The Sports Rumors

Weekly Picks vs The Spread - Wk4

Houston (-3.0) @ Atlanta

Matt Schuab is going to come in and throw all over Atlanta and make the Falcons gag with disgust for letting him go. People are saying Atlanta is going to come out angry and play for revenge. Umm. What revenge, and what anger? You let the guy go. It’s your fault. Houston has shown that their defense is a top 10 one, so far, and that their offense can score. Advantage and game goes to Houston.

Pick: Houston

Spread: Houston Covers

Green Bay (-2.0) @ Minnesota

Minnesota Head Coach Brad Childress announced that running back, Chester Taylor, will be starting ahead of Adrian Peterson. Okay. Why? Because he’s healthy? If you thought Taylor was the answer, you wouldn’t have drafted Peterson. Peterson is the better player, and teams that are trying to win ballgames start the better player. Oh, I forgot it’s Minnesota. Favre will break the touchdown record and the Packers will be 4-0.

Pick: Packers
Spread: Packers Cover

Tampa Bay @ Carolina (-3.0)

David Carr will be making his first start for the Panthers and will be facing off against a Bucs team that is surprisingly confident after winning two straight games. I’ve done a lot of reading and thinking about this game because I had a slight hunch that the Bucs would pull it off. However, I’m giving the advantage to the Panthers because DeShaun Foster has been running well with an average of 5.2 yards per carry and the Bucs are giving up almost 125 a game on the ground. I think Carolina will run a lot since it’ll be Carr’s first start and that should make the difference.

Pick: Carolina

Spread: Carolina Covers

Philadelphia Eagles (-2.5) @ New York Giants

Similar to the Redskins-Giants game last week, and the Eagles-Redskins game the week before, you can pretty much throw all logic out the window because NFC east battles are unpredictable. All I can tell you is this; the loser of this game is out of the playoff chase. The Eagles have MORE to lose because if they drop this game, they will be 1-3 (0-2 in the division). They will not recover and the team will go into one of those funks where they start looking at the changes that will come in the offseason (McNabb departure, etc.). That being said, the Eagles HAVE to win this game. I feel that McNabb is playing with the chip on his shoulder that he needs and will manage to pull this game off, but not by much. I’m feeling a pretty high scoring game in which the Eagles win 31-27.

Pick: Eagles

Spread: Eagles Cover

NFL Week 4 Picks

As promised, here are my weekly picks. I’ll be having my spread picks released late tonight or early tomorrow.

Houston (-3.0) @ Atlanta

See Spread Pick

New York Jets (-3.5) @ Buffalo

Divisional matchup that is a must win for the Jets. The first two losses of the season can be pretty much erased with a second straight win. Buffalo brings a new quarterback, Trent Edwards, to the table. A lot of people are high on this guy. Look for a close battle coming down to a field goal in the final minutes.

Pick: Jets

Baltimore (-4.5) @ Cleveland

Two quarterback system Ravens come into the ‘Pound. Jamal Lewis gets his first shot to get back at his former team while McGahee will try to show why he was the right choice. Forecast calls for lots of running and not very much scoring.

Pick: Ravens

St. Louis @ Dallas (-13.0)

The Rams will likely be without Steven Jackson and Marc Bulger has two broken ribs. That’s all you need to know.

Pick: Cowboys

Chicago (-3.0) @ Detroit

Finally, Grossman is out and Griese is in. Will it be a big enough spark for the Bears? They’ll have to put up lots of points because their D is banged up, and banged up bad. I see Kitna torching the Bears’ secondary. Expect plenty of points and big plays from both teams.

Pick: Lions

Oakland @ Miami (-4.0)

Oakland has not won a road game in their last 12 attempts. That will change Sunday. My second consecutive upset pick this week.

Pick: Raiders

Green Bay (-2.0) @ Minnesota

See Spread Pick

Seattle (-2.0) @ San Francisco

Shaun Alexander will be wearing a cast again as the ‘hawks will take on division rival San Fran. Niners are coming off of a humbling loss to the Steelers while the ‘hawks are coming off of a thrilling win over the Bengals. This game will be very close, much like the Seattle-Zona game of a few weeks ago. Only difference is, this time the Seahawks will complete the game winning drive and win.

