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Posts Tagged ‘football picks’

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February 3rd, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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Thirty other teams wish that they were in the spots of the New York Giants and the New England Patriots, as they are set to battle it out for the Lombardi Trophy for the second time in just four years. These two are set to battle on the NFL betting odds, and here at Cappers Info, we are handicapping the spread on the Super Bowl 46 betting lines.

Super Bowl 46 Matchup: New York Giants vs. New England Patriots
Date: Sunday, February 5th, 6:30 ET
Location: Lucas Oil Field, Indianapolis, IN
Super Bowl 46 Lines: New England -2.5
Over/Under 55
Super Bowl 46 TV Schedule: NBC

On one blush of this game, it seems easy to find plenty of ways to like the Giants. First off, it is clear that they are the team that has gotten the better of this series of late when these two teams have gotten it on. New York was able to beat the Brady Bunch on the road this year at Gillette Stadium, and four years ago, almost to the day, QB Eli Manning and company were able to beat the then 18-0 Patriots in one of the most unexpected upsets in the history of the league.

The two things that really held the Giants back this year were their running game and their pass defense. All of a sudden, those problems are starting to disappear and disappear in a hurry. RBs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw are finding ways to poke some holes in the opposing defenses that they are facing, and thanks to the tremendous pass rush of DE Jason Pierre-Paul and the rest of his mates in the New York front seven, the DBs don’t have to spend as much time covering receivers, making their play more effective.

The Giants are also clearly playing their best ball right now, just as they did when they won the Super Bowl four years ago. No one really believed that New York was the better team in that game, as it was clear that that 18-1 New England team was clearly one of the best in the history of the league in spite of the fact that it didn’t win the Super Bowl.

And it is true that we have to admit that the Giants seem like a touched team. Plays that you see like the Hail Mary into the end zone in the NFC Divisional Round against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field and some of the ridiculous catches that WR Victor Cruz has made do make it feel a lot like we are going to see Eli Manning to David Tyree v2.0 at some point in this one as well.

Plus, it’s not like New England is playing all that well right now. The Patriots seemed to be very lucky just to be at this point, and the team’s win over the Baltimore Ravens, no matter how lucky it was in the AFC Championship Game, was actually the first game all season long in which they beat a team that finished the year above .500.

The game plan to beat the Patriots seems simple. Pass rushers have to get in the face of Brady, linebackers and safeties need to find ways to stick on the tight ends in the center of the field and in the flats, and on the other side of the ball, the receivers have to take advantage of a weak secondary.

All that being said, that’s why so many pundits think that the Giants are pulling off the “upset” in this one. However, any time that the mass media is suggesting that one side is the proper play to make in a game like this, we immediately run in the other direction. When that side is the underdog that Joe Public seems to be backing, it is really time to head for the hills.

We’ve heard all about how little brother Eli is going to try to win his second Super Bowl in his big brother’s house, but don’t you think that Tom Brady – the Tom Brady that struggled for years against Peyton Manning – is going to want to make a statement as well? New England is a soft team, and we have been the first to admit all season long that we hate this team for just how soft it is. Soft teams don’t usually win the Super Bowl. However, this time around, we are going to back the softness that is the Patriots. We just think that the New York hype has gone too far, and there is absolutely no way that we think that New England should be anything less than 6-7 point favorites in this game. We are only making the percentage play that we think will work out in the end.

Super Bowl 46 Spread Prediction: New England Patriots -2.5

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February 3rd, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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And it all comes down to this… There is just one more game to dissect this year in NFL betting action, and here at Cappers Info, we are taking aim at the Super Bowl ‘total’ odds in the clash between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants.

Super Bowl 46 Matchup: New York Giants vs. New England Patriots
Date: Sunday, February 5th, 6:30 ET
Location: Lucas Oil Field, Indianapolis, IN
Super Bowl Lines: New England -2.5
Over/Under 55
Super Bowl 46 TV Schedule: NBC

Sometimes the play that has to be made is the one that seems to be the most obvious. The ‘total’ in the Super Bowl immediately came down just a tad from the open of 56 (56.5 at some locations) due to some sharp bettors that likely remember the last time that these two teams met in the Super Bowl. There was a heck of a lot of defense in that game, and if not for 14 points scored in the final three minutes of the clash, it had the potential to be the lowest scoring Super Bowl ever.

However, these two teams were built a heck of a lot differently. This is the first time that we have had two defenses that have been this bad squaring off against one another. The Giants ranked just No. 27 in the game in total defense, while the Patriots were ranked No. 31. Both of those teams in Super Bowl 42 were able to run the football, and this was before QB Eli Manning was known as a truly elite signal caller. He definitely didn’t have a full playbook like he does now to work with, and though both RBs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw are capable, neither one is going to do as much in this one as they did in the Super Bowl four years ago in all likelihood.

The Patriots have made a tremendous routine out of putting gobs of points on the board this year. Now, it is true that the games in which they failed to get into the 30s this year came against some of the best defenses in the league, though we also have to admit that these Giants were able to pull off the feat as well. However, look closer at that first game. The score was 0-0 at halftime. Unbelievable! There were still 44 points scored in the second half, and QB Tom Brady still threw for 342 yards and two TDs.

The Giants have played in some hardnosed playoff games this year, but this offense that they are running up against isn’t that of the Atlanta Falcons or the San Francisco 49ers. This is a lot more like the game that featured 57 points against the Green Bay Packers.

As for New England, it has just been business as usual in the playoffs. The team dropped 45 points on the Denver Broncos in its first playoff game this year, and it followed that up by scoring a very respectable 23 on the Baltimore Ravens. Of course, that was the first game that stayed ‘under’ the ‘total’ that the Patriots played since beating the Kansas City Chiefs 34-3 in the first game that QB Matt Cassel was out of the lineup for the Chiefs. In that stretch, the team has scored at least 31 points in all but one of those games.

This time around, we tend to think that there is a sense of desire there for the Brady Bunch. This is an offense that was told all season long that it was too much in a box. There are no deep threats for the unit. That being said, all that Brady and his band of receivers seem to do every single week is score 30 or more points! In the end, that will be the difference. The Patriots, come hell or high water, are going to get their points, and when they do, the Giants are going to have no choice but to keep up. This ‘total’ is just too low. Expect to see a lot more of the second half from the first time these two teams met, and nothing like the first Super Bowl meeting or the first half of the regular season duel this year.

Super Bowl ‘Total’ Prediction: New England/New York Over 55

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January 22nd, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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The San Francisco 49ers and the New York Giants weren’t on the minds of a lot of NFL betting fans as contenders for the Super Bowl, but one of the two are going to be in the biggest game of the year for sure. These two meet for the second time this year, and we are set to make our NFC Championship free picks for the biggest duel of the season for both teams.

Year To Date Record: 61-65 ATS
Upset Record: 19-35, -$765

NFC Championship Matchup: New York Giants @ San Francisco 49ers
Date: Sunday, January 22nd, 6:30 ET
Location: Candlestick Park, San Francisco, CA
NFC Championship Lines: San Francisco -3
Over/Under 45
NFC Championship TV Schedule: FOX

Giants Notes: Oh, the comparisons… It has been awfully trendy to just assume that these Giants are going to be able to pull out the Super Bowl just as they did in 2008 when they beat the “perfect” New England Patriots in one of the most memorable Super Bowls that we have seen in recent years. We do have to admit that the team is playing with the swagger that it had at that point, and that was demonstrated in the huge 37-20 win at Lambeau Field against the Green Bay Packers over the weekend. New York dominated on both sides of the ball, and it did everything that it could to win the game, including tossing a Hail Mary TD pass at the strike of halftime that truly changed the course of the game, and arguably the entire season. QB Eli Manning has proven that he is worthy of being called an elite quarterback, and he did a great job on Sunday to get his team to this point. Sure, he throws too many picks and doesn’t always look the best in the pocket, but Manning just wins games when he has to, and he is right on the verge of his second Super Bowl appearance in his career. He has a great set of receivers to throw to as well with Mario Manningham, Victor Cruz, and Hakeem Nicks, but the key to the offense is going to be getting the ground game going against one of the most stout rush defenses in the league. Remember that the Giants rank dead last in the league in rushing in spite of the fact that both RBs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw are historically fantastic backs. Defensively, the pass rush has to ramp it up again, as men like DE Jason Pierre-Paul have to figure out how to get into the San Francisco backfield all game long to avoid this becoming a shootout.

