This is an 8* play on TENNESSEE

Mississippi State (3-2 SU) comes in as the favorite here in Knoxville against a struggling 1-4 Tennessee team. Though it's not a surprise that the Bulldogs are favored, two weeks ago they looked completely incompetent in getting run off the field by Auburn. They lost the game 56-23 and while they got a week off to recoup, we still would want no part of laying points on the road with them. In another competitive environment, they lost to Kansas State and that was at home. Tennessee obviously has its own set of issues after being blown out by Florida and Georgia. But they did play Georgia tough in the first half as they were up 14-13 with under two minutes left in the first half. From there, they were outscored 30-0. But this is a game the Vols think they can win. If there's still any hope of making a bowl game, they may need this one. Mississippi State hasn't won in Knoxville since 1986 (0-4 since) so expecting them to win by more than a touchdown, in a down year, seems unlikely. Tennessee has won 9 of the last 11 meetings overall. Freshman Maurer remains the starting QB on Rocky Top after making his debut in the role vs. Georgia. Miss State's QB situation is a little more murky as Tommy Stevens and Garrett Shrader are both banged up. Tennessee has covered only 3 of its last 17 home games, which is pretty incredible when you think about it, but Miss State is only 1-6 ATS its past seven road games. This is a spot where taking the points should come in handy. Play on TENNESSEE

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This is a 10* on the OVER

Once again, the Pac 12 is not looking very strong. Oregon is probably the best the conference has to offer and they are ranked #13. The Ducks only loss was to Auburn, a game they led virtually the entire time. Since that loss, they've battled back to win four in a row, even though QB Justin Herbert really hasn't been as good as advertised. Last week, the Ducks were held to a season low 17 points in a win over California. That was a good defense they were up against though and Herbert did extend his streak of games with at least one touchdown pass to 33. The Ducks also gained over 400 yards and had double the first downs Cal did. So it was a pretty impressive win. Expect them to find more offensive success this week against a struggling Colorado defense that hasn't seemed to keep anyone in check. Five games have seen the Buffaloes be remarkably consistent, giving up between 30 and 35 points. We project it to be very likely Oregon scores more than 35 in this game. The Ducks defense has also been consistent - consistently good that is. They've allowed a total of 22 points the last four games, giving up no more than 7 to any one opponent. But Colorado can score. They average nearly 35 points/game. All but one of Colorado's games have seen 65 or more total points scored. There's likely to be a lot of Overs involving Colorado moving forward and this should be one of them. The have a QB in Steven Montez who is on pace for 3,500 yards and 30 touchdowns. Play OVER Colorado-Oregon

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This is a 10* Play on NEW MEXICO

This rivalry in the Mountain West Conference has squarely belonged to Colorado State in recent years. The Rams have beaten New Mexico nine straight times and covered five of the last six. However, it's not like the Lobos haven't been getting closer. They lost by only two points (20-18) in Fort Collins a year ago and then by only three the last time CSU came to Albuquerque. Losing by double digits to San Jose State last Friday wasn't a good look for New Mexico, who continues to play "quarterback roulette."  Bob Davie has had six different QB's start the last 25 games, none of which have had very much success. But Colorado State coming in as a road favorite just reeks. The Rams haven't even beaten a FBS opponent this year. Their only win was 38-13 over Western Illinois. They've lost four straight since their own QB, Colin Hill, was lost for the season against Arkansas. New Mexico has won both home games this year. There was an excuse for the Lobos losing 32-21 at San Jose State last week and that excuse was six turnovers. Take better care of the football this week and they can pull the upset. Colorado State has turned it over 16 times in six games. They've also lost outright three of the previous six times they've been a favorite of 3.5 to 10 points. Another disadvantage the Rams face here is their last game was Saturday while New Mexico played last Friday. Play on NEW MEXICO

AAA

This is a 10* on NEW ENGLAND

Stop us when you've heard this one before. The Patriots are once again the class of the NFL. As one of the league's two undefeateds, they've outscored their five opponents by 121 points. Some of the competition can certainly be called into question. After all, they've faced the league's three worst teams - Dolphins, Jets, Redskins - who are a combined 0-13. But they've still only allowed two offensive touchdowns all season. One was a 65-yard run last week. Just to show how much they're in front of the rest of the league, this will already be the fourth time this year that they're being favored by at least two touchdowns. Thursday night's opponent is the Giants, who already had some of the wind taken out of their sails with last week's poor effort vs. Minnesota. After rookie QB Daniel Jones guided them to a couple victories, the Vikings game went a lot differently as the offense barely gained 200 yards in a 28-10 loss. New York easily could be 1-4 right now with the only convincing win coming against the winless Redskins. Rookie QB's traditionally do not fare well against Bill Belichick, so we'll call for Jones to struggle again this week. The Giants defense has already allowed 490 or more yards in three games and is giving up 6.8 yards per play. So good luck stopping Tom Brady. Lay the big number as New England is 40-17-2 ATS its last 59 home games. Play on NEW ENGLAND

AAA

This is an 8* play on NC STATE

Syracuse and North Carolina State are both 3-2 entering Thursday night's ACC matchup, but it feels like whomever loses this game is going to see their season go south in a hurry. Syracuse won 10 games last year. But having to replace the school's all-time passing leader was going to be a chore. After opening the season with a 24-0 win over Liberty (whose coach Hugh Freeze was literally laying in bed), the Orange were subsequently squeezed by both Maryland and Clemson. They lost those games by a combined score of 104-26. They've since beaten Western Michigan and Holy Cross, but that doesn't mean much given the nature of the opponents. They're dealing with a lot of injuries right now, especially on defense, but they're also still using a backup center. Six freshman started the game vs. Holy Cross. QB DeVito had to leave that game with an upper body injury, but will play in this game. Speaking of quarterbacks, NC State turns to a new one Thursday as Bailey Hockman replaces the ineffective Matthew McKay. The Wolfpack like to throw and McKay simply wasn't getting the ball downfield the way coach Doeren wanted. NC State is on a three-game ATS losing streak and was beaten soundly by both West Virginia and Florida State. But they are 3-0 in Raleigh this year and 14-2 their last 16 at home. Syracuse is 4-16 SU on the ACC road since 2014. A change in quarterback should lead to better results for the home team this week as NC State actually played better than you think in the 31-13 loss to Florida State as total yardage and first downs were basically dead even. Play on NORTH CAROLINA STATE

AAA

This is a 10* play on the UNDER

This is an early season showdown in the Sun Belt and we're glad to see it get the national spotlight it deserves. Appalachian State is a team you probably are aware of as the Mountaineers first made their presence felt over a decade ago (then as a FCS team) by upsetting Michigan. It's been a successful transition to FBS and the Sun Belt Conference as they are 35-6 their last 41 league games. They have won or shared the SBC regular season title each of the last four seasons. Already this year, the Mountaineers upset one Power 5 team (North Carolina), part of a 4-0 SU start. But Wednesday is probably their toughest test of the season as they are facing a Louisiana team that has covered the spread in all five of its games so far, beating the oddsmakers expectations by about 70 points. The only loss for the Ragin Cajuns this year was the opener 38-28 to Mississippi State. Since then, they've scored 35 or more in every game, their last three all going Over. Similarly, App State has scored 34 or more in all four of its games and the last three have been Overs. But with a high total and high stakes, we're gonna call for the game Wednesday night to be lower-scoring than expected. Last year, this was a 27-17 game, won by Appalachian State. The Under is 5-1 the last six meetings. The Under is 14-5 the last 19 times App State scored more than 40 points their previous game (beat Coastal Carolina 56-37). The Under is 4-1 the last five times Louisiana has been coming off a bye. Play UNDER Appalachian State-Louisiana

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This is a 10* play on SAN FRANCISCO

While the Browns grabbed all the offseason headlines, it's been the 49ers starting 3-0 that has been the league's biggest surprise so far. Tonight, they host the 2-2 Browns, who are making their second appearance on MNF in three weeks. The first couldn't have gone much better as they routed the hapless Jets 23-3. But last week's 40-25 win in Baltimore was probably the most impressive we've seen Cleveland look all season. But we still have question marks about this team - on both sides of the ball. Over half of Nick Chubb's 166 yards rushing against the Ravens came on one play (88 yard touchdown run). The 49ers have a top five run defense, so look for Chubb to struggle to duplicate last week's success. QB Mayfield is often guilty of holding onto the ball for too long, leading to poor decisions or the offensive line breaking down. Again, look for the 49ers defensive front to be the biggest factor in this game. San Francisco is off a bye and West Coast teams typically have the edge over Eastern Time Zone opponents in these primetime games. So the situation definitely favors the home team. The 49ers offense, save for five turnovers against the Steelers, has been outstanding the last two games as they've rolled up over 1,000 yards! They've averaged over 6.5 yards per play during that time. That they still beat Pittsburgh, even though they were -3 in turnovers, is actually quite impressive. The defense held the Steelers to only 239 total yards. The Niners are a better team than the Browns and those "expecting" them to lose a game are going to be sorely disappointed. Play on SAN FRANCISCO

AAA

This is an 8* play on the Over

We know the Chiefs are going to score as they've put up at least 26 points in all games started by Patrick Mahomes. They've gone over 30 in three of four this year. The one exception was a 28-10 win over Oakland where they scored all 28 points in a single quarter. The Colts defense just gave up 31 points in a loss to the Raiders last week, so this hardly seems like an ideal matchup for them. But of course, the Chiefs defense isn't very good either. They've given up 26 points or more to every opponent but the Raiders. Indianapolis should be good for at least 24 points by the end of this game as that's the threshold they've hit in three of four games, a matchup with Tennessee (top five scoring defense) the lone exception. The Over is 6-0 when the Chiefs gained at least 350 total yards in their last game. They gained 438 in last week's wild 34-30 win over the Lions. That game could have featured even more scoring were in not for turnovers by both teams. The Chiefs defense actually ended up giving up more than 450 yards. Three of the Chiefs games this year have seen at least 61 total points scored. This number is high, but the issue is oddsmakers just don't seem willing to open the number higher. Until they do, KC strictly remains an Over team. Play OVER Indianapolis-Kansas City

AAA

*Bonus Pick Chiefs 1st Half

THis is an 8* play on ARIZONA

A battle of winless teams has "upset" written all over it, if you can even call it that. The 0-3-1 Cardinals are underdogs to the 0-4 Bengals, but it's the dog that's played better in our opinion. Cincinnati looked absolutely dreadful Monday night in a 27-3 loss to Pittsburgh. This team just doesn't have much. It was just 175 total yards gained against a bad Steelers defense. Two times in the first three weeks, the Bengals were game on the road. They came up one point short in Seattle and only four points short in Buffalo. But really the only "good" game was the Seattle one. They were shutout in the first half by the Bills before a second half rally proved futile. Cincy has gotten crushed by the 49ers 41-17, their only home game so far. Arizona was competitive the first two games, tying Detroit and losing by only six to Baltimore. But losing back to back home games by double digits was certainly disappointing. Still, we rate Arizona as the better team here. With them taking the points, it's an automatic play for us. Both teams have offensive line issues, but the Bengals are worse. Kyler Murray will make more plays than Andy Dalton. Cincy is not only 1-6 ATS off a division loss, they are 1-6 straight up. Play on ARIZONA

AAA

This is a 10* play on the TITANS

The 2-2 Titans host the 3-1 Bills and the big story heading into this game is who will play quarterback for the road team. Josh Allen was knocked out of last week's 16-10 loss to the Patriots. For much of the week, there was speculation that Matt Barkley would have to start for Buffalo. But Allen has reportedly cleared concussion protocol and will be under center. We're still taking Tennessee. After back to back losses, the Titans looked good last week in a 24-10 upset of Atlanta. You wouldn't know it was an upset simply by watching as they controlled that game from start to finish. After playing three of their first four games on the road, it'll be nice playing at home this week. The Titans were 12-4 SU at home the last two years, but did lose here to the Colts in Week 2. But they were ahead in that game in the 4th quarter. Buffalo left a lot on the line last week in an unsuccessful bid to upset the Patriots at home. The Bills did win their first two road games, but those were against the Jets and Giants. Tennessee is better and should shut down the Bills offense. Turnovers could be a determining factor. Marcus Mariota is the only QB in the league to start every game and not have a turnover. Allen has six interceptions and two fumbles. Play on TENNESSEE

AAA

This is a 10* on the OVER

The Patriots could go Over this total themselves. Mark it down. One of the NFL's two 4-0 teams, New England heads to D.C. this weekend to take on the Redskins, who are one of the league's four 0-4 teams. Obviously, this is a gross mismatch. But the pointspread reflects that. What the O/U line doesn't reflect, however, it just how bad the Washington defense is. They gave up over 30 points the last three games, one of them against Mitchell Trubisky and the Bears (who were struggling to move the ball previous to that game) and then 24 more to the Giants last week. It easily could have been more than 24 points allowed last week, but the Giants turned it over four times. You can bet Tom Brady won't be that careless with the ball this week. The Patriots offense will also be eager to atone for last week's subpar effort, which came against a very good Bills defense. They go from facing one of the league's best defenses to one of its worst. Colt McCoy (yikes!) and the Washington offense probably won't do much here, but a single TD or maybe 10 points might be all we need here for an Over. Play OVER New England-Washington

