Cleveland opened last week with a big AFC win over in-state rivals Cincinnati, 24-3. The Browns covered the pick'em line and went under the 46.5 point total. Cleveland had 206 yards on the ground and 144 passing yards for 350 total yards. Best news was they held the Bengals to just 142 total yards. Deshaun Watson was 16-of29 for 154 yards with one TD and one INT. Nick Chubb rushed for 106 yards and a 5.9 rypa average. Pittsburgh was manhandled last week at home by San Francisco, 7-30. They failed to cover the 1-point dog line and went under the 41.5-point total. They had just 239 total yards with 41 rushing yards. They allowed 391 yards to the 49ers. Kenny Pickett was 31-of46 for 232 yards with one TD and NO INT's. Since the Steelers played from behind they didn't get to establish much on the ground with Najee Harris having just 31 yards. The Steelers defense looked horrible last week and they are much better then showed. The Browns will be a daunting task on the ground, but I look for the Steelers defense to show much better here on Monday. Add to that a very good Browns defense and I'll take the UNDER.

 Cleveland opened last week with a big AFC win over in-state rivals Cincinnati, 24-3. The Browns covered the pick'em line and went under the 46.5 point total. Cleveland had 206 yards on the ground and 144 passing yards for 350 total yards. Best news was they held the Bengals to just 142 total yards. Deshaun Watson was 16-of29 for 154 yards with one TD and one INT. Nick Chubb rushed for 106 yards and a 5.9 rypa average. Pittsburgh was manhandled last week at home by San Francisco, 7-30. They failed to cover the 1-point dog line and went under the 41.5-point total. They had just 239 total yards with 41 rushing yards. They allowed 391 yards to the 49ers. Kenny Pickett was 31-of46 for 232 yards with one TD and NO INT's. Since the Steelers played from behind they didn't get to establish much on the ground with Najee Harris having just 31 yards. The Steelers defense looked horrible last week and they are much better then showed. The Browns will be a daunting task on the ground, but I look for the Steelers to rebound here and win this second straight home game. Play Steelers.

The New Orleans Saints look to improve to 2-0 with this second Monday Night football game at Carolina. The Saints did just enough to beat the Tennessee Titans last week, 16-15. They failed to cover the 3-point home line and went under the 41.5 total line. The Saints had 69 rushing yards and 282 yards passing. They held the Titans to 47 yards rushing and 181 yard passing. New QB Derek Carr was efficient with a 23-of-33 performance with one TD and one INT. Jamaal Williams led a trio of rushers with 45 yards though he did fumble one time. Carolina went to Atlanta last week and came up short to the Falcons, 10-24. They failed to cover the 3.5-point dog line and went under the 40.5 total. They did rush for 154 yards but had only 127 yards passing. The defense was very good, holding Atlanta to 130 yards rushing and 91 passing yards. New QB Bryce Young was 20-of-38 for 146 yards though he did have two INT's. Miles Sanders led the rushing attack with 72 yards though he also turned the ball over once. Both teams flashed some very good defense and not a lot of offense. I'll take the UNDER tonight.

AFC matchup here on Sunday has the New England Patriots hosting the Miami Dolphins. The Patriots came from behind last week, but came up just short in their loss at home to Philadelphia Eagles, 20-25, as a 3.5-point dog. The Pats had 76 yards rushing and 306 yards passing. The defense was very good, allowing 97 rushing and 154 passing to a very good Eagles offense. QB Mac Jones was 35-for-54 for 316 yards, three TD's and one INT. The rushing game was not much, but they were playing from way behind for a good portion of the game. Ezikiel Elliot led with 29 yards while Stevenson chipped-in another 25 yards. The Miami Dolphins won a shootout last week at the LA Chargers, 36-34, covering the three-point dog line. They had 70 yards rushing and 466 yards passing. Tua Tagovailoa was 28-for-45 for 466 yards, three TD's and one INT. Raheem Mostert rushed for 37 yards and one TD. The home team has won five of the last meetings between these AFC rivals. Miami had the second fewest rushing attempts last year and again this year had just 20 attempts in their opener at the Chargers. IF Tua can remain healthy that might not be terrible, but you hate to see so much put on the QB. The Pats defense will once again be very good as it was last week. It's the offense that has to find some improvement. THey were forced to throw more last week as they trailed throughout. I look for the Patriots to turn to the rushing game more here in week two as they try and take pressure off Jones. The Miami rush defense isn't great and that should provide better opportunities for the Patriots rushers. If the Pats can establish the rush, keep the Miami offense off the field then this one should be a good under play.

NFC West clash here on Sunday has both teams looking to start the season 2-0. The San Francisco 49ers were dominant in their win last week at Pittsburgh, 30-7. They held the Steelers to just 41 total rushing yards and 198 passing yards. The defense also had a pair of interceptions. Brock Purdy played in his first game since that playoff injury against the Eagles. He was 19-for-29 for 220 yards and two TD's and no INT's. Chrisitan McCaffrey was great, rushing for 152 yards and a touchdown while Brandon Aiyuk led the receivers with 129 yards and a pair of TD's. The Rams trailed at halftime last week at Seattle, 7-13. However, a big second half rally and a shutout of the Seattle offense led to an easy win, 30-13. The Rams had 426 yards of offense to just 180 by the Seahawks. Matthew Stafford was 24-of-38 for 334 yards. Kyren Williams led the rushing attack with 52 yards and a pair of TD's. I see this 49ers team as one of the teams to beat this year with their balanced offense and dominating defense. Not sure the Rams can find the same offensive success they had last week. But if both defenses play like they did last week this one will be an UNDER. Take UNDER.

NFC matchup here on Sunday has the Bucs hosting the Bears. The Chicago Bears looked bad last week in their loss to Green Bay. The Bears had a -2 turnover ratio and were outgained 329-311 yards by the Packers. Justin Fields was 24-for-37 for 216 yards, one TD and one INT. The rushing game was horrible with Khalil Herbert leading the team with just 27 yards on the ground. Tampa Bay came away with the win as a dog last week at Minnesota, 20-17. The win came despite having just 242 total yards of offense. They did hold the Vikings to just 41 yards rushing though they allowed 328 yards through the air. Baker Mayfield was 21-of34 for 173 yards and a pair of TD's. Rachaad White led the rushing with 39 yards. Both these teams had issues with their offense and both had trouble moving the ball on the ground. I look for both to continue that trend this week as the Bears rushing attack will have little success against this Bucs defense. Play UNDER.

 The Green Bay Packers post Aaron Rodgers era began on a positive note last week with a win at the Chicago Bears, 38-20. The Packers had just 92 rushing yards and 237 passing yards for a total of 329 total yards. They held the Bears to 122 yards rushing and 189 yards passing for 311 total yards. Jordan Love was efficient at QB, going 15-for-27 for 245 yards and three TD's. Aaron Jones led the team in rushing with 41 yards and a TD. The Atlanta Falcons won at home last week against Carolina, 24-10, despite just 221 total yards of offense. They held the Panthers to 10 points on 281 yards of offense. Desmond Ridder was 15-for-18 for 115 yards and one TD. Tyler Allgeier led the team in rushing with 75 yards and a pair of TD's. Both teams looking to start the season 2-0 and I look for a lot of ball control in this one. Neither team piled up the yards last week and we can see the Falcons will be carful with their young QB. I'll take the UNDER in this one.

Seattle comes into this road game after blowing a halftime lead last week at home against the Rams. Leading 13-7 at the break, the Seahawks were outscored 0-24 by the Rams in the second half to start their season with a loss. Seattle had just 180 yards in the game (85 rush/95 pass) while allowing the Rams 426 yards. The Detroit Lions pulled the big shocker in week 1 with a win on the road at defending champion Kansas City, 21-20. The Lions had 368 yards of offense and held the hi-flying Chiefs offense to just 316 yards. J. Goff led the passing with 22-of-35 for 253 yards and a TD while D.Swift led the rushing with 178 yards on the ground and a TD. The Lions return home this Sunday and while they are a decent favorite, which hasn't happened very often, I have to think they could be in for a letdown this week. I'm going to take the points with the visitors in this one. Play Seattle.

SEC Clash here on Saturday has Florida hosting Tennessee. First conference game for both teams here on Saturday has Tennessee coming in at 2-0 while Florida is 1-0. The Vols are coming off a win over Austin Peay, 30-13, coming way short of the 48.5-point line. Meanwhile Florida is coming off a blowout win over McNeese State, 49-7, but also failed to cover the 48-point line. Have to take these softball games with a grain of salt as both teams piled up the yards and points. Florida lost its opener to Utah before bouncing back against McNeese State. The Florida defense has been good, allowing just 15.5 ppg thus far. This will be the first test for Tennessee while Florida did face Utah in their opener. I'm just not ready to lay points on the road in the SEC. I'll take Florida here today.

 Buffalo looking for its first win of the season after starting 0-2. They face Liberty here on Saturday with the Flames coming in at 2-0. The Flames beat Bowling Green, 34-24, covering the 8-point line. They also beat New Mexico State last week, 33-17, also covering the 9-point line. The rolled up 526 total yards against New Mexico State last week. Liberty is in the Conference USA this year after being an independent. Buffalo lost its opener to Wisconsin 17-38, but covered the 29-point line. It was last week when they lost to FCS school Fordham, 37-40, that really hurts. They failed to cover the 22.5-point line despite leading 21-3 in the 2nd quarter. Liberty will be laying points at Buffalo here on Saturday. I look for Buffalo to put a lot of effort in this one after that loss to Fordham last week. I'll take the points at home with Buffalo.

SEC matchup here on Saturday has Mississippi State hosting LSU. Miss State Bulldogs are off to a 2-0 start under new HC Zach Arnett. They have wins over Southeastern Louisiana and Arizona thus far. This will be their biggest test of the young season. LSU comes in here winning four of the last five in this series. LSU lost its opener this season to Florida State, which makes this SEC contest even bigger for the Tigers. They are led by Jayden Daniels who has 708 of LSU's 1081 total yards this season. This is almost a must win spot for LSU and against 1st year coach Arnett I give a big edge to the Tigers here today. I look for LSU to win and cover this game against a Mississippi State still learning the ropes under a new head coach. Take LSU

Minnesota hits the road here to start week 2 as the Vikings play at Philadelphia. The Vikings and Eagles both coming off excellent seasons last year with Minnesota at 13-4 and the Eagles 14.3. The Eagles just coming up short in the Super Bowl, losing to the Chiefs. Last year the Vikings played at Philly in week two again, losing this matchup last year, 7-24. The Vikings coming off that week one loss to the Bucs, 17-20 at home. The Vikings used the pass extensively last week, rushing for just 41 total yards. QB Kirk Cousins was 33-of-44 for 344 yards and two TD's. The Vikings defense allowed just 242 total yards to the Bucs and held them to nine total first downs. The Eagles opened with a tough game at New England and were able to escape with the win, 25-20. The Eagles jumped out to a 16-0 lead over the Pats, but had to hold on for the win. The Eagles had just 251 totals yards as Jalen Hurts went 22-of-33 for 170 yards and a touchdown. The Eagles have had to adjust to both new offensive and defensive coordinators this year. This was an Eagles team that ranked first in the NFL in total defense last year. If the Vikings can establish a rushing game here on Sunday they should be able to compete and keep Hurts and the Eagles offense off the field. I'm still looking for the Eagle to adjust to new coordinators and early in the season is the time to take advantage. Play Minnesota plus the points.