49ers Notes: They’re not always pretty in how they do it, but the 49ers just keep finding ways to win games. On Saturday afternoon, they really had their backs against the wall against arguably the best offense in NFL history. Sure, the New Orleans Saints had nearly 500 yards of offense against this team, but San Francisco stood tall and forced five turnovers as well. Those turnovers gave the Niners a bit of a cushion that was held for most of the game, but when the going got tough, QB Alex Smith, much to the surprise of many, was able to get the job done, not just once, but twice. He ran in the go-ahead TD with just over two minutes left to give the 49ers a five-point lead that probably shouldn’t have been coughed up, but even though QB Drew Brees came right back down the field and scored to stretch the lead back out to a field goal, Smith wouldn’t be denied. He came up with two huge pass plays, the latter of which went to TE Vernon Davis in the middle of the end zone for the game-winning score. What he needed was a field goal to tie, but Smith got the full seven points to win the game instead of sending it to overtime or falling short. Perhaps in other years, this situation would have been different for this, a team that has historically struggled. However, this version of the 49ers believes that it is entitled to be playing in this game and is entitled to be playing at home. San Francisco has a mean streak about it that we like. Soft teams don’t win the Super Bowl, and though this clearly isn’t the most talented team in the league, it is definitely the toughest team that the conference has had all season long.

The Final Word: The 49ers won when these two teams met earlier this year in this venue. It was a fantastic game that was swayed on the back of two Manning INTs. Though he was able to survive against the Green Bay defense on Sunday, we just don’t know if Manning can get the job done again. If he starts turning the ball over, the 49ers are bound to capitalize, just as they did against the Saints. It seems very odd to say, but we tend to think that Head Coach Jim Harbaugh, in his first year on the job in the Bay Area, is going to have his team in the big game for all of the marbles in two weeks.

Divisional NFL Pick: San Francisco -3

NFL Football Prediction: San Francisco 30 – New York 23

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January 22nd, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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QB Tim Tebow and QB Tom Brady meet in a battle of one of the elite signal callers in the game and one of the most criticized ones. It should make for a great battle on the NFL betting lines when the Baltimore Ravens take on the New England Patriots for the second time this year.

Year To Date Record: 61-65 ATS
Upset Record: 19-35, -$765

AFC Championship Matchup: Baltimore Ravens @ New England Patriots
Date: Sunday, January 22nd, 3:00 ET
Location: Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, MA
NFL Divisional Lines: New England -7.5
Over/Under 50.5
AFC Championship TV Schedule: CBS

Ravens Notes: If there is one thing that we are absolutely sure of, it is that the Ravens aren’t going to be intimidating going into this game. They are a team that is tough as nails, and they have already beaten some of the best teams in the league both at home and on the road. Baltimore also survived a brutal test from the Houston Texans on Sunday, as they had to escape with a 20-13 victory. The defense played its heart out and held down the Texans to just 13 points, though the ground attack was successful with RB Arian Foster running the ball. Against the Patriots though, that shouldn’t be all that much of an issue. QB Joe Flacco really didn’t have a fantastic game last week, going just 14-of-27 for 176 yards with two TDs and no picks. The defense forced three turnovers and the special teams had another turnover that turned into 17 first quarter points. The team wasn’t able to really do much of anything else for the rest of the game, but the defense did the rest and guided the team to victory. Keep an eye on how this defense plays, especially if S Ed Reed really turns out to be seriously injured from the last play of the game when he had to get carried off the field by his teammates.

