Week 14 cont.
9.
Car @ NO: the Panthers have dropped seven straight and they're still in the hunt for their division.
lain: The Saints won their last meeting by 18 @ Carolina and are favored at home by 9.5 with the action liking the line 63/37. Hard to fight that one and I'll take the Saints.
10.
Hou @ Jac: the Jags come off a mild upset of the spiraling Giants to take on the favored Texans as a 4.5 dog. The action has it 86/14 riding the Houston wagon out with a victory. The Texans have made their year off weaker teams so this one should be another in the win column and by that margin or considerably more.
11.
Buf @ Den: a makes me nervous game, mostly because of the 9.5 line. Buffalo has a terrific defense. Top five against the run and top ten against the pass. Denver needs balance leaning toward the pass, which seems like a solid way to win what should be a tougher game than most are crediting. The action is running a confident 66/44 for Denver and the points...too rich for my blood. I like the way the Broncos are playing, especially given they'll likely have to win on the road come playoff time, but I'm not comfortable going over eight. I'll take the upset on points here.
12.
KC @ Arz: looks like what everyone thinks it should be. If Palmer were under center I'd be a nervous KC fan. Even so the Cardinals are a slim, pick'em half point favorite over the Chiefs. The action is split nearly even, with 51/49 leaning toward the not much of an upset. Both teams have gone from a series of wins to a two game losing streak, but I'm more concerned about the Cardinals collapse against woeful Atlanta than I am the Chiefs coming up short against Denver, especially with Charles knee feeling better this week. I like the Chiefs by two to seven, so I'll go against that marginal line/action.
13.
SF @ Oak: the Niners lost a meaningful game against their arch rivals last week while Oakland was obliterated by SL. A 7.5 line in favor of SF would be insulting if they weren't playing about as out of sync on offense as they have since Harbaugh took over. Time to course correct. The action is 80/20 that happens...I'm not betting against it.
14.
Sea @ Phi: game of the week. Philadelphia is a home favorite by a meager 1.5 points. The action says it might be an upset, running 53/47 toward Seattle. This is a hard one. The Eagles allow a little over 5 more points on defense but average six more than Seattle...and it's at Philly. I like the Eagles to win a very close and hard fought game, covering the spread.
15.
NE @ SD: jittery game and the second best match up on the board. So, the Pats looked mortal in their loss to GB, a team without much of a defense and SD won a dig deep road game against a tough Ravens squad, so don't overlook this one just yet. The line is New England by 3.5 and the action likes it 75/25. . . but San Diego is 5-1 at home and the Pats are a less than convincing 3-3 as a road team so far. I'm looking for NE to use this as a bounce back and I'll take them, but don't be surprised if it doesn't happen.
16.
Atl @ GB: so...the line is GB 11.5 and the action 70/30 in support of the line...which you know I hate. But...okay, I'm caving. I'll sit and sweat out the points.
:e4e: