Week 2 #NFL Predictions (w/ spreads & analysis)
Week 2 results: 9-7 wins
(20-12 .625); 7-9 v. spread (13-19 .406)
Week 2 Notes: What a breath of fresh air – literally – as 15 of this week’s 16 NFL games are
outdoors. The truly amazing thing is that only three games are forecasted for even a chance of bad weather. In fact, every game but those three is forecasted
for sunny weather in the 60s-70s - the main reason why I took the over on 11 of
the 16 games. The only two remaining night games – at San Francisco and at
Indianapolis – are on the west coast and indoors, respectively. It will be
sunny at kickoff for Sunday “Night” Football and will remain so for most of the
game (8:30 EST; 5:30 PST). With a few exceptions – e.g. games featuring elite
defenses (Seattle; Carolina) or bad weather (Carolina; Tampa Bay) – this should
be a high-scoring week in Pro Football.
Week 2
Notes: Week 2 is NFL reaction week, and it showed, both in Vegas and
here at ProFootballMedia.com. So much for taking
the over in 11 of the 16 games –
11 of the 16 games ended UNDER.
Pittsburgh Steelers 1-0
(+2.5)
@ Baltimore Ravens 0-1 (44.5): Steelers 27-24 Ravens 26-6
Thursday, 8:25 PM, M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD (Weather: 30% rain, mid-60s)
Reasons: This is a tale
of two relatively evenly matched teams, both part of the grind-it-out AFC North
division. The big difference here is that the Ravens have to play on national
television at their home stadium the week of the biggest media firestorm I can
remember, brought on by their former running back Ray Rice and his odious
domestic violence case. The ancient Greeks couldn’t have imagined such timely
drama. The Ravens awarded over 500 press passes - over a 300% increase to
normal games - and chose Rihanna to sign the National Anthem, a celebrity
domestic violence victim herself. Wow. How about some football? With only one
game under our belt we don’t have much to go on, but Week 1 provided some
insight. The Steelers were up 27-3 at the half v. the Browns, but it took a
Shaun Suisham FG with 5 seconds left to seal – or steal – the win. The Ravens, on the other hand, were down 15-0 on
five unanswered Mike Nugent FGs before the Ravens scored 16 unanswered points
of their own; 48 seconds after the Raven’s second TD Bengals QB Andy Dalton
connected with WR AJ Green for a spectacular TD to seal – or steal – the win. With only one game’s
worth of statistics to go on, it might be safe to assume the Steelers passing
game can take advantage of the Ravens sub-par secondary, as everything else
between these two teams is relatively even. The emotions of the night will
either carry the Ravens, or it’ll crush them.
This game can be summed up pretty easily: Courtney
Upshaw blasted through the line and hit Ben Roethlisberger directly in the
chest, lifting him off the ground, and burying him into it. Of course the
officials, led by Ed Hercules, threw the UR flag, negating the textbook hit.
However, the damage was done and I don’t feel Roethlisberger ever really recovered.
Neither did Antonio Brown, the Steelers best player, who was also banged up
early and never really recovered. A 10-6 game with less than 4 minutes
remaining, the Ravens kicked four straight unanswered FGs to take control late.
The Ravens, despite only gaining 323 yards on 65 plays in 34+ minutes, came
away with a big emotional win v. the rivaled divisional opponent.
New England 0-1 (-3) @ Minnesota Vikings 1-0 (49): Patriots 28-27 Patriots
30-7
Sunday, 1 PM, TFC Bank Stadium,
Minneapolis, MN (Weather: Sunny; mid-60s)
Reasons: Blame it on the
heat, but the Patriots were smoked in
the second half of last week’s game v. the Dolphins after dominating the first
half. Miami has a good defense, especially up front, so it’s not totally
surprising as a great front four is Tom Brady’s kryptonite. The Minnesota
Vikings don’t have Cameron Wake and Olivier Vernon, but the do have Everson
Griffen, who will try to duplicate Miami’s defensive game plan. The Vikings
defense is much improved from 2013, which will be a problem for the Patriots
offense, still clearly a work in progress. Two keys get the Patriots the nod in
Week 2: Matt Cassell played for Bill Belichick and Adrian Peterson is
deactivated pending his legal issues. Otherwise I’d take the Vikings at home.
Matt Cassel threw a 25-yard TD to RB Matt
Asiata to take a 7-0 lead just over 4 minutes into the game. That was the last
time we heard fro the Vikings Sunday, but it’s not like the Patriots dominated.
