Footnotes: Weekend Observations – October 31, 2005
Favre plays Santa Claus in the Packers’ latest loss… Apparently, Brett Favre is already in the charitable holiday spirit after throwing five interceptions in the Packers’ 21-14 loss at Cincinnati. Favre actually turned the ball over six times if you count the fan who stormed the sidelines and stole the ball from him during a last-minute botched play. When asked about his post-match performance, Favre replied that he admitted he might have had ulterior motives: “I’m near the end of this horrible team and I’m just preparing for life after football. So I want to show it to the guys.” at the mall”. hire Santa so he can be as generous as anyone.” It was the third time this year that the Orange Cats, who easily lead the NFL in picks, intercepted five passes in one game. More good news for the Bengals: They’re 3- 1 SU and 3-0-1 ATS on the road heading to Baltimore this week.
Chargers find spark late in game… San Diego finally finished what it started with a 28-20 victory over Kansas City. After four painful losses to the Cowboys, Broncos, Steelers and Philadelphia by a combined 12 points in which they led all four teams in the fourth quarter, SD made sure not to blow an 18-point lead this week. Interestingly, the Chiefs had three red zone possessions in the final 17 minutes, but managed just one field goal. SD is now 5-2-1 ATS this year despite playing seven of eight games against teams that currently have winning records. The Bolts are actually 18-5 ATS since last season and have a small break in the schedule this week against the 2-5 New York Jets. FYI: Marty Schottenheimer’s group is 10-1 ATS on the road the last two seasons!
Eagles Clipped… Philadelphia gave up 564 yards and 49 points in a 28-point blowout courtesy of Denver this week. Something is not quite right in Philly this year. Heading into this season, the Eagles were a bookmaker crushing 67-38-3 ATS since Andy Reid took over in 1999. But this year, Reid’s group is an overrated 2-5 ATS and has lost three followed against the number. In fact, they are very lucky to be 4-3 SU on the season. Don’t forget last week’s miracle win against San Diego, where their prayers were answered with a blocked field goal that turned into a TD late in the fourth quarter. This came after the Cowboys had beaten them 33-10 in Big D the previous game. And Dallas’ blowout came a week after they snatched victory from the Jaws of Defeat by rallying from a 17-point deficit against the Chiefs at Arrowhead. It seems to us that the only person luckier than the Eagles right now is the lead photographer for Playboy magazine. We’ve talked in these pages about the Eagles’ ineffective 32nd running game. And injuries have really turned McNabb into Mc-Not from a career perspective, as the Eagles’ caller has amassed just 21 rushing yards all season. But don’t expect much sympathy from their next opponent, Washington, who will be itching to get on the field after kicking ass last week in Denver.
Gamblers allege temporary insanity after the 49ers game… You think you’ve seen it all in this business until you open the paper last Monday morning and find Chris Simms an 11-point favorite in the NFL. It’s like suddenly waking up and discovering that Jessica Simpson has been inducted into the MENSA society. Hindsight is, of course, 20-20 and few things are more annoying than hearing a gamer talk about games he should have played after the fact. But in a 15-10 road loss to the 49ers, Simms threw just one TD and two interceptions against one of the worst NFL defenses in recent history. Interestingly, SF put up just 208 total yards on the day and has actually been outscored in each of their three point wins this year. But the Buccaneers’ 23rd-ranked offense wasted a terrific performance by the team’s No.1-ranked defense in the NFL. For what it’s worth, TB hosts Carolina this week and is 3-0 SU (2-1 ATS) on the Pirate Ship, as well as 13-4 ATS hosting their last seventeen after a loss on the road.
New York offers Washington Giant Butt Whooping… Perhaps playing up a little extra excitement following the death of its late owner Wellington Mora this week, New York strangles division rival Washington 36-0. Surprisingly, it was the first time all year that the Giants outscored an opponent by giving Joe Gibbs his first shutout of the regular season. Even more surprising is New York’s No. 31 defense holding Washington’s No. 2 offense to a pathetic 125 yards. Washington doesn’t have much time to lick its wounds with Philadelphia on deck this week, coming off its own embarrassing loss in Denver. Keep in mind that PHI is 9-4 in both SU and ATS in their last thirteen meetings at the Beltway.
Jags not ready for prime time… What’s wrong with this picture? Jacksonville has over 400 yards on offense. Fred Taylor rushes for 125 yards. The Jags are coming off a bye week after two impressive wins in a row against Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. Their opponent, St. Louis, is playing without their starting quarterback (Bulger), two starting receivers (Bruce, Holt), their best pass-rusher (Little) and their head coach (Martz). Final score: St. Louis 24 – Jacksonville 21. As Jack Del Rio said after the game, “We’re not an elite team.” Apparently not. His team missed two field goals and had a punt blocked by an opponent whose special teams over the years have been anything but special. Your team had a chance to turn the corner like they did last year when all you had to do was beat the Terrible Texans in the season finale at home to make the playoffs for the first time in four years. But you choked on your own vomit like you apparently did this week against a depleted Rams team. But don’t worry… There’s talk of your team leaving Florida and heading to Los Angeles All that aside, it’s great being a Jags fan in Jacksonville these days. And by the way, if revenge is a dish best served cold, lucky for you, those same jeans will be on the calendar this week at home. The same Texans who got their first win of the season against the hapless Browns on Sunday but are 0-6 ATS after a home win the past three seasons.
Vulnerable Patriots turf? … It was hardly a beautiful thing, but New England came back late from a fourth-quarter deficit to defeat division rival Buffalo 21-16. However, the Bills easily grabbed the green as a 9.5-point dog and outscored the Superbowl champions 394 yards to 273. BUF also controlled the ball for 39 minutes and held NE to just 1 of 7 on third-down attempts. Perhaps some might say the Pats were caught looking ahead to this week’s big Monday Night Football matchup against Indianapolis. But there should be concerns in the Boston area, and not just the effect those horrible accents are having on unsuspecting tourists. They rank 28th in career and 26th in total defense. We’re not sure this team is as strong as recent versions of the past, but keep in mind that NE is 5-0 SU and 4-0-1 ATS in the last five meetings against the Colts. On the other hand, the Colts are 7-0 SU and 5-2 ATS. That said, Tony Dungy’s group has played only one opponent currently with a winning record. In fact, all seven of Indy’s opponents are a combined 17-33 SU on the season. And yes, those vans you see outside the NFL Commissioner’s office are indeed presents and gifts sent by the Indy faithful.