Patriots Notes: It is going to be an interesting week ahead for the Patriots. They are in the position where they are expected to win the AFC, but they have been in this spot before, and for the most part, over the course of the last half decade or so, they have failed. They were beaten by the New York Jets and these Ravens in back to back seasons, and they were handled in the Super Bowl by a New York Giants team that just shouldn’t have truly matched up. Yet they have remained the favorite in the conference quite a bit over the last year or so, and now, they are just one step away from getting back to the Super Bowl for the first time since they were 18-0 in the blustery winter months of 2008. That year, QB Tom Brady was breaking all sorts of offensive records along with WR Randy Moss. This year, it is Brady is getting the job done again, but he has a significantly different helper. TE Rob Gronkowski had 17 TD receptions in the regular season to go with one on the ground, setting all sorts of tight end marks along the way. He had 10 grabs, 144 yards, and an NFL playoff record three TDs against the Baltimore Ravens, without a doubt the best game that a tight end has ever had in the postseason in league history. Meanwhile, Brady was just Brady, throwing for 363 yards and a ho-hum six TDs. Five of those came in the first half, and he ended up breaking records for most TD passes in a game and most in a half in playoff history. It was a season in which he joined the 5,000 yard club in a single year, and though he broke QB Dan Marino’s record with over 5,200 passing yards, he didn’t beat out QB Drew Brees for the league lead. However, Brady can do something that Brees now cannot: Lift the Lombardi Trophy once again. Injuries are going to be worth watching throughout the week. DE Mark Anderson, who led the team with 10 sacks in the regular season, hurt his leg, while TE Aaron Hernandez, who had over 100 total yards of offense in his own right against Baltimore, might have suffered a concussion that could keep him out of the fold.

The Final Word: Soft teams don’t win the Super Bowl. Sometimes they play in the big game, but generally speaking, when they run up against their toughest test, they end up getting smashed. Baltimore is as tough as it could be, and considering the fact that the Patriots haven’t played a team this good this year, and when they did play against a smashmouth type of team, the Pittsburgh Steelers (whom Baltimore beat twice) beat the snot out of them. Don’t be all that surprised if this game gets ugly, and the uglier it gets, the better off the Ravens are.

AFC Championship Pick: Baltimore +7.5

AFC Championship Game Prediction: Baltimore 31 – New England 16

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January 14th, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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The Houston Texans survived their first game in the playoffs, but now, they are going to face a significantly tougher task on the NFL playoff odds when they have to go to M&T Bank Stadium to tango with the Baltimore Ravens.

Year To Date Record: 59-63 ATS
Upset Record: 18-35, -$930

Divisional NFL Matchup: Houston Texans @ Baltimore Ravens
Date: Sunday, January 15th, 1:00 ET
Location: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD
NFL Divisional Lines: Baltimore -9
Over/Under 38
Divisional NFL TV Schedule: CBS

Texans Notes: It wasn’t the prettiest win of all, but the Texans got the job done last week against the Bengals. They really had everything going in the victory, as the offense did its job and made some big plays, the defense came up with the play that changed the game, and the special teams really didn’t make a mistake. We were really impressed at the restraint shown by Houston after the game was over, as the team really celebrated a lot like it had been there already. There was no Gatorade bath for Head Coach Gary Kubiak either. It is clearly a sign that there is a lot more to do, and the Texans aren’t content with just saying that they finished this year with their first playoff berth and first playoff win in team history. Up next is its first win on the road in the playoffs in team history, and that is a significantly tougher challenge. QB TJ Yates didn’t make the big time mistake against Cincinnati last week, and he has to play a relatively perfect game to avoid getting wrecked by this Baltimore defense. He has to make some plays down the field, just as he did in what probably amounted to be the clinching TD pass to WR Andre Johnson. RB Arian Foster had over 150 yards on the ground, and he and RB Ben Tate combined for nearly 200 yards in total. The young defense didn’t allow a score in the final 27 minutes of the game, and after an opening TD drive, it didn’t allow the Bengals in the end zone. Rookie DE JJ Watt did score a TD just before halftime on an awesome INT return for a TD, and if he and the rest of his front seven mates can play like that on Sunday, Houston does have a shot.

Ravens Notes: Can you believe that of all of the playoff games that QB Joe Flacco has started and won, that this is the first time that he is going to be playing at home? This is a totally new experience for the Ravens, who really haven’t been expected to win in the AFC playoffs in quite some time, maybe even ever. This is going to be a game that supposedly comes against the worst team left in the playoffs (certainly in the AFC), and it is one that shouldn’t be close. Granted, the first time around this year, that was the case. QB Matt Schaub and the Houston offense were stymied all day long, and the defense had no answers for RB Ray Rice. Rice, who had 2,068 yards and a total of 15 TDs on the season, had a huge game with 161 total yards against Houston the first time around. He has the potential to be a beast again in this one, and if he is, look out! It could get ugly. WR Anquan Boldin should be back in the lineup after missing a few games with a knee injury, and the bye week really helped him out. The Ravens went 6-0 this year against playoff teams, and that is a number that we just can’t ignore.