Stephen Gostkowski kicked 3 FGs and DE Chandler Jones returned a blocked punt
58 yards for a TD in a 30-7 win that looked like another big performance from
Tom Brady. Not so much. Brady underwhelmed, throwing for only 149 yards on 22
attempts, but managed the game perfectly - a la 2002. The Patriots ran the ball
37 times and essentially took the Vikings out of the game, who only managed 217
yards on 61 plays (3.6 ypp average) in 28+ minutes.
Detroit Lions 1-0 (+3) @ Carolina Panthers 1-0 (43.5): Panthers 24-23 Panthers
24-7
Sunday, 1 PM, Bank of America
Stadium, Charlotte, NC (Weather: 20% rain;
low 70s)
Reasons: The game has let
down written all over it for Carolina. It was an emotional week for the
Panthers, who are under great public pressure to deactivate Greg Hardy in the
wake of his and the NFL’s domestic violence issues. The Panthers play their
first home game Sunday; it will also be quarterback Cam Newton’s first game of
the season after missing last week’s game due to a fractured ribs. The Lions
are coming off an easy win over the lowly Giants, led by Calvin Johnson’s
clinic performance and the Lions pass rushers. Unfortunately for the Lions, the
weather could keep this game on the ground, where the Panthers excel. It’s
probably good for quarterback Matt Stafford, as this could be the most
dangerous front seven in the NFL. The weather and the nasty Panthers defense
overcomes Cam Newton’s jitters and the Lions aerial attack.
If you had asked me to make direct predictions
of play, and not just a general preview and a predicted score, I would have
said this: The front lines will get to the
quarterbacks and apply pressure, which will result in several sacks. The
running games for both teams will suffer because of the front seven units both
teams possess, but the relatively weak secondary units will allow for both
quarterbacks to make plays, assuming some level of pass protection. Not to pat my self on the back with 20-20
hindsight, but that’s exactly what happened. Both QBs were sacked four times,
both running games were stifled, and both quarterbacks threw for 280+ passing
yards, although few of them resulted in big plays. The teams gained nearly
identical yardage on nearly identical TOP, yet the score was 24-7. The big
difference here was turnovers: the Panthers forced three (two fumbles; one
INT), but never coughed it up. Turnovers – the single most correlated statistic
to wins and losses in the NFL.
Miami Dolphins 1-0 (PK) @ Buffalo Bills 1-0 (43): Dolphins 21-20 Bills
29-10
Sunday, 1 PM, Ralph Wilson
Stadium, Miami, FL (Weather: Sunny;
mid-60s)
Reasons: The Dolphins
showed the world 2013’s 8-8 campaign was no aberration, and came out strong v.
the Patriots last week for a commanding Week 1 win. The Bills weren’t out to
show the world anything, but did shock it with a win over the high-flying
Bears. Both of these teams excel in two areas: rushing the quarterback and
rushing the football. The Bills and Dolphin finished 3rd and 4th
rushing the ball after last week, respectively, and also finished 10th
and 11th stopping the run. Neither quarterback will light it up,
although Ryan Tannehill is capable of it, and both teams have big-time
receiving threats (Mike Wallace; Sammy
Watkins), but the these two front four units are too good. If this was in
Miami they’d be favored by three…but it’s not.
Perhaps the Bills are better than everyone
thought. The Dolphins, hot off their Week 1 comeback win over the New England
Patriots, were destroyed by the Bills. The Dolphins ran 74 plays in over 31
minutes and only managed 290 yards of total offense. Despite almost matching
the Bills in yardage (315 yards), running more plays, gaining more first downs,
committing fewer penalties, and holding the ball longer the Dolphins lost by
nearly 20 points. The key again was defense and turnovers, as the Bills sacked
Tannehill three times while forcing two turnovers. CJ Spiller also returned a
kickoff for a TD and Sammy Watkins had his coming out party (8 receptions 117
yards 1 TD on 11 targets)
Jacksonville Jaguars 0-1 (+6) @ Washington Natives (43.5): Natives 27-20 Natives
41-10
Sunday, 1 PM, FedEx Field,
Landover, MD (Weather: Sunny; mid-70s)
Reasons: Both of these
teams looked horrible last week, but both had excuses via playing two of the
better teams in the NFL Week 1. The Jaguars looked pretty good through the
first half, but fell apart as quickly as they got going, surrendering 34
unanswered second-half points v. the Eagles to squander the win away. The
Natives played the JJ Watts and paid for it. RGIII look awful, averaging less
than 1 yard per attempt in the first half. RGIII won’t face JJ Watt this week
and JAX is banged up, not that it really matters.