AAA

This is an 8* play on MICHIGAN STATE

Right about now, you won't find many takers willing to step up and get in front of this Ohio State juggernaut as the Buckeyes have rolled through their first five opponents. Those five opponents have been outscored 262-43. Half of the points allowed came in the first game, a 45-21 over Florida Atlantic. Nebraska was no match last week, even with the game in Lincoln, as OSU won there 48-7. But one team we're banking on "stepping up to bat" is Michigan State. The Spartans will be Ohio State's toughest test yet in what promises to be the first game the Buckeyes don't score at least 40 points. Michigan State did give up 31 last week to Indiana, but continues to have one of the best defenses in the entire country as they allow just 15 points game. A straight up win is probably out of the realm of possibility Saturday night in Columbus, but the underdog should be able to keep this game relatively tight. How often do you see Michigan State getting this many points? Not often. In the past five seasons, the Spartans have been an underdog of 20 or more points only two times. Those games were against Michigan and Ohio State in the forgettable 2016 season and both times Sparty covered, losing by only a total of nine points. They were a double digit dog once last year (at Penn State) and took the game on the field. Dantonio has won twice in Columbus before. The last two meetings haven't gone well, but we expect a focused effort from the underdog Saturday night that will lead them to covering the spread. Play on MICHIGAN STATE

AAA

This is an 8* play on TENNESSEE

You probably won't be seeing anyone pick Tennessee on College GameDay Saturday morning on ESPN. The Vols come into this game with Georgia as massive underdogs at Neyland Stadium and that can't come as a shock given their early season losses to Georgia State and BYU. Georgia is a top three team in the country having been to the playoff each of the past two years. But with the pointspread, there's hope for UT as Georgia is just 3-9-1 ATS the L13 years in this rivalry game. This will be among the biggest pointspreads ever for Georgia-Tennessee. While there's no defending those first two games for Tennessee, or the last one against Florida, they are certainly capable of staying within the number. Before being blown out each of the last two years by UGA, the previous five meetings were decided by a total of 23 points.  Both teams are off a bye, which makes this an interesting handicap. We played against Georgia two weeks ago when they hosted Notre Dame. That was a winner for us. This game now means more to Tennessee as their season could snowball rather quickly. It's hard to wrap your head around the fact the Vols are just 3-13 ATS their previous 16 home games. But rarely are they getting a number of this magnitude. They failed to cover a similar spread last year vs. Alabama, but they're a better team now (despite the record). Coach Jeremy Pruitt is being coy with his quarterback situation, which may provide an early advantage. Bottom line is that the number is just too large here to pass up. Play on TENNESSEE

AAA

This is a 10* on the OVER

UAB will be looking to rebound from a disappointing loss it suffered last week at Western Kentucky. The Blazers were three-point favorites, but went down by a score of 20-13 thanks in no small part to turning the ball over four times. All four turnovers were interceptions thrown by QB Tyler Johnston III. They led to just six points (two field goals) by WKU, but it could have been worse as one came at the end of the first half. It was a big step back for Johnston, who had thrown for over 300 yards each of the previous two games. It was also UAB's 1st Conference USA loss since the meaningless regular season finale against Middle Tennessee last year. Before that, the Blazers had won 11 straight conference games. They are unbeaten at home since the program returned to the field in 2917 (14-0 SU). Rice meanwhile is still searching for its first win of the year as they are 0-5 against what has been a challenging schedule. The Owls have just three wins going back to 2017, but have generally been more competitive in 2019. They took Louisiana Tech to OT last week, for example. But the defense is still giving up a 68.3% completion rate to opposing QB's and 6.3 yards per play. So sfter scoring a season-low 13 points last week, we look for the UAB offense to rebound here. This was a 42-0 game last year. Look for Rice to definitely get on the board Saturday and them doing so should be enough to help this one get Over a low number. The Over has hit each of the last four times the teams have met here in Birmingham. Play OVER Rice-UAB 

AAA

This is a 10* play on NEBRASKA 

Northwestern's reputation as a dog seems to precede itself here. While the Wildcats did cover last week as road dogs, they did so thanks to a huge number at Wisconsin. The Badgers couldn't possibly match the intensity from the previous week against Michigan and that showed right from the opening kickoff. But don't forget about what happened two weeks ago when Northwestern hosted Michigan State. They were the rare instance of the public being on the dog and got waxed by Sparty 31-10. We took MSU in that one, saying that Pat Fitzgerald's ATS record as an underdog didn't hold any water with us this year. Well, that still holds true. Northwestern was very lucky to win 10 games last year. Whatever their final record in 2019 ends up being will reflect that as luck won't be so good this season. In three losses so far, the Wildcats have scored 7, 10 and 15 points. Yes, Nebraska got manhandled last Saturday night at home by Ohio State. But the Buckeyes are manhandling everybody right now. The Cornhuskers can score (31+ points in each of the first four games) and will score enough here to cover this spread with room to spare. Lay it! Play on NEBRASKA

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This is an 8* play on WEST VIRGINIA

West Virginia is an ugly 3-1, but their record is nevertheless 3-1. The fact that they've won ugly doesn't make them any less dangerous this week in Morgantown. Yes, they only beat James Madison by 7 despite being +3 in the turnover margin. They also needed some good fortune to win at Kansas last week. But let's not forget the only other time they've been a home dog. A highly touted NC State team came to Morgantown and got beat 44-27. Texas best be on high alert here or the same fate could be awaiting them Saturday afternoon. The Longhorns do have a perceived advantage in that they are coming off a bye week. Before the bye, they picked up a big win over Oklahoma State, 36-30 in Austin. But this is a team that often struggles to cover when its favored. Last year, they were 1-4 ATS as an away favorite. Two of those games - at Maryland and Oklahoma State - resulted in outright defeats. West Virginia is not a home dog all that often that and this will be the first season it's happened twice since 2014. Maybe that's a sign of the times in Morgantown, but don't make the mistake of laying this number when history suggests the game will be close. The Mountaineers have beaten the Longhorns three of the last four seasons, including 42-41 last year in Austin. Play on WEST VIRGINIA

AAA

This is a 10* play on NEW MEXICO

Truthfully, neither of these teams should have covered last week. San Jose State, getting 19.5 against Air Force, was still down 41-10 with just under four minutes to go in the game. They scored a touchdown to make it 41-17. What happened next is the kind of gift/horror that only those fully entrenched in the betting community can lay claim to experiencing. Air Force decided to go for it on 4th & 1 from their own 22! They failed to pick up the yard and San Jose State quickly responded with another TD (just 52 seconds remaining) to steal the cover. New Mexico did something similar in its game vs. Liberty, scoring a TD with just 43 seconds remaining. While they still lost 17-10, the Lobos happened to be getting 7.5 points. Who will be lucky enough to cover this week? For us, this comes down to the simple fact that San Jose State should never be bet as a favorite. The last time the Spartans were favored by more than a field goal against a FBS team was 2015! New Mexico might be bad, but they're not THAT bad. San Jose State is only 8-12 straight up its last 20 conference home games and has lost 24 of its last 29 games overall. New Mexico has covered four of the last five times it's been an underdog of 3.5 to 10 points. Take the Lobos and the points here. Play on NEW MEXICO

AAA

This is a 10* on LOS ANGELES

One bad loss to the Buccaneers and everyone seems to have 'jumped ship' when it comes to last year's Super Bowl runner-up. But the Rams still put up over 500 total yards of offense last week and were unbeaten entering the game. They had 36 first downs. Jared Goff hasn't looked great, but he'll be facing a Seattle defense that's largely gone untested in the first quarter of the season, thanks to facing a slew of subpar quarterbacks. The look ahead line for this game had the Rams favored, so there's definitely been a swing in perception. We will look to take advantage of that. The Seahawks are 0-2 ATS at home so far as they barely beat the Bengals and lost to the Brees-less Saints. Besides beating the winless Bengals, their other wins have been against the Steelers and Cardinals. Those three teams are a combined 1-10-1 with the only win occurring because the Steelers played the Bengals Monday night. Remember Seattle was the fortunate opponent of Pittsburgh when Ben Roethlisberger got hurt. This will be the first time the Rams have been an underdog in a regular season game since 2017. They've won 16 of the last 19 road games. Play on LOS ANGELES 

AAA

This is a 10* play on SOUTH ALABAMA

South Alabama is just trying to stay competitive, let alone win a game at this point. The Jaguars are 1-4 with all four losses being by double digits. The only team they beat (Jackson State) is a FCS school. But you can say the same exact thing about Thursday's opponent, Georgia Southern. The Eagles only win was against Maine and that was by just eight points. Otherwise, they are 0-3 against FBS competition. One of those losses was close. Minnesota beat them 35-32 three weeks ago, but in that game GSU gained less than 200 total yards of offense. They gained less than 100 yds of total offense in a 55-3 loss to LSU. Now those are big time schools they were facing. But at home last week, the Eagles lost 37-24 to Louisiana and that was after a bye. With these kind of paltry offensive numbers, Georgia Southern should not be laying this many points in a road game, even if it is against a team perceived to be as bad as South Alabama is right now. Our call is that the Jaguars figure it out enough to at the very least keep this one competitive. Back in the season opener, they were able to stay within 14 points of Nebraska, in Lincoln. Certainly then, they should be able to stay within double digits of a conference opponent, at home? Play SOUTH ALABAMA

AAA

This is a 10* play on the OVER

Neither team playing Monday night has done much of the way in scoring in 2019 and neither has done any kind of winning. The Bengals and Steelers both come in at 0-3 with the former averaging only 18.0 points/game while the latter is at just 16.3. The Steelers have the obvious excuse of not having Ben Roethlisberger, but they still put up 20 last week in a loss to San Francisco with Mason Rudolph at quarterback. While the Roethlisberger injury definitely altered our outlook on the Steelers season, more concerning in the interim is how poorly the defense has played. They've given up 28.3 points/game so far and could have given up a lot more than 24 last week were it not for the 49ers turning the ball over so much. Three of San Francisco's five turnovers came inside the red zone. So it definitely could have - and should have - been a lot worse for Pittsburgh last week. They allowed 446 total yards to the Niners. On the year, the Steelers are allowing 443 yards/game. The Bengals defense knows what it's like to be shredded by the 49ers as well. They gave up 572 total yards to them in 41-17 loss back in Week 2. On the bright side, Andy Dalton is actually averaging over 300 yards passing per game. The Over is 5-2 the Steelers last seven games on Monday Night Football and 7-2-1 in the Bengals last 10 division games. While the offenses have been struggling, this one could easily turn into a shootout with two struggling defenses that can't stop anybody. Play OVER Cincinnati-Pittsburgh

AAA

This is an 8* play on OVER

The competition has not been fierce, but the Cowboys have looked good so far. They are 3-0 and averaging 32.3 points per game. Kellen Moore is doing a very good job as the new offensive coordinator, QB Dak Prescott is playing as well as anyone in the league right now and RB Ezekiel Elliot hasn't skipped a beat. New Orleans will be the Cowboys toughest opponent yet, but of course the Saints are without Drew Brees. These teams played a Thursday night game last season and the Cowboys won 13-10. Expect this tussle to feature a lot more scoring. It took touchdowns from both the defense and special teams to get New Orleans to 33 points last week as they pulled the upset in Seattle. But now they are playing in the Superdome. We expect Teddy Bridgewater to play well here. The Over is 8-3 in the Saints last 11 September games. It's also cashed in the last five conference games for Dallas. The Saints defense, which isn't as good as it was last year, did just give up over 500 yards to Seattle. The only offenses Dallas has faced are the Giants (with Eli Manning), the Redskins and the Dolphins. So it wouldn't be fair to call them "good" just yet. The Saints always put up points at home. This time Dallas should be able to match them. Play OVER Dallas-New Orleans

AAA

This is an 8* play on SEATTLE

The Seahawks starting 2-0 was a little surprising, but probably less so compared to last week's home loss. Seattle had to like its chances going into last week as they were facing a Saints team without Drew Brees. Unfortunately, the joke was on them as they lost 33-27 despite almost a 2 to 1 edge in total yards (515 to 265). The problem was allowing the Saints to score two non-offensive touchdowns, one on a punt return and the other a fumble return. We like the Seahawks to bounce back from that defeat as they play Arizona this week. The Cardinals haven't won, but they did tie, with the primary problem being they always fall behind in games. Last week they lost 38-20 at home to a Carolina team that didn't have Cam Newton. Kyler Murray is running for his life as he's been sacked more times (16) than all but one other quarterback. He hasn't faced a ton of blitzes but is dropping back to pass at a very high rate with 137 attempts in three games. On defense, Arizona is missing both of its starting corners. Tough to really like anything about the Cardinals right now. Seattle is 5-0-1 in its past six trips to the desert. They should win this one handily after putting up so many yards last week. Play on SEATTLE

AAA

This is an 8* play on the UNDER

We like the Seattle-Arizona game to go Under too. Sure, we talked a good bit about the Seahawks putting up a lot of yards last week and the Cardinals defense being down both of its starting corners. But Seattle can't score enough to send this one over by itself. Their defense played better against the Saints than the final score indicated. We went through this in the analysis on the side. But New Orleans scored two non-offensive touchdowns. Arizona did give up 4 TD passes to Kyle Allen last week, but should play better this week. The offense hasn't scored more than 24 in regulation this year and their total points would look a lot worse if not for the 4th quarter comeback they had vs. the Lions. The Under is 21-9 in Arizona's last 30 home games. It is also 11-5 the last 16 times Seattle gave up 30 or more points in its last game. Play UNDER Seattle-Arizona