Pick: Seattle

Tampa Bay @ Carolina (-3.0)

See Spread Pick

Denver @ Indianapolis (-9.5)

Indy hasn’t blown anyone out in what seems like forever, even though it was just three weeks ago. They’re back at home and you would THINK this game might be close, given the fact that the Broncos have Dre Bly and Champ Bailey. But the Broncos have been very disappointing and could easily be 0-3 instead of 2-1. I’m taking the Colts and I’m taking them big.

Pick: Colts

Pittsburgh (-6.0) @ Arizona

Ken Wisenhunt and Russ Grimm face their former team for the first time but I’m not feeling the two quarterback system that the Cardinals are trying to run. It may have caught the Ravens off guard last week but it ain’t happening against the Steelers. I can tell you that much.

Pick: Steelers

Kansas City @ San Diego (-12.0)

I had circled this game at the beginning of the season to be exciting because LJ and LT would square off. Now, I’d rather watch a women’s golf rerun than a terrible team (Chiefs) versus a boring, underachieving team (Chargers).

Pick: Chargers

Philadelphia (-2.5) @ New York Giants

See Sunday Night Pick

New England (-7.5) @ Cincinnati

See Monday Night Pick

NFL Week 4 Expert Picks

College Football Picks: Week 5

Today’s Rundown 9/27

Whats up people. It’s Thursday… which means we’re one day away from Friday, so get excited. I got a lot coming today and tomorrow as far as articles and posts are concerned. It’s been a while since I’ve written an in depth piece on something going on in sports so I’ll be putting out two in the next two days. Here’s the plan:

Thursday:

- College Football Weekly Picks (sometime this afternoon)

- Article with some thoughts on the NBA, it’s been a while (sometime this afternoon/evening)

Friday:

- State of the Quarterbacks in the NFL article (Morning)

***The article will be my thoughts on who’s good, who’s not, where certain qb’s will be next season (i.e. McNabb, Grossman, Culpepper etc)***

- Weekly NFL Picks Outright (Afternoon)

- NFL Picks Versus Spread (Afternoon/Evening)

Now that you know the plan, lets move on to Today’s Rundown.

*This will be the first and last time that I ever talk about the Women’s World Cup on here but there is a specific reason for me doing so today. The US Women got waxed 4-0 by Brazil and this is significant ONLY because there was a goalie change announced yesterday. The reason to replace Hope Solo (what a name) with the other goalie (who’s name I have forgotten) was because she had an undefeated streak going against Brazil. My thoughts are this. Don’t tinker with something that works. And more importantly, you can’t replace a goalie who has played well, and has ‘hope’ as her first name! That’s just bad karma. Moving on…

*The New Yawk Yankees have clinched their 13th consecutive playoff birth and will be facing off with the Cleveland Indians in the opening series. This is only news because nobody, including myself, thought they could pull this off back in June. Just goes to show that you should never count the Yankees, Lakers, or Dallas Cowboys out of anything.

*Barry Bonds played his final game last night as a member of the San Francisco Giants. The Giants honored him by having his jersey number etched into outfield where he stands. Bonds went 0-3 in the Giants’ 11-3 loss.

*Speaking of Bonds, if you haven’t heard already, Cooperstown will reportedly accept the 756 ball with an asterisk branded into it by designer Marc Ecko. Ecko held an internet voting poll for the fans to determine the fate of the ball. The other two options were to put the ball in the Hall of Fame as is, or to shoot into space on a rocket. Fans apparently felt the asterisk was sufficient.

*I’m sure you’ve heard by now, Michael Vick tested positive for marijuana on a test taken September 13th. It’s somewhat sad to see that this guy still doesn’t understand the importance of making wise decisions, given what he’s already gone through and what he’s about to go through.

Today’s Rundown 9/25

*Michael Vick has been indicted on more dog charges, with the latest coming from the state of Virginia.  I’m not going into details on this one but this is such a sleezeball type of deal from state attorney Gerald Poindexter.  He was the one who didn’t find anything to charge Vick with before the Feds moved in.  Now he’s trying to save face by adding to the punishment.  Absolutely ridiculous.  If you want to read more on this story, it’s on espn.com and every other sports site.  Lets move along.

*So I couldn’t have been any more wrong on my pick last night.  The Saints are terrible.  I had no idea, none whatsoever, that they would be this bad through three games.  It got so bad towards the end that the fans were booing the same team that they embraced last year.  Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that the Saints high flying offense would be THIS bad.  I did think that Brees would have a drop off from last year…but by drop off, I didn’t mean become one of the bottom 5 in the league.

* The Red Sox kick off their series against Oakland tonight.  Every game is starting to look more like a must win with the Yankees only 2 back.  Keep an eye on this the final week.  Could get interesting.

*Week 4 Power Rankings are below…

NFL Power Rankings Week 4

For you to enjoy…

Monday Night Pick vs The Spread

Whats up folks. Meant to post sooner but have been really busy at work. Went 2-2 vs the spread on Sunday… should have been 3-1 had the Redskins, my Redskins, not choked hard. Anyway, lets make it 3-2 for the week.

Tennessee Titans @ New Orleans Saints (-4.5)

Everyone is talking about the matchup between Vince Young and Reggie Bush; the first since the BCS National Championship game thriller of two years ago. But that doesn’t have any effect on your money. Here’s what does. The Titans are a good football club. The Saints, thus far, have played like a bad football club. However, both of their losses came on the road and the Saints have their backs against the wall. This is their home opener and its on Monday night. There is no way they’re going to lose this game. None whatsoever. As far as the spread goes, they will cover that 4.5 and I feel they’ll win by double digits. My reasons? Anger, homefield, talent. The Saints have the edge in all three categories. I’m not going to sit here and spit stats at you because the Titans have the advantage, by far, in pretty much every stat that matters. But you know what? So did the Redskins against the Giants. So throw your stats out the window, grab some chips and dip and relax while you watch the Saints cruise to a 27-14 win and add some $$$ into your pocket. 9-4-1 through the season so far… correct pick number 10 is tonight. See you tomorrow morning.

NFL Picks vs The Spread - Wk 3

Whats up people. Sorry I haven’t posted this sooner but I’ve been busy… still am actually. Here’s a quick rundown of who I’m picking versus the spread. My record to date is 7 correct, 2 wrong and 1 tie through two weeks. If you like those numbers, read below:

Arizona Cardinals @ Baltimore Ravens (-8.0)

Steve McNair will start for this game and the Ravens defense will absolutely suffocate the Cardinals decent offense. McCalister will keep Larry Fitz on lock and Ed Reed will give help on the opposite side with Boldin. Leinart isn’t good enough to beat this defense yet and it’ll be a long day for the second year QB. I expect a score in the neighberhood of 26-13.

Pick: Ravens

Spread: Ravens Cover

Carolina Panthers (-4.0) @ Atlanta Falcons

I don’t know why people are freaking out about this game and saying its a dangerous one to pick. No, it’s not a dangerous one to pick. The Falcons have little to no offense. Their defense is okay but there is no way they’re stopping Steve Smith. I don’t think this game will be a blowout but the Panthers are definitely going to win, especially coming off of an embarassing defeat at home. Panthers win and cover.

Pick: Panthers

Spread: Panthers Cover

New York Giants @ Washington Redskins (-4.0)

If there is a game this week that is deceiving, this is the one. The Giants are 0-2 and the Skins are 2-0. The Giants have played terrible and the Skins have played complete all around games. The Giants seem to be disarray and the Redskins seem to be coming together as each quarter passes. All that being said, it’s the NFC East rivalry, and all that goes out the window. Still, I’ve got to go with my hometown Skins but don’t be surprised if this game is close going into the fourth quarter. A lot of people are calling for a blowout but again, its the NFC East and anything is possible. Still, I see the Skins winning by a touchdown.

Pick: Skins

Spread: Skins Cover

Dallas Cowboys @ Chicago Bears (-3.0)

The Bears have won 15 of their last 16 games at home. This is the Cowboys first real test of the season and given how well they’ve played thus far, and how I see them going to the Super Bowl, I’m taking the Cowboys in an upset. Not only will the Bears not cover, but they will lose this game. Rex Grossman and the whiney Cedric Benson have shown me NOTHING to believe that they can put up points against anyone who’s even slightly above average. I don’t see the Bears defense as intimidating and tough as they previously were. Take the Cowboys here in your upset special and reap the benefits.

Pick: Cowboys

Spread: Bears don’t cover

Now throw your money down hard on those games, relax, and enjoy the day of college football.  Monday night pick will be out Monday morning, as usual.

