
The game looks easy for great players!
After debating with some friends and co-workers about who is the best undefeated team in the league, I think I’ve made my choice, and that choice would be the New Orleans Saints. The Saints have made the best case for this spot, and it all starts with Breeeeeesss! His complete demolition of the #1 rated NFC Giants defense was pretty much the marker for how good they are this season. I thought they were good before, but this past weekend has made me see the light! Their run so far has been nothing short of amazing, and their whole team seems to be on the same page on offense and defense. They’ve even showed they can run the ball, but teams will still scheme to stop Brees. They are truly a team that has everything working on all cylinders. They have a great leader to keep the ship steered straight, and fired up at the same time. I think they are a gambling mans goldmine as they cover the spread every week. One more crazy Brees stat since I’m all over him like Tim Mclelland on those 3rd base calls tonight during the ALCS. He’s got 13 TD’s this season which is only 7 less than all the QB’s in the NFC South combined and he’s had a bye week.

I'd give Peyton the ball in a game against bears...
The Colts came in a close second, and it’s really hard to pick against the reasonable early choice for MVP, Peyton Manning, but at the moment I have them slotted in at #2. We really haven’t seen the Colts at full strength, so it’s tough to say what they’ll be like when Bob Sanders and corner back Kelvin Hayden return on defense. With the relentless Mathis and Freeney, it can only give offenses more problems to worry about. They also recently lost Vinitari the most clutch kicker in a long time! If they get healthy, they might be getting the ball back more often for Peyton to work his magic. Maybe it’s because they haven’t been tested by any truly good teams yet, so there isn’t real measuring stick to go by for them. It’s too bad we won’t find out this week as they should run over a hapless Rams team. I don’t think Vegas can set a line high enough for the Colts coming off a bye week playing the Rams. It’s probably my top pick in doin lines week 7! Anyways, the Colts have the most room to improve of the undefeated teams as Peyton gets better acquainted with his receivers, and their defense gets some extra swagger back with Sanders. Either way, they are going to be a force through the rest of the season.

I think Marshall is as surprised as everyone else that it's all working out in Denver!
The Broncos are a shocker to everybody except maybe, Bill Simmons… I might root against them because they are in my beloved Raiders division, but in the end they have been very impressive. They are balanced, and Orton doesn’t make mistakes. Who cares about his winning record as a QB, it’s all about their defense and preparation for the games. Sure Orton might be a good game manager, but he’s not anywhere near the same league as the two guys mentioned above. The Broncos have seemed to be one step ahead of their competition every game, and at the perfect times. I along with many kept waiting for the, I told you so loss, but it keeps not happening. I guess they are for real. I kinda thought they were the real deal last year, and crumbled epically bad down the stretch, but this feels like and is a much different team. The only reason I still have a mild doubt is that they haven’t had one injury this year. They haven’t made one change to their regular season opening roster, which makes me wonder if they have any big holes in the backups positions. One crazy stat; they’ve only allowed 10 points on defense in the 2nd half of games. They’ve given up more special teams points in the 2nd half than defensive points. This just shows how great they are at making crucial halftime adjustments. If you can win half the battle you can win a lot of games, even the Raiders D proved that against the Eagles. Bystradaumas wrote a good piece on the Broncos D.
The Vikings come in fourth in this race. I think they have the weakest coach of the bunch, and seem to struggle to hold the big leads that they have had in nearly every game. Giving teams chances could have cost them two games. They could have easily lost to the 49ers and the Ravens. I just don’t have confidence in Childress when the game is on the line, but he’s been lucky so far. Childress feels like a guy that would rather have the clock run down instead of going for an extra score with :40 seconds before the half. His weak decisions will cost them a game at some point, and almost led them to a 4-2 record, which makes me feel like they are at the bottom of these four undefeated teams. I’m really mixed with the Vikes as I like AP and Jarred Allen, but Favre annoys the crap out of me! It’s really hard for me to like or dislike them. It’s really confusing me! So I’ll leave it to you to decide!



