The New England Patriots welcome the St. Louis Rams to Gillette Stadium. The line opened with the Patriots as 6 ½ point favorites, but early betting has moved the line. Several books are now listing the Pats as 7 ½ point favorites, with a couple going as high as 9 points to protect against teasers. New England has looked terrific so far, winning a close game at New Orleans and stomping the Falcons in Atlanta. The Rams followed up a blowout loss to the Vikings by clipping the Browns in Cleveland last week, thanks to 5 Browns turnovers.
Also on Thursday the Green Bay Packers host the Indianapolis Colts. The Pack opened as 4 point favorites, but the line has moved to 3 or 3 ½ depending upon the sportsbook. The Colts have lost their first two preseason games by a combined 33 points, while the Packers have played two close games. They lost by a field goal at home to the Browns, and then went to Seattle and won by a field goal.
Friday night sees four games. The Miami Dolphins opened as 2 ½ point favorites against the visiting Falcons. Early wagering has pushed the line down to a pick at most sportsbooks. The Dolphins are 2-0 with wins over Tampa Bay and at Jacksonville. Atlanta opened with a win against Kansas City, and then got waxed by the Patriots at home.
The New York Jets host the Washington Redskins with the Jets opening as 4 point faves. The line has moved down slightly, with the Jets as either 3 or 3 ½ point favorites. The Jets are 1-1, having lost to the Giants and beaten the Panthers. The ‘Skins trounced the Bills in week 1, and then got hammered by the Ravens last week.
Philadelphia travels to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs. The line opened as a pick and has held steady. Philadelphia has beaten the Jaguars and lost to the Bengals, while Kansas City has lost to both Atlanta and Tampa Bay.
The last game is San Diego at New Orleans. The Saints opened as 3 point favorites and the line has remained at 3. The Chargers handled the Bears in week 1, and then lost late to the Cowboys in week 2. New Orleans lost their opener to New England by a field goal, but then throttled the Texans behind three Chase Daniels touchdown tosses.
Nine games are scheduled for Saturday. In the first, Cleveland travels to Detroit where the Lions opened as 2 ½ point faves. The line has held most places, but a couple books have lowered the line to a single point again to protect against teasing up the Browns. Cleveland looked good in week 1 against the Packers, winning by a field goal. But last week 5 turnovers resulted in a 19-17 loss to the Rams. The Lions lost in week 1 to the Steelers, then traveled to Denver and beat the Broncos 25-20.
The Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals will square off in Buffalo. The Bengals opened as 3 point road favorites, and while the line has remained mostly steady, a few books have moved to 2 ½. The Bengals have played three games so far, going 2-1. The Bills followed up a blowout loss to Washington with a win over the Colts.
The Jacksonville Jaguars opened as 1 ½ point favorites at Tampa Bay. Early betting on the Jags has moved the line to 2 ½ or 3. Jacksonville has lost two close games to Philadelphia and Miami, while Tampa Bay has lost to Miami and beaten Kansas City. Josh Freeman is out for this game which is the reason for the money on the Jags.
Houston hosts Dallas in a Lonestar state showdown. The Texans opened as 3 point favorites and that has remained in most books, although a few have moved to 2 ½. Houston has lost both preseason games, while the ‘Boys are 1-2.
The Minnesota Vikings opened as 5 ½ point favorites against the visiting Seahawks, though books are now listing the Vikes at 6. Both teams followed up week 1 wins with disappointing week 2 performances.
The Oakland Raiders battle their cross-town rivals, the San Francisco 49ers. The Raiders opened as 2 ½ point favorites, but early betting on the 49ers has moved the line 1 at most sportsbooks. Both teams are 2-0. The Raiders have won at Dallas and at Chicago. The 49ers have won at Indianapolis and at home against Minnesota.
Three Saturday games have not been handicapped. In the first two, Tennessee travels to Carolina to take on the Panthers and Arizona heads to the Windy City to take on the Bears. Tennessee and Arizona play the Monday night game. Also, the New York Giants will do battle with the Ravens in Baltimore. The line has yet to be set, presumably because of the Giants quarterback situation. Neither Eli Manning nor Jim Sorgi played last week. Although Sorgi is likely out, there is a decent chance Manning will get some action against Baltimore.
The Monday night game features the Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos at Mile High. The Broncos were the early 3 point favorites, but now books are listing the game as a pick or the Steelers as 1 point favorites. Denver is still searching for their first preseason win, while Pittsburgh has won both of their contests. Early betting on the Steelers is probably due to their three capable quarterbacks: Ben Roethlisberger, Byron Leftwich, and Dennis Dixon. Denver’s quarterbacks – Kyle Orton, Brady Quinn, and the banged-up Tim Tebow – have underperformed.
We should have a slate of picks on week 3 of the preseason. Check out the NFL game picks page of the website to get signed up for a daily, monthly or season handicapping picks package.
How has Kyle Orton underperformed ? Hes basically been perfect the first two games and will probably play 3+ quarters . All 3 Steelers Qbs have 2 tds combined Orton has 4 so far by himself . The Steelers are a sucker bet as the broncos led both of there preseason games in the 4th only to have the 3rd and 4th string give up the lead .
Ken (nice name, by the way),
Thanks for the post – and you’re right on. Orton has been terrific so far. He seems to have a solid grasp of what Josh McDaniels wants to accomplish offensively. When I said the three Denver quarterbacks have underperformed I meant as a whole. The Broncos are 0-2 straight up/0-2 ats. Against Cincy, Denver gave up the lead in the second quarter and never got it back, thanks in part to a Brady Quinn pick six. They were down 16 in the fourth quarter. They lost to the Lions at home, and were down at halftime. Pittsburgh’s qbs’ numbers have been solid across the board, and they have taken their team where they needed to go: 2-0 straight up/2-0 ats. For what it’s worth, I think Orton is one of the most underappreciated players in the NFL. I’m an Iowa boy like Orton, and I’ve followed him since he played high school ball. If he gets three quarters against the Steelers, you might be right about the Steelers being a sucker bet.