NFL Week 3 Predictions

Good Friday afternoon to you people. It’s almost 2pm now on the east coast which means we’re three hours away from the weekend. To entertain you as you wind down the week and go into weekend-mode, enjoy the NFL picks for week 3, including my picks stacked up against the ESPN “experts” at the bottom. My picks versus the spread will be up hopefully later today, or tomorrow at the latest. Enjoy!

Clarification: The picks below are just outright picks. These are NOT my picks versus the spread. Just wanted to clarify because a goofy friend of mine got confused.

San Diego (-5.5) @ Green Bay

Packer fans will go into euphoria if they can manage to pull this win out. The Chargers got embarrassed on national television by the Patriots, again. This time, they don’t have to wait an entire offseason to play again. Look for them to come out strong against the Packers and Merriman and Co. will harass Favre all day.

Pick: Chargers

Minnesota @ Kansas City (-3.0)

A bad team matched up against a worse team. The game within the game will be between Adrian Peterson and Larry Johnson. That’s about the only reason I’d even scan the game for a few minutes.

Pick: Chiefs

Buffalo @ New England (-16)

I just noticed how brutal the first three games have been for the Bills. Denver, at Pittsburgh, and then at New England?! I feel bad for them. In other news, Randy Moss has been thrown the ball 18 times and has caught 17 of them. The one miss was an interception thrown by Brady.

Pick: Patriots

Miami @ New York Jets (-3.0)

Before the season began, I had actually marked this match as a potential big game. Well, it’s anything but that. Two winless teams square off in a watered down AFC East rivalry. I bet this will be the game CBS decides to air on national tv, and to make things worse, they’ll have Phil Simms announce.

Pick: Jets

Detroit @ Philadelphia (-6.5)

I really have no idea what to expect from this game. I really don’t. Westbrook is having MRI’s done and looks banged up, McNabb has been miserable, and the Eagles defense is weaksauce. Detroit doesn’t have a great defense of their own but have been passing like no other. I don’t THINK that McNabb will let the Eagles lose this game and drop to 0-3 so I’ll side with them… skeptically.

Pick: Eagles

San Francisco @ Pittsburgh (-9.0)

NFL Network was hyping this game like it showcasing Montana and Bradshaw. Pittsburgh’s offense is balanced, their defense is beastly. San Fran is a nice team but they’re not ready to box with the Steelers just yet.

Pick: Steelers

St .Louis @ Tampa Bay (-3.5)

St. Louis had better win this game if they want any chance at making the playoffs because guess what? Only 5 teams have ever made the playoffs after starting 0-3.

Pick: Rams

Arizona @ Baltimore (-8.0)

See Spread Picks.

Indianapolis (-6.0) @ Houston

Houston is starting to look more and more like this years New Orleans Saints. They have a young team, a quarterback that is playing great, and a solid young wideout. But lets not kid ourselves. They’re not beating the Colts, and it won’t even be close.

Pick: Colts

Jacksonville @ Denver (-3.5)

I really don’t like these two teams at all. They are both underachievers and I hate underachievers more than I hate the Red Sox… well not quite that much but it’s pretty close. I’ll take the Jags in this one because of their defense and because Denver is having a tough time scoring.

Pick: Jags

Cleveland @ Oakland (-3.0)

A lot of people are going to wonder why I’m not using this game in my spread picks. Here’s why. I’m not an idiot and I’m not about to bet, or recommend betting, on two terrible and unpredictable teams. For all of you even thinking about including this game in your parlays, I highly advise you to stay away from it. My prediction on this game is just a coin toss. Heads says Raiders win and Tails says Cleveland wins. I’m serious, that’s how I’m picking this game. And the coin is up… the result is…

Pick: Raiders

Cincinnati @ Seattle (-3.0)

A lot of people are also going to wonder why I’m not using this game in my spread picks. Again, these two teams are too unpredictable and it’s not wise to throw money around on such games. However, the loser of this game is going to have a tough time making the playoffs. Seattle is coming off of a game which they should have won. They’ll have the home crowd involved and that should make it hard on the Bengals. Bengals are coming off their own disappointing loss and their high flying offense should be able to put up some points on the Seahawks. However, which Cinci defense is going to show up? That’s the question to which no one has the answer.

Pick: Bengals

Carolina (-4.0) @ Atlanta

See Spread Picks

New York Giants @ Washington (-4.0)

See Spread Picks

Dallas @ Chicago (-3.0)

See Spread Picks

Tennessee @ New Orleans (-4.5)

See Spread Picks