm since coming back, and he has been without Wes Welker in both games. However, Welker will be back in this game, which should be a huge help for Brady. I expect the Patriots offense to come out and make a big statement. New England has played two quality defenses though in the first two games. Atlanta’s defense is the weakest that the Patriots have faced so far this year, and I expect them to put up around 30 points. Meanwhile, New England’s defense is their weak point, but the Jets and Bills offenses didn’t fully exploit them. However, Atlanta has one of the better offenses in the league, as they can move the ball through the air and on the ground very well this season. The addition of Tony Gonzalez is a major help to the offense. His addition has given Matt Ryan a reliable target, especially inside the 20 yard line. Look for this game to feature matching scores throughout, as it will come down to the wire.
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3 UNIT SELECTION OVER.
Marc LawrenceFOR THE LARGEST SELECTION OF FREE SERVICE PLAYS VISIT THESPREAD.COM
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Indianapolis vs. Arizona
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The Colts take their act to Arizona to meet the Cardinals in Glendale Sunday night with both teams entering off road wins last week. Indy QB Peyton Manning is a super-sharp 11-2 SU and 9-3-1 ATS in his NFL career on the non-division road off a road game, including 4-0 SU and ATS versus an opponent off a SU and ATS win. In addition Manning is 4-0 ATS as a dog in his NFL career when his team is undefeated on the season. On the flip side Super Bowl losers are just 10-26-1 ATS as favorites off a SU and ATS win versus and opponent off back-to-back wins, including 4-10 SU and 2-12 ATS the last 14 games. Back the better team as a dog here tonight. We recommend a 3-unit play on Indianapolis.
Lenny Del GenioFOR THE LARGEST SELECTION OF FREE SERVICE PLAYS VISIT THESPREAD.COM
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Cleveland vs. Baltimore
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We love double-digit underdogs in the NFL, but even we have to admit that taking a Cleveland Browns team that has scored just ONE offensive touchdown since Week 11 of last year is a bit scary. Particularly because that touchdown came in garbage time against Minnesota in Week One. However, HC Eric Mangini does have his defense playing hard. This is an AFC North game and Cleveland does not want to lose its season just three weeks in with another bad performance. QB Brady Quinn knows he has to play well here. The Browns are 7-2 ATS off a road loss. This is a sandwich spot for the Ravens, who come off a big outright win as a road dog on the West Coast vs. San Diego, and have New England on deck. Trust us on this one. Take Cleveland.
Craig Davis
100 Dime --- ASTROS (With Rodriguez as listed pitcher)
20 Dime --- ARIZONA CARDINALS
10 Dime --- TITANS MONEYLINE
5 Dime --- LIONS
HOUSTON ASTROS (with Wandy Rodriguez) --- I've been very good with my baseball selections this year, and I'm stepping it up today on a day dominated by the NFL. Why? Because when I like a play as much as I like the Astros, I can't help but let you know about it. The Houston Astros will win this game because, if nothing else, they simply can't lose a 10th straight time to Cincinnati... it just won't happen. They can't let it happen... they have too much pride and have had success in the past against these very same Reds.
And you have to like our chances with Wandy Rodriguez taking the hill for the Astros this afternoon. This guy, for the most part, is absolute money at home. Yes, I realize he was shellacked in his last home outing vs. St. Louis, allowing 6 earned runs in five innings of work. But that's the exception, not the rule. In his previous 43 innings of work, Rodriguez had allowed just two earned runs and four wins. For the season at home, Rodriguez is 8-3 with a 2.03 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP, not to mention his .218 opponents' batting average. Look, you can point fingers all you want to that game vs. St. Louis, but like I said, that was the exception and there's absolutely no chance he lays another egg at home. He's a gamer and would love nothing more than for his last home start of the season to be a win for his team.
As for the Reds, they have cruised to two easy 10-4 wins in the first two games of this series and I can tell you right now this offense isn't that good... they're just not. I'll give them credit for scoring double digits in four of their last five games, but you simply can't convince me that this team's offense should be feared. They simply aren't that good. The pitchers they've faced in those four games include Felipe Paulino, Brian Moehler, Kevin Hart and Zach Duke. That's hardly a frightening pitching staff, and what they're going to face today is much, much better than they have seen recently.
Johnny Cueto gets the start for the Reds, posting a 10-10 record and a 4.39 ERA on the season. This will be his fourth consecutive road start and despite the fact that he's pitched a little better on the road than at home, you have to think he'd love to get back home. Four in a row is a lot to ask of a young pitcher and today is the day he implodes. His career vs. Houston is definitely forgettable, with an 0-3 record and a 5.57 ERA in six starts. That's right, he's never beaten the Astros and I see no reason why it should begin today.
The Reds have struggled vs. lefties recently, winning just one time in their last seven tries. Houston, meanwhile, is 13-3 in Wandy's last 16 home starts, 7-1 in their last 8 when Rodriguez starts and the total is set between 7 and 8.5, and 6-1 when he starts in Game 3 of a series. Folks, this one will be decided early, as the Astros get a much-needed 6-3 victory.
ARIZONA CARDINALS --- Obviously it'd be nice to get this number at -3 or less, but I'm not going to ask you to buy the half point here because I believe this is a Cardinals win by 4 points or more. Indy has a lot going against them in this game, including the fact that they traveled from Indy to Miami, back to Indy, and now out to the desert... and all this was done in a matter of about four or five days. That's a lot to ask, even for NFL athletes. What's more, they really haven't had much time to prepare/game plan for the Cardinals attack because they spent so much time getting ready for the Dolphins. Arizona, as you well know, is tough to prepare for to begin with, but having just a few days to get ready after a long travel is simply too much to overcome.