No offense to the Jaguars, but when you lose
this badly to the Washington Natives, you might have hit rock bottom. The
Natives sacked Chad Henne 10 times and rushed for 191 yards on 42 rushing
attempts on their way to the lopsided win, but it was bittersweet…maybe. RGIII
was lost early and indefinitely to a dislocated ankle, which is horrible news,
except for fans who think Kirk Cousins (250 yards & 2 TDs) should be starting
anyway.
Dallas Cowboys 0-1 (+3.5) @ Tennessee Titans 1-0 (49.5): Titans 27-24 Cowboys 26-10
Sunday, 1 PM, LP Field,
Nashville, TN (Weather: Sunny; mid-70s)
Reasons:
There’s a big reason Dallas is getting 3.5 points heading into Nashville: the
Dallas defense, although better than we thought v. the 49ers, is not that good
and the Titans defense actually is pretty good. The Titans also run the ball
well, which will keep the Cowboys star-studded offense off the field. Either
way, the Titans could easily rattle Tony Romo and Dez Bryant and make this one
easy. I say the Cowboys put up some fight, but continue to disappoint.
The Cowboys
continued their week-to-week flip-flopping. Then again, statistically the
Cowboys outplayed the 49ers last week and lost, so perhaps the Cowboys aren’t
that bad. And perhaps the Titans aren’t that good. What a difference a week
makes. The Titans were the talk of the AFC after beating the KC Chiefs 26-10
Week 1, but the Cowboys returned the favor Week 2 by the same score. Tony Romo
had another mediocre performance and was sacked four times by the Titans
defense, but DeMarco Murray stole the show, rushing for 167 yards and a TD on 29
carries. Murray outshined Titans TE Delanie Walker, who caught 10 passes for 142
yards and a TD on 14 targets. The Cowboys held the ball for over 41 minutes.
Arizona Cardinals 1-0 (-2.5) @ New York Giants 0-1 (42.5): Cardinals 24-20 Cardinals 25-14
Sunday, 1 PM,
MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ (Weather:
Sunny; low 70s)
Reasons:
This game has the lowest spread of any non-pick game Week 1 and I can’t figure
out why for the life of me. Oh wait, the Cardinals are away, so I suppose they’re favored by 0.5. I jest, but the Giants
are awful. Sure it’s only one week, but the Giants ranked 29th, 30th,
and 31st of 32 teams in three of the four major yardage statistics,
and were blown away by the Detroit Lions in Week 1. Arizona played a tough
Chargers team and came away with the last-minute come-from-behind win. The
Cardinals defense should give the Giants offense fits on Sunday, and the
Cardinals offense will take advantage of the Giants poor defense enough to take
the win on the road.
There’s trouble
brewing in New York. The Giants would be the worst team in the NFL if it weren’t
for the leagues laughing stock (Oakland). Despite besting the Cardinals in every
statistical category except rushing, holding onto the ball for five more
minutes, and leading through the 3rd quarter…they lost. Big. So what’s the
problem you ask? Are you kidding? The Giants turned the ball over four more
times (two fumbles; two INTs) and committed nine penalties. If there weren’t a “Manning”
on the back of his jersey he’d be another Chad Henne (no offense, Chad).
New Orleans Saints 0-1 (-6.5) @
Cleveland Browns (47.5): Saints 30-24 Browns 26-24
Sunday, 1 PM,
First Energy Stadium, Cleveland, OH (Weather:
Sunny; low 70s)
Reasons:
This game features the two teams that played nail-biters Week 1 and a Browns
team that nearly came back from down 27-3 to steal the win from the Steelers,
if it weren’t for a last-second FG by Shaun Suisham. The suddenly high-flying
Falcons took the Saints off-guard, especially the Saints defense, which was
ranked 4th overall after 2013; the Saints lost to the Falcons in OT
after a high-scoring back-and-forth game. The Browns will have a much harder
time coming back from any big deficits against the Saints with Ben Tate and
Jordan Cameron ruled out. The Saints should roll in this one, but won’t cover.
They are on the road up north, after all.
For those looking
for more evidence about the Saints road woes I offer exhibit No. Week 2. It
wasn’t even cold or wet. The Browns are certainly better than most fans give
them credit for, and Brian Hoyer has established himself as the Browns
quarterback. Turnovers were again the name of the game as two New Orleans
turnovers (1 fumble; 1 INT) were the difference in this close game.