The Final Word: The Ravens are legit. There is absolutely no doubt about that. It is going to take an absolutely perfect game for the Texans to win this one. With Schaub calling the shots and a healthy Johnson back in the fold, we could have seen Houston winning this game. We’ll take the Texans and the points, but in the end, we tend to think that the playoff experience for the Ravens will leave Houston at least one more year away from the Super Bowl.

Divisional NFL Pick: Houston +9

NFL Football Prediction: Baltimore 27 – Houston 20

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January 11th, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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The Green Bay Packers get set to take to the playoffs for the first time this year when they engage in NFL betting action against the streaking New York Giants.

Year To Date Record: 59-62 ATS
Upset Record: 18-35, -$930

Divisional NFL Matchup: New York Giants @ Green Bay Packers
Date: Sunday, January 15th, 4:30 ET
Location: Lambeau Field, Green Bay, WI
NFL Divisional Lines: Green Bay -9
Over/Under 51.5
Divisional NFL TV Schedule: FOX

Giants Notes: The Giants might only have 10 wins this year, including in the playoffs, but they have played one of the more impressive schedules. There were a lot of teams that would have been in the playoffs if they could have figured out how to beat New York this year, and that point really continued to be the case when the Atlanta Falcons came into the Meadowlands and got absolutely crushed by it last week. QB Eli Manning had a great season, throwing for just under 5,000 yards, but last week, it was a complete team effort. Manning had his three TDs, but the ground game came up with one of its better games of the season with 172 yards, most of which came from RBs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw. The defense essentially pitched a shutout, as the two points that were allowed were obviously the offense’s transgressions. The secondary, which has been much maligned this season, allowed just 199 passing yards and two plays of 20+ yards all game long against the Falcons. The Packers ripped the G-Men to shreds the first time around, but this is a unit that absolutely continues to get better as the season has worn out.

Packers Notes: Green Bay has absolutely been the best team in football over the course of the last 25 weeks or so of NFL betting action, and it only has one loss in its last 21 games, that coming against the Kansas City Chiefs. The offense had a tremendous season under likely soon-to-be MVP QB Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers had one of the best seasons a signal caller ever had, and he would have absolutely won the MVP if not for the year that QB Drew Brees had. Rodgers had 4,643 passing yards and 45 TDs against six picks, and he posted the league’s best quarterback rating in history of 122.7. WR Greg Jennings is expected to be back, and he missed the final three games of the regular season when the offense wasn’t quite at its best. Jennings came up just short of 1,000 yards this year, while WR Jordy Nelson had 1,263 yards and 15 scores. If there are knacks on this team, they are on the ground offensively and through the air defensively. Green Bay hasn’t really been able to run out the clock on the ground all that much this year, as neither RB James Starks nor RB Ryan Grant were all that great this year, and the pass defense often allowed teams to make big time plays to erase leads in games. It hasn’t really cost the Packers yet this year, but those are the types of problems that see teams knocked out of the playoffs.

The Final Word: The first time around, these two teams played a great game. Manning led the troops down the field at the end of the game to tie, but Rodgers got the last laugh by leading the Pack to a game winning field goal. We tend to think that this is going to be the same sort of way that this one plays out. These two both have road wins in the last decade in the other’s home stadium in the postseason, including in the final game that QB Brett Favre ever played for the Packers. It was also the continuation of the magical season that those Giants had when they won the Super Bowl and beat the 18-0 new England Patriots. Many have drawn similarities between this team and that Giants team in ’07. We think that New York is good enough to win this game, but we don’t think that it will ultimately have quite enough.

Divisional NFL Pick: New York +9

NFL Football Prediction: Green Bay 31 – New York 30

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January 11th, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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The trendy NFL picks for the Super Bowl take on the upstart that few are giving a chance to in another NFL playoff betting battle on Saturday, as the New Orleans Saints take on the San Francisco 49ers at Candlestick Park.