Great way to finish week one of the NFL with this AFC East clash between Buffalo and the Jets. The Jets were good last year and then they go out and get Aaron Rodgers this year to bolster an offense to go with that outstanding defense. The AFC East should be interesting with Buffalo, the Jets, Dolphins and Pats. The Bills and Jets both won two preseason games with the Jets having the extra Hall of Fame game. The Bills won their third straight division title last year and made the postseason for the fourth consecutive season. The Bills will once again be one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl. The Jets hope bringing in Rodgers will get them into the postseason for the first time since 2010. Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb also reunite with Rodgers on the Jets. The Jets were fourth in scoring defense last year and total defense. This matchup should feature two of the premier defenses in the AFC. The line is too close for me, but the total I do like and will go with the UNDER.

 Already a key NFC East battle here on Sunday night has the NY Giants hosting the Dallas Cowboys. Both teams were 1-2 in the preseason. The Giants scored 61 points and allowed 72 while the Cowboys scored 68 and allowed 66. The Cowboys turn the backfield over to Tony Pollard with the departure of Ezekiel Elliot to the Patriots. Dak Prescot is back and healthy. The Cowboys are one of the favorites to get to the Super Bowl, despite a disappointing end to last season. Their defense will be great again this year, led by LB Micah Parsons. The Giants surprised everyone by making the playoffs last year and winning their first playoff game since Super Bowl 46. QB Daniel Jones is much improved and RB Saquon Barkely is back after a contract dispute. I know it's early, but I like the Giants here to win this game. But I'll gladly take the points too. Play NY Giants.

The Baltimore Ravens long string of preseason wins came to an end this year as they actually went just 1-2. They scored 68 points while allowing 74 in the preseason. Meanwhile, Houston was 2-1 in the preseason scoring just 40 points while allowing 50 points. Houston made a big change, bring in DeMeco Ryan to coach the team after winning just eight games over their last three seasons. Also taking over at QB is C.J. Stroud, the Ohio State star QB. On the defensive side of the ball they bring in Alabama pass rusher Will Anderson Jr, who should also make a big impact. The Ravens won 10 games last year and double digits in four of the last five seasons. QB Lamar Jackson has a new contract in hand and they bring in Odel Beckham Jr as one of his targets along with Nelson Agholor. The defense was third in scoring defense last year and returns most of that unit this year. The Ravens were leaders in a number of defensive categories last year. I'm going to take the under here as the Texans likely will take some time to get the offense in sync and this is not the defense to start out again. Play UNDER.

NFC South action here on Sunday has Atlanta hosting Carolina. The Panthers didn't win a preseason game and only scored 36 points in their three games. The Falcons were 1-1-1 in preseason and scored just 32 points and allowed just 40 points. Atlanta has seen five of their last six regular season games. Not a lot to go on the first game of the season so I will take into consideration in these early games. But if the preseason is any indication, both these teams will struggle to put points on the board. QB Bryce Young takes over for Carolina and while he may prove to be the future, there could be a rough learning curve for the rookie. I'll stick with the UNDER here in game one.

The season starts with a big rivalry already as the Cleveland Browns host the Cincinnati Bengals in this Battle for Ohio. Bot teams didn't do much in preseason as Cleveland finished 1-2-1 and scored 86 points in their four games. The Bengals were 0-2-1 and scored 51 points while allowing 71 points. Cincinnati won in double digits for the second consecutive season last year. The offense will be very good once again with Burrows at QB, Mixon in the back field and a core of excellent receivers. Burrows suffered a calf injury in preseason but is probable for this contest. The Bengals defense lost some key players in the secondary with Jessie Bates III and Vonn Bell both departing. The Browns look to get back to the postseason after missing the playoffs the last two years. DeShaun Watson will be the key cog for this team after starting just six games last year and looking very rusty. This offense has one of the best backs in the NFL in Nick Chubb so that should take some heat off Watson. With Burrow not playing in the preseason I'll look for him to take some time to get back on track. I like the home dog Browns in this opener.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and 49ers open the season here in Pittsburgh. The Steelers were a perfect 3-0 in the preseason and outscored their opponents by a 78-32 margin. Meanwhile, the 49ers were 1-2 in the preseason and scored just 40 points while allowing 77. This will be the sophomore season for Steelers QB Kenny Pickett. You can expect the reigns to be pulled off him this year. Last year he was held back but not this year. A lot is expected out of the 2nd season QB and I do look for him to have a breakout year. He can do it throwing and with his legs. It looks like Brock Purdy will start for the 49ers after the bad injury in the playoffs vs the Eagles. Should be interesting against a Steelers teams that was very good at intercepting the ball last year. I like home dogs, especially ones coming off impressive preseasons with the better QB playing. I'll take the Steelers on Sunday.

The New Orleans Saints came off their preseason with a 2-1 record and outscored opponents by a 61-58 mark. As for the Titans, they also were 2-1 and outscored opponents 64-46. The Titans hope to rebound from a 7-10 season that saw them drop their last seven games. Mike Vrabel will be in his sixth season and the team under his control haven't missed the playoffs in two straight seasons. They come back with QB Ryan Tannehill and RB Derrick Henry. They added WR DeAndre Hopkins which should help the receiving corp. The New Orleans Saints have seen their win totals drop each of the last four seasons to just seven wins last year. In comes new QB Derek Carr. This might be the first time since Drew Brees that they will have a solid option at QB. Word is that WR Michael Thomas looks like his old self and could give a huge boost to both Carr and the receivers. Thomas has battled injuries over the last few seasons that has seen his playing time drop drastically. The Titans want to prove they aren't the team that finished last season. It will yet to be seen if Carr can keep the mistakes that plagued him in Vegas last year to a minimum. I have to take the points here with Henry carrying the load here on Sunday. Play Tennessee.