Atlanta Falcons 1-0 (+5) @ Cincinnati Bengals 1-0 (49): Bengals 28-24 Bengals 24-10
Sunday, 1 PM,
Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, OH (Weather:
Sunny; low 70s)
Reasons:
The Falcons sent a message to the NFL v. the Saints last week that this is not
the same 4-12 team from 2013. It took OT, but the Falcons defeated division
powerhouse New Orleans soundly and looked like they’ll be a tough offense to
beat. The Bengals also played a division rival to open the season and escaped a
late surge by the Ravens to start 1-0. The Bengals will be without their star
linebacker Vontaze Burfict, but these Bengals get after it across the board.
Andy Dalton and AJ Green are one of the most dangerous duos in the NFL. I can
see the Falcons making a late surge, but the Bengals should win.
The Falcons were
riding high after their Week 1 win over the Saints, but came crashing back to
Earth after running into the most underrated team in the NFL. After gaining
nearly 600 yards total offense in Week 1, the Falcons only managed half of that
(309) as they ran into the buzz saw known as the Bengals defense. It was even
worse for quarterback Matt Ryan. After burning the Saints for 448 passing yards
last week, Ryan managed just over half that (231) v. the Bengals and threw
three INTs. The Bengals did their best Falcons impression gaining 472 yards of
total offense, but lost WR AJ Green early to a toe injury. Green’s status will
seriously affect the Bengals going forward.
St. Louis Rams 0-1 (+6) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers 0-1 (37): Buccaneers 20-17 Rams 19-17
Sunday, 4:05
PM, Raymond James Stadium, Tampa Bay, FL (Weather:
20% rain; high 80s)
Reasons:
The lowest O/U of the week doesn’t come as a surprise considering the weather
could be a major factor and these offenses don’t light up the scoreboard. The
Rams are on their 3rd string quarterback already in Week 2 after
Shaun Hill suffered a leg injury, and the Buccaneers will still be seeing
Carolina Panther ghosts as the young Rams line continues the elite pass rush.
Chris Long may be out 8-10 weeks, but Robert Quinn does the work of two players,
and he just signed a monster extension to ease his mind, allowing him to
concentrate on keeping the Bucs off the board. Star defensive end Michael
Johnson is also out for the Bucs, which makes me wonder how low the O/U would
have been if he and Long were playing, but these teams are offensively inept.
This was a bad
weather game between two relatively inept offenses with pretty good defenses
and it showed. The Rams were on their third QB, but the Southern Miss rookie
Austin Davis put the team on his back and carried them to victory on 235
passing yards. The lead changed six times in this evenly matched game, with Greg
Zuerlein (4 FGs) outperforming Josh McCown (2 rushing TDs) and Bobby “Makin’ It”
Rainey (144 rushing yards) for a great win by a reeling team.
Seattle Seahawks 1-0 (-6) @ San Diego Chargers 0-1 (44): Seahawks 27-20 Chargers 30-21
Sunday, 4:05
PM, Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA (Weather:
Sunny; high 80s)
Reasons:
The Chargers are a better team than we saw on MNF this past week, but the
problem is the Seattle Seahawks are too, and they won their game by 20 points.
I rarely say this about any NFL team, especially at home, but these Chargers
have no chance against this Seahawks defense. The Chargers air attack should be
stifled against the Seahawks secondary, and San Diego’s rushing attack gained
the second fewest yards Week 1,
although it was against the stout Cardinals defense. Well if the Cardinals are
stout, the Seahawks are obese. I look to the Seahawks to make quick work of the
Chargers, save a late score in meaningless time. The ‘Hawks are giving six on the road - that means Vegas sees them
winning by 9. I’m not that disrespectful…but
maybe Seattle fans think I’m being so towards the Seahawks.
So much for the
Seahawks going 16-0 (I never said that). Many have described the AFC West as
the toughest division in the NFL and they could be right. The other argument is
that the best football resides in the NFC West, which could also be true.
Remember a few years ago when both divisions were the worst in the NFL? That’s
what no guaranteed contracts and a salary cap does – parity. The Chargers lost
Week 1 to a pretty good Cardinals team and the Seahawks destroyed an OK Packers
team, so some experts called this game correctly in the sense that they saw SD challenging the Seahawks; I’m not sure
anyone saw them beating them. Phillip
Rivers lit it up (284 passing yards; 3 TDs) and consistently threw to CB
Richard Sherman’s side, beating him many times to Jermaine Kearse. The Seahawks
inexplicably gave the ball to RB Marshawn Lynch six times for 36 yards and
found out they’re not going to win games with that strategy.
