Sunday, October 01, 2006
Week 4 Picks
I can't get those old monster truck ads out of my head: "Sunday, Sun-day, Sunnnnn-daay - come see the Death Mobile put a hurting on the Hell Cat. 7 p.m. at Boston Arena!! Sunnnnnnn-day!!" Thankfully, we have much more meaningful things to do on Sundays, namely see how many NFL games we can pick correctly. Here goes:
@Atlanta (-7.5) vs. Arizona - I saw the white Mike Vick last night. Really, I did. University of New Hampshire QB Ricky Santos -- who's setting all sorts of records for the No. 1 in Div. I-AA Wildcats -- is one of the best runners I've ever seen. (Okay, I'm an alum of UNH so maybe that's a shameless plug - but you have to see this kid to believe it. Had to have had at least six 3rd and 12's where he broke tackles, zigged and zagged, and picked up 14 or 15.) Anyway, Mike Vick will do his Ricky Santos imitation (hah!) today all over the Cardinals, and the Falcons will avenge the beating they took last Monday night in N'Awlins. Atlanta is the pick to cover.
Dallas (-9) @ Tennessee - No shortage of story lines in this one. The Cowboys may start a guy at WR who reportedly tried to kill himself this week. And the big news from the pathetic Titans is that coach Jeff Fisher is planning to start Vince Young today at QB. My first inkling for this game was that Dallas' superior D-line would absolutely waylay Kerry Collins, but with the mobile Young now calling the shots... hmmm. What the hell - I'll take Tennessee to cover, but all bets are off if Fisher changes his mind before gametime.
Indianapolis (-8) @ NY Jets - Overshadowed by the whole T.O. drama was the unfortunate news that Colts WR Reggie Wayne's brother died this past week in a car accident. The Colts have been through their fair share of tragedy (Dungy's son last year), and should rise up. The Jets will be competitive at home, but that jackass with the fireman's helmet will be quiet by the start of the 4th quarter. Colts in a romp, with former LSU RB Joseph Addai playing a surprisingly big role.
Miami (-3.5) @ Houston - Zzzzzzzzz. I can't comprehend the fact that a Daunte Culpepper-led team is giving points to anybody right now, but these are the doormat Texans. One bright spot for Houston has been its QB David Carr, currently rated the No. 1 passer in the league. Just for kicks, let's go with the home 'dog.
@Buffalo (-1) vs. Minnesota - Take the Vikings every which way in this one. I don't care about the Bills' homefield advantage. Buffalo ain't that good, the Vikings are much-improved over last year, and they should have beaten a good Bears team last week in the Metrodome. Look for the Vikings to take this one by at least a touchdown.
@Carolina (-7) vs. New Orleans - All the classic makings of a letdown game for the Saints, who played so well in their homecoming Monday night. Plus, Carolina's D leads the league in ruptured spleens. I'm going with the Panthers at home.
San Diego (-2) @ Baltimore - The Ravens are quickly becoming the team to not even touch on Sundays. Way too friggin' unpredictable. Their D is always ready, and could make life miserable for Chargers' rookie QB Philip Rivers, but I'm going with the refreshed and re-charged Chargers in this one. Lay 'em.
@Kansas City (-7) vs. San Francisco - The Chiefs have one of the best homefield advantages in the league, but I'm not crazy about giving seven without Trent Green at the helm. The 'Niners on the other hand welcome RB Frank Gore back to the lineup today. Take San Fran to cover.
@St. Louis (-5.5) vs. Detroit - Honestly, flip a coin. Who cares? As long as Matt Millen has any say in the decisions made in Detroit, the Lions will suck. I'll go with the Rams in this one.
Cleveland (-3) @ Oakland - Think Art Shell will shed a few pounds through stress this year? Deion Sanders had a great line in Sports Illustrated this week saying Shell's going to look like Morgan Freeman come November. The Browns played admirably in their loss to Baltimore last week, and really should have won the game. Still, the Raiders have to win sometime, don't they? Oaktown is the pick.
Jacksonville (-3) @ Washington - The Jags are all riled over some comments made by Indy's punter this past week about their immaturity. What is it with kickers (Vanderjerk) and punters in Indy? Anyway, the Jaguars are a solid football team, and I'm kicking myself for not taking RB Maurice Drew in my roto draft. Wise rule - always take Fred Taylor's backup. And take Jacksonville in this one. The 'Skins are perpetually disappointing, legendary coach or not.
@Chicago (-3) vs. Seattle - Great game, bummer that MVP Shaun Alexander won't be able to play in it. The Seahawks won't have their crazed fans and that ungodly noise on their side this week. Without Alexander, it will be interesting to see what Hasselbeck can accomplish with his wideouts against a strong Bears secondary. In the end, Da Bears will win this one and cover.
@Cincinnati (-5.5) vs. New England - Very intriguing matchup, and very tough to call. On paper, Bengals QB Carson Palmer and his track team of receivers should shred the beleaguered Pats DB's. The only chance the Patriots have is for their two-headed running attack (Clock Killin' Corey Dillon and Laurence Maroney) to re-emerge and play like it did the first two weeks of the season, and the vaunted D-line has to do a good job on human bowling ball Rudi Johnson. If these things happen, Brady can be a little better than he was last week and the Pats could eke out a win. My head tells me the Bengals are going to take this one, but the homer in me says take the Patriots to cover.
@Philly (-11) vs. Green Bay - Donovan McNabb is off to a sensational start, but some key Eagles (Stallworth, Westbrook, Dawkins) are questionable for this one. Still, it's the Green Bay Packers, it's Monday night, and they're in front of their psychotic fans. Cheese steaks beat the Cheeseheads and cover the 11.
