Week 1 was pretty good, but if Titans kicker Steven Gostkowski had made just one of the missed three field goals and an extra point, it would have been even better ATS. With no preseason and almost no fans in the stands, correctly picking 66.7%of the games is a good start to the 2020 season. To continue the success, perhaps it would be better to just use a dart board or flip a coin, but I’m just not that smart. Week 2 awaits with the 0-1 teams already in desperation mode, with only 11% of 0-2 teams going on to earn a playoff berth since 2002.
Straight up: 10-5 66.7%
Against the Spread (ATS): 10-5 66.7%
Atlanta (0-1) 21 @ Dallas (0-1) (-4.0) 27 (52.5): The Cowboys couldn’t find a way to win a game they probably should have last week at the Rams, continuing losses in close games that extends to last season. The Falcons got soundly beaten by the Seahawks at home and will be dealing with a small but hostile crowd, estimated to be around 20,000, in AT&T Stadium.
Buffalo (1-0) (-5.5) 24 @ Miami (0-1) (41.0) 16 : The Bills got off to a good start to the season with a 10-point win over the Jets while the Dolphins struggled offensively in a 21-11 loss to the Pats. If the Bills are going to challenge New England for the AFC East title, this is a game they need to win.
Carolina (0-1) 26 @ Tampa Bay (0-1) (-9.0) 33 (47.5): Tom Brady wasn’t sharp in his Buccaneer debut in New Orleans, despite playing in an empty Mercedes-Benz Superdome. He threw two interceptions, one for a Saints touchdown and will need to improve for the Bucs to contend for the playoffs. The Panthers gave the Raiders a good battle, giving up a go ahead touchdown in the last five minutes.
Denver (0-1) 20 @ Pittsburgh (1-0) (-7.5) 28 (41.0): After two years out of the playoffs, the Steelers got off to a good start against the Giants, but they’ll take a step up in class against a Broncos team that struggled offensively in a last second 16-14 loss to the Titans. Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was in decent form after returning from an elbow injury that caused him to miss almost all of last season.
Detroit (0-1) 21 @ Green Bay (1-0) (-6.0) 30 (49.0): The Packers are coming off an upset of the Minnesota Vikings, scoring the most points of any team in Week 1. A dropped pass inside the five yard line could have given the Lions a win over the Bears, but instead faces an early season must win situation in Green Bay.
Jacksonville (1-0) 16 @ Tennessee (1-0) (-9.0) 23 (43.0): Tennessee barely escaped Denver with a win last week after kicker Stephen Gostkoswski missed three field goals and an extra point before nailing a 25 yarder with 17 seconds left to secure the victory. They’ll need Gostkowski to find his form against a surprising Jaguars team that upset Colts last week behind quarterback Gardner Minshew.
Los Angeles Rams (1-0) 26 @ Philadelphia (0-1) (-1.0) 24 (46.0): The Eagles are probably still reeling from watching an early 17-0 lead disappear in an ugly 27-17 loss to Washington. On the other coast, the Rams held off Dallas to win 20-17 in an attempt to return to their Super Bowl form of 2019. The Redskins were able to get to Philadelphia quarterback Carson Wentz, something the Eagles will need to fix if they hope to avoid starting 0-2.
Minnesota (0-1) 27 @ Indianapolis (0-1) (-3.0) 24 (48.5): Neither of these teams had a good start to the season as they suffered big defeats to division foes. The Vikings gave up 43 points to the Packers last week and will need to play better against Phillip Rivers and the Colts.
New York Giants (0-1) 20 @ Chicago (1-0) 27 (-5.5) (42.0): The Bears escaped Detroit with a big divisional win and is looking to continue the good play at home. They gave up a lot of yards, but limited the damage while the Giants never really got their offense going against the Steelers.
San Francisco (0-1) (-7.0) 30 @ New York Jets (0-1) (42.0): The 49ers are one of only three road favorites this week, coming off a tough 24-20 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. They’ll need to get past the Jets as it appears Arizona might turn the NFC West into a four team race. After a double digit loss to the Bills, the Jets still don’t look like anything close to a playoff team.
Washington (1-0) 20 @ Arizona (1-0) (-6.5) 24 (48.0): Both of these teams pulled off surprising upsets last week against divisional rivals. Washington’s defense stiffened in the last three quarters against the Eagles and Cards quarterback Kyler Murray will be a stern test, as he was able to erase a ten-point deficit. Murray and wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins lit up the Niners secondary for 150 yards on 14 catches.
Baltimore Ravens (1-0) (-7.0) 31 @ Houston (0-1) 20 (51.5): Someone in the NFL front office must have something against the Texans as they’ve had to open the season with consecutive games against the Super Bowl Champion Chiefs and last year’s best regular season performer. Houston lost last week’s game 34 – 20 and they should expect more of the same in Week 2.
Kansas City (1-0) (-9.0) 27 Los Angeles Chargers (1-0) 24 (47.5): The Chiefs successfully began defense of their title while the Chargers headed east and came away from Cincinnati with a close victory. I just have a gut feeling that Tyrod Taylor and the Chargers will give Kansas City a tougher battle than most people think.
New England (1-0) 24 @ Seattle (1-0) 28 (-3.5) (45.0): Week 2 comes to a close with the Patriots making one of the longest road trips in the NFL. Seattle made a similar journey last week and came out of Atlanta with an opening game win. The Pats Cam Newton will have to pull off some heroics for his team to add some joy to the long flight back to Boston.
New Orleans (1-0) (-6.0) 28 @ Las Vegas (1-0) 30 (49.0): The Saints struggled on offense last week and the Raiders are coming off a road win at Carolina. This should have been quite an event for Monday Night Football, with the first ever NFL game being played in Las Vegas, place prior commissioners of league deemed as off limits. Leave it to the Raiders to break that claim, but the game will be played in a brand new stadium without fans. Look for the home team, if they can limit their turnovers, to hand the road favorites a tough loss.
The latest novel in the PK Frazier series is now available. "Unplayable Lie", as well as the first three installments, can be found at PK Frazier novels
No comments:
Post a Comment