AAA

This is a 10* on NEW YORK

With the New York media tripping all over itself in an effort to fawn over rookie Daniel Jones, one might think this could be an ideal spot to fade the public sentiment and go against the Giants. Especially now, since RB Saquon Barkley is going to miss several games. With Barkley relegated to a spectator on the bench, Jones (in his 1st career start) led the Giants to an improbable come from behind 32-31 victory over the Buccaneers last week. But if there's a team (besides Miami) that the Giants deserve to be favored over in this spot, it's Washington. The Redskins are on a short week after a diastrous effort Monday night left them at 0-3. At home, they trailed the Bears 28-3 at the half and eventually lost 31-15. Washington is a complete mess right now. QB Keenum sprained his foot in the loss Monday night. He's expected to play, but backup Colt McCoy is hurt too. That could leave the Redskins own rookie, Dwayne Haskins, as the only option. But according to most, he's not ready to be a NFL starter yet. The same could be said for most players on the Redskins defense right now. They've given up at least 31 points in every game. So Jones should have another big game. Washington has won just 3 of its last 14 NFC East games. They are just 3-8 their last 11 visits to the Giants, getting outscored by 65 points in those games. They are a mess while the G-Men finally have some momentum. Not only should the Giants be favored, they'll cover. Play on NY GIANTS

AAA

This is a 10* play on NEW ENGLAND

The Patriots and Bills are both 3-0, but don't expect this early season showdown to necessarily be a playoff preview. Buffalo has beaten the Jets, Giants and Bengals so far. You definitely won't be seeing any of those teams in the postseason. Then again, the same could be said for New England's first three opponents, which includes Miami. Last week saw the Patriots play the Jets and while the final score was 30-14, it easily could have been 30-0. The New England defense has still not allowed a touchdown this year as the Jets two scores came from special teams and defense. Through three games, the Patriots have outscored teams by 89 points. The Bills have outscored opponents by just 19 points. That's why New England remains such a sizable road favorite in this spot. That and the fact they have dominated this AFC East rivalry, winning 42 of the 58 meetings since Tom Brady came onto the scene in 2001. They've also taken the last five meetings, winning all of them by at least 12 points. Josh Allen is just starting his second year as the Bills QB. He makes a lot of errors. New England has won 17 straight times when facing a first or second year starting QB. Prior to last week's win over Cincinnati, the Bills had been 0-4 SU and ATS when off two straight wins. They didn't cover against the Bengals, a winless team mind you, and almost lost the game. Again, the Patriots have allowed 17 points in three games. Play on NEW ENGLAND

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This is an 8* play on UTAH

Both Washington State and Utah suffered crushing defeats last week. Utah's came first and was not all that out of the ordinary. It's the kind of upset we see at least once a week. While having a 27-16 edge in first downs over your opponent and still losing is disappointing, there's no shame in losing to USC at the Coliseum. In fact, it's been over 100 years since Utah last won there. One thing is for certain and that's it won't be another 100 years until they finally win at the Coliseum. What happened to Washington State late Saturday though was something you'll rarely, if ever, see again. Despite 63 points, 750 yards of total offense and NINE touchdown passes from QB Gordon, the Cougars LOST to UCLA - at home. They blew a 32-point lead in the second half in what was the third largest comeback (in terms of point margin) in NCAA history. Washington State was the first team to allow 50 points in a second half in 15 seasons. Only one team can bounce back from these two horrible defeats. We think it will be Utah and that they'll cover the spread to boot. The Utes have lost four in a row to Wazzu - by an average of 6 points/game. But this year's team is better irregardless of what we saw last Friday night in LA.  And they are still the better team here even if RB Moss can't suit up. Washington State was a pointspread juggernaut last season, but has now failed to cover three straight games. Playing on the road after allowing 50 points in 19 minutes is hardly ideal. Lay it! Play on UTAH

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This is an 8* on FLORIDA STATE

It took four tries, but Florida State finally looked impressive for an entire game in 2019. They jumped on Louisville last week, racing out to a 21-0 lead by the end of the first quarter. They held on to win 35-24 and cover as a 6.5-point favorites. Of course, starting well hasn't actually been an issue this year for the Seminoles. They led Boise State 31-13 (lost 36-31), UL Monroe 21-0 (won 45-44) and Virginia 24-17 (lost 31-24). They easily could be 4-0 and the narrative surrounding the program and coach Taggart would certainly be a whole lot different, wouldn't it? We're going to call for the turnaround to continue this week, facing North Carolina State, who is a suspect 3-1 team. They've beaten East Carolina, Western Carolina and Ball State. But the only time they've ventured off campus, they were beaten 44-27 by West Virginia, a game they were actually expected to win by seven. The Wolfpack are only 1-5 ATS their last six road games and 1-7 ATS following a straight up win. The home team has won this game 9 of the past 13 times. Florida State has big-time revenge after losing 47-28 in Raleigh. Play on FLORIDA STATE 

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This is a 8* play on KANSAS STATE

Under normal circumstances, this would set up as a very even affair between two teams looking to move up the Big 12 pecking order. But the circumstances are not normal this week in Stillwater as Oklahoma State is off a tough loss (to Texas) and visiting Kansas State is off a bye. The latter certainly seems to be underrated right now. Kansas State has already beaten Mississippi State on the road and is 3-0 ATS. Oklahoma State not only lost in Austin last week, they also struggled (for a half) in Tulsa the week before. The underdog brings the better defense, giving up 12.7 points/game to OSU's 26.8. Also, the Wildcats are 7-3 ATS as underdogs of 3.5 to 10 points while the Cowboys are 2-7 ATS as favorites of -3.5 to -10 with five outright losses. Kansas State is also 11-4 ATS as a single digit road underdog since 2016.  Though the home team has won 13 of the previous 16 meetings, Kansas State has won the last two - as a 20-point underdog and as an eight-point underdog. It may say something that the unranked team (Oklahoma State) is favored here, but they are at home. Or it may mean the oddsmakers simply haven't caught onto the fact that Kansas State is a lot better than expected for first year coach Chris Kleiman, who built an empire at the FCS level with North Dakota State and is translating well (so far) to the FBS level. Play on KANSAS STATE

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This is a 10* play on OVER Virginia-Notre Dame

After suffering a tough loss to Georgia last Saturday night, Notre Dame should resume scoring in bunches against a Virginia team that comes in ranked a highly questionable 18th overall. The Fighting Irish scored 101 points in their first two games including 66 in the only one played so far in South Bend. They were held to 17 by Georgia, but that's an elite defense they were facing there. Virginia certainly doesn't have a bad defense as they've yet to allow more than 24 points in a 4-0 start. But this number is too low based on what we see for most Notre Dame games. Even against Georgia, the total was 58. Virginia has scored at least 28 points in every game, so it may take a big number from Notre Dame to win this one comfortably, let alone win it at all. The Over is 7-3 in Virginia's last 10 non-conference games. Last week's vs. Old Dominion featured a slow start, but once the Cavaliers offense got going, it wasn't going to be denied. The Over is also 6-1 the last seven times Virginia has played on the road against a team with a winning home record. Notre Dame isn't about to score 66 again this week, like they did two weeks ago vs. New Mexico. But they should score plenty as they look to bounce back from the loss to Georgia. Virginia won't go quietly though. Play OVER Virginia-Notre Dame

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This is a 10* on MIAMI (OH)

Miami of Ohio did not fare well in the non-conference portion of the schedule, winning just one of four games and that one victory came against a FCS opponent. But the three losses were to: Iowa, Cincinnati and Ohio State, all games where they were an underdog of at least 17 points. So really, we can't say we're all that surprised to see the RedHawks coming into Saturday with a 1-3 record. But what we are surprised about is that Buffalo beat Temple last week, 38-22, as a two-touchdown underdog. Over was our call in that game, but we certainly didn't expect the Bulls to win it on field. Then again, the week before they lost at Liberty as a 5.5-point favorite. Because most of the country saw Miami lose 76-5 to Ohio State last week, there certainly won't be a rush to bet the RedHawks this week. But we love the spot. Over its last 22 MAC games, Miami is actually 16-6 straight up AND against the spread. Buffalo has not played nearly the kind of schedule that Miami has and averaged just 15 points in two road games. Miami has gotten to play just once at home and scored 48 on Tennessee Tech. Buffalo had only 279 total yards of offense last week, but Temple turned it over four times, so that's how the Bulls won that one. One touchdown came from the defense and two more came on drives that started in the red zone. Miami will take better care of the football and win this one. Play MIAMI OH

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This is a 10* play on the UNDER

After two games, the Maryland hype train was in full effect. They'd put up 142 points in a pair of wins, one of them 63-20 over Syracuse. But that hype train then got stuck in the station in a 20-17 road loss to Temple two weeks ago. We'll now get to see how Mike Locksley gets his team to perform off a loss. The Terrapins will face a Penn State squad that had its own impressive first two weeks on offense before playing a game vs. Pitt that they easily could have lost. They only beat the Panthers 17-10 and that came on the heels of a lackluster first half the week prior against Buffalo. The Nittany Lions have destroyed the Terps each of the last two years, outscoring them 104 to 6. No you didn't read that incorrectly. We think the last game for each team showed that neither offense is invincible here. We're not going to be seeing the video game-like numbers from the first two weeks. Both defenses might be underrated as Penn State has given up only 30 total points in three games while Maryland has given up just 40. The Terps last four Friday games have all stayed Under. Play UNDER Penn State-Maryland

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This is a 10* Play on VA TECH

While you may not yet be sold on Virginia Tech this year, don't be surprised if Friday in Blacksburg proves to be the Hokies "coming out party." They turned it over five times in their only loss, which was on the road. But they have won 15 of the last 21 games at Lane Stadium. With 10 starters back from last year, the defense should be solid in Bud Foster's final season as coordinator. This team won 19 games in Justin Fuente's first two years. They dropped to six wins in 2018, but that included one over a Duke team that had a future NFL starting quarterback in Daniel Jones. The game was in Durham and not close as VT won 31-14 as a three-point dog. The Blue Devils aren't as good this year despite easily defeating their last two opponents. (They lost 42-3 to Alabama in the opener). Virginia Tech has won 16 of the last 18 meetings overall including three straight. The last two wins have been by a combined 38 points. The Hokies have covered their last five Friday night games. Play on VIRGINIA TECH

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This is a 10* play on PHILADELPHIA

The Eagles are 1-2, not to mention a banged up football team right now. Down both starting receivers last week, they lost at home to the Lions 27-24. But as you can see from that score, offense wasn't really the problem. Even with DeSean Jackson and Alshon Jeffery out, the Eagles had more first downs than the Lions did and outgained them on the day. The problems were special teams and turnovers. Detroit returned a kickoff for a TD early in the game and would not have won without it. Philly also fumbled twice and both times it led to a Lions field goal. Then there was the Eagles failure to take advantage of a Lions special teams miscue. Late in the game, they blocked a Matt Prater field goal attempt. Despite starting at midfield, Carson Wentz and the Eagles offense could not move the ball into scoring position, instead turning it over on downs. Jeffery is expected back this week as is TE Dallas Goebert, who was limited to just nine snaps against the Lions. Green Bay is a perfect 3-0 straight up and against the spread, but a little lucky to be in this position considering they have been outgained in every game. Key for them is being +6 in turnovers as the defense has been much better than expected. But we don't see the Pack covering for a third straight time as home favorites. As an underdog, the Eagles are 9-4 ATS the last two seasons with eight outright victories. We'll take the points. Play on PHILADELPHIA

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This is a 10* play on MEMPHIS

Memphis quickly established itself as the potential "Group of 5" team to get a New Year's Day Bowl slot when they beat Ole Miss in Week 1. The Tigers are now 3-0 and surprisingly it's been the defensive side of the ball that's been more impressive. Sure, the offense scored a combined 97 points against Southern and South Alabama the last two games. But the defense has given up only 40 points all year, thereby reducing the total PPG scored in Memphis' games to just under 51, which is down from 75 a year ago. This Thursday they welcome in Navy for a key AAC West showdown. Navy has played only two games, both against lesser competition (Holy Cross, East Carolina). As you would expect, the Midshipmen didn't struggle to win either game. They beat Holy Cross by 38 and ECU by 32. After a down year last season (finished 3-10 SU!), Navy is back to running the ball effectively as they're averaging 371 yards/game on the ground. But we look for them to get slowed down here by this vastly improved Memphis defense. This group held Ole Miss, an SEC team, to 10 points and 173 yards. The most yards gained by any Memphis opponent so far is 258 and that was, surprisingly, Southern. But even there, the Tigers defense performed better than you think. Southern gained 58 yards on its first two snaps, than only 200 the rest of the game on 3.6 yards per play. Southern also scored a defensive TD in that game. While conference play will ultimately determine if this Memphis' D is the "real deal" or not, we think it is and the Tigers closed last year by covering six of their last seven games against American opposition. They are simply the much better team here. Play on MEMPHIS

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This is a 10* play on WASHINGTON

The Redskins will look to reverse the franchise's "curse" on Monday Night Football. Of all the things that have plagued this franchise in recent years, an 0-6 SU/ATS mark in the NFL's marquee primetime game is definitely one of them. This year, the team comes into its MNF appearance at 0-2 with a couple of division losses to Philadelphia and Dallas and in desperate need of a spark. Getting points against a Chicago team that struggles to score may be just what they need. The Bears are lucky not to be 0-2 themselves as they got a last second 50+ yard field goal to beat Denver 16-14 last week. That was after losing the season opener 10-3 to the rival Packers. After going 12-5 ATS last season (including playoff loss), the Bears are 0-2 ATS to start 2019. They were favored in both games. A second straight game as a road favorite seems dicey for a team with a struggling quarterback. Mitchell Trubisky has been very bad so far this year, ranking 32nd in both yards per pass attempt and passer rating. He's completing only 58.3% of his passes. As we saw in multiple games yesterday, 0-2 teams often show up in these situations and are good bets when taking points. Not sure if it means anything, but the Redskins have beaten the Bears seven straight times dating back to the 2003 season. They are 13-2 SU head to head since 1989. Play on WASHINGTON