Arizona had a good preseason, going 2-1. However, they were outscored 46-72. Washington was a perfect 3-0 and scored 67 points while allowing 62. The Commanders came off a decent season last year. HC Ron Rivera had to shuffle some QB's, but the team performed well and finished 8-8-1, narrowly missing the playoffs. They start this season with a new offensive coordinator in Eric Bieniemy. The team was also sold as Daniel Snyder gave up ownership to Josh Harris. All these changes could be a new start for the Commanders. The defense has a lot of talent and stacked with draft picks. The D-Line is made up of all 1st round picks. The Defense finished 7th last year in scoring and should be even better this year. The Cardinals could and likely will be the worst team in the division this year. QB Kyler Murray will be out with an ACL tear and that leave David Blough and Jeff Driskell as the candidates. I see a huge difference in talent between these teams. I especially like the Commanders defense and they should shut down this anemic Cardinals attack. Take Washington here in week one.

Conference USA Action here on Saturday has two teams expected to make some noise in the conference this year as Liberty hosts New Mexico State. New Mexico State Aggies finished last year 7-6 under HC Jerry Kill while Liberty was 8-5 under HC Jamey Chadwell. New Mexico State opened this season with a loss to U Mass before beating Western Illinois in their second game, 58-21. They had 438 yards of offense in the 2nd half alone last week. This Aggies team was 38th in defense last season. Liberty is 1-0 with a win in their opening week over Bowling Green, 34-24. Though leading 24-0 they had to hold off a furious rally by Bowling Green. They were led by sophomore QB Kaidon Salter who had 143 yards and two TD's. Liberty had five interceptions on defense, the most by a Liberty defense since 1995. New Mexico State won this matchup last year 49-14. Double digit favorite is Liberty this year and I think that's just too many points to give this New Mexico State squad. Play New Mexico State.

App State hits the road for the first time this season after beating Gardner-Webb last week at home, 45-24. North Carolina opened with a win over South Carolina last week, 31-17. App State struggled a bit last week, pulling away in the 2nd half and allowing 24 points on defense. The Tar Heels had 269 yards passing and 168 yards rushing last week. A lot of points to cover here this early in the season against what has been a good App State program in season's past. I'll take the points here with App State.

Western Michigan heads to Syracuse to take on the Orange from the JMA Wireless Dome. Western opened the season with a win over St Francis PA, 35-17 while Syracuse routed Colgate, 65-0. The Western Michigan Broncos have a very good rushing attack, gaining 339 yards on the ground last week. They are ranked 7th in the nation in rushing. Syracuse ranked 5th in scoring after 65 point performance last week. They also had 677 yards of total offense. QB Garrett Shrader passed for 257 yards and four TD's. Both these teams looked great on offense last week against inferior opponents. I expect one of them will show it was the real deal and put up plenty of points again here on Saturday. Take the OVER.

Ole Miss travels to Tulane here on Saturday to face the Green Wave from Yulman Stadium. These teams last met two years ago with Ole Miss taking that one, 61-21. The Rebels closed out last season by losing their last four games of the year and five of the last six. The Rebs did open with a win in their opener, scoring 70 points in the process, but that was against Mercer. Today will be a much tougher test for this team. They do have an explosive offense though with one of the best QB's in Jaxson Dart. Quinshon Judkins looks to carry the load running the ball. Tulane is coming off that bowl win vs USC last season. They dominated South Alabama at home last week with a 20-point win. Now comes an SEC team to town, which is going to be a early test for this Tulane squad. Michael Pratt will be at QB after a 14-of-15 performance last week for four TD's. The Rebels will be out to get that bad taste from the end of last year from their mouths. I don't see them overlooking this Tulane team. I'll lay the points with Ole Miss.

The start of the NFL Season and a great game on tap as the Kansas City Chiefs host the Detroit Lions. Detroit had one of their best seasons in memory, finishing at 9-8. However, they missed the playoffs for the sixth straight year. Detroit improved though last year under Dan Campbell, winning eight of their final 10 games. Gone are RB's Jamaal Williams, D'Andre Swift and Justin Jackson. Coming in is 1st round pick Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery. The Lions were 8th in passing last year and 11th in rushing, averaging 26.6 ppg. Kansas City begins defense of their Super Bowl Championship. They were 14-3 in the regular season last year and beat the Eagles in the Super Bowl. They were first in the NFL in passing offense with 297.8 ypg. They were also first in scoring offense with 29.2 ppg. They will have some early issue on the defensive line with Chris Jones holding out. Expect the Lions to throw a lot in this game and with the high scoring Chiefs on the other side I'm taking the OVER here in game one of the season.

One of the marquee matchups of week one takes place tonight in Orlando as Florida State takes on LSU. These same two opened last season with FSU taking an exciting game 24-23 on a blocked extra point. FSU finished last year 10-3 and ranked No 11 in the nation. Lots of excitement in this team to push Clemson in the ACC and in the conference and maybe a playoff push. QB Jordan Travis is back to lead this high octane offense while the defense returns eight starters. LSU recovered from their opening loss to Florida State and got better as the year went along and beat Alabama 32-31 and finished 10-4 overall. They went on to the Citrus Bowl where they pounded Purdue. FSU will be a tough beat though here in Orlando where they lead the all time series with LSU, 10-0-2. They have also won eight of the last 10 overall with LSU. I'm taking Florida State here on the money as a small dog. Play Florida State Money Line.

Big 10 action already on tap here on Sunday as Rutgers hosts Northwestern. The Northwestern Wildcats had one of their worst years in history, finishing 1-11 on the season. They return a couple of QB's who will battle for the starting job. Rutgers looks for a winning season after losing since 2014. They had a 4-8 campaign last season. The QB job is wide open this season with a trio of players competing for the job. The defense should be solid this year, led by the pass rush and a good secondary. Both teams looking to get off to that winning start. For me I'll take Rutgers here at home.