Also take into account that both Steve Breaston and Anquan Boldin are expected to play for Arizona tonight, giving Kurt Warner a full arsenal of receivers to throw to. Remember in Week 1 he didn't have Breaston and it messed up the plan of attack. Last week, with Breaston, Warner completed his first 15 passes and 24 of the 26 he attempted for the afternoon against Jacksonville. Meanwhile, S Bob Sanders is still out and although Melvin Bullitt and Antoine Bethea are serviceable safeties, they'll surely miss Sanders' services this week.
Arizona runs the ball better this year than they did last year and will show Indy a fair mix of run and pass. Against a tired defense off a short week, that's not the recipe the Colts want to see. I'll give them credit... they did more with less than 15 minutes of possession than I ever thought they could, but that did put a toll on the defense. Arizona has covered 6 of their last 7 overall, 9 of 12 as a favorite, 7 of 10 in September and 4 straight vs. winning teams. Cardinals make home field advantage count tonight, as they win this thing 31-21.
TENNESSEE TITANS MONEYLINE --- I did tell you at the beginning of the year that I thought Tennessee would be a good team again this year but that I didn't believe they were going to match their 13-3 record from a year ago. That being said, the run defense has still in the top 5 and it's going to be ultra tough for Thomas Jones and/or Leon Washington to get anything going in the running department. And if the Jets fall behind early, they don't have the type of QB who is capable of driving a team down the field for a game winning score.
Look, the Jets have all the momentum in the world, riding high off two upset wins (one at home, one on the road) while the Titans are in desperation mode because if the fail to win today, they fall to 0-3 and it's going to be a long, uphill climb to get back to where they need to do. The thing about HC Jeff Fisher is that he's a gamer... he goes with the flow, he's not stubborn. I think that's why he's been so successful in the NFL... he goes with the flow and makes adjustments on the fly. The Jets can blitz all they want (they average blitzing on 70% of all offensive plays)... the other two teams they've done that to haven't had the dynamic tandem in the backfield to make them pay for it. Chris Johnson broke off three long TDs last week because Houston took chances on the blitz. I think Tennessee is begging New York to blitz because they have the game plan and weapons to exploit it.
Remember last year in November when the Titans were the hottest team in the NFL, undefeated, dominating everyone? A balmy afternoon in Nashville, Tennessee turned into a frigid evening for the Titans as the Jets did everything right and were the first team in the league to beat the mighty Titans, 34-13. So on top of everything else, the Titans also have revenge on their minds as none of these players can forget the beating the Jets gave them. Bottom line: whether you think he's over the hill or not, would you rather have Kerry Collins leading your team down the field on a game-winning drive or rookie Mark Sanchez?
LIONS (if your line is +6 1/2 or +7, be sure to buy the half point up to +7 or +7 1/2) --- Folks, there's really not much to say here. Truth be told, this selection is much more about my negative feelings for the Redskins and their lack of offense than about the Lions being good. I'm playing AGAINST Washington and will likely do it several more times this year. Washington might be in the bottom five of total offense and it starts and ends with QB Jason Campbell. Although his completion percentage is pretty good, he's just not throwing for many yards and he's definitely not putting it into the end zone. The Redskins failed to score a touchdown in four quarters vs. lowly St. Louis last week and preceded that with a miserable performance in New York in which they scored on a fake field goal and followed that up with a short-yardage TD in the closing moments. So, in two games this offense has just one touchdown against the Giants (who allowed 31 points to Dallas) and St. Louis (who allowed 28 points to Seattle). Bottom line: I don't care what Detroit looks like or how poorly they've played, it can't be as bad as what we've seen from Washington and I have little doubt Detroit takes this right down to the wire. I'd like to say I think they'll win this game SU... but we are talking about the Lions.
INDIAN COWBOY
4 Unit Play. Take Under 9.5 between the Atlanta Braves @ Washington Nationals
Indeed, the Atlanta Braves have an outside shot at the playoffs. With the Cardinals coming off back to back wins in Colorado, the Braves have inched closer to the wild card spot just 2.5 games back. One can only imagine if Tulowitski doesn't hit that walk off home run earlier this week, my Braves would be just one game back. Nevertheless, the Braves are right there amazingly given the injuries this season. With Lowe on the mound, the Braves are really looking at him to help sweep the Nats this afternoon. I like the fact that Hernandez is on the mound as well as he comes off getting rocked against the Dodgers at home and that was a bit predicted. Hernandez gave up eight runs in that game but after two quality starts he has been having a let down start. I look to him have another quality start (and his next start to likely be quality as well). With the Braves eyeing the playoffs and needing a good start from Lowe here and Hernandez helping prevent the sweep for his team and coming off a bounce-back, I like this game to stay in the single digits. The Under is 7-1 for the Braves when the total is set at this range and the Under is 4-1-1 for the Nationals when they face a pitcher with a WHIP of greater than 1.30.
Bankers Sportswire
500 Tenn
300 Balt under
Ben Burns
10* Zona
9* Zona Under
9* Bucs
7* Mia Under
7* Minny Under
Adam Meyers
6* BB Titans
6* Jack/Texas Over 47
6* BB Seahawks
5* Bengals
5* Dolphins
Pure Lock
Packers
Gamblers Ally
3* Bengals, Cardinals & Bills
Dr. Big Daddy
12* New England -4.5
Executive
450 Jets
EZ Winners
2* Titans
2* Seahawks
2* Raiders
Savannah Sports
4* San Francisco +7
3* Detroit +6.5
Eric Degarde
2* Kansas City -1.5