Year To Date Record: 59-61 ATS
Upset Record: 18-35, -$930

Divisional NFL Matchup: New Orleans Saints @ San Francisco 49ers
Date: Saturday, January 14th, 4:30 ET
Location: Candlestick Park, San Francisco, CA
NFL Divisional Lines: New Orleans -3.5
Over/Under 47.5
Divisional NFL TV Schedule: CBS

Saints Notes: The Saints just continue to pour it on teams, as their offense has started to roll like it did two seasons ago when they won the Super Bowl. A 45-28 romp over the Detroit Lions in the Wild Card round of the playoffs marked the fourth straight game in which New Orleans has dropped at least 42 points on a foe, and the seventh time in 17 games that it has put at least 40 on the board. QB Drew Brees now has nearly 6,000 passing yards in his 17 games this season, and he has 49 TDs to show for it as well. On Saturday, five different receivers had at least 55 yards through the air, and it seemed like just another day at the office for this offense. Thanks to a great ground game as well, the ‘O’ dropped a whopping 626 total yards of offense, against just the 412 for the Lions. This is going to be a severely different test though, against a stout San Francisco defense, and it is also going to ask questions of a team that only went 5-3 SU and 4-4 ATS on the road this season. If there is good news though, is it that the Saints have covered nine games in a row, and three of those nine have come on the road.

49ers Notes: This is the game that Head Coach Jim Harbaugh was brought here to San Fran for. The 49ers haven’t been in the playoffs since 2002, and they are back and ready to make a case that they really did have one of the best teams in the league this year. Sure, the NFC West wasn’t the best division in football, but a 5-1 record against some franchises that seem to be heading in the right direction is impressive to say the least. Sure, the 49ers didn’t have any semblance of an offense at times this season; after all, they ranked No. 26 overall at just 310.9 yards per game and are going against an ‘O’ that, including the playoffs is averaging over 480 yards per game. However, the defense really kept San Fran in a number of games this year, and QB Alex Smith was able to get just enough done to figure out how to win these close games late on. The ‘D’ only allowed a maximum of 27 points this year, and that includes games against the high flying Lions (19 points), Philadelphia Eagles (23 points), Dallas Cowboys (27 points in OT), and New York Giants (20 points). Over the course of the last month and a half of the season, San Fran held the Arizona Cardinals to seven, the Baltimore Ravens to 16, shut out the St. Louis Rams, and held the Pittsburgh Steelers to just three.

The Final Word: We will be the first ones to admit that the 49ers didn’t play the most impressive schedule in the world this year. They only played against five playoff teams, and one of those was against the Steelers with an ailing QB Ben Roethlisberger. They haven’t proven that they are that great. That being said, we just don’t know if the Saints are going to be able to come on the road, across the country and win this game. We expect a shootout, but we also expect in the end, to see an upset for a team that went 7-1 SU and 7-0-1 ATS at home this season. Harbaugh gets the job done and puts the 49ers back on the map definitively this season.

Divisional NFL Pick: San Francisco (ml) +165

NFL Football Prediction: San Francisco 37 – New Orleans 31

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January 10th, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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QB Tim Tebow and QB Tom Brady meet in a battle of one of the elite signal callers in the game and one of the most criticized ones. It should make for a great battle on the NFL betting lines when the Denver Broncos take on the New England Patriots for the second time this year.

Year To Date Record: 60-63 ATS
Upset Record: 18-35, -$930

Divisional NFL Matchup: Denver Broncos @ New England Patriots
Date: Saturday, January 14th, 8:00 ET
Location: Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, MA
NFL Divisional Lines: New England -13.5
Over/Under 50.5
Divisional NFL TV Schedule: CBS

Broncos Notes: We were on the Tebow bandwagon last week against the Steelers when we saw just how badly that the black and gold were beat up coming into the game. This week, we are wondering if we don’t see another problem to exploit. The Patriots in general, are just a rather soft team, and this Denver team is as rough and tumble as it gets. Obviously, Denver can’t afford to get into another track meet with the Patriots like it did a month ago, or it is going to become an ugly, ugly game. However, the Broncos offensive line was able to really hold down the fort to give Tebow time in the pocket to make up his mind about the option, running the ball, or throwing it against the Patriots in the first half of the first meeting. It obviously didn’t happen in the second half. The Broncos have to force some turnovers, just as they did last week against the Steelers, and if that’s the case, the ground game and the defense might be able to do enough to get the job done. This front seven had a great game against Big Ben, and the offensive line for New England is beat up just enough that it might be in a similar spot. LB Von Miller and DEs Robert Ayers and Elvis Dumervil are going to have to be big, just as they were last week when they combined for three sacks between them.