Reason: Virginia Tech looks to start its season on a positive note and that means avenging a loss to Old Dominion from last year. The Monarchs defeated Tech, 20-17 last year and sent Tech on a 3-8 season. Bhayshul Tuten transfers over from NC A&T to bolster the running game for the Hokies. Old Dominion finished last year 3-9 and had some major roster overhauls. So it's yet to be seen how those will effect this year's team. Still, the Hokies not a team to be laying this many points even in a revenge situation. I'll take the points with ODU here on Saturday.

Both teams open the season here on Saturday night. South Alabama Jaguars finished with a 10-3 record last season while the Tulane Green Wave were 12-2. The Jags won 10 games for the first time in school history which has them one of the top teams to win the Sun Belt this year. They averaged 29.8 ppg last year while have a very balanced offense rushing for 156 ypg and passing for 267 ypg. Carter Bradley is back at QB after hitting on 65% of his passes and having 28 TD's last year. South Alabama should be just as good as last year with most players returning. They had a very good defense that held opponents to 22.5 ppg. Tulane did lose their leading rusher from last as Shaadie-Clayton-Johnson is expected to fill the void. The Jags had an excellent offense and balance attack with a good defense. The Green Wave did struggle against the run last year and that could be exploited here today. The Jags had the 6th best run defense in the country last year and should disrupt the Tulane rushing attack today. This South Alabama team just too good on both sides of the ball to be getting this many points. Take South Alabama.

West Virginia looking to improve on a 2022 season that saw the Mountaineers win only five games. This team looks to be a run first type offense again with a very good backfield. They still have questions to answer at the QB position though. The defense also needs to improve as they allowed 32 ppg last season. Meanwhile Penn State comes into the season with high expectations. They rank in the top 10 preseason polls and won 11 games last season. They also have 14 returning starters including their QB Drew Allar and top running back. This was one of the best defensive teams last season. They have depth on defense and look to use their defense to lead the way. That's what I look for here in week 1 for the Nittany Lions. I expect them to shut down this West Virginia offense. The home crowd will be up for this one and inspire a great effort from the Penn State defense. I'm not going to lay the big number, but rather take the UNDER in this game.

Opening game for both these teams as Northern Illinois Huskers look to improve on their 3-9 season last year. However, five of those losses came by one score. Rocky Lombardi is back at QB for NIU after 645 yards and five TD's last year. NIU suffered through a lot of injuries last year so they are looking for more consistent play this season. Boston College had its worst season since 2015 last year, finishing with a 3-9 record. They also return last year's QB as Emmett Moorhead is back behind center. NIU is 5-2 ATS in its last seven road games while BC is 4-10 ATS in its last 14 overall games. Getting more than a TD with a team that lost five games last year by one score is good for me. I'll take the points with Northern Illinois.

 Battle of Michigan teams here today has the Central Michigan Chippewas taking on Michigan State from Spartan Stadium. C.Michigan picked to finish fourth in the MAC has a somewhat difficult non-conference schedule with Michigan State and Notre Dame on tap. Michigan State takes on Richmond and Washington in their other non-conference games. C.Mich was 4-8 last year and turned the ball over a lot (-18 turnover ratio). Jim McElwain looks to improve the team as he did at Colorado State and Florida. They will start Sophomore QB Jase Bauer or reshirt freshman Bert Emanual Jr. The defense has talent at every level with a experience secondary. Michigan State has not announced a QB yet for week one as redshirt junior Noah Kin and redshirt freshman Katin Houser both compete for the spot. Michigan State will have to rely on a good defense until the offense finds its footing. Early on here I am like some nice dogs and today is one of them. I'll take the points with Central Michigan.

 Big 10 football on tap to start both Nebraska and Minnesota season. Nebraska parted ways with HC Scott Frost after losing four straight seasons. In comes Matt Rhule, former Carolina Panthers head coach. Rhule has shown he can help rebuild teams as he did at Temple and Baylor. The Huskers averaged 22.6 ppg last year. Jeff Sims, former Georgia Tech QB, will be the starter at Nebraska this year. Minnesota has won at least nine games in three of the last four years (Covid season the exception). They averaged 28.2 ppg last year. The bad news is they lost both QB's from last year and their leading rusher. Western Michigan transfer Sean Tyler is expected to replace their leading rusher, Mohamed Ibrahim. The defense lost some key members to a squad that was one of the best defensive teams in the country, allowing just 13.3 ppg last year. How the replacements will be is yet to be seen. The Minnesota team was a rushing team last year and didn't throw the ball much. How the loss of Ibrahim will effect them will be the big test. The defense also has lots of questions, losing their top three tacklers from last year. I'm looking for the Huskers to give them a good game here on Thursday under their new head coach. I'll take the points with Nebraska.

NC State travels to Hartford tonight to kickoff the season with U Conn for both teams. NC State finished last year 8-5 and lost in the Mayo Bowl to Maryland. U Conn finished 6-7 and lost in the Myrtle Beach Bowl to Marshall, 14-28. NC State will be rebuilding this season after losing a number of starters off of last year's team. That includes losing QB Devin Leary who transferred to Kentucky. They did get Virginia transfer Brennan Armstrong though. The defense returns six starters which finished 15th overall in scoring defense. As for U Conn, they look for another bowl bid this year and that would mark the first time for back-to-back bowl seasons since 2008-10. They will have Maine transfer Joseph Fagnano at QB. He had 15 TD's and 2231 yards last year at Maine. He will have an offensive line in front of him that returns four starters. Last time these teams met was 2022 with NC State winning at home, 41-10. Both teams have lots of new faces on both sides of the ball. I'm taking the points here today at home with the Huskies. Play U Conn.