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This is an 8* play on CLEVELAND

Doesn't seem like there's many takers on the Browns this week, but they look like the right side to us Sunday night. Take away one bad quarter against the Titans and this defense has played really well so far. While it's certainly a big step up facing Jared Goff and the Rams, they'll have a fired up crowd rooting them on as this is the first Sunday night game in Cleveland in 11 years. The Rams had a close win (3 points) over Carolina in Week 1, then knocked Drew Brees out last week, turning a game with the Saints into an noncompetitive affair. Believe it or not, the Browns offense is actually averaging more yards per play (6.3) than the Rams are (5.7) through two games. Cleveland is 4-1 ATS as a home dog since last year began. After being such a popular team with the public to start the year, the Browns don't seem to have much support this week. But we think that's the perfect time to take them as we can smell a potential upset in this one. Grab the points. Play on CLEVELAND

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This is a 10* on TAMPA BAY

Obviously, the big story here is the Giants moving on from Eli Manning and going with rookie Daniel Jones as the starting quarterback. Does it even matter though? The Giants are a bad team that has beaten by double digits in both games. Also, have we forgotten just how divisive of a draft choice Jones was? Many respected minds thought he was a HUGE reach at #6 overall. Two good preseason performances aren't enough to sway us. Something else not helping the Giants case here is that Tampa Bay is on extra rest. The Buccaneers picked up their first win of the season last Thursday by going to Carolina and upsetting the Panthers. Unlike the Giants, the Bucs defense seems a lot better this year. Credit goes to new coordinator Todd Bowles. Tampa is allowing 1.5 yards less per play compared to last year. They've also given up only 31 points in two games. The Giants have scored just 31 points in two games. New York has also lost 13 of 17 road games and is just 1-8 SU in the month of September (2-7 ATS). This is the 6th time in 7 seasons they've started 0-2. Jones alone isn't enough to save this Giants team, if he is even capable of saving anything. One could argue that the Giants may not even be salvageable. Lay the points. Play on TAMPA BAY

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This is an 8* play on KANSAS CITY

We used both of these teams in Week 1. The Ravens crushed the Dolphins 59-10. The Chiefs had no problem beating the Jaguars 40-26. Both are now 2-0. This will be hyped as an early season showdown in the AFC with the winner probably deemed as the conference's top challenger to the Patriots. But there is a reason to still be a little skeptical of Baltimore. They have played two poor teams to get to 2-0. Obviously, Miami is the worst team in the league. Arizona, who they barely beat last week, isn't far ahead and has a rookie QB. Had the Cardinals not settled for three field goals inside the Ravens' five-yard line last week, they easily could have pulled the upset.  The Chiefs two victims, Jacksonville and Oakland, aren't exactly great either. But we know the Chiefs can beat the Ravens with Lamar Jackson. They did it last year. Now that took overtime, but they did win. We expect a larger margin of victory this year. Strangely, the Chiefs scored all four touchdowns last week in the second quarter. They scored 68 points in the first six quarters of the year before shockingly hanging a "goose egg" in the second half vs. the Raiders. But one positive was the defensive pitching a shutout in the final three quarters. They held the Raiders to 5.2 yards per pass attempt The Chiefs are on a 9-0 ATS run in September and 16-5-1 ATS in Week 3. This is their home opener. Play on KANSAS CITY

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This is a 10* on the OVER

The Vikings and Raiders have combined to go Under in all four of their games so far. But we anticipate a bit higher scoring affair for them as they meet in Week 3. Minnesota had a very efficient 28 points in a Week 1 win over Atlanta. That was at home and they return to TCF Bank Stadium this week. They should have scored more than 16 last week, but Kirk Cousins threw a BAD interception against the Packers, basically costing his team the game. The Vikings offense actually averaged 7.0 yards per play in that game, but went 0 for 2 in the red zone and turned it over a total of four times. The defense was torched by Aaron Rodgers early, but then kept the team in the game as long as they could. While Minnesota's D didn't allow any points over the last 44 minutes, Oakland failed to score at all in the final three quarters last week vs. Kansas City. That after a 10-point fourth quarter and efficient Week 1 win (over Denver) of their own. Strangely, the Raiders defense allowed four touchdowns in the second quarter vs. the Chiefs, but no points at all in the other three quarters. They still allowed almost 7.0 yards/play though. The Raiders are 4-0 Over their last four games on field turf. Play OVER Oakland-Minnesota

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This is an 8* play on NOTRE DAME

Notre Dame is taking on a top five opponent (Georgia) here and we know what happens when that's the case. The Fighting Irish, more often than not, fold like a cheap tent in this situation as they are 4-13 ATS. The last 19 times the Irish faced a top five foe that is outscoring its opponents by at least 20.6 points/game, they've lost 18 of those games. All but four of those 18 losses have been by double digits. Ten of them have come by at least 20 points. Four of the losses have come during the Brian Kelly regime and three were by two touchdowns or more. We all remember that CFP semifinal game last January against Clemson right? The Irish lost that 30-3. So the Irish might as well not even leave South Bend right? Wrong! Because of that poor reputation in these kind of games, this number is inflated this week. Notre Dame catching two touchdowns, even on the road, is a bargain as this spread should be no higher than 10 points in our estimation. Georgia will likely come in overconfident and struggle early. The Dawgs have yet to be tested this year and say what you will about Notre Dame, they're a whole heck of a lot better than Vanderbilt, Murray State and Arkansas State. The Irish have only played twice, so they're the fresher of the two teams. Two years ago, they lost by only a point in South Bend to UGA. It'll be another close one Saturday night. Play on NOTRE DAME

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This is a 10* play on ILLINOIS

Saturday night finds Illinois looking to do what Big 10 rival Nebraska did only a week ago. That being bounce back from an outright loss as a favorite. Two weeks ago, Nebraska suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of Colorado, 34-31 as a four-point favorite. The Cornhuskers came into 2019 with a ton of hype and that loss shattered it a bit as they blew a 17-point lead and lost in overtime. They did bounce back last week by trouncing Northern Illinois 44-8. They'll stay in the Land of Lincoln this week, moving from DeKalb to Champaign and open up conference play. Illinois lost last week to Eastern Michigan, 34-31 (sound familiar?) as a seven-point favorite here at home. The good news here is they don't have to win like Nebraska did last week. The Illini only need to cover and the oddsmakers have obliged with a generous spread that we've seen the public already bet up. This number shows us that the hype train is still moving a bit too fast with Nebraska. Can't say we're huge fans of what Lovie Smith has done here at Illinois, who has not been to a bowl since 2014. Smith has had a young team each of his first three seasons here, but this is easily his most experienced - and best - group yet. They should be highly motivated following last week's loss while Nebraska could be prone for another letdown. By the way, Scott Frost is 0-6 in road games as the 'Huskers coach. Play on ILLINOIS

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This is an 8* play on STANFORD

Already with two losses, Stanford would seem to have its back against the wall here vs. Oregon, a game in which few, if any, will expect the Cardinal to win. The defenses in Palo Alto have usually been very solid under David Shaw, but the last two games have seen them shredded for 90 points as they've given up 45 to both USC and UCF. Now Oregon comes to town. Despite what many perceive as being a mismatch, Stanford has always given the Ducks fits and we expect that to be the case again this year. They are 5-2 the previous seven matchups and 0-3 the last three. While that run involves teams a lot more talented than this one, the same can be said for the Oregon side as well. Winning by double digits on the conference road is difficult. After two straight blowouts over Nevada and Montana, it's easy to see the Ducks coming into this one too overconfident. As for that Cardinals defense, they allowed just seven points in the lone home game, which was a win over Northwestern. After taking on two talented teams the past two weeks, the Cardinal will be more battle tested and prepared to give Oregon another fight to the end. Play on STANFORD

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This is a 10* play on the OVER

Temple is going to have to guard against a letdown here as last week they upset a heavily hyped Maryland team, 20-17 as 5.5-point home dogs. That game set up pretty well for the Owls as they were off an open date. Now let's see how they perform having to play in consecutive weeks for the first time this season. While Temple has covered both of its games, Buffalo is 0-3 ATS. Two weeks ago, they actually led Penn State at the half, 10-7. Since then, it's been all downhill as they've been outscored 73-20. That includes a bad 35-17 loss at Liberty last week where the Bulls were favored by 5.5 points. We figured UB would struggle early on this year as they lost their starting QB and two receivers from last year. That they have with just 30 total points the last two games. But both were on the road. They actually gained 429 and 373 yards in those two games. So they've moved the ball. Back at home this week, they should start finding the end zone more. Temple's defense turned in a tremendous performance last week vs. Maryland, but that's the side of the ball where the letdown could take place. The Owls offense has averaged 561 yards/game so far. The Over is 10-4-1 in Buffalo's last 15 home games. Last year was a 36-29 win by Buffalo at Temple. Play OVER Temple-Buffalo

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This is an 8* Play on MICHIGAN STATE

This is a rare situation where everyone is piling on the underdog. That's because, admittedly, Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald has been excellent in the role. His Wildcats teams have gone 13-4-1 ATS the last 18 times they've gotten points and won 10 of the game straight up. Last year alone, they were an amazing 7-1-1 ATS getting points and won six of the games straight up. One of those upsets came against Michigan State, 29-19 (+11). Yet despite all of what you just read, a curious thing has happened here and that's the line has moved up (by several points) even though the majority of bets have come in on the Wildcats. We trust Mark Dantonio, off a loss last week to Arizona State, to get the job done here in this revenge spot. His Spartans actually have triple revenge here as they've been upset by Northwestern each of the last three seasons. Northwestern can't do it again, can they? This Wildcats team is nowhere near as strong as the one that pulled the upset last year in East Lansing. This Michigan State team is also much stronger than the one that lost its last trip into Evanston two years ago. Sparty's defense should rule the day in this one as they've given up just 34 points in three games. Northwestern was off a bye last week when it beat UNLV 30-14. In the first game, they could score only 7 points in a loss at Stanford, which now looks even worse. The road team is 12-4 SU and 14-2 ATS the last 16 meetings. Play on MICHIGAN STATE

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This is an 8* on BOISE STATE

Boise State is back in the top 20 of the polls, but doesn't feel like its getting the respect it deserves here vs. Air Force. This is a home game, remember. The Broncos are 59-7 SU their L66 games on the blue turf. Maybe the win over Florida State that opened the season isn't as impressive now, considering how bleak things look down in Tallahassee. But you can bet Boise won't be taking Air Force lightly. While they've beaten the Flyboys each of the last two seasons, before that they'd actually lost three straight times to them. One of those was among the seven home losses that have occurred on this field in the past decade. This is going to be a tough spot for Air Force as they played an overtime game last week in Colorado, which saw them upset the favored Buffaloes. Boise State, meanwhile, had a virtual layup against Portland State. Air Force is obviously going to look to run the ball in this game, but so far the Boise State run defense has been very good. We like what we've seen from true freshman QB Hank Bachmeier as well. He's thrown 13 touchdown passes in three games while averaging 343 yards per game through the air. Rough spot on a short week for the underdog here and they are just 7-18-1 ATS their last 26 Mountain West games. Play on BOISE STATE

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This is a 10* play on the OVER

The Titans were oh so close to 2-0 last week, but couldn't finish the job against the Colts. They had a late 17-13 lead, but after a missed FG things quickly went awry. The Colts scored the go-ahead touchdown after a 55-yard run, but a missed XP by Adam Vinateri definitely left the door open for Tennessee, who was down only 19-17. But the Titans offense could muster nothing on its final two drives. Still, they're in better position than the 0-2 Jaguars, who went for 2 and the win against Houston (could have kicked XP and gone to OT instead). They obviously failed and it was a 13-12 loss. While it was a low-scoring game for both teams last week, let's go back to Week 1. Tennessee scored 43 while Jacksonville gave up 40. This will likely end up closing as the lowest total on the Week 3 board despite what happened in Week 1. There's definitely value on the Over in our estimation. The Over is 6-2 in the Titans last eight Thursday games and 4-0 when they are off an ATS loss. Jacksonville is 6-2 Over if they allowed 15 or less points in the last game. Play OVER Tennessee-Jacksonville

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This is a 10* play on the OVER

Houston and Tulane have combined to play six games this year. The Under is 6-0. Houston is 1-2 straight up, thanks to a tough schedule to open the season, which has seen them already face Oklahoma and Washington State. The Cougars only win was against a FCS team and a bad one at that (Prairie View A&M). Tulane lost to Auburn in Week 2, but won its other two games, one of which was against a FCS foe. They also opened the season by beating FIU 42-17. Given that kind of scoring output, we think it's pretty reasonable for the Green Wave to score a lot this week. They also hung 58 on Missouri State last week. Houston not surprisingly is no offensive slouch either as they're averaging over 30 points/game. But a defense that has given up 80 points to its two FBS opponents is a cause for concern. This is a really low total for a game involving Houston. The first three all saw totals in the 70's. That the number has been bet down is a break for us. Play OVER Houston-Tulane

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This is an 8* play on CLEVELAND