Houston Texans 1-0 (-3) @ Oakland Raiders 0-1 (40): Texans 24-14 Texans 30-14
Sunday, 4:25
PM, Oakland Co. Stadium, Oakland, CA (Weather:
Sunny; 70s)
Reasons:
After one week in the NFL the Oakland Raiders are statistically the worst team
in the league, narrowly beating out the New York Giants. The Raiders were last
in three of the four major yardage categories, and managed only 14 points,
although most of that is explained away by the New York Jets defense, one of
the better units in the NFL. The Texans took care of business at home v. the
Natives offense and face an even more underwhelming offense in Week 2. Even
without #1 pick Ja’Deveon Clowney, this Texans defense should make mince meat
out of the Raiders, who start rookie Derek Carr at quarterback and whose
starting running back (MJD) is
questionable. The Texans should roll.
The Raiders. Wow.
The Raiders outgained the Texans and even had fewer penalties, but were
destroyed. If not for a Derek Carr TD pass to James Jones with 14 seconds left
in the game Oakland would’ve had seven points; the Raiders were shut out
through the first three quarters. The reason? The Texans held the ball for
nearly twice as long, exposing the yardage statistics for the garbage time
yards they were. The Raiders turned the ball over four times (2 fumbles; 2
INTs), the key to this game, or any NFL game for that matter, and gave
themselves no chance. The Texans may not be a juggernaut, but the Raiders are
fighting the New York Giants for the distinction of the league’s worst team.
Statistically they are.
New York Jets 1-0 (+8.5) @ Green Bay Packers 0-1 (46): Packers 24-20 Packers 31-24
Sunday, 4:25
PM, Lambeau Field, Green Bay, WI (Weather:
Sunny; mid-60s)
Reasons:
The Jets are the top team in the NFL after Week 1 in rushing yards, rushing
yards allowed, and passing yards allowed. Unfortunately one week is a small sample
size and the Jets Week 1 opponent was the Oakland Raiders (see above). Either way, to say the Jets have a great defense and a
good running game would be accurate. The Packers had a similar experience Week
1, except theirs was an opposite experience, having played the best team in the NFL in the Seattle
Seahawks. This should be another tough defensive battle for the Packers, as the
Jets defense is one of the best units in the league. With the home crowd behind
them, Aaron Rodgers and the Packers high-flying offense should score enough points
to take a win away from the pesky Jets.
For a few series the
Jets looked like the Seattle Seahawks. Aaron Rodgers was on the run many times
in the first half and it took a Randall Cobb TD with eight seconds left in the
2nd quarter to even make it a game going into the half. For the
Jets, that score was a killer. The Jets led 21-6 with less than six minutes to
go in the half, but the Packers kicked a FG and then intercepted a terrible
deep pass by Geno Smith to regain control of the ball with less than 2 minutes
to go; Rodgers marched down the field and threw the strike to Cobb to erase any
first-half domination by the Jets. The Packers returned the favor by dominating
the second half, highlighted by Jordy Nelson’s 209 receiving yards. The Jets
had a chance to tie the game late, and sort of did, but Smith’s late TD was
negated because of a called time out by the sideline – disallowed by anyone but the head coach, who didn’t
actually call the timeout. Whoops.
For once Rex Ryan didn’t make a terrible offensive coaching call…and it still
came back to kill them.
Kansas City Chiefs 0-1 (+12) @
Denver Broncos 1-0 (51): Broncos 30-21 Broncos 24-17
Sunday, 4:25
PM, Mile High Stadium, CO (Weather: 10%
rain; low 80s)
Reasons:
It’s starting to look like the Chiefs aren’t
exactly who we thought they were. The Chiefs may not have gained a bunch of
yards or stopped others from gaining them in 2013, but last year KC scored
points and kept other teams from scoring them. Not so far in 2014. The Titans
may be better than the lay fan thinks, but KC was embarrassed 26-10 at home. That’s not a good look with the a
Broncos team coming up that looks like it’s straight out of Super Tecmo Bowl.
