Week 2 results
Thursday, Sept 11
Commanders 18 @ Green Bay Packers 27 – Packers (over 48)
The Packers dominated the Commanders and showcased they are the team to beat in the NFC by controlling the game both on offense and defense. Their defense shut down the Commanders running game and forced Jayden Daniel’s into tough 3rd and long situations. The pass rush forced him to throw quickly which prevented receivers from getting downfield. His vision to throw receivers open was non-existent which shows a lack of improvement in the off-season. Expect future opponents to look at this game as a means to shut down the Commanders and limit Daniel’s ability. The Packers were able to move the ball with the run game and pass. Kraft proved to be a good target for Love throughout this game. We were correct in the call for the winner but missed on the over.
Sunday, Sept 14
Jacksonville Jaguars 27@ Cincinnati Bengals 31, Bengals -3.5 (over 49.0)
This game revealed that the Jaguars are not a good team and that the Bengals are actually bad, now that Burrow is out. This game was much closer than it should have been due to a Joe Burrow turf toe injury. Browning stepped in and had some errant throws that ended up in the Jaguars’ hands, but they still came out with the victory. Hopefully a week of practice can get Browning into better shape for next weekends game. Lawrence showed some signs of conflict with Coach Coen so it will be interesting to see how his development is impacted there. Coen claimed he had similar growing pains with Baker while in Tampa.
Seattle Seahawks 31 @ Pittsburgh Steelers 17, Steelers -3.0 (over 40.5)
The Seahawks were able to go on the road and dominate a Steelers team that looked lost on offense. If you had Jaylen Warren, you feel comfortable with the fantasy points he generated, but there was not much else for the Steelers offense. DK Metkalf did get his revenge touchdown, but loss matters more. For Seattle, Charbonnet out carried Walker, but Walker turned in more production; look for Walker to get more looks in future weeks. Darnold was efficient throwing the ball and JSN went over 100 yards receiving. This was a good road victory for a Seattle team that looks to develop its offense more under Kubiak. We were incorrect in the winner with spread but we were correct in our point total with the over.
Chicago Bears 21 @ Detroit Lions 52, Bears +6.5 (under 46.5)
The Lions are not faltering and the Bears ARE really bad on defense. Considering the Bears should know this offense, they were absolutely unprepared to stop it. The large lead led to a lot of passing from the Bears so Odunze had a great looking day with over 100 yards and 2 TD’s. The Lions had everything working on offense and Goff had a career day, throwing for over 300 yards, 5 TDs and almost a perfect QB rating. And all the Lions specialists feasted on the Bears, with St. Brown getting the most share, 3 TD’s. We were incorrect calling this game with the incorrect pick and the under.
New York Giants 37 @ Dallas Cowboys 40, Cowboys -6.0 (under 45.0)
Wilson throws up 450.yards and keeps this game close, but the boot of Aubrey keeps the Cowboys in the game and eventually won it for them. This was an exciting offensive game to watch with many lead changes in the fourth quarter. Cam Skattebo looked good taking over the backfield for the Giants. Both these defenses did a poor job stopping the pass which lead to an incredible shoot out game. We missed with th under and the Cowboys with the spread.
Cleveland Browns 17 @ Baltimore Ravens 41, Browns +11.5 (over 45.0)
The Browns offense showed just how bad it is this game. They were unable to establish the run or get any passing game going. Their defense looked as though it could stop the run, but there’s no need to run the ball when Lamar can just throw from the pocket and pick apart the defense all game long. His 4 passing TDs and the Ravens defense putting up points as well was plenty enough to take care of the Browns. We were wrong in the pick but hit the over.
San Francisco 49ers 26 @ New Orleans Saints 21, 49ers -3.0 (under 40.5)
The Niners showed their offensive system can work with Mac Jones at QB. He had a slow start but found his groove in the second drive of the game. He hit his receivers with good timing throws. The Saints have shown good resiliency through the first two weeks, just not enough to close out games. In the end, it was the Niners’ defense that closed this out with another strip sack fumble to finish off their opponent just like last week. We were correct with the pick but missed on the under in this game.