After a disastrous Week 1 performance, Cleveland has caught a major break here with Jets quarterback Sam Darnold being out due to mono. In his place, the Jets turn to Trevor Siemian, who was last seen guiding an anemic offense in Denver last season. It's not that Darnold is any kind of All-Pro, it's just that we think Siemian is that bad. But perhaps more concerning are the injuries on the defensive side of the ball for the Jets as LB CJ Mosley and DL Quennin Williams are both going to miss tonight's game. While it's true the Jets blew a 16-0 lead to the Bills last week, they were actually quite fortunate to even be in that position as Bills quarterback Josh Allen accounted for four first half turnovers. The Browns got a ton of offseason hype and know that another loss could mean the wheels will start coming off for rookie coach Freddie Kitchens. While the Jets may not have been as "unlucky" as you think they were last week, the Browns weren't as outclassed by the Titans as you might think in a 43-13 loss. It was still a two-point game very late in the third quarter. If they are able to cut down on their own mistakes (namely penalties!), we've seen how little a Darnold-led Jets offense can do. Now just imagine how poor they'll be with Siemian taking snaps. The Browns beat the Jets last year, thanks to Baker Mayfield coming in and leading a comeback. With him now fully embedded as the starter, look for a fast start by the Browns Monday night. Play CLEVELAND 

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This is a 10* on JACKSONVILLE

With a game that has such a low total, this sure is a lot of points for the Texans to be laying. Sure, disaster struck Jacksonville with quarterback Nick Foles going down with a collarbone injury in Week 1. Foles, the team's key free agent signing in the offseason, was supposed to help transform an offense that wasn't very good in 2018. Now it's rookie Gardner Minshew (Wash St) calling the shots. Still, it's a lot points. Houston is on working on a short week as they played Monday night in New Orleans. They lost that game in heartbreaking fashion after Saints QB Drew Brees drove his team down for the winning field goal. That came right after DeShaun Watson drove the Texans down the field for a temporary lead. Given the situation, this is too many points to lay with Houston. What if Minshew turns out not to be a liability? Against Kansas City, he actually completed 22 of his 25 pass attempts for 275 yards. That was in an emergency situation. The road team is on an 11-4-1 ATS run in this AFC rivalry, so we'll take the points. Play on JACKSONVILLE

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This is a 10* Play on the UNDER

Last week's game involving the Chargers should have been an Under as they led 24-16 with less than a minute to go. But the defense not only let the Colts drive down for a touchdown, but also gave up a two-point conversion that sent the game into overtime. Fortunately for Chargers fans, Philip Rivers got the ball first in OT and never let the Colts have a chance as LA scored a TD on its first possession. But the Chargers weren't the only team last week to have overtime ruin what looked to be a sure under. Detroit led Arizona 24-6 early in the fourth quarter before Cardinals rookie Kyler Murray awoke and led his team on a wild comeback. The game wound up going to OT, but unlike Chargers-Colts, there was no winner as it ended up a 27-27 tie. This week, the Chargers offense won't have TE Hunter Henry nor will they have him the rest of the season (fractured knee). That'll affect them drastically. They are already without RB Melvin Gordon, who is holding out. Austin Eckler had the game of his life starting in place of Gordon last week, but won't be repeating that performance here. Detroit's offense will probably look to run a lot here after the Chargers defense got gashed on the ground by the Colts. But we're not sure the Lions will have the same success. The Under hit in the last five Lions home games last year. Play UNDER Chargers-Detroit

AAA

This is a 10* play on the UNDER

We've seen this total skyrocket due to Baltimore putting up 59 points in Week 1. But such efficiency is highly unlikely two weeks in a row and even if the Ravens are successful again this week (and it's very likely they will be), they won't be scoring as much. With top overall draft pick Kyler Murray making his first career start, the Arizona offense looked pretty bad for three quarters last week. They scored only six points before a furious late rally forced overtime and ultimately earned them a tie with the Lions. Again, it's likely the Cardinals find themselves down entering the 4th quarter here. But the Ravens defense won't be nearly as generous as the Lions were. They gave up just 200 total yards to Miami. In the last 10 years, the Ravens have only lost to a rookie QB one time.  Baltimore won't be scoring 40+ every week, or even most weeks this season. Not all, but a good deal of their offensive performance last week had to do with whom they were facing. Arizona had the worst record in the league last year, but they're better than Miami. This will be a relatively low-scoring affair and best of all is that the number has been bet up several points, presenting us with a value situation. Play UNDER Arizona-Baltimore

AAA

This is an 8* play on MIAMI

It's only Week 2, but Miami already finds itself in a position where they are taking 18.5 points at home. If that seems preposterous, then you obviously missed last week's performance where they were clobbered 59-10 by Baltimore - at home. Getting matched up here with the Patriots, who looked as good as ever in wiping the mat with Pittsburgh last week (33-3 win), and it's no wonder Miami is one of the biggest single game underdogs we've seen in recent years. But they still are a professional team and this is way too many points NOT to take in the NFL. It was a few years ago that Jacksonville was getting even more points on the road against Peyton Manning and Denver. They easily covered the spread. Then there's this tidbit. New England has actually LOST five of the last six games in Miami (straight up) including each of the last two years. This is the biggest home dog we've seen since 2007 ... when New England failed to cover at Baltimore. The only larger September spread - of any kind - in NFL history was 1968 and the Jets (-20) actually the lost the game on the field to the Bills. You have to take the points in this situation. It's very hard to win on the road in this league, let alone by 20 points. Play on MIAMI

AAA

This is a 10* on UCLA

The vultures are circling Chip Kelly right now as UCLA is 0-2 and the school is reportedly having to give tickets away for this home game, even though it's nationally televised and against Oklahoma. Now the matchup all but guarantees the Bruins will be 0-3. But while their fans may have given up on them, we will not. This is a lot of points, at home, for a team that many thought would be 2-0. Oklahoma might be a top five team, but they have a suspect defense that has really yet to be tested. In this situation, Kelly has nothing to lose and everything to gain. Expect him to go deep into his bag of tricks. The Sooners might have won the last seven games where they were road favorites. But they are also just 1-5-1 against the spread in those seven games. Before last week's loss to San Diego State, UCLA could usually be counted on for a solid performance in the Rose Bowl. This is an experienced team that Kelly brought back with more of his recruits. It's been incredible to see UCLA getting so many points when they were "only" getting 29 last year in Norman. They covered in that loss by a single point. Here they are at home, desperate, and should play better than we've seen the last two weeks, even though they are facing a superior side. Last year, the Bruins were getting 3 touchdowns at home against Top 10 Washington and only lost by seven points. Maybe its not that close here, but UCLA will stay within the number. Play on UCLA

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This is an 8* play on NEW MEXICO STATE

A week after a completely unimpressive 6-0 win over Weber State, San Diego State went to the Rose Bowl and upset UCLA 23-14 as 7.5-point underdogs. Explain that. It's tough to, though UCLA repeatedly shot itself in the foot. This week, the Aztecs will be the favorite, on the road. That's tricky for a team that scores so few points. It's a big number too. In its last 15 games, San Diego State has scored more than 24 points just four times and never more than 31. A big home game vs. Utah State next week promises to divert the Aztecs attention from this week's opponent. New Mexico State may not bring in a stellar resume, but after playing Washington State and Alabama to start its season, they definitely won't be intimidated. This is the home opener as well. The Aggies are a respectable 5-5 SU in Las Cruces the last two years. Even after last week's win, San Diego State is still just 4-8 its last 12 non-conference road games and that's straight up! Being -6 in turnovers vs. Alabama and Washington State did New Mexico State no favors. Let's assume they clean that up a bit and it's easy to see them being more competitive this week. Play on NEW MEXICO STATE

AAA

This is a 10* Play on the OVER

For the second year in a row, Cal beat Washington and both times they did it with defense. Last year, it was a 12-10 win without an offensive TD. Last week, it was 20-19 on a last-second FG, a game that was delayed nearly 2 1/2 hours because of weather. This defense, led by one of the better secondaries in the country, is quite clearly pretty good. But this week we feel it will be the offense's turn to show what it can do as it faces a North Texas defense that isn't the least bit good. The Mean Green gave up 52 in the bowl to end last year and lost some key players from that defense. That poor bowl performance looks to have carried over into 2019. The first game, they gave up 31 points and 456 yards to Abilene Christian. It got worse last week in a visit to SMU where they got torched for 49 points and 503 yards. Luckily, UNT does have an offense with a senior QB Mason Fine that can put points on the board. While it's the worst defense Cal has faced yet, it's also the best offense. Fine has guided the offense to 78 points in two games. He's thrown for nearly 8000 yards the last two seasons and is the school's all-time passing leader. This O/U has been bet down several points. While its understandable because of Cal's defensive effort last week, it's too low. Take the OVER

AAA

This is an 8* play on NAVY

Navy had an uncharacteristic season last year. They went 3-10, its worst record since 2002. You have to think the Midshipmen are shoo-ins to improve in 2019 and they've already gotten the season off to a positive start with a 45-7 win over Holy Cross. In that game, they ran for 428 yards. But perhaps more promising with them throwing for 103 yards. That's nothing for most teams. But Navy, who has run the triple option for years, was last in the country at 72.8 passs yards/game last year. They've promised to add elements of a run-and-shoot offense this year. Ken Niumatalolo totally retooled his coaching staff this year. Having a bye last week is another nice early season edge. East Carolina is a program in transition with a first year coach in Mike Houston. The Pirates also won three games last year, just like Navy, but there's no real history here of winning, at least recently. They've won just three games each of the last three years. They've gone 1-16 SU on the road, so this line being so short is a definite surprise. ECU has covered just 6 of the last 22 times it has been an underdog. They were beaten 34-6 at NC State in the opener. A 48-9 win last week over Gardner-Webb means little in the grand scheme. They've lost by an average of 24.5 points/game the last two times they played Navy. Play on NAVY

AAA

This is an 8* play on INDIANA

So much for Urban Meyer. Ryan Day has Ohio State rolling at 2-0 with wins over Florida Atlantic (45-21) and Cincinnati (42-0). The Buckeyes defense obviously played better than the second game and QB Justin Fields, a transfer from Georgia, has looked great. But consider the talent gap between the Buckeyes and those first two opponents. Now OSU opens Big 10 play. Sure, it's against Indiana, but it's also on the road. The Hoosiers were actually more competitive in last year's game at Ohio Stadium than the final score shows. They did cover as 26-point dogs (final score was 49-26), but it was only an eight-point game at half and IU led in the second quarter. The Hoosiers are also off a shutout, 52-0 over Eastern Illinois, and beat Ball State 34-24 in the opener. So their offense is humming too. Last week was Indiana's biggest margin of victory in 25 years. After missing out on a bowl the last two years, you know this team is going to be motivated. They've come close to pulling a major upset in Big 10 play the last few years, but never finished the job. They have lost 10 times by seven points or less the four years in Big 10 play. Every year, at least one of those losses was to a Top 20 team. We're taking the points, especially with new starting quarterback Michael Penix, a freshman, looking so good. Play on INDIANA

AAA

This is a 10* play on KANSAS

Les Miles knew it would be a tall mountain to climb when he took on the job at Kansas. After all, this is a program that had suffered through a miserable 6-42 record the previous four years under David Beatty. Through two games, Miles is 1-1 in Lawrence. The Jayhawks first game saw them rally (after blowing a double-digit lead) to beat an FCS opponent, Indiana State. Last week, they were competitive, but ultimately lost 12-7 to Coastal Carolina. Interestingly, KU scored on its opening drive, but never again. While there's obviously still a ton of room for growth here, no longer look for the Jayhawks to be the pushover they once were. Miles will have them playing hard. That's what makes this week's line at BC so interesting. The Eagles have scored more than anticipated the first two games. They hung 35 on Va Tech in a bit of an upset, then 45 more on Richmond last week. But the defense hasn't been as sound as it usually is. They allowed 442 yards vs. Va Tech, but got the benefit of five Hokies turnovers. Last week, even Richmond was able to attain 364 total yards. Yes, BC will be able to run the ball with the best of 'em. But so can Kansas with Pooka Williams Jr (99 yards last week) now back from suspension. With that BC defense, it's worth mentioning they have only three returning starters from last year. The Eagles have not been favored by more than three touchdown over a FBS team in the last five years. Play on KANSAS

AAA

This is a 10* on the UNDER

Compared to the early game, Denver-Oakland figures to feature little in the way of scoring. You've got two bad offensive teams, one starting Joe Flacco at quarterback and the other trying to pick up the pieces in the wake of the Antonio Brown debacle. The Raiders are a complete joke right now as acquiring Brown cost them draft picks and he didn't he play a game for them. It's a complete distraction heading into the season, which by the way will be their final one in Oakland. This Raiders team has averaged only 18 points/game each of the past two seasons. QB Derek Carr has regressed heavily during that time. Not only do the Raiders not have Brown at their disposal, also gone is TE Jared Cook, who had a career year in 2018. The Denver offense isn't going to be much better this year with the aging Flacco serving merely as a stop gap before someone else takes the reigns (Drew Lock?). Defense is the speciality of new Broncos coach Vic Fangio, so expect them to be stronger on that side of the ball. Their defensive front should overwhelm what is looking like a terrible Oakland offensive line here. The Under went 13-3 in all Denver games a season ago. The Under is also 16-5 the Raiders last 21 games on grass. Play UNDER Denver-Oakland