The Broncos are coming off a win v. the Colts that was sealed by halftime,
although the score looks like it was a close game. The Chiefs have plenty of
talent and great coaching, but the Broncos should have no problem with these
2014 Chiefs.
This was a strange
game. The Chiefs, despite missing Jamal Charles, outgained the Broncos, had
almost 30 more offensive plays, nine more first downs, rushed for more yards,
had fewer penalties, held the ball for 13 more minutes, and didn’t* turn the
ball over ONCE…and STILL lost by a TD. In fact, the Chiefs only LED for 3:12 in
the 2nd quarter. Amazing. Some would chalk this game up to a
division battle between two heated rivalries; I’d say the Broncos defense is
pretty good and the Chiefs “points without yards” scheme has fizzled out.
Perhaps the game simply came down to one of the last plays – Terrance Knighton’s
swat of a potential game-tying TD with 15 seconds left. Then again, perhaps it
came down to two key turnovers that were negated due to penalties or official
review, including *Aqib Talib’s pick-6. On paper the game looks closer than it
was
Chicago Bears 0-1 (+7) @ San Francisco 49ers 1-0 (48.5): 49ers 27-24 Bears 28-20
Sunday, 8:30
PM, Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA (Weather:
Sunny; mid-80s)
Reasons:
The 49ers, like the Carolina Panthers, are facing major criticism for not
sitting defensive end Ray McDonald in the wake of his pending domestic violence
case, but it’s unlikely that awkwardness will spoil the 49ers homecoming party,
which celebrates the opening of Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA Sunday. The
Bears come in an offensive juggernaut, so long as it’s not v. a vicious front
four like they faced v. the Buffalo Bills. Whoops. Despite being without star
defensive end Aldon Smith, facing his own suspension, this 49ers front line is
one of the best in the league, and the Bears will have a tougher time in Santa
Clara than they ever could have imagined in Buffalo. The Chicago run defense
will have no answer for this dangerous run game, which just welcomed Carlos
Hyde to the mix. The 49ers won’t roll, but they win.
Like most of the
rest of the country I went to bed in the 3rd quarter with this game
well within the hands of the 49ers (20-7). I awoke to a Bears victory. What a 4th
quarter that must have been. 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick led all players
in passing yards and rushing yards, but was sacked four times, threw three INTs,
and lost a fumble and his head on their way to squandering that 20-7 lead with
13:30 left in the game, spoiling the 49ers Levi’s Stadium debut. Bears QB Jay
Cutler had as pedestrian a game as he’s ever had passing the ball (176 passing
yards) through three quarters, but threw two 4th quarter TDs to
bring the Bears all the way back - and then hit WR Brandon Marshall for the
second time in the 4th quarter with seven minutes remaining to take
the lead. So the Bears went from losing 20-7 to winning 28-20 in six and a half
minutes - that was a bad 6 ½ minutes for the 49ers and their fans. It was a
sloppy debut for Levi’s Stadium as the teams combined for 26 penalties - 16 by the hometown 49ers. Many players were injured in this game,
including five Bears defenders and both 49ers tight ends, but the game came
down to the 49ers horrible second half play.
Philadelphia Eagles 1-0 (+3) @
Indianapolis Colts 0-1 (53.5): Eagles 31-30 30-27
Monday, 8:30
PM, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN (Weather:
Indoors)
Reasons:
The only game indoors this week will feature two of the league’s best offenses.
Like the sounds of that? The Eagles escaped embarrassment Week 1 by scoring 34
unanswered second-half points after being down 17-0 at halftime to steal a win
from the hapless Jaguars. The Colts fought hard in the 4th quarter
once the Broncos had fallen asleep, making the 31-24 loss look much closer on paper
than it was in reality. That’s not to take anything away from the Colts – they’re
good…offensively. Defensively the Colts are miserable, which will be a big
problem v. this high-flying Eagles offense. This game represents the highest
O/U of the week (53.5), and I expect
it to be a full TD over that. I expect the Eagles to go up big early so the
whole country gets to witness a patented Andrew Luck comeback. Comebacks don’t
always end in wins.
The wild game
everyone expected, the lead changed five times in this game before the Eagles came
away with the win. Ten unanswered points in the last 3 ½ minutes of the 4th
quarter and 142 receiving yards for RB Darren Sproles sealed the victory for
the Eagles, who seemed out of it again after the first half. The Eagles have
made a habit out of slow first half starts and second half explosions, and
Monday night was no exception. After trailing 17-6 through the first half, the
Eagles turned on their second half jets, scoring 24 points, 14 of which were unanswered
3rd quarter points that tied the game 20-20, to “steal” the victory.
The Colts held the ball for nearly 13 more minutes, but two turnovers and
Philadelphia’s explosive second half play were the keys to this game.
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