Betting news, trends, odds and predictions from various handicappers and websites for Sunday 8/26/18
Bengals vs. Bills Preview and Predictions in NFL
NFL Previews 25th August 2018 By Charles Jay for Scores And Stats
by Charles Jay Scores & Stats on 08/25/2018
The Cincinnati Bengals did not make any earth-shattering moves in the off-season, nor did they change head coaches, so if they are going to make improvements in 2018 it is largely going to have to happen with existing personnel. But is that personnel good enough, namely quarterback Andy Dalton? This team clearly has to come up with some answers, and this is a competitive atmosphere they're in, with the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers in the same division (the AFC North).
For the Buffalo Bills, the situation may have changed with an injury to their quarterback, AJ McCarron. Depending on his status for the short term, the Bills may be forced to accelerate the timetable for their first-round draft pick. So a team that actually made the playoffs last season may wind up looking more like a squad that is starting from Square One.
These teams will be meeting up on Sunday afternoon at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, NY. Last week the Bills beat the Cleveland Browns 19-17, while the Bengals registered a 21-13 victory over the Dallas Cowboys.
TV: 4 PM ET, Local Coverage, NFL Network (replay). LINE: Bills -1.5. O/U: 41.5.
ABOUT THE BENGALS: On the one hand, it was positive that Cincinnati was able to outscore Dallas 21-3 in the second half for a win at AT&T Stadium. On the other hand, when you are down 10-0 at the half when the first-team players are in the game, that is not an encouraging sign. Cincinnati's ground game produced all of seven yards on six attempts in the first half. Andy Dalton completed five of seven passes, but the guys who really made things happen were the backups. Jeff Driskel threw for 119 yards and Matt Barkley, who has become more or less a career backup, led the team to some fourth-quarter points. It is his performance during these pre-season games that may ultimately catapult Driskel, who originally attended Florida then transferred to Louisiana Tech, into the #2 spot. Defensive tackle Chris Baker, a seven-year veteran, was cut by the team, and that was quite a disappointment for everybody since he had just been signed in the off-season after a year with Tampa Bay. But the Bengals have been very impressed with Andrew Billings, especially in the area of stuffing the run, where Cincinnati was just 30th in the league last season. With Baker's salary upwards of $5 million, he could be a casualty of all this. The Bengals are +850 to win the AFC North division, +4500 to capture the conference title, and +8500 to win Super Bowl 53.
ABOUT THE BILLS: AJ McCarron played through the first quarter of last week's game against Cleveland, but reports were that he had a shoulder injury, and it was even reported in the media that it was possibly a broken collarbone, which would have been a very serious situation. Alas, after some more tests, that news proved to be inaccurate, and the team was reporting nothing more severe than shoulder soreness. He had even come back to practice. Whether head coach Sean McDermott wants him to sustain any more contact in the two remaining pre-season games is another issue entirely. John Allen, the first-round draft pick, will start at quarterback for the team against Cincinnati, and he'll be relieved by Nathan Peterman unless something happens between now and then that would inject McCarron back into the picture. No one has really stood out and snagged the starting job, although the original plan was that McCarron could play a year while Allen acclimated himself to the NFL. But Allen has been good enough that you would have to consider him a viable candidate. He went 9 of 13 last week and took the team on three scoring drives. So his week is being tailored to being with the first team, playing through the first half, making halftime adjustments, and coming out for a series or two. In an emergency, the Bills could always call on Logan Thomas, a star QB at Virginia Tech who has been with three NFL teams and is now battling for a spot at tight end, where he sits on the depth chart behind Nick O'Leary, the grandson of Jack Nicklaus. The Bills are now +1350- to win the AFC East, 65-1 to win the AFC and 125-1 to be Super Bowl champions.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Peterman is 17 for 20, an 85% accuracy rate, and his 127.3 QB rating is best among all NFL quarterbacks with 20 or more attempts in this pre-season.
2. Keenan Robinson, a 29-year-old linebacker who McDermott was hoping could demonstrate some versatility at the position, has retired. He had a history of injuries and was not convinced he could get the job done anymore form a physical standpoint.
3. Bengals' QB Andy Dalton obviously has a special place in the hearts of Bills fans, after he led the Bengals on that last-minute touchdown drive that beat Baltimore in last year's season finale and propelled Buffalo into the playoffs, at long last. Bills' rooters proceeded to pour money into Dalton's charity as a "thank you" gesture.