AAA

This is a 10* play on NEW ORLEANS

The Saints laying less than a touchdown at home, in primetime? We'll take it! As you'll likely hear from many places, New Orleans has excelled in that very situation through the years. They almost never lose in primetime here at the Superdome and no matter what the line is they almost always cover. In fact, they are 24-11 in all primetime games since 2006, 22-8 when you exclude Thursday nights. Now you'll also hear about how the Saints are just 1-9 SU/ATS the first two weeks of the season the last five years, including 0-5 SU/ATS in season openers. They did lose outright as a big favorite last year to Tampa Bay, here at home. But look for that streak to get snapped in a major way Monday night. The Texans are just 4-10 ATS all-time on Monday Night Football. Having just traded Jadeveon Clowney, there are questions with this Houston defense. Drew Brees isn't about to let them figure it out either. Brees even got a new target this year in TE Jared Cook, who is coming off a career year in Oakland. Expect the Saints to be highly motivated for this game after the way last season ended. Houston isn't exactly known for starting the season well. They opened 0-3 last year. Winning in this building is hard and we just don't see the Texans being able to do it. They are just 3-7-1 ATS their last 11 road games while the home team is a perfect 4-0 ATS the last four times these teams have met. Play on NEW ORLEANS 

AAA

This is an 8* Play on the Steelers (FIRST HALF)

Think the Steelers miss Antonio Brown at this point? Ha! Lost in last year's disappointing season was the fact the Black and Gold earned a rare win over the Patriots. They beat them 17-10 at home in Week 15. The win snapped a five-game losing streak to the Patriots. Having rid themselves of Brown's antics, the Steelers should be a more focused and better team this year. We look for them to cover the first half line here. Pittsburgh is the last time to beat New England. More worrisome then Ben Roethlisberger losing Brown is Tom Brady losing Rob Gronkowski. New England's offense just wasn't as productive the last couple years when Gronk was out. On defense, the Steelers may finally have found a replacement for Ryan Shazier by drafting Devin Bush. By the way, they were a perfect 5-0 ATS as underdogs last season, winning four of the games straight up. Among the areas Pittsburgh will be improved in is turnover margin. They were -11 last year. Teams with a bad turnover margin usually see that number improve the following season. Expect the Steelers defense to be better this year and the Patriots defense to be worse.  We expect the Steelers to be ahead at halftime, or at least covering. Play PITTSBURGH 1st Half

AAA

This is a 10* play on the UNDER

Two teams looking to improve start the season against one another, so either Detroit or Arizona will be 1-0 after the first game. That's the good news. The bad news is one of them will be 0-1. For Arizona, there's lots of room to improve after finishing with the league's worst record in 2018. They brought in a new coach (Kliff Kingsbury), who will bring his "Air Raid" offense from the college ranks. It will be run by last year's Heisman Trophy winner, Kyler Murray. But this is going to be a work in progress and you shouldn't expect the Cardinals to put up big point totals early on in the season. They just don't have the offensive personnel as was obvious last year when they were last in the league in scoring at 14.4 points/game. As for the Lions, Matt Stafford is still here and he's (kind of?) got a running game now. But Detroit only averaged 20.3 points/game last year (25th) and stayed Under in each of its last seven games. That's what we look for here. Neither offense has improved enough to have this game go Over. The Lions defense was pretty good last year, ranking in the top 10 in yards given up and top 8 against the pass. The Under is 21-7 in Arizona's last 28 home games. Play UNDER Detroit-Arizona

AAA

This is an 8* play on BALTIMORE

Probably the easiest call on the first Sunday of the NFL season would be taking the Ravens to beat the Dolphins. Now there's a pointspread in play here obviously and that number has come up (by several points) since it opener. But Miami is going to be so bad that this year that the line move hardly scares us. Remember what happened in Week 1 last year? Baltimore was facing a Buffalo team that - at the time - many thought could be the worst in the league. The Ravens won that game 47-3! Ryan Fitzpatrick is starting for the Dolphins, which doesn't sound very promising. This team is clearly tanking this year, which is why it recently traded away Laremy Tunsil, Kiko Alonso and Kenny Stills despite not having adequate replacements. If all goes according to plan in Miami, they will end up with the first pick in the Draft next April. If all goes according to plan in Baltimore, they will be back in the playoffs. Lamar Jackson took over at QB in the middle of last season and that's when the Ravens went on their run. Jackson should have a big game here - both running and throwing - against a Miami defense that will struggle to stop anybody this year. Baltimore is on an 8-3 SU/ATS run in Week 1 games where it has allowed an average of just 14.9 points. Play on BALTIMORE

AAA

This is an 8* on KC Moneyline

It very well could end up being close, but we look for the Chiefs to beat the Jaguars in Week 1. Kansas City is coming off a tremendous year in which it hosted the AFC Championship Game (lost to the Patriots). Jacksonville went 5-11 a year ago, leading to wholesale changes. The most notable is that Nick Foles, the Super Bowl hero from two years ago, is now the starting QB. But the Jaguars are simply not on the Chiefs level - yet. These teams played last year - at Arrowhead Stadium - and the Chiefs won 30-14 after scoring on their first four offensive possessions. The Chiefs had one of the best offenses in league history last year. The Jaguars were one of the NFL's worst offensive teams. Foles alone cannot rectify the difference. The Chiefs have covered seven straight September games. Pat Mahomes is 6-2-1 ATS on the road. Kansas City wins this game as they are the better team. Play Kansas City (money line)

AAA

This is a 10* play on the UNDER

Minnesota and Fresno State met last year and it was a 21-14 win for the Golden Gophers at home. Fresno State would lose just one other time the rest of the season, to Boise State, and would later avenge that defeat in the Mt West Champ Game. Now they get a shot at avenging the other loss and this time they get the Gophers at home. We expect it once again to be a low-scoring affair. Minnesota barely gained 300 total yards in an unimpressive win over South Dakota State in the opener. Fresno State scored 23 in its loss to Southern Cal. The only games they scored fewer last season were the two losses and the win over Boise State. Minnesota has one of the better defenses they'll see all year and the Bulldogs have just three starters back on offense. The Under is 19-7 in Fresno's last 26 games overall. It's also now cashed in Minnesota's last five games. This should be a late-night slugfest. Play UNDER Minnesota-Fresno State

AAA

This is a 10* play on OLE MISS

Ole Miss takes on Arkansas here in the SEC opener for the both teams. The way each team chose to open its season was very different. Ole Miss went on the road to play a Memphis team that may be as good as any in the Group of Five. They lost, 15-10, but looked a lot better in the second half. Arkansas, fresh off a 2-10 year, opened against Portland State and only won 20-13. So despite winning, the Razorbacks were probably the less impressive side in Week 1. That's certainly affected our read on this Week 2 matchup, which takes place in Oxford and that's not a good deal for the Hogs. They have lost their last eight SEC openers by an average of three touchdowns. They didn't win a single time on the road last year and lost to Ole Miss 37-33 at home. They've lost eight of their last nine road games as well. Despite only gaining 173 yards of offense last week, the Rebels need not hang their heads as the defense pitched a shutout in the second half. The offense got the ball back down 13-10, but got hit with a safety and never saw the ball again. Don't expect them to take Arkansas lightly here. Before last year, the Rebels had lost four straight times to the Hogs and they've lost the last three times to them at home. Not this year. We believe in the new coordinators in Oxford (Rich Rodriguez, Mike MacIntyre) and they'll get their first win this week. Play on OLE MISS

AAA

This is an 8* play on MISSISSIPPI STATE

Mississippi State is expected to take a step back this season. They lost a lot of talent (to the NFL) from a defense that allowed just 13.2 points/game a year ago. It doesn't help that they have two holdovers currently suspended as well. Last week, they gave up 28 points to a Louisiana Lafayette team that quite frankly isn't very good. 28 points was the most allowed in any game by MSU last year. They allowed more than 20 just two times. But on the bright side, the defense forced five turnovers last week, the offense scored 38 points and the team won. We look for the defense to play a lot better this week against Southern Miss. Something to consider is that last week's game was played in New Orleans. Mississippi State is 11-3 ATS its last 14 games in Starkville. Southern Miss played a tune-up game against Alcorn State, but that will hardly have them ready for this step up in class. The Golden Eagles only could run for 96 yards on 31 carries and thus actually lost the time of possession battle. If they can't push around an FCS opponent, how are they going to get a surge against a SEC defense? The answer is "they won't."  Play on MISSISSIPPI STATE

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This is an 8* on PITT

Ohio might not be a program you pay much attention to, but the Bobcats have achieved plenty of success in the 15 years Frank Solich has been here in Athens. Solich is actually the third longest tenured head coach in College Football, trailing only Gary Patterson (19 years) at TCU and Kirk Ferentz (21 years). The Bobcats have actually gotten some run as the team to come out of the Group of Five this year, but this week's game is one of two where they'll definitely be the underdog (the other is next week's game at Marshall). The key to this team is QB Nathan Rourke. The offense averaged 40 points/game with him at the helm last year. But only three other starters from that offense are back. Despite losing 30-14 to Virginia last week, Pitt is going to be an improved team this year. The Panthers led that game at halftime, only to get shutout in the 2nd half. It was a sloppy effort, one that saw them turn the ball over twice, get a punt blocked and not protect the QB well. We look for Pat Narduzzi's team to clean things up a bit as they can't afford to start the year with consecutive losses at home as there's game at Penn State looming next weekend. Ohio won't be able to pressure Pitt QB Pickett as much as Virginia did and thus it'll be a lot better day for the Panthers offense. Play on PITT

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This is a 10* play on RICE

Wake Forest came into the year with some hype and made good on it to some degree by winning its season opener 38-35 over Utah State. The spread closed at -4.5, so the Demon Deacons ended up not covering the number and now they find themselves in even rarer territory. It's three scores that they are laying to the Rice Owls Friday night, on the road. Wake Forest has only been a road favorite three times for current coach Dave Clawson, who is in his sixth-year at Winston-Salem. Their ATS record in those games is 0-3. This will be the first time they are laying double digits on the road since the 2008 season opener against Baylor, who went into that game with a first year starter named Robert Griffin III.  So it's been awhile. Rice obviously isn't very good, but they held their own last week against Army, losing only 14-7 as a 23-point underdog. They did give up 231 yards rushing, but that came on 56 carries. Wake Forest ran for 178 yards last week, on 58 carries, or just 3.1 yards per attempt. That's not very good. If Rice was able to defend Army's triple option, then they should stymie Wake Forest's ground game too and stay well within the number. Play on RICE

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This is a 10* play on the UNDER

The Bears had a top flight defense last season, leading the league in interceptions with 27 while allowing a league-low 27 touchdowns. While they do have to replace defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, virtually all the same personnel returns for second year coach Matt Nagy, with one notable exception. That would be Adrian Amos, who will now start at safety for Green Bay! Interestingly enough, Amos' replacement is former Bear Ha-Ha Clinton Dix. The Packers defense should be better this year thanks to eight new starters. The offense is actually a more interesting deal. The numbers last year were not all that impressive even though Aaron Rodgers played a whole season. That was part of the reason Mike McCarthy is gone. New coach Matt LaFleur has installed a new offense and don't be surprised if, as great as he is, it takes Rodgers some time to adjust. The Packers, who don't run the ball that well to begin with, will likely struggle to run in this game. Chicago closed last season on a 5-0 Under run. Green Bay closed on a 7-3 Under run. Both meetings last year ended up with similar point totals, 47 and 41, and we don't think there will be more points scored here. Five of the last seven meetings have seen 47 or less total points scored. Play UNDER Green Bay-Chicago

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This is a 10* play on LOUISVILLE

Notre Dame is laying a lot of points in this season opener, but based on how they and Louisville performed in 2018, that's no surprise. The Fighting Irish finished 12-1, the only defeat coming at the hands of Clemson in the CFP. Louisville won just two games (lost 10!) with one of those coming against a FCS program. The other was by three over Western Kentucky, a game that they were favored to win by 17 points. Nine straight losses to end the season means there's a new coach on campus as Scott Satterfield comes over from Appalachian State. Perhaps the biggest indictment on Louisville's 2018 season is that they finished 1-11 ATS, the worst such mark in the country. They'll obviously be better in 2019 as Sattefield has a lot of returning talent to work with, especially on the defensive side of the ball, but also at quarterback. Meanwhile, you should look for Notre Dame to slip a bit this year. They had a really lucky record in close games last year, going 7-0 in those decided by eight points or less. While we would be shocked if Louisville won this game, it is a hefty number the Cardinals are getting due mainly to last year's poor effort. But it's a new coach, a new season and we expect them to perform a lot better at the betting window. The Irish were never asked to lay more than 11 points away from South Bend last year. Play on LOUISVILLE

AAA

This is an 8* play on AUBURN

The lone battle of ranked teams this weekend pits #11 Oregon against #16 Auburn in Arlington, Texas. Typically, these Pac 12 vs. SEC matchups have not gone well for the former conference and that's a trend we expect to continue Saturday night. Auburn seems like it's being slightly underrated coming into the year. It was just the opposite last year and they still opened by beating Washington in the first game. Washington was regarded as being the Pac 12's best last year and now that distinction probably falls on Oregon. But we're not convinced the Ducks are the 11th best team in the country, despite QB Justin Herbert and almost the rest of the offense returning. Consider this: Oregon has lost 13 of its last 18 games away from Autzen Stadium. Auburn is probably being underrated because of its five losses last year, but three of those were upsets and the other two against Georgia and Alabama. The season ended on a high note with a 63-14 demolition of Purdue in the bowl game. The Tigers have won six straight neutral site games vs. the Pac 12 including the 2010 National Championship vs. Oregon. Not as much on the line this time, but it'll be the same result with the SEC reigning surpreme. Play on AUBURN

