01 October 2006

RESULTS (Week FOUR) Weekly NFL Related Humiliation

That's better, picking football games is a suckers game.
Indianapolis at NYJets (+9)
These lines on the Colts are getting ridiculous. 9 point favorites on the road against a 2-1 team. They'll cover this spread easily, anyway. The Jets are worse than their record, and the Colts will find their way into the end zone with much more ease this week than they did against the Jaguars. Again, I expect Indy to roll all over the Jets, but then I expect Indy to roll all over every team in the league this year barring injuries to key players on offense or defense.
Indianapolis 31 NYJets 28
Doh! Sounds like it was an exciting game. 31 points in the 4th quarter exciting. Didn't get to see it though, the San Diego at Baltimore contest was shown instead. The team I picked managed to eek out a victory, but didn't cover that huge spread. The Jets might not be half bad, and there was probably a some let down on the Colts side after a hard fought win against a much tougher opponent last week. The Colts remain undefeated and still look like the team most likely to represent the AFC in the Superbowl.
San Diego at Baltimore (+2.5)
Ought to be a good one. San Diego is coming off of a bye week. Will the extra week make the Chargers better prepared or rusty? I vote rusty. I'm guessing that Baltimore will continue to be devastatingly effective on defense and do just enough on offense to win this contest. I'm shocked that San Diego are favored on the road, they've looked good, but not that good.
San Diego 13 Baltimore 16
Woohoo! The Ravens did just enough to win. McNair knows how to win. An AFC Championship game between the Ravens and the Colts would be a mighty battle. Still a lot of season left before that happens, though. San Diego looks like a capable team, and as Rivers gets more experience, they could catch fire at the end of the season.
New England at Cincinatti (-6)
I think the Bengals are the second best team in the league right now, and I'd put Jacksonville third with Chicago fourth. Beyond that top four it's a big drop off, and barring a lucky run in the playoffs, I don't think any other teams matter this season. With that said, the Patriots are one of those teams coached by one of those coaches who could work miracles and get deeper into the playoffs then their talent would justify. There's a very real possibility that the Bengals will have a let down this week after beating their division rivals, but I wouldn't bet on it. I'd take the Bengals and the points and I'm just glad I'm not actually betting on these games, cause this is one of those games that would drive me crazy.
New England 38 Cincinatti 13
Doh! Smoke and mirrors, that's all that Belichick seems to have most seasons, yet the Patriots pull of big win after big win. I just never, ever will believe what I'm seeing even as it happens. Cincy suddenly looked average in this game, on both sides of the ball. Embarrassed at home as the were in this game, they'll bounce back, a bye next week and then Tampa Bay following will help erase the bad taste of this loss, quickly.
Seattle at Chicago (-3)
The Bears are an elite team in this league, even with Rex Grossman as QB. I can't believe I just typed that sentence. Losing Shaun Alexander (curse you Madden Curse!) is a blow that the Seahawks won't recover from this week. Chicago will win, and by more than a field goal. This actually could end up being a rather boring Sunday night broadcast.
Seattle 6 Chicago 37
Woohoo! Got this one pretty much right. Chicago won in impressive fashion and turned this game into a snooze fest (unless you love Da Bears). Rex Grossman may actually be the real deal. A resurgent Carolina seems like their main threat to keep them out of the Superbowl. It's still very early in the season, though.

All in all, a mediocre 2-2 week of picking games. The Colts and the Bengals let me down, played far below their talent levels. Over the course of a long season there's always good teams that have off games and bad teams that play better than they should for a game or two. That's what makes picking these contests an art and not a science. An art best enjoyed purely hypothetically, I might add.

1 comment:

SippicanCottage said...

xwl, my friend, why didn't you ask me for pats info? Here it is:

No one in any media outlet has any idea what they are talking about concerning this team.

The Pats have the best defensive line in football, bar none, and have backups for it too. Their offensive line coach is the best in the league. They have the most talented TE in football, and the best TE blocker in football too. Doug Gabriel is better than Deion Branch. Reche Caldwell is the same caliber as David Givens. And chad jackson is supposed to be more talented than both of them,but he's got a bad hamstring. The pats wide receiving corp is more talented than last year; by week twelve that will be apparent. Trading a first round pick and all that money for the remaining fourteen games of Branch's contract will seem like the worst personnel decision in the history of the Seahawks, and that's saying something.

Laurence Maroney is better than Reggie Bush.

If the pats play 4-3 defense, with warren, seymour, wilfork, green, colvin, brushchi, and vrabel, they may be fielding the best defensive front seven in the last twenty years of football. I'm not joking.

Never, ever bet against them again.