Patriots Notes: When you look at the numbers for the Patriots this year, you have to be amazed at what they were able to accomplish. They ranked No. 2 in the game in both passing offense (318.0 YPG) and total offense (428.2 YPG), and they were No. 3 in scoring at 32.1 points per game. They dropped at least 30 points on 12 different opponents this year, and at least 27 in all but three games. QB Tom Brady threw for 5,239 yards, which would have been an NFL record if not for the fact that QB Drew Brees obliterated him by 200 yards this year. TE Rob Gronkowski broke the record for the most yards by a tight end in a single season with 1,327, and he also broke the tight end scoring records for a single season with 17 receiving scores and one on the ground. WR Wes Welker caught 122 passes and had 1,573 yards and nine TDs, while both TE Aaron Hernandez (910 yards, 7 TDs) and WR Deion Branch (702 yards, 5 TDs) both had amazing seasons as well. Sure, the ground game was a bit all over the place, but that was really nothing to worry about when there was a passing game that was this good. The defense struggled, but the offense made up for it in virtually every instance. Then we look back at the schedule this year… New England only played three playoff teams, one of which was this Denver outfit. The other two games? A loss to the New York Giants, and a loss to the Steelers. Then you look back at the last four seasons. In New England’s last four playoff games, it has only averaged 17.5 points per game, and Brady has as many TD passes as he does picks (seven of each). By the way, the Pats have lost three playoff games in a row, and they have failed to cover the spread in six in a row.

The Final Word: So up comes the question on Sunday. What was worse, Denver’s schedule, or New England’s schedule? Here’s what we now know. The Broncos aren’t afraid. They are going to use their game plan whether it works or not, and they are going to be a physical team that tries to be the smarter of the two sides. If there’s a coach that can do it, John Fox is the man. We do think that the Brady Bunch will find a way to survive to go on to host the AFC Championship Game, but we also think that this will serve as a stern, stern warning about how much these Pats may struggle in the playoffs.

Divisional NFL Pick: Denver +13.5

NFL Football Prediction: New England 23 – Denver 20

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January 7th, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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The Houston Texans will play their very first playoff game in team history on Saturday afternoon when they take on the Cincinnati Bengals. Check out our NFL betting picks for the first round of the playoffs!

Year To Date Record: 59-61 ATS
Upset Record: 18-35, -$930

Wild Card NFL Matchup: Cincinnati Bengals @ Houston Texans
Date: Saturday, January 7th, 4:30 ET
Location: Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
NFL Wild Card Lines: Houston -3
Over/Under 38.5
Wild Card NFL TV Schedule: NBC

Bengals Notes: The Bengals haven’t won a playoff game since 1991, and ironically, that win came against the Houston Oilers. This has been an interesting season for Cincinnati to say the least. Many pictured this being a two or a three win team this year with basically an entirely new offense, but we have to tip our cap to OC Jay Gruden and the rest of the staff for building a competitive offense with rookie QB Andy Dalton calling the shots. Sure, Dalton only threw for 3,300+ yards this year, and his TD/INT ratio of 20/13 wasn’t anything to really write home about, but in the end, this was a team that was able to win the games that it should have won. The problem though, is that the Bengals went 9-0 against teams that didn’t make the playoffs this year, and a stunning 0-7 (and just 1-5-1 ATS) against teams that are in the postseason.

Texans Notes: The city of Houston hasn’t won a playoff game since 1992, and for the first time, the Texans will be in the postseason. Again, it has been a tumultuous year to say the least. QBs Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart are on IR, and interestingly enough, rookie QB TJ Yates is going to become the answer to a great trivia question in a few years. The question? Who started at quarterback in the first playoff game in Texans history? RB Arian Foster missed basically three full games at the start of the season, but he still finished the season with over 1,800 total yards of offense. He and RB Ben Tate combined for over 2,100 rushing yards this year, leading this team to the second best rushing attack in football. The defense improved a ton under DC Wade Phillips in 2011. LBs Brooks Reed and Connor Barwin have stepped in well for the injured LB Mario Williams, and the MLBs in the 3-4 scheme, Brian Cushing and DeMeco Ryans have been monsters. Houston even has its first Pro Bowl member of the secondary in team history in the newly signed Johnathan Joseph, who has had a great first season in the Lone Star State.