AAA

This is a 10* play on VIRGINIA TECH

The ACC didn't waste anytime getting the conference play going as this is one of three games on the slate this weekend. The conference is considered to be "Clemson and everyone else" this year and we saw that Thursday with the Tigers thumping Georgia Tech as expected. But Saturday's two games are expected to be a lot closer. This one, we think might not end up being so close. Virginia Tech is a team that should be better in 2019 after slipping to 6-7 last year. Boston College, not so much, even though they return both QB Brown and RB Dillon. The key to us in this game is on the defensive side of the ball. For his 23rd and final season as the defensive coordinator in Blacksburg, Bud Foster has 10 starters back from last year. After allowing 31 points/game last year, the Hokies defense should get back to business in 2019. On the flip side, Boston College has just three defensive starters back. This is a revenge game for VT as they lost 31-21 last year to the Eagles. Boston College scored 28 unanswered points to end the game. ACC road openers have gone well for the Hokies as they've won 13 of their past 15 as well as three consecutive season openers. The road team is actually on a 4-1 run in this rivalry. Play on VIRGINIA TECH

AAA

This is a 10* play on the UNDER

Alabama plays Duke Saturday afternoon in Atlanta as part of the Chic Fil-A Classic. We do not expect the game to be close, nor do the oddsmakers, but we're not in the business of laying this many points in a season opener either. With Duke breaking in a new starting QB, they are really going to struggle to score points here. Making matters more challenging is that the Blue Devils lost a starting wide receiver (Jake Bobo) to injury three weeks ago. So expect very few points to be scored on the Duke side against what is still one of the best defenses in College Football. As for the other side, Alabama scored at will (until running into Clemson in the Championship Game) last season, but often called off the dogs late when the game got out of hand. We can see a similar situation arising here, which obviously helps when holding an Under ticket. Also, Duke does have eight of last year's starters on defense back, plus a former All-ACC CB (Mark Gilbert) that missed virtually all of last season.  "I'm more excited about this defense than any defense we've had in the 12 seasons," head coach David Cutcliffe said. That defense won't be enough to keep Duke in this one, but this will be a lower-scoring affair than anticipated. Play UNDER Duke-Alabama

AAA

This is a 10* play on OREGON STATE

Oregon State isn't exactly well-regarded, so the fact they are taking more than two touchdowns from Oklahoma State can't be too surprising. But this could be the year the Beavers at least make some sort of "mini-leap" forward after winning a total of just three games the previous two seasons. This is the second season for coach Smith in Corvallis. The Beavers are one of the 10 most experienced teams in the country coming into 2019. Not that we think Oregon State wins here, but OK State probably isn't as good as they're being made out to be. The Cowboys slipped to seven wins in 2018 as they were upset five different times. Laying this many to a Power 5 opponent from a different conference seems tricky. In fact, the last time OK State traveled to face a Pac 12 team was 2012 and they lost 59-38 at Arizona. Again, there are probably going to be a lot of points scored in this game. OK State's defensive line is a concern, so that's something the Beaver offense should take full advantage of. The Cowboys offense has no experience at QB with a freshman (Spencer Sanders) likely starting, on the road no less. Jake Luton is back in his second year starting for Oregon State. This game will end up being close. Play on OREGON STATE

AAA

This is a 10* play on the UNDER

It might be unheard of to lay this many points in a season opener against a conference opponent. But if ever there were a time for it, it would be here with #1 Clemson facing Georgia Tech. The Tigers are defending National Champions and will be favored by double digits in every game this season. The Yellow Jackets are going through a transition. They're going from the triple option to a more pro scheme, run by 1st year coach Geoff Collins. Expect growing pains and for Ga Tech to be the worst team in the ACC this year. Clemson beat Ga Tech by 28 last year and that was in Atlanta with Kelly Bryant at quarterback against a team running the triple option. Now its Trevor Lawrence in at QB for Clemson and a Ga Tech offense with pieces fit for a different scheme. The Yellow Jackets simply aren't going to score many points here and with the game in little doubt in the 4th quarter, expect Dabo Swinney to call his dogs (or Tigers as it may be) off. Play UNDER Georgia Tech-Clemson

AAA

This is an 8* Play on UCLA

You may be surprised by how short this line is, not to mention the way it has been bet, but don't be. Yes, UCLA won just three games in year one under Chip Kelly. But Kelly can take solace in the job his colleague Luke Fickell did last year with Cincinnati, taking them from 4 to 11 wins. No one saw that coming from the Bearcats and while they look good on paper entering 2019, UCLA has the most returning starters in the country (19) and should be a whole lot better in Kelly's 2nd year. The Bruins have had problems winning away from the Rose Bowl in recent season, but look for that to change this year. Something to keep in mind is that these teams opened last season against one another as well. Cincinnati won 26-17, as a 14-point underdog. A couple key differences here for UCLA is that Dorian Thompson-Robinson is the starting QB (wasn't the case last year) and the emergence of RB Joshua Kelley. Look for the Bruins to put up a lot more points in this year's meeting. Similarly, their defense is better than it was a year ago now that 10 starters are back. Cincinnati's offensive line is down two starters from last season. The Bearcats have failed to cover six of the last seven times they've been a home favorite of three points or less. Play on UCLA

AAA

This is a 10* play on the UNDER

Florida had a big jump in wins under Dan Mullen, going from 4 to 10 in his debut year in Gainesville. Mullen had some fortuitous things go his way though, such as inheriting 19 starters from the Jim McElwain regime and a +12 turnover margin. This year's Gators look like they'll be stronger on the defensive side of the ball. The same holds true for the opening week opponent, Miami, who sees Manny Diaz making the jump from defensive coordinator to head coach, replacing the retired Mark Richt. The Hurricanes only gave up 19.5 points/game last year as it is and didn't allow more than 21 in any of Diaz's three years here as the defensive coordinator. Florida enters #8 in the country. Miami is breaking in a new starter at QB with transfer Tate Martell coming over from Ohio State. This isn't an easy first start. Mullen engineered a tremendous offensive turnaround in his first year with the Gators jumping 86 spots in points/game, the second largest jump ever in FBS. Even with QB Franks back, we're not confident they match last year's number (just five offensive starters return). The Under is 7-1 in Miami's last eight neutral site games and 6-0-1 in the last seven games overall. Play UNDER Florida-Miami

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This is a 10* play on the RAMS 

I like the Rams in this year's Super Bowl. I understand that the Patriots bring both experience and "name value," but neither of those qualities necessarily ensure that they will be the better team come Sunday. Having won with each team in their respective Conference Championship Games, I'm obviously impressed with both sides. In fact, I also won with both in their Divisional Round contests. But you can only pick one and the fact the Rams overcame an early deficit in the Superdome to win impressed me more than what the Patriots did at Kansas City. Also, note that being an underdog is foreign to both teams. Neither had been one in any game this year before two weeks ago. Under Sean McVay, Los Angeles has been a dog just six times. Factoring out Week 17 of last season (rested starters), they are 4-1 ATS, winning outright four times. Experience certainly didn't matter in last year's Super Bowl when the Eagles downed the Patriots. All eight of the Super Bowls New England has been in with Brady and Belichick have ultimately been decided by one possession. Only two (the last two years) have been decided by a margin larger than four points and one of those two was the OT game vs. Atlanta. So taking points, no matter how few, seems like the right call. Play LA RAMS

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This is 10* play on the UNDER for the Super Bowl.

The expectation for this year's Super Bowl is that two of the league's higher scoring teams won't have much trouble scoring in what will favorable (indoor) conditions at Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta. New England certainly hasn't had much difficulty scoring in the postseason, averaging 39 points in wins over the Chargers and Chiefs. But Los Angeles had a terrible defensive gameplan and the Chiefs defense, at least statistically, is one of the worst in the league. But we should also remember that the Patriots had scored only 17 points through three quarters in KC before a wild fourth quarter took us to overtime. I was fortunate to have the Over in the AFC Championship Game, but will be going the other way in the Super Bowl as the Rams have the best defense NE has seen in some time. Also, while Los Angeles scored 33 or more points nine times in their first 11 games, they have done so just once in the last seven games. Super Bowls traditionally start slow. This one should be no different. This total will close as either the highest or 2nd highest for any SB in history. The previous high, set two years ago when the Patriots played the Falcons, only went Over because of overtime. Play UNDER Patriots-Rams

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This is an 8* play on the PATRIOTS

It's somewhat ironic that both underdogs this week (New England, Los Angeles) have not been an underdog in any other game this season. With the Patriots, they haven't been a dog since Week 1 of the 2016 season when they played at Arizona and Tom Brady was suspended. They still won that game, mind you. The last time Brady was an underdog was Week 14 of the 2014 season and the Patriots lost to Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, 26-21. But that's the only time in the last five tries New England hasn't covered as an underdog. They haven't been an underdog in the playoffs since the 2014 AFC Championship at Denver. This week will be just the 7th time in 39 playoff games with Brady & Belichick that the Patriots are underdogs. They have a far better playoff resume that Andy Reid and Kansas City and I think that matters. The Patriots also already own a win over the Chiefs this year, 43-40 in Foxboro. While they did need a last second Stephen Gostkowski field goal to win, New England led for all but all seven minutes of actual game time. They also rolled up 500 yards on the Chiefs defense. Last week, you saw how dominant Brady can be when he's doubted. The Patriots scored 35 points in the first half. They'll be motivated again here. Play on NEW ENGLAND.

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This is a 10* on the OVER between New England & Kansas City.

The Over on last Sunday's Chargers-Patriots game, my only play on a NFL total for the whole weekend, won easily. As you may have read when buying this selection, was a LOCK by halftime, a WINNER by the third quarter & ended up going Over by THREE touchdowns! New England had 35 points by halftime and then was able to take its foot off the gas. The amount of scoring done by the Patriots does decline greatly on the road. But the good news for this week is that they won't have to score nearly as many points this week for the game to go Over. Not when faced with Kansas City's offense, which ranked 1st in yards per game, per play and points during the regular season. When these teams met in the regular season, it was 43-40, a win for New England. Maybe this game isn't as high scoring. But I don't think they'll combined to score 30 less points, do you? The Over is 6-1 in the Patriots last seven playoff games. Play New England @ Kansas City OVER. 

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This is a 10* Play on the RAMS.

There's a lot of attention this week on the fact that the PATRIOTS are an underdog for the first time since the 1st week of the 2016 season. But the RAMS are the only other team besides the Patriots to have been favored in every game this year. That includes when they played here at the Superdome back in Week 9. Of course, they lost that game. It was their first loss all season (started 8-0) and while the final score ended up being 45-35 Saints, it was really never close as the Rams trailed virtually the whole game and were down 35-17 in the first half. Like New England, LA is now a dog for the 1st time all year when playing for its Conference Championship. I think the fact the line has moved so much for this rematch is significant when handicapping this game. The Rams actually closed at -2.5 for the regular season matchup. Are things really that different now? I understand that the Saints won easily the first time around and have never lost a home playoff game with Drew Brees as the starting QB. But, if anything is different this time around, it's that the Saints aren't looking as strong as they did just a few weeks ago. They trailed the Eagles last week, 14-0, before scoring 20 unanswered. But those 20 points did not come easy. Since they last faced the Rams, the vaunted New Orleans offense has been held to 20 points or less in four of seven games. I like the points here. Play on LA RAMS.

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This is an 8* play on the Saints.

So I expected this line to come down a bit as the Eagles' playoff record with Nick Foles as the quarterback is well known. But it really hasn't and upon second thought, I have no hesitation in laying the points with the Saints at home. Foles' reputation may work against his team, which lost 48-7 on this field in the regular season. It's a different Eagles team now, but are they really four touchdowns better now than they were in November. I think not. New Orleans, off a bye, should be as strong as ever with Drew Brees leading the way. For a second year in a row, the Saints offense was top five in both rushing and passing. In the last five home games that Brees has played (remember, he sat the regular season finale), the Saints have averaged 40 PPG! The Saints aren't just all offense anymore though; they boasted the top run defense in the league this year, allowing only 80 YPG. The Saints have won their last five playoff home games, so homefield advantage is a very real thing in this Divisional Round matchup. As they showed in the regular season, the Saints are simply a much better team than the Eagles this year. Play on NEW ORLEANS 

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This is a 10* play on the Over in Chargers-Patriots

The Chargers scored 23 points on the Ravens in the Wild Card Game, but they certainly didn't come easy. It was five field goals and a touchdown (with a 2-pt conversion). But keep in mind that was the best defense in the league they were facing. I got the distinct impression that had they been facing most other defenses, Philip Rivers and the offense would have scored a lot more points. Los Angeles averages 26.8 points per game and is one of the top teams in yards per play. So what I'm saying is that they should score more this week against the Patriots than they did last week vs. the Ravens. Of course, New England should score plenty as well. Tom Brady and the Pats offense were a lot more effective at home this year, so it's huge getting this game in Foxboro. They were the league's only unbeaten team at home (8-0) and a big reason for that is they averaged 32.9 PPG here. Only the Rams and Saints averaged more points at home this year. While each team has gone Under in its last three games, the Chargers had to play Baltimore twice (and a Denver team that isn't very good on offense) while the Patriots played two bad offensive teams (Jets, Bills) and a road game vs. the Steelers. Play OVER on Chargers-Patriots 

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This is a 10* play on the Patriots 

The Chargers beat the Ravens in the Wild Card Round, but the win would certainly qualify as "ugly" with Baltimore's offense not doing much for the first three quarters save for gifting LA numerous opportunities to take advantage of. The Chargers scored just one offensive TD the entire game and got three fields on drives that went less than 20 yards, thanks to either Ravens turnovers or a key special teams plays. Tom Brady and the Patriots will not provide such opportunities. Off a bye and at home, this is an ideal price range to grab New England. Keep in mind that they are 24-4 SU the last 28 home games, also going 20-8 ATS. During that time, they are 10-1 SU and 9-2 ATS as a home favorite of 3.5 to 7 points. This season saw them win all four games in that range. This is just the fifth time with Belichick & Brady that New England is laying less than six points in Foxboro. They are 3-1 SU and ATS the previous four. They are the only team that won all eight home games in the regular season. For what it's worth, the Patriots are also 4-0 SU and ATS the last four meetings with the Chargers. This is Los Angeles' second straight week playing an early start in the Eastern Time Zone. That does them no favors against a superior side. Play on NEW ENGLAND. 