Last week's record: 7-6-1
Season record: 26-19-1
@Atlanta (-7.5) vs. Arizona - I saw the white Mike Vick last night. Really, I did. University of New Hampshire QB Ricky Santos -- who's setting all sorts of records for the No. 1 in Div. I-AA Wildcats -- is one of the best runners I've ever seen. (Okay, I'm an alum of UNH so maybe that's a shameless plug - but you have to see this kid to believe it. Had to have had at least six 3rd and 12's where he broke tackles, zigged and zagged, and picked up 14 or 15.) Anyway, Mike Vick will do his Ricky Santos imitation (hah!) today all over the Cardinals, and the Falcons will avenge the beating they took last Monday night in N'Awlins. Atlanta is the pick to cover.
Dallas (-9) @ Tennessee - No shortage of story lines in this one. The Cowboys may start a guy at WR who reportedly tried to kill himself this week. And the big news from the pathetic Titans is that coach Jeff Fisher is planning to start Vince Young today at QB. My first inkling for this game was that Dallas' superior D-line would absolutely waylay Kerry Collins, but with the mobile Young now calling the shots... hmmm. What the hell - I'll take Tennessee to cover, but all bets are off if Fisher changes his mind before gametime.
Indianapolis (-8) @ NY Jets - Overshadowed by the whole T.O. drama was the unfortunate news that Colts WR Reggie Wayne's brother died this past week in a car accident. The Colts have been through their fair share of tragedy (Dungy's son last year), and should rise up. The Jets will be competitive at home, but that jackass with the fireman's helmet will be quiet by the start of the 4th quarter. Colts in a romp, with former LSU RB Joseph Addai playing a surprisingly big role.
Miami (-3.5) @ Houston - Zzzzzzzzz. I can't comprehend the fact that a Daunte Culpepper-led team is giving points to anybody right now, but these are the doormat Texans. One bright spot for Houston has been its QB David Carr, currently rated the No. 1 passer in the league. Just for kicks, let's go with the home 'dog.
@Buffalo (-1) vs. Minnesota - Take the Vikings every which way in this one. I don't care about the Bills' homefield advantage. Buffalo ain't that good, the Vikings are much-improved over last year, and they should have beaten a good Bears team last week in the Metrodome. Look for the Vikings to take this one by at least a touchdown.
@Carolina (-7) vs. New Orleans - All the classic makings of a letdown game for the Saints, who played so well in their homecoming Monday night. Plus, Carolina's D leads the league in ruptured spleens. I'm going with the Panthers at home.
San Diego (-2) @ Baltimore - The Ravens are quickly becoming the team to not even touch on Sundays. Way too friggin' unpredictable. Their D is always ready, and could make life miserable for Chargers' rookie QB Philip Rivers, but I'm going with the refreshed and re-charged Chargers in this one. Lay 'em.
@Kansas City (-7) vs. San Francisco - The Chiefs have one of the best homefield advantages in the league, but I'm not crazy about giving seven without Trent Green at the helm. The 'Niners on the other hand welcome RB Frank Gore back to the lineup today. Take San Fran to cover.
@St. Louis (-5.5) vs. Detroit - Honestly, flip a coin. Who cares? As long as Matt Millen has any say in the decisions made in Detroit, the Lions will suck. I'll go with the Rams in this one.
Cleveland (-3) @ Oakland - Think Art Shell will shed a few pounds through stress this year? Deion Sanders had a great line in Sports Illustrated this week saying Shell's going to look like Morgan Freeman come November. The Browns played admirably in their loss to Baltimore last week, and really should have won the game. Still, the Raiders have to win sometime, don't they? Oaktown is the pick.
Jacksonville (-3) @ Washington - The Jags are all riled over some comments made by Indy's punter this past week about their immaturity. What is it with kickers (Vanderjerk) and punters in Indy? Anyway, the Jaguars are a solid football team, and I'm kicking myself for not taking RB Maurice Drew in my roto draft. Wise rule - always take Fred Taylor's backup. And take Jacksonville in this one. The 'Skins are perpetually disappointing, legendary coach or not.
@Chicago (-3) vs. Seattle - Great game, bummer that MVP Shaun Alexander won't be able to play in it. The Seahawks won't have their crazed fans and that ungodly noise on their side this week. Without Alexander, it will be interesting to see what Hasselbeck can accomplish with his wideouts against a strong Bears secondary. In the end, Da Bears will win this one and cover.
@Cincinnati (-5.5) vs. New England - Very intriguing matchup, and very tough to call. On paper, Bengals QB Carson Palmer and his track team of receivers should shred the beleaguered Pats DB's. The only chance the Patriots have is for their two-headed running attack (Clock Killin' Corey Dillon and Laurence Maroney) to re-emerge and play like it did the first two weeks of the season, and the vaunted D-line has to do a good job on human bowling ball Rudi Johnson. If these things happen, Brady can be a little better than he was last week and the Pats could eke out a win. My head tells me the Bengals are going to take this one, but the homer in me says take the Patriots to cover.
@Philly (-11) vs. Green Bay - Donovan McNabb is off to a sensational start, but some key Eagles (Stallworth, Westbrook, Dawkins) are questionable for this one. Still, it's the Green Bay Packers, it's Monday night, and they're in front of their psychotic fans. Cheese steaks beat the Cheeseheads and cover the 11.
Last week's record: 7-6-1
Season record: 26-19-1
# posted by kampy : 11:07 AM