PREDICTION: Bills 21, Bengals 17
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Cardinals vs. Cowboys Preview and Predictions in NFL
NFL Previews 25th August 2018 By Charles Jay for Scores And Stats
by Charles Jay Scores & Stats on 08/25/2018
The Arizona Cardinals feel as if they may be in for a major improvement, even as they have to transition away from their long-time coach and long-time quarterback. They'll have a lot to deal with in the NFC West, including an expected surge on the part of the San Francisco 49ers. What kind of rabbit does first-year head coach Steve Wilks have to pull out of his hat?
The Dallas Cowboys always draw a lot of attention, and now they'll have a number of people wondering how they are going to solve a dilemma with the offensive line. They'll be without one starter and maybe two when the regular season begins, and they are glad at this point that they invested a high draft choice in help up front.
All Preseason NFL Predictions
The Cowboys lost 21-13 at home to the Cincinnati Bengals last week, while the Cardinals went on the road and beat New Orleans 20-15. Now, these teams meet at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX.
TV: 8 PM ET, Local Coverage, NFL Network (replay). LINE: Cardinals -2. O/U: 40.5.
ABOUT THE CARDINALS: Sam Bradford, projected to be the starting quarterback for the Cards, continued to be sharp in shirt stints as he completed all six passes against the New Orleans Saints. Josh Rosen, who may eventually find himself competing alongside the first team, went 10 of 16 for 107 yards and a touchdown pass. He has also suffered an injured thumb, which makes his status day-to-day. So he will be evaluated right before Sunday's game to determine whether he is good to go. Christian Kirk, the second-round draft pick out of Texas A&M who is being counted on to pick up the slack after the loss of John Brown, had four catches, including a 13-yard TD pass from Rosen. Despite a torn ACL, the Cardinals have signed AQ Shipley, their starting center, to a one-year contract extension. It looks as if rookie Mason Cole is going to assume the first-team role in Shipley's absence. The major concern on the part of Steve Wilks and his staff has been the 183 rushing yards the Saints had last week. Perhaps some of that had to do with the absence of a few defensive linemen who might normally be in the rotation. The linebackers, including Josh Bynes, the "mike" in the scheme, are optimistic about the zone coverages the team will play and expect more opportunities at interceptions. The Cardinals are +1150 to win the NFC West, +4500 for the conference title, and +8500 to win the Super Bowl.
ABOUT THE COWBOYS: Dak Prescott looked sharp against Cincinnati, completing ten of 15 passes, and the Cowboys got off to a 10-0 halftime lead, though they were not able to protect it in the second half. As it turns out, that may his last action until the regular season opener. Some grave concerns have developed along the offensive line. Guard Zack Martin, a four-time Pro Bowl performer, suffered a knee injury and is going to be held out of the last two pre-season games. Center Travis Frederick, another Pro Bowler, has been diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome, and the club has no idea when or if he'll be able to play again. Because of this sudden instability up front, the idea has been floated that none of the offensive starters take part in the last two exhibitions so that the club can regroup and get ready to play when the games are for real. Connor Williams, the team's second-round pick out of Texas, is now ticketed for a bigger role on the OL. Randy Gregory, who missed all of last season after getting suspended three times in 2016 for substance abuse violations, finally got back into action last week for the Cowboys. Last week the NFL had a mental health conference in Dallas, and Gregory, who has bipolar disorder, is critical of the way the league handles mental health, stating that they are much more concerned with catching players with drugs like marijuana. “It’s trash. It’s punitive,” Gregory said of the league’s mental health approach. “That’s my experience. Maybe they have something different.” The Cowboys are priced at +300 to win the NFC East, +1150 to win the NFC title, and +2000 to win the Super Bowl.
EXTRA POINTS
1. The Pro Football Hall of Fame has nominated Gil Brandt, the Cowboys' director of player personnel for 29 years, as a finalist in the contributor category. Brandt is generally considered to be the individual who brought scouting into the modern age, and the Cowboys were miles ahead of other teams for quite a while with their innovations.
2. Arizona general manager Steve Keim made his first public statements since serving his five-week suspension for "extreme DUI," where he tested over twice the legal limit on the Fourth of July. "I don't want to get too deep into it and personal, but I can tell you that coming away from this has made me a better man," he said.
3. Dallas' Jason Garrett has not been a strong performer against the pointspread in pre-season games, going just 11-20 ATS during his career with the Cowboys.
PREDICTION: Cardinals 21, Cowboys 16
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