This is the first game of the college football season as Notre Dame hosts Navy. Notre Dame has high aspirations for this season and a CFB playoff in part to Wake Forest transfer Sam Hartman. The Irish were 9-4 last year in the debut of HC Marcus Freeman. Still, they need improvement after losses last year to Marshall and Stanford. Navy will have a new look at HC as DC Brian Newberry takes over after 15-year HC Ken Niumatalolo was fired. Notre Dame a huge favorite here on Saturday. Hartman was one of College football's top QB's and will be a big upgrade at the position for Notre Dame. One thing Navy has going for it is the option. Always hard to prepare for a good option team. And this year you can expect more passing from this Middie tea under new OC Grant Chestnut. This more passing attack could catch the Irish off guard today. The offensive line should be very good with three returning seniors. Navy needs to get the ground game going and keep the Irish offense off the field. Navy covered last year, losing by just three points to the Irish, 32-35. I'll take the big points here with Navy on Saturday. Play Navy.

You can make a case for either side, but a few things separate these teams for me. First is experience. That all falls to the Chiefs, from head coach Andy Reid all the way to QB Patrick Mahomes. They have been here and done it. Plus, you now give Reid two weeks to prepare for this game? You know he's going to come up with some crazy stuff to throw a the Eagles. Mahomes high ankle sprain should be good to go too. The Eagles really had an easy road to get here against the Giants and then playing a 49ers team that had to put Christian McCaffrey at QB at one point. They really have been challenged by a good offense of late and that will come on Sunday. The factor that swayed this game for me is the experience factor and all those check marks line up on the Chiefs. I'll be betting the Chiefs come Sunday.

I look at the defenses to be the superior units in this game, especially the Philly defense which has been great. However, it's offenses which win Super Bowls. I also like Andy Reid who has been here many times and knows how to coach in the Super Bowl. Philly has a young coach and young team making their first appearance in some time. You can make a argument for just about any side or total in this contest. For me, I'm looking at a very good Philly defense to keep the score low. Plus, You have Jalen Hurts with that aching throwing shoulder. He hasn't been called on to make many throws the last two games, both of which dominated by the Philly defense. So we'll have to see if that changes much here on Sunday. I'm taking the UNDER in the Super Bowl and going against the historic trends of overs. I look for defense to be the units that take more over in this contest. So lets take the UNDER in the Super Bowl.

AT this point of the season you can pretty much make a case for either side in a matchup. The Bengals jumped out to a 14-0 lead last week at Buffalo and really shut down one of the best offenses in the NFL and QB's in Josh Allen. It was a complete game for the Bengals who controlled the game from the opening kickoff to the final whistle. If QB Jeff Burrow were to retire today, he would have the highest completion rate EVER in the NFL among QB's. Pretty impressive. The Chiefs hosted the Jaguars last week and while I had KC, the Jags got the back door cover on the last drive. Happens, they could allow a field goals so the Chiefs played a prevent defense and allowed the Jags to march down the field in last minute to get a field goal to cover the spread. But the biggest news was the high ankle sprain to QB Patrick Mahomes. He came out a a brief time, but came back in and finished with 195 yards and two passing td's. QB Chad Henne came into the game and led the Chiefs on a 98-yard touchdown drive while Mahomes was being tended to. Mahomes vows to play this week and I believe he will play. However, we will see a different Mahomes here in this game. One that can't scramble as well and definitely won't be doing a lot of running. He will be more of a drop back passer and will likely have more "dump off" options. This game comes down to QB's. I feel Burrows is arguably the best QB in the NFL and he proved it last week. Yes, Mahomes is great, but how limited will his game be with an injury that some players take weeks off to heal from? With Mahomes hobbled and the excellent rushing of the Bengals, I look for this game to be lower scoring. Take the UNDER.

AT this point of the season you can pretty much make a case for either side in a matchup. The Bengals jumped out to a 14-0 lead last week at Buffalo and really shut down one of the best offenses in the NFL and QB's in Josh Allen. It was a complete game for the Bengals who controlled the game from the opening kickoff to the final whistle. If QB Jeff Burrow were to retire today, he would have the highest completion rate EVER in the NFL among QB's. Pretty impressive. The Chiefs hosted the Jaguars last week and while I had KC, the Jags got the back door cover on the last drive. Happens, they could allow a field goals so the Chiefs played a prevent defense and allowed the Jags to march down the field in last minute to get a field goal to cover the spread. But the biggest news was the high ankle sprain to QB Patrick Mahomes. He came out a a brief time, but came back in and finished with 195 yards and two passing td's. QB Chad Henne came into the game and led the Chiefs on a 98-yard touchdown drive while Mahomes was being tended to. Mahomes vows to play this week and I believe he will play. However, we will see a different Mahomes here in this game. One that can't scramble as well and definitely won't be doing a lot of running. He will be more of a drop back passer and will likely have more "dump off" options. This game comes down to QB's. I feel Burrows is arguably the best QB in the NFL and he proved it last week. Yes, Mahomes is great, but how limited will his game be with an injury that some players take weeks off to heal from? I'll take the Bengals and Burrow in this game. Play Cincinnati.

The two best defensive teams in the NFL will meet here in the NFL Championship round. The Eagles topped the NFL, allowing just 297 yards per game. They were 17th vs the rush but first vs the pass. That should be good here today against rookie QB for San Francisco Purdy. Purdy has been great this year, but we'll see how he holds up in hostile Philly against the top ranked passing defense. Where the Eagles might get exploited is rushing. The Giants have Christian McCaffrey who could do well here today. San Francisco has the 2nd ranked overall defense, allowing 301 yards per game. They are 2nd vs the rush and 20th vs the pass. They will be tasked with containing Philly QB Jalen Hurts. The 49ers have gone under in their last seven playoff road games. They are also 1-5 O/U in their last six overall playoff games. Philly has gone under in their last four games on grass and are 1-4 O/U their last five overall. The Eagles are 3-12-1 O/U their last 16 playoff games at home. These teams have also gone under the last four times they have met. I like defenses come playoff time and I for both these units to do well here today. I'm taking the UNDER.