Seattle (-3) Over Arizona
It looks like we are starting to be able to tell between the contenders and the pretenders are already. The games actually seem much easier to pick than the past couple years. Even though last week was a little disappointing for my standards (2-3), but I wasn’t overly confident in very many games going into the week, which is why I probably only 



This season has been great so far! I had a good 
Speaking of those Seahawks, they get to play against the princess of the NFL, Peyton Manning. In any betting format can anyone really talk themselves into taking Seneca Wallace over Manning on the road? Didn’t think so. Who cares if Freeney is out this game, Seneca probably couldn’t even start for the Browns. Seattle has six starters missing from the lineup including their QB. When you already have your 8th starting lineman in the lineup it’s not a good sign for Seattle’s offensive continuity. Opposing quarterbacks have completed 74% of their passes against the Seattle D, and although they get Lofa Tatupu back, I think Peyton should have this one finished off by halftime. Look for Joseph Addai and Donald Brown killing some clock in the second half. Like Fabulous says “Put it in the bag”.
First off, I’m not a 49ers fan, so sour grapes this is not. However, I am a Northern California guy, so I will admit the thought of them going 3-0 to start the season did have me a bit tingly inside. See, I’m a Raiders fan, and since they already got their win for the season, I have to hope for something else good to happen. It seemed to be in hand late in the game when I tuned in upon my return from Costco. (Side note: although they have huge ribeye steaks, I was left unsatisfied tonight) ANYWAY…. with the Niners up 24-20 in the latter stages of the 4th, it looked like if they could just hold on for one more Vikings’ drive, they would have this thing locked up. They did, and got the ball back with under 2 minutes to go – I believe. Three quick Glen Coffee runs and three timeouts later, the Vikings got the ball back and didn’t particularly look like they were going to do anything with the ball. Then, on what would turn out to be the last play, Favre, under pressure, manages to escape and rifle one downfield that was caught, albeit miracuslously, by none other than… wait, who was it? I know it was one of those sloppy seconds the Vikings like to employ at wideout. Oh, man… not Bernard Berrian. Not Bobby Wade. Billy McMullen? No, we’re on the right track though. Greg Lewis! I knew it was one of those ex-Philly receivers.
So, my first thought was, “damn, Favre does it again!” But the more I watched the replay, the less complimentary I became. Sure, he did a great job of avoiding the blitz, but when you watch the replay from the behind-the-pocket cam, it looks like Favre is simply throwing toward the end zone with nary a preference where or to who. I heard something to the effect of Favre admitting he had, in fact, no intended receiver on the play. My less than substantial efforts to track down his quote surprisingly went unfulfilled. However, if he said that, good for him. Greg Lewis also disclosed the fact that he wouldn’t have been in on that play except that Percy Harvin had run, like, 9 or 10 deep routes leading up to that play. What I do know is Percy Harvin doesn’t make that catch. Nate Clements was covering that play about as good as you can, but ultimately it was the couple inches that Lewis had on Clements in height that made the difference.
Another week down in the NFL season, and I have little to show for it. This week didn’t even start off promising like last week did as I went 7-9 vs. the spread, and now am 15-17 on the year. I think there’s a chance I could be entering a Lamar Odom type state as he slowly realizes he’s tying the knot with Khloe. Whatever state of self doubt it is, I may have to reconsider continuing to post these picks publicly throughout the rest of the season. On a brighter note, I once again did good in my confidence games, and am now 9-3 on the season with picks that had a confidence rating of 4 or 5 on! This gives me hope, and has made me realize that I shouldn’t be picking every game out there. I have reconsidered, and will go a different route. Say goodbye to confidence ratings, and get ready for the six LOCKS of the week. I’m guessing there’s as good a chance I’ll have a few $$ on these games come Sunday.


