Atlanta +144
Oakland +5 -105
Houston -3 -110
Tampa Bay -2.5 -110
St.Louis -3 -120
Dallas +171
I don't understand this Saints line, I think originally correct and the hype around the Saints pushed it too far. Falcons are healthy on offense and come in with an improved offensive line. I think at home they shouldn't be offered at this price against the Saints, a team I expect to do very well this year, but with too many things going against them tomorrow, and I think that even though they have replaced Sproles with weapons, he was such an important factor in that offense that I wouldn't be surprised if it took a week or two for roles to be set.
Raiders is explained above, don't expect either team to score a lot as the best units for both teams are their front 7. Expect it's a close game and Carr shouldn't get frazzled here, the word coming out from the players even prior to him being named starter was that he had already started to own the huddle.
Houston and Tampa bets very similar, both teams are too good on the defensive line for their competition. In Texas I think the Redskins are going to really struggle this year, RG3-13 has never been at his best when he stays in the pocket and he's going to need to stay there and get rid of it quickly with Watt/Clowney going at him tomorrow. I wish Houston had someone better than Fitzpatrick at QB, but I think they do most of their damage on the run, an area where Washington was one of the worst teams in the league this year.
In Florida I think Cam being hurt causes that offense is going to struggle up against a very good Bucs D. Lovie Smith coming in is going to be a huge boost to the team. McCoy is arguably the best DT in the league now and they added talent to that DL this offseason. McCown looked strong with the Bears last year and comes in to a team with some big weapons to work with in Martin, Jackson, and Evans.
Rams line overreaction after losing a below average QB was another one I disagreed with, there were 6's when Bradford was starting and now there's a big drop. This is a team a lot of people think is a good QB away from a contender, so why when they go from a below average QB to another one do they lose 3 points. Especially when going up against the 2nd worst defense in the league last year in YPG, last in Points. They gave up 30 points or more in 9 of their games last year
Where this game gets won is the other side of the ball, their defense especially the line is way too talented to let Matt Cassel and the Vikings move the ball too much on them. I don't think this game is going to be the prettiest to look at, but in the trenches there is a clear clear difference between these two, and the Rams should control things.
Dallas is similar to the Falcons play, you have an elite offense at home that can put up points with anyone and at those odds I have to be on them. Their defense has a ton of holes which will keep them from being a good team this year, but San Francisco has a ton of questions on their own in defense. Tomorrow they have no Bowman, Aldon Smith, or Glenn Dorsey, and their pre-season has been horrible, I don't think pre-season record indicates anything but they have had distractions left and right, and I am still not a Kaep fan. If that defense isn't getting them the ball with short fields and keeping teams under 20 points I don't think Kaep is an elite guy to win games on his own.
still looking at MNFx2 but likely 1st game over and Chargers in the late one