The Dallas Cowboys sent Tom Brady and the Bucs home with their dominating performance in the Wild Card game last week, 31-14. Dak Prescot was red-hot, throwing four TD's and running in another. Now the Cowboys will hit the road for this Divisional game at San Francisco. The 49ers are the hottest team with 11 straight wins and QB Brock Purdy, last man in the draft taken last year, now proving his worth. The 49ers are the best defense in the league and lead in point differential with a +10.6 mark. Don't put a lot of stock into that Cowboys win last week, the Bucs have looked bad all season as they limped into the playoff spot with a losing record. Dallas actually has the short week to prepare having played on Monday night. I expect the 49ers to be run heavy in this game with Chrisitan McCaffrey carrying the load. This team is filled with weapons on offense. I look for a higher scoring game here if the weather permits and it looks good right now. Both teams have been offensive juggernauts thus far and I don't see that changing. Play the OVER.

The Dallas Cowboys sent Tom Brady and the Bucs home with their dominating performance in the Wild Card game last week, 31-14. Dak Prescot was red-hot, throwing four TD's and running in another. Now the Cowboys will hit the road for this Divisional game at San Francisco. The 49ers are the hottest team with 11 straight wins and QB Brock Purdy, last man in the draft taken last year, now proving his worth. The 49ers are the best defense in the league and lead in point differential with a +10.6 mark. Don't put a lot of stock into that Cowboys win last week, the Bucs have looked bad all season as they limped into the playoff spot with a losing record. Dallas actually has the short week to prepare having played on Monday night. I expect the 49ers to be run heavy in this game with Chrisitan McCaffrey carrying the load. This team is filled with weapons on offense and the Cowboys won't have the cake walk they had last week. Also, the 49ers defense will give Dak plenty of problems here this week. I look for a higher scoring game here if the weather permits and the 49ers in a blowout win. My Playoff Game of the Year is on the San Francisco 49ers.

The NFC East battle between the NY Giants and Philadelphia Eagles will once again take place here on Saturday. The Eagles had the NO 1 seed in the NFC with their win over the Giants in week 18. The Giants rested most of their starters in that game with nothing to play for. They hit the road last week and beat Minnesota, 31-24. QB David Jones shined as he threw for over 300 yards and a pair of TD's while also using his legs to get key yards totaling 7. That performance earned him the status of being the only player in NFL history to throw for 300 yards and 2 TD's while also rushing for more than 70 yards in a playoff games. The Eagles had last week off after beating the Giants in the final week of the regular season. QB Jalen Hurts returned after missing weeks 16 and 17. The Eagles defense is ranked 2nd in the NFL with a 389.1 average per game. However, the did fail to cover three of their last four games heading into this contest. The Giants have been a great playoff road team, going 10-1 ATS in their last 11 tries. They are also 22-7 ATS in their last 29 games on grass. I will take the points here with the Giants as Jones will be the deciding factor in this cover. Play NY Giants.

Another miraculous comeback in the NFL last week, something we've seem much of lately, as the Jacksonville Jaguars looked horrible in their first half vs the Chargers. But a different team came out of the locker in the 2nd half and rallied to beat the Chargers, 31-20 behind Trevor Lawrence's four touchdowns. Now the young Jags will have to face the very experienced Kansas City Chiefs on the road. That is a big edge for me in this game, the experience of the Chiefs over the Jags. The Chiefs also had last week off with the first round bye and will be well prepared and rested for this game. I have high hopes for this Jaguars team with all the young talent, but it's not their season yet. The Chiefs still remain a big favorite to make the Super Bowl and I will take them here today. Play Kansas City.

Monday Night Football has the Cowboys playing at the Tampa Bay Bucs. For the first time in his career Tom Brady had a losing season with a team. That and the fact that on paper the Cowboys are the better team is why the Bucs are a home dog of a Field goal here on Monday. Yes, you can make many arguments why to back the Cowboys here on Monday. How poorly this Bucs team played this year, how much trouble they had putting points on the board, their last place rushing offense.... and on and on. However, I'm backing the Bucs for one reason and only one reason here on Monday and that reason is TOM BRADY. It's playoff time and that's where Tom shines. And I do expect to see a lot more upempo pace from Brady here on Monday. Brady and this offense has looked stagnant, expect under pressure of late game time clock. I see them doing a lot more no huddle and hurry up here on Monday. And with that I'm taking a shot on the OVER here on Monday Night.

Monday Night Football has the Cowboys playing at the Tampa Bay Bucs. For the first time in his career Tom Brady had a losing season with a team. That and the fact that on paper the Cowboys are the better team is why the Bucs are a home dog of a Field goal here on Monday. Yes, you can make many arguments why to back the Cowboys here on Monday. How poorly this Bucs team played this year, how much trouble they had putting points on the board, their last place rushing offense.... and on and on. However, I'm backing the Bucs for one reason and only one reason here on Monday and that reason is TOM BRADY. It's playoff time and that's where Tom shines. Now he is a home dog.... I'll take that shot here tonight. Give me the points at home with Tom Brady in the playoffs anytime. Take Tampa Bay tonight.

 If you look strictly at the best covering teams in the NFL this year, then you need look no further than the Bengals. They were 11-4 on the season vs the spread and only the Giants had a better spread covering percentage. Can't say the same for the Ravens who where just 7-9 vs the number. The Ravens closed out their season with a loss to the Bengals on the road, 16-27, but covered the 12-point dog line. That makes six games in a row they have scored more than 17 points. Most of that is due to Lamar Jackson being out of the lineup. Right now it's a question if Jackson will be able to play this week. If he doesn't it could get ugly for the Ravens offense. Baltimore finished 16th in total offense while Cincinnati was 8th (4th in passing). The Bengals have been very good at home, going 9-1-1 ATS in their last 11 home games. They are also 13-2-1 ATS in their last 16 games on field turf. I like the Bengals here on Sunday, especially if Jackson isn't in the lineup again. Play Cincinnati.