The Final Word: Do either of these teams really have a shot to win the Super Bowl this year? No, not really. However, it would be important for both to get this win to give the team yet another shot at taking on a big boy next week. In the end, we just don’t like the way that the Texans closed out the season. They were able to steal a win in a game in which they probably weren’t the better team in the Queen City a month ago, and they haven’t won since that point. Take the points with the Bengals, but we are fully expecting to see an outright upset when push comes to shove.

Wild Card NFL Pick: Cincinnati +3

NFL Football Prediction: Cincinnati 24 – Houston 20

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January 6th, 2012 By Andrew "Mr. Multi-Task" Ryan - Cappersinfo Contributor

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We could be in for a good old fashioned shootout in the Bayou on Saturday, as the New Orleans Saints and Detroit Lions try to beat the NFL playoff odds in their second battle of the season at the Louisiana Superdome.

Year To Date Record: 59-61 ATS
Upset Record: 18-35, -$930

Wild Card NFL Matchup: Detroit Lions @ New Orleans Saints
Date: Saturday, January 7th, 8:00 ET
Location: Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, LA
NFL Wild Card Lines: New Orleans -11
Over/Under 59
Wild Card NFL TV Schedule: NBC

Lions Notes: The Lions have officially returned from over a dozen years of hibernation. They haven’t played in a playoff game since 1999, and they haven’t won one since 1991, and they have a chance on Saturday to make a huge statement by beating the team that many think is the only one that has a shot of challenging the Green Bay Packers in the NFC. The year ended on a bit of a sour note, as Detroit wasn’t nearly as good down the stretch as it was at the start of the season, but the schedule got a heck of a lot tougher, and it showed. That being said, QB Matt Stafford and WR Calvin Johnson were both ridiculously good this year. Stafford threw for just over 5,000 yards, and though he finished third in the league in that category, he is only the fourth quarterback in the history of the league to throw for 5,000 yards in a single season. “Megatron” had over 1,600 receiving yards, including over 550 in his final three games of the season. He has proven that he is one of the most dangerous receivers in the league, and if the Saints aren’t careful, he could be the difference maker in this game no matter how many guys are responsible for guarding him. Detroit just has to avoid beating itself with dumb penalties. The team committed oodles of personal fouls all season long, especially when the going got tough, and in the first meeting of these two teams, there were 11 penalties for 107 yards, far too many to beat a team with an offense that is this good.

Saints Notes: Last year was a brutal one for the Saints, as they just missed out on the AFC South title and ended up having to go on the road in the playoffs. They were 11 point favorites against the Seattle Seahawks on the road, and just like they year, they were just expected to blow the inferior team out of the water, but instead, they were beaten outright and were considered the dud of the postseason. Now, QB Drew Brees and the gang are back, and they may even be better than they were when they won the Super Bowl two years ago. The key addition was that of RB Darren Sproles. Sproles broke the record for most all-purpose yards in a single season in league history, and he and TE Jimmy Graham were really the reasons that Brees threw for over 5,400 yards to smash the league record for most yards in a season Graham won’t go into the record books for his season, but he came up just shy of setting basically every single season tight end record this year. If there is a problem for Brees and the offense, it is that RB Mark Ingram won’t play in this one, and in all likelihood, neither will WR Lance Moore nor WR Devery Henderson.

The Final Word: We’ve done a lot of speaking about these two offense, but we have to look back at the first meeting of the year between these two teams. Sure, Detroit left a lot of points on the board, but it also gave up 31 points without DT Ndamukong Suh in the fold. Suh is back from his suspension, and he is surely going to wreak havoc in this game. Though there is no doubt that both of these teams will put some points on the board, there were only 48 that were scored the first time these two played. There’s no reason to think that they will combine for many more than that in this one. Remember that the ‘under’ has gone 7-3 in the last 10 meetings in this series.

Wild Card NFL Pick: Detroit/New Orleans Under 59

NFL Football Prediction: New Orleans 31 – Detroit 24

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