One week of the NFL season is in the books, and I could have sworn going into Monday Nights games with an 8-6 record vs. the spread I would come out with a winning week. Low and behold neither were blowouts, and I’m 8-8. I’ve always believed that the NFL is nearly impossible to win bets on a consistent basis. I guess it’s that way for pretty much any other sport too, unless you count the NBA in a Donaghy officiated game. As our blog mate (cali4dre) eloquently put on
There were so many question marks coming into the game, and unlike last year they showed up! Jamarcus will need to get past the, I hope this pass goes close to that wide open receiver, phase if they are going to ever get better. Kansas City played Baltimore tough, but if McGahee ran all over them, and I think McFadden and Bush will surely break off some big runs. Hopefully this can give Russell fewer opportunities to make mistakes aka wild throws. Oakland won in KC Week 2 last year, so I’m taking the points!
I think Sanchez is going to need more than a running game and his Mexican Flag mouthpiece to take this one.
The way the Saints marched all over the Lions should show signs that the Vikings should be doing the same. I would go back to the Monday Night games to re-think this one, but Detroit doesn’t have nearly enough talented players in this underdog story. On a side note, AP is on pace for 2,880 yards rushing with 48 TDs! I think he might even increase those projected numbers this weekend.
And seriously if you had to pick between Kolb vs. Brees you have to put your money on Drew!
My prognosis is, doubtful. They need a healthy Marshawn to soften up those coverages to get Evans and Owens some more looks. Tampa played decent against a good Cowboys squad. I think they could take this one from a flat Buffalo team. It’s my bold pick of the week.
I think their home opener will be a win especially with the Ravens not taking it to Kansas City more. With Rivers temper is hotter than Derrick Jeter’s press coverage in New York, I hope we see Ray Lewis get into his head in this one!
Throughout the season I will be try to predict the outcomes of the NFL spreads. I used to gamble quite a bit, and had good and bad times with it. I think I would’ve done better if I hadn’t gone for so many parlays, but that makes it more exciting. Anyways, I’ve never kept track over a whole season, so this should be interesting. The home teams are in bold, and the first team listed is the favorite. I will also be giving a confidence rating on my picks with a scale of 1-5. A one would be “I like me betting on the Raiders, because they’re my favorite team”, and a 5 would be “Parlay this one with any other 5 on the board” Without further ado here is the predictions.
probably do fine in the AFC West, but in their division I think it’ll be a long tough road for them. Their first game is going to be in hostile territory against a team looking to see improvement through acquisitions and growth from their young QB. The Falcons should cover this spread with all the offensive firepower they have.
McNabb has two weeks to prove he is the undisputed starter, so I like Philly taking this one either by a good offensive effort or Jake Delhomme choking it away.
If the Jets had a solid running game or receivers that didn’t disappear, I’d give them a chance. Schaub is expected to go today, so as long as that stays the same I’m taking the Texans.
Arizona had an incredible season last year, but I don’t see lightning striking twice. It was kind of funny watching Kurt Warner fall to late rounds in nearly all my fantasy drafts. That has to say something about their chances.
Rodgers has a lot of guys to throw to, and proved that he is going to be a good starter for years to come. The Bears have issues on defense especially against the passing game. I like the Pack to set the division tone with a convincing win.
Brett Favre made his “comeback” Friday night in Minneapolis and left much to be desired. Favre completed just one of four pass attempts, a four yard completion to rookie Percy Harvin. I know often times a box score doesn’t tell the whole story, but did anyone in Minnesota or Kansas City catch the game? Was their any silver lining in this performance? Was their a lack of protection? Or did Favre simply complete another phase in the decline of a legend? Post a comment if you watched the game.
There has been way too much hoopla over Favre for a third straight summer. I’m not surprised he came out of retirement again, but since there are so many people talking about it I guess I need to weigh in with my thoughts on Farve. At the end of his Green Bay tenure he ended their playoff run by throwing a crucial interception in his NFC Championship game. This was when he entered the Farva era. Everthing he’s touched since that game has crumbled. He has been hurting organizations by doing the ol: I’m going to retire, and ended up un-retiring to play again. Wait, no I’m going to be retired, no wait I want to play. Okay, I’ll play again. He had a crappy season in New York, and I was pretty sure that would show him that he wasn’t what he used to be. He’s covered in grey hair now, and he doesn’t bring the same arm or legs to the game.
Visions of Jordan playing on the Wizards are crossing my mind. They have AP in the lineup, so that might save his body some blows, but in the end car ramrod will probably run the Vikings fans to the depths of the