NFL 2023 Week 3 Prequel
Thursday, September 21, 2023, 8pm
New York Giants at an Francisco 49ers (-10 1/2) — The Giants showed grit in overcoming a 21 point deficit against lowly Arizona, but the 49ers are playing on another level. This is a complete mismatch. Brock Purdy is playing well. Daniel Jones fumbles a lot. The 49ers have a defense. The math is ugly. 49ers cover
Sunday, September 24, 1pm
Indianapolis Colts at Baltimore Ravens (-7 1/2) — The Colts are a young team. The Ravens are an experienced team. Lamar Jackson will handle business. The spread is high but the Colts do not have the firepower to keep up. Ravens cover
Tennessee Titans at Cleveland Browns (-3 1/2) — This spread is a surprise given that Deshaun Watson is not playing well. Neither is Ryan Tannehill, but he has Derrick Henry. With Nick Chubb out, the Browns are bringing back Kareem Hunt. In a slugfest, go with Derrick Henry. Upset special, Titans win outright.
Denver Broncos at Miami Dolphins (-6 1/2) — The Broncos lost twice at home while the unbeaten Dolphins are flying high. Tua Tagovailoa is on the verge of finally reaching his potential Russell Wilson has struggled in Sean Payton’s offense. The Dolphins are putting up points but not blowing teams out. Dolphins win but fail to cover
New England Patriots (-2 1/2) at New York Jets — If the Jets cannot win this game, they may never defeat the Patriots ever again. The Patriots are 0-2 for the first time since 2001. Bill Belichick loves to torment the Jets. Neither Mac Jones or Zach Wilson are anything to write home about. expect a heavy dose of Raimondre Stevenson. The Evil Hoodie may no longer get the benefit of the doubt, but the Patriots have been competitive while the Jets were listless last week. Patriots cover
Buffalo Bills (-6 1/2) at Washington Commanders — The Bills got back to their winning from last week while the Commanders survived a Hail Mary to win. Josh Allen seems back on track. The Bills have the better defense, the better quarterback, and more weapons. Yet the spread is high for a road team against another well-coached team. Bills win but fail to cover
Atlanta Falcons at Detroit Lions (-3) — The Falcons are 2-0 and starting to believe their own hype. The Lions had their bubble burst last week with an overtime loss at home. Yet it’s too early to jump on the Atlanta bandwagon or jump off the Detroit bandwagon. Jared Goff at home indoors gives the Lions the edge. Lions cover
New Orleans Saints at Green Bay Packers (-2) — The Saints have won ugly twice while the Packers blew a fourth quarter double digit lead at Atlanta. Derek Carr and Jordan Love are both under the microscope. So are Dennis Allen and Matt LaFleur. The Saints have the better defense but their offense kicks too many field goals. At home, the Packers get back on track. Packers cover
Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars (-9) — The Texans are bad. The Jaguars, despite a tough home loss to Kansas City, are quite good. This is a mismatch. Go with Doug Pederson, Trevor Lawrence and a good defense over the rookie coach and quarterback. Jaguars cover
Los Angeles Chargers at Minnesota Vikings (-1) — These teams are either underachieving or they were overrated to begin with. Either way, the loser is 0-3. Given that both of these teams are playing below their talent level, go with the home field. Also, Brandon Staley makes boneheaded decisions that cause close wins to become close losses. Vikings cover
1pm
Carolina Panthers at Seattle Seahawks (-6) — The Panthers are young and experiencing growing pains. The Seahawks have ageless Pete Carroll, who led an inspired squad to an upset win at Detroit last week. Geno Smith is competent enough, and the Panthers lack the talent to make this a game. Seahawks cover
Dallas Cowboys (-12) at Arizona Cardinals — The Cowboys followed up a 40 point win with a 20 point win. At this rate, they will only win this by 10. The Cardinals blew a 21 point lead last week to the same Giants team that the Cowboys crushed by 40. The spread is still too high, and the Cowboys could take the Cardinals too lightly. A garbage touchdown to defeat the spread is possible. Cowboys win but fail to cover
Chicago Bears at Kansas City Chiefs (12 1/2) — The Chiefs have not returned to their Super Bowl form yet, but the Bears are awful. Patrick Mahomes should be able to spread the ball around with ease. Matt Nagy would love to beat the team that fired him. His replacement Matt Eberflus seems uber-flustered. Chiefs cover
8pm
Pittsburgh Steelers at Las Vegas Raiders (-2 1/2) — These teams played a brutal match last year that saw the Raiders collapse late in a 13-10 Steelers win in Derek Carr’s final game before being benched and exiled. Neither of these teams are any good and the home field will not matter. Mike Tomlin is a far superior coach to Josh Mcdaniels. Tomlin runs the ball. McDaniels dinks and dunks. The Raiders have more talent on offense. If McDaniels can avoid his terrible play-calling instincts, the Raiders have a shot. Raiders cover
Monday, September 25, 7pm
Philadelphia Eagles (-5) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers — Both teams are 2-0, but it’s too early to take the Buccaneers seriously. Baker Mayfield is playing well, but the Eagles are on a mission. Jalen Hurts is in midseason form. Give the Buccaneers one chance to show they are for real and make the game close. Eagles win but fail to cover
8pm
Los Angeles Rams at Cincinnati Bengals (-2 1/2) — Two years after a thrilling Super Bowl, the Rams are in rebuilding mode and the Bengal are a surprising 0-2 for the second straight year. Joe Burrow has not forgotten how to play football, but he may be more injured than he is letting on. The Rams were manhandled by San Francisco, and expecting the Bengals to go 0-3 at home is a tall order. Go with the home field given that both teams have playmakers. Bengals cover