New England Patriots 33 @ Miami Dolphins 27, Patriots +2.0 (under 43.5)
Drake Maye did a good job protecting the football and keeping his offense on schedule. Interestingly the Patriots leaned into Stevenson for both the running and passing game. It will be interesting to see if his usage stays up in future weeks as a good outlet for their young QB. For the Dolphins, they remained competitive, but could not pull out the victory in this one. The seat is getting a little warmer for McDaniels, but it’s a short week so he gets one more game with the Dolphins. We were correct with the pick but missed the under.
Buffalo Bills 30 @ New York Jets 10, Jets +6. (Over 47.5)
The Bills easily handled the Jets in this game. Josh Allen did not have to do much but hand the ball off to Cook who ran all over the Jets defense. The Jets could not muster much of any offense after Fields left the game with a concussion. The Jets will have to figure something out to get their offense jumpstarted if Fields is out. We missed on the pick and the over for this game.
LA Rams 33 @ Tennessee Titans 19, Rams -5.5 (over 41.5)
There was not much happening for the Titans offense in this game and the Rams were able to have a balanced attack that took advantage of the poor Titans defense. Adams and Nukua had good days while the Rams split backfield duties between Corum and Williams. We were correct on the over and the pick for this game.
Carolina Panthers 22 @ Arizona Cardinals 27, Panthers +7.0 (under 44.5)
Bryce Young had over 50 attempts since the Panthers failed to establish any running game against the Cardinals defense. McMillan and Renfrow were the beneficiaries of such a heavy passing attack. The Cardinals were able to move the ball well enough with Murray to win this game. We were correct with the pick but missed on the under call.
Denver Broncos 28 @ Indianapolis Colts 29, Broncos -1.0 (under 43.5)
This was a close matchup and the Colts look like a legit team by beating a good defense in the Broncos. Bo Nix recovered from last week’s showing and looked good throwing a lot to Franklin. JK Dobbins received a majority of the touches out of the backfield for the Broncos getting 70 yards and a TD. But the main story here is Daniel Jones and Jonathan Taylor being able to move the ball efficiently against a good Broncos defense. Jones threw for over 300 yards while passing and rushing for a TD. While Taylor had over 200 all purpose yards and had a receiving TD. The Colts look like the dominant team in the AFC South this year.
Philadelphia Eagles 20 @ Kansas City Chiefs 17, Chiefs +1.5 (over 47.5)
The Eagles once again show us they are the better team in beating the Chiefs on their home turf. This was a defensive matchup with not a lot of offense from either side. It’s not a good thing to see Mahomes be the leading rusher for the Chiefs and Jalen Hurts barely got over 100 yards passing in this game. This is a hats off to both defensive coordinators in this matchup. Unfortunately this went against our call and our over for point total was incorrect.
Atlanta Falcons 22 @ Minnesota Vikings 6, Vikings -3.5 (over 44.5)
This turned into a defensive back and forth with the Falcons coming out ahead since Penix did a good job protecting the ball while McCarthy made mistakes. This turned into a tale of who could run the ball and Bijan was able to take advantage of the Vikings defense.
Monday, Sept 15
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20 @ Houston Texans 19 – Texans -2.5 (under 42.5)
This was a tight game that came down to the 4th quarter with a last minute TD by the Bucs giving them the victory. The Bucs deserved to win by moving the ball efficiently against a good Texans defense. Baker spread the ball around and they were able to get a good running game with the White and Irving running well. The Texans had difficulties establishing the run while Cloud was pressured while in the pocket leading to 3 sacks.
LA Chargers 20 @ Las Vegas Raiders 6 – Chargers -3.5 (under 46.5)
This was a great showcase of the Chargers passing game causing confusion for Geno Smith while the pass rush got to him. The Chargers were able to do enough through the passing offense to put up the points and then their defense shut the Raiders down. Expect there to be discussion about the Chargers being one of the best teams in the AFC with the likes of the Ravens and Bills.