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This is a 10* play on the LA RAMS. 

Despite having Todd Gurley, don't expect the Rams to do what the Seahawks attempted (and failed) to do last week against the Cowboys. That would be run, run and run some more. Seattle OC Brian Schottenhiemer essentially taking the game out of Russell Wilson's hands was foolish to say the least and isn't something we're likely to see here from Rams coach Sean McVay and QB Jared Goff. As they're coming off a bye, I like the Rams at home quite a bit this week. It's been almost 25 years since the Cowboys won multiple playoff games in the same year. They have not won a playoff road game since 1993. Los Angeles will be extra motivated after losing last year's playoff game at home (to the Falcons). As we saw last week, the Dallas defense is good against the run, but they can be beat through the air. Wilson averaged 8.6 yards per attempt against them. No NFC team averaged more yards per play than the Rams did in the regular season. After the back door cover that affected most last week (not me as I bet Dallas -1), the Cowboys are 6-13 ATS against teams with winning records. Play on LA RAMS

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These are easily the two best teams in the country and I think the gap between the two isn't nearly as large as the oddsmakers seem to, if it even exists at all. 14-0 Clemson has been unstoppable since Trevor Lawrence took over as the quarterback. They have all nine games by at least three touchdowns, including a 30-3 beatdown of Notre Dame in the semifinal. Sound familiar? Alabama (14-0) hasn't lost a game since making its own famous QB change, to Tua Tagovailoa, in last year's National Championship Game. That was of course the game AFTER the Crimson Tide last faced Clemson, a 24-6 win. Expect this one to be along the lines of the two Championship Games these teams played in 2016 and 2017. This Clemson team is a lot better than last year, not only because of Lawrence, but the defense as well. The Tigers are only giving up 12.9 points per game, the fewest in the nation. They also allow just 274.7 yards per game. That's 93 on the ground and only 182 through the air. Not saying they'll hold Bama to those totals, but Clemson's defense isn't about to let this turn into a blowout. This game should be much closer to a pick 'em. Play on CLEMSON

My *10* NFL Playoff Game of the YEAR is on the BEARS. 

Don't be fooled into thinking that the 12-4 Bears drew some sort of "unfavorable" matchup here with the 9-7 Eagles. Sure, it would have been nice to play the Vikings against based on how easily the Monsters of the Midway dispatched of them (in Minnesota) in Week 17. But the amount of respect Philadelphia is getting here is based on LAST season, not this one when they were a very mediocre team. Yes, Nick Foles is back at QB and he led Philly to a Super Bowl last year. But, statistically, this year's Eagles are not close to last year's. They're also having to go on the road here. (Last year, they only need to win two home games to get to the SB. This year, they'd have to win three on the road). The Eagles were outgained both on a per game and per play basis in the regular season. Chicago comes in with perhaps the best defense in the league. They are allowing just 17.7 points per game and should give Foles and what remains a limited offense plenty of trouble. As for the Bears offense, coach Matt Nagy has done a great job at managing QB Mitchell Trubisky and he'll have plenty of chances to make plays against an Eagles defense that is still beat up on the back end. Chicago has been the far better team this year and has covered 9 of its last 10 games. The only non-cover was a FG loss in overtime. They are 16-4-1 ATS their previous 21 home games. The BEARS are my *10* Playoff Game of the Year. 

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This is a 10* play on Over Chargers-Ravens

The 12-4 Chargers and the 10-6 Ravens just met two weeks ago with Baltimore holding LA to its worst offensive game of the season. The Bolts finished with just 198 total yards and no play went for more than 17. They scored only 10 points and their one touchdown came on a drive that started on Baltimore 17-yard line after a fumble. The Ravens ended up winning 22-10, sealing the deal with a defensive touchdown. Despite the inferior record, they get to be the home team this team by virtue of winning their division. Look for the sequel to be higher scoring than the original. Yes, Baltimore's defense is most definitely "for real," but the Chargers are one of the few (maybe the only?) team to play better on the road than at home. Philip Rivers posted the second best QBR in the league in road games this year. Also, Baltimore ran for "only" 159 yards in the first meeting. Though the Chargers are the first team that gets to see Lamar Jackson twice, don't expect their defense to have the same success the second time around. That previous rushing yardage total was the lowest for any of Jackson's seven starts and I expect the Ravens offense to be closer to 200, a number they've already cracked five teams with him as the starter. Play the OVER in Chargers-Ravens

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This is an 8* play on DALLAS

The nightcap Saturday sees the 10-6 Cowboys hosting the 10-6 Seahawks. Dallas got the homefield advantage by winning the NFC East while Seattle had to settle for second in the NFC West. But the Seahawks did beat the Cowboys in the regular season, 24-13, all the way back in Week 3. But that game was in Seattle. Dallas played pretty poorly, turning it over three times and as a result trailed by double digits most of the way. But their defense did a good job, holding Russell Wilson and company to less than 300 total yards and just 113 rushing. The key to the Seattle offense is running the football as they led the league in that department. But the Cowboys defense was one of the best at stopping the run. They allow only 94.6 rush yards per game, which ranked 5th in the league. Really, the Dallas defense deserves more accolades as it was pretty great this year. A big reason America's Team was 7-1 in "Jerry World" this year was that the defense gave up only 18.5 PPG. Seattle's defense allowed at least 24 points in six of the last eight games. The Seahawks are only 1-5 ATS their last six playoff games. In both games Saturday, the better defensive team is playing at home. I expect both to win. Play on the COWBOYS.

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This is an 8* play on the TEXANS

It's two AFC South teams matching up in our first Wild Card Game of the weekend. The 11-5 Texans host the 10-6 Colts. Saturday marks the third time they will have met this season and the road team has had the edge so far, winning and covering both games. But I think I would be foolish to think there's any kind of "edge" being the road team in the NFL playoffs. Indianapolis was only 4-4 on the road in the regular season as opposed to 6-2 at home. On offense, they are likely going to be reduced to a one-dimension attack here. They could not run on this Houston defense in either regular season meeting, totaling just 91 yards. That's going to put a lot of pressure on Andrew Luck. The Texans allow only 17 points per game at home. The Colts scored 24 in their visit, but that was actually the second most points by any visitor this year at NRG Stadium. I do not see them scoring that many this time. Something I find interesting is that Houston was actually a 1-pt favorite for the game in Indianapolis, then a 4-pt favorite for the last game here. Good value this third time around. The Colts are just 1-4 ATS in their last five playoff road games. I look for Houston QB Watson to make more plays than Luck on Saturday, getting his team the win. Play on the TEXANS

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This is a 7* play on the Under in Colts-Texans.

In my writeup on the side of this game, I established that I don't the Colts offense is in for a very successful game Saturday in Houston. The Texans defense is very strong against the run as they allow 3.4 yards per carry, which was the best mark in the NFL. To reiterate, the two times these teams played in the regular season, Indianapolis ran for just 91 yards. That wasn't their average per game, mind you. That was the total number of rush yards in two games (50 + 41). In three of the last five games, the Colts ran for 50 yards or less. Houston allows only 17.0 PPG at home. While I obviously expect them to win this game, look for them to have a somewhat limited day offensively as well. Over the last seven games, the Colts gave up more than 21 points just twice. The Under was 5-2 in those seven games, including the one here in H-town. The Under is also 8-1 the last nine times the Colts have played a team with a winning record. It's 5-1 their last six Wild Card games as well. Houston has seen the Under hit in five of its last seven home games and 13 of its last 18 against AFC teams. Play UNDER on Colts-Texans.

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This is a 10* play on the OVER in Eastern Washington-North Dakota State.

The FCS Championship Game features a matchup of 12-2 Eastern Washington and 14-0 North Dakota State. The Bison are prohibitive favorites here and for very good reason; they'll be gunning for a record-tying seventh National Championship. Just like Alabama has owned the FBS under Nick Saban, NDSU has owned this level with all six championship wins coming since 2011. I don't think there's much value to be had playing the pointspread, but I do like the total as this should be a high-scoring affair at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, TX. North Dakota State is a machine running the football as South Dakota State found out in the semifinals three weeks ago. The Bison ran for 439 yards in that game and now face a EWU defense that is only so-so against the run and may even have its starting nose tackle. There were only three games this year where the Bison did not score 34 points. They've scored at least 44 four times in the last five games. Meanwhile, Eastern Washington just put up 50 in its semifinal win over Maine. It was the sixth time this year they scored at least 48 points in a game. Will they get that many here? Probably not, but playing catchup, they'll score enough to help get this one past the number. Play the OVER in Eastern Washington-North Dakota State

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This is a 10* play on the Under in Texas-Georgia

#15 Texas (9-4) meets #5 Georgia (11-2) in the Sugar Bowl, one of this year's better bowl matchups. I'm expecting a low-scoring game tonight in NOLA. Without a doubt, Georgia is going to be the best defense that the Longhorns will have faced all year. The Bulldogs allow just 18.2 points per game. Yes, they'll be missing their top corner (declared for NFL Draft) and coordinator Mel Tucker took the head coaching job at Colorado. But it's not like the Horns have the most explosive offense. On the other side, the Texas defense has had to deal with some very high-powered offenses this year in the Big 12. So they won't be intimidated here. The Under is 48-23 in the Longhorns last 71 games overall, including 19-7 the L26 games on field turf. They held Oklahoma below its season scoring average in the Big 12 Championship Game. Georgia has gone Under in 7 of its last 10 bowl games. Play TEXAS-GEORGIA UNDER 

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This is an 8* play on Washington in the Rose Bowl.

I'll be taking the points with Washington in the Rose Bowl as they are the better defensive team and an all-around undervalued side. While Ohio State (12-1) has the better won-loss record (Washington 10-3), the Huskies' three losses were all close games and they could have won all of them. They were basically three plays away from being unbeaten. While a lot of focus here is on how the Buckeyes finished their regular season (destroyed rival Michigan), Washington was pretty impressive in its own right, holding Washington State and Utah to just 18 total points. The Huskies have one of the top defenses in the country (15.5 PPG allowed), so that will keep them in this game. With this being Urban Meyer's final game patrolling the sidelines, everyone is loading up pn the Buckeyes, but that's inflated the number. Washington was an underdog only twice this year, vs. Auburn and at Washington State. They won in Pullman and lost to Auburn by only five, a game they easily could have won. Play WASHINGTON

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This is an 8* WINNER on Iowa in the Outback Bowl.

In my eyes, this Outback Bowl matchup of 8-4 Iowa and 8-4 Mississippi State pits two very underrated teams against one another. But in the end, I feel the favorite's inability to score consistently will cost them here, laying so many points. The Iowa defense gives up just 17.4 points per game. Mississippi State gives up the fewest in the country (12.0), so it should be a low-scoring game all around. With points likely at a premium in a matchup such as this, the underdog just seems like the right move. There were four times this year that Miss State was held under 10 points. Most of the Bulldogs dominant performances were against non-bowl teams. Of Iowa's four losses, three were by six points or fewer and the other (28-17 vs. Wisconsin) saw them give up two touchdowns in the final minute. Miss State was generally dominated in its losses. Oddsmakers agree that this is going to be a low-scoring game and taking points in the way to go. Play IOWA.

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This is a 10* ART OF WAR on the Indianapolis Colts.

This is a big game, as the winner will advance with a wild card spot, while the loser will be going golfing. Andrew Luck and the Colts though annihilated the Titans 38-10 at home in the first matchup this year and we believe a similar result is in the cards here as well. Also note that Titans’ QB Marcus Mariota is questionable for this one and if he does play, clearly he’s not going to be at 100% health. Finally note that the Colts are 5-0 ATS in their last five vs. teams with winning records, while the Titans are just 5-14-1 ATS in their last 20 home games vs. teams with winning road records. Lay the points, play on the COLTS.

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This is a 10* SUPER-BLOWOUT on the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Suffice it to say, we’re expecting a beatdown from start to finish here. The Bengals come in off a 26-18 road loss to Cleveland, while Pittsburgh fell 31-28 on the road in New Orleans last Sunday. The Steelers have won seven straight in the series though, including a 28-21 road win in the first one this year. Bengals’ starting QB Andy Dalton though isn’t playing anymore and the Bengals have nothing to play for. Pittsburgh has to win this game and have the Ravens lose to Cleveland to make the postseason. We’re expecting the under-achieving home side to lay the foot on the gas from start to finish. Note that the STEELERS are 5-0-1 ATS in their last six following an ATS win, while Cincinnati is just 1-3 ATS in its last four off a road loss vs. a division rival. Lay the points with confidence.

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This is a 10* TOTAL BLOWOUT on the OVER South Carolina/Virginia.

Virginia opened the year 6-2, but it finished 7-5. The Cavaliers can erase the stink of “what could have been” with a big victory today though and we’re fully expecting them to push the pace from start to finish. In their final regular season loss, QB Bryce Perkins had 259 passing yards and three TD’s, along with 112 rushing yards. The Gamecocks are coming off a 7-5 season and they hold on for an easy win over Akron in their finale. Note that the Cavs have seen the total go OVER the number in their last five neutral site games, while the Gamecocks have seen the total go OVER in seven of their last nine when playing with three weeks or more rest on a neutral field. This number is a little high, play the OVER.

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