Thursday's NFL Week 3 Preseason Betting Preview
By Covers.com
Atlanta Falcons vs Miami Dolphins (-2.5, 43.5)
Falcons WR Julio Jones was quoted during an interview about the importance of this game to have the first-team offense "hitting on all cylinders". They are expected to take this game very seriously and the starters will play the entire opening half, and perhaps some of the second half, in order to build off their successful appearance in preseason Week 2.
It's unknown, at this point, if Dolphins' DE Cameron Wake will make his first appearance in a game since his season-ending Achilles injury on October 29th of last season. He's been participating in training camp and could very well play Thursday in order to get sharp for the regular season - he definitely will not play in preseason Week 4.
Miami will likely use this game to hammer out their official running back depth chart. Second-year tailback Jay Ajayi and former Pro Bowler Arian Foster are deadlocked in a battle that will have to be settled, to a certain degree, Thursday night against the Falcons.
Dallas Cowboys at Seattle Seahawks (-5, 44.5)
Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant will not play Thursday night in Seattle after suffering a concussion in practice. You can expect the Cowboys to shut down Bryant until the start of the regular season. Dez tweeted that he was OK and the Cowboys are just being cautious in their handling of the big man.
Jerry Jones' star draft pick, RB Ezekiel Elliott, will make his Cowboys debut after sitting out the team's first two preseason games with a tender hamstring. Head coach Jason Garrett said they will ease him back into game action with a limited package of plays. You should also expect Elliott to get some touches in preseason Week 4 in order to get him ready for the regular season.
Tony Romo, and the rest of the starters, will play the entire first half and perhaps a series or two into the third quarter. That means less time for rookie quarterback Dak Prescott to take the NFL by storm with his preseason performance.
Seahawks' likely starting running back Thomas Rawls will not play Thursday as he is still recovering from offseason ankle surgery. Head coach Pete Carroll stated that Rawls will be ready for their regular season opener and he may be made available for preseason Week 4 for a couple of touches to get his rythm back.
Safety Kam Chancellor, defensive tackle Jordan Hill, rookie running back C.J. Prosise will all make their season debuts for the Hawks agaisnt Dallas.
Seattle's starting offense has looked bad in the opening two preseason games and will play well into the second half Thursday night in their final attempt to get rolling for the regular season.
Thursday's Preseason Tips
VegasInsider.com
Falcons at Dolphins (-2½, 43½)
Atlanta
Head Coach: Dan Quinn (4-2 SU, 4-2 ATS in preseason)
Quarterback Rotation: Matt Ryan, Matt Schaub, Sean Renfree, Matt Simms
Beat Writer Twitter Follow: D. Orlando Ledbetter
Atlanta improved to 2-0 both straight up and against the spread in the preseason last Thursday as it dropped Cleveland 24-13 as a two-point road underdog. Even though the margin was only 11 points, the Falcons racked up 498 offensive yards and an eye-opening 31 first downs on the Browns while dominating the time of possession (39:59). If it wasn’t for a pair of RG3 deep touchdown bombs for Cleveland, this game would’ve looked much worse.
Atlanta is averaging 428.5 yards per game offensively in the preseason, which is ranked first in the NFL. The team has converted 48 percent of its third downs and only turned the ball over twice. Defensively, the Falcons haven’t created a turnover in either of their first two exhibitions but the unit has been stout with just 238.5 YPG.
Despite winning last week at Cleveland, the Falcons have recently struggled in road exhibition games. Including the Week 2 result, Atlanta is 3-9 SU (25%) in its last 12 as preseason visitors but it has managed to cover six of those games. Atlanta owns a 19-13 record in Game 3 of the preseason and is 6-3 in the last nine seasons, according to VegasInsider.com handicapper Marc Lawrence.
Miami
Head Coach: Adam Gase (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS in preseason)
Quarterback Rotation: Ryan Tannehill, Matt Moore, Brandon Doughty (Rookie), Zac Dysert
Beat Writer Twitter Follow: Chris Perkins
After cruising past the Giants 27-10 in Week 1, the Dolphins were humbled 41-14 by the Cowboys. The defense was diced up for 433 total yards and that’s been a common theme this August. Miami’s run defense has looked awful in the preseason, surrendering 164 YPG and four rushing touchdowns in two games.
Fortunately, the first-team offense under quarterback Ryan Tannehill (162 yards, 2 TDs) looked very sharp. The unit had four possessions with Tannehill and he posted two touchdowns while another drive stalled inside the Dallas five-yard line due to a dropped touchdown pass by his tight end Jordan Cameron.
This game will be played in Orlando since Miami’s stadium is still completing renovations for the upcoming season. It’s technically a home game for the Dolphins and bettors could note that Miami is 4-1 in its last five home exhibitions but all five games were decided by five points or less.
The Dolphins have gone 17-14 overall in Game 3 since 1983 and are 0-5 the last five years.
Cowboys at Seahawks (-6, 44½)
Dallas
Head Coach: Jason Garrett (9-14 SU, 8-14-1 ATS in preseason)
Quarterback Rotation: Tony Romo, Dak Prescott, Jameill Showers
Beat Writer Twitter Follow: Todd Archer
The Cowboys are coming off an impressive 41-14 victory over Miami last Friday at home. Dallas led 27-14 at the break and outscored the Dolphins 14-0 in the second half. It was the second consecutive preseason game where Dallas scored 20-plus points in the first 30 minutes as it built a 24-7 lead over Los Angeles in Week 1 of the preseason.
Rookie quarterback Dak Prescott impressed in Week 1 versus the Rams (10-of-12, 139 yards, 2 TDs) and followed up that effort by accounting for four touchdowns in Week 2 versus the Dolphins. Tony Romo is expected to receive more minutes in Game 3 which will leave the clean-up duty to Prescott.
Including the loss at Los Angeles in Week 1 of the preseason, the Cowboys have dropped eight straight road games (2-6 ATS) in the preseason. The defense has surrendered 22.3 PPG during this span and this year’s unit hasn’t looked sharp in their two exhibitions, allowing 343.5 yards per game.
Dallas has been one of the best fades in Game 3 of the preseason (10-21 ATS) and they enter this Thursday with a three-game losing skid.
Wide receiver Dez Bryant (concussion) has been ruled 'out' while rooking running back Ezekiel Elliott is expected to see his first action of the preseason for Dallas.
Seattle
Head Coach: Pete Carroll (27-16 SU, 29-13-1 ATS in preseason)
Quarterback Rotation: Russell Wilson, Trevone Boykin, Jake Heaps
Beat Writer Twitter Follow: Bob Condotta
The Seahawks fell to 1-1 in the preseason after dropping an 18-11 decision to Minnesota last Saturday as 2½-point home favorites. The Vikings posted the game-winning score late on the fourth quarter with an interception return for a touchdown. The ‘under’ (38.5) connected for the second straight preseason game for Seattle.
The Seahawks offense has only managed to post 28 points in two games and none of those points have come from the first-team offense. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said that the starters will play the entire first half and at least one series in the third quarter on Thursday. Running back Thomas Rawls (ankle) is expected to sit out this game.
Despite losing last week to the Vikings, the Seahawks have gone 16-4 in their last 20 preseason games at home and have posted an impressive 14-5-1 ATS mark during this span. Dating back to 1983, Seattle has gone 24-9 ATS in Game 3 of the preseason and is 4-1 ATS the last five seasons.