The NY Giants covered their fourth straight game and six of their last seven after losing to Philadelphia in the regular season finale, 16-22, as a 16.5-point dog. The Giants offense was mediocre all season, finishing 19th overall though 5th in rushing. The Vikings were 7th ranked on offense, 28th rushing and 6th passing. The Giants defense ranks 25th while the Vikings are 31st. This will be the first time in six years that the Giants will have made the postseason. These teams met just three weeks in Minnesota with the Vikings winning a close game, 27-24. The Vikings closed out their regular season with a win over the Bears, 29-13, covering the 6.5-point line. That cover snapped a four game spread losing streak. The Giants have covered their last four road games and are 9-1 ATS in their last 10 playoff road games. The Vikings are just 2-8-1 ATS in their last 11 vs the NFC. The road team has covered nine of the last 13 in this series and I'll be on the road team here today. Play the Giants.  

 The Miami Dolphins make the trip North to take on the Buffalo Bills. The Dolphins just did get into the postseason with their close win over the Jets in the final week. These teams split the two regular season games. The Dolphins beat the Bills back in Week 3 in Miami, 21-19. covering the four-point dog line. They lost on Dec 17 at Buffalo, 29-32, as a 7-point dog. There is a possibility that they could get Tua Tagovailoa back this week after he's missed time with a concussion. The Dolphins look for the huge upset against a Bills team that has won seven straight games. Buffalo has the 2nd ranked offense and the fourth ranked defense in the NFL. They also have the best point differential in the league at +10.6. Meanwhile, the Dolphins defense didn't do well down the stretch, allowing five of the final six opponents to score at least 23 points. Their defense has dropped to 18th in the NFL. The Dolphins are 3-8-1 ATS in their last 12 games on turf and 0-4 ATS in their last four playoff games. Buffalo is 7-3-1 ATS their last 11 at home vs the Dolphins and have won the last six straight up. The Dolphins have not found an answer for Bills QB Josh Allen who has torched them. In his 10 games vs the Dolphins he as 27 TD's and 5 INT's. At home, Allen has a +16.6 average margin of victory over the Dolphins. I'm taking the Bills here on Sunday as my Wild Card Game of the Year. 

 This playoff game will feature two of the young, emerging QB's in the NFL with Justin Herbert for the Chargers taking on Trevor Lawrence of the Jags. The Jaguars had an incredible run this season just to make the playoffs. HC Doug Peterson has done a great job with this team after the debacle left by Urban Meyer. Jacksonville was 4-8 at one juncture of the season and was already looking toward the NFL draft. However, five straight wins later they took control of the AFC South. And, for the first time since 2018, they will host a playoff game. Also look for the Jags to take advantage of a poor Chargers rush defense that allows 145.8 ppg this year. Also, I'm not a fan of Chargers HC Staley. I feel he's made some bad coaching decisions and this is one intangible that goes to the Jags. I'm looking for Jacksonville to control the ball on the ground and keep Herbert and his receivers off the field. I'll take the Jags at home here in week one of the playoffs.

The Seattle Seahawks are all Lions fans today after they backed their way into the Playoffs when the Lions went into Lambeau field and beat the Green Bay Packers. If I had a vote, Dan Campbell of the lions would get NFL Coach of the Year. The 9-8 Seahawks don't have to travel far as they play the 13-4 49ers. The Seahawks (9-8) are the No 7 seed in the playoffs. These teams have met two times this year with the 49ers taking both games. The 49ers have been on a roll, winning 10 straight games. The Niners lost both their 1 and 2 QB's when Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo both when down with injuries. However, Rookie Brock Purdy has been excellent in the role of QB with 13 TD's and just three INT's. The 49ers backbone is their defense, with the top ranked defense. They also allow just 16.3 ppg (tops in the NFL) and have held the Seahawks to just 20 points total in both games this year. While the under seems the logical choice here, I'm actually going against that. The Seaahawks have gone over in their last five playoff road games. The 49ers have gone over their last four hme games and 5-1 Ov/Un in five of their last six overall games. I'll take the OVER here today.

The Seattle Seahawks are all Lions fans today after they backed their way into the Playoffs when the Lions went into Lambeau field and beat the Green Bay Packers. If I had a vote, Dan Campbell of the lions would get NFL Coach of the Year. The 9-8 Seahawks don't have to travel far as they play the 13-4 49ers. The Seahawks (9-8) are the No 7 seed in the playoffs. These teams have met two times this year with the 49ers taking both games. The 49ers have been on a roll, winning 10 straight games. The Niners lost both their 1 and 2 QB's when Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo both when down with injuries. However, Rookie Brock Purdy has been excellent in the role of QB with 13 TD's and just three INT's. The 49ers backbone is their defense, with the top ranked defense. They also allow just 16.3 ppg (tops in the NFL) and have held the Seahawks to just 20 points total in both games this year. I don't see any problem here today for the 49ers. Take San Francisco.

College Football Championship game here has TCU a big dog to defending Champion Georgia. Georgia really could not be here if the Ohio State kicker made that last second 50-yard Field Goal. Ohio State truly deserved to be here as much as Georgia as they led a lot of the way in that semi-final game. Yet, Georgia survived that missed field goal and here they are. TCU surprised everyone with a dominating performance over Michigan. TCU will have to contend with a Georgia team, though torched by Ohio State, still ranks 5th in the nation in scoring defense. TCU is no slouch though, ranking 5th in the nation in scoring defense (14.8 ppg). They also rank fifth in the FBS in scoring (41.1 ppg). Both teams you can make an argument for. But for me, I have to take these points with TCU. They have a great defense and offense and can stay with Georgia tonight, just as they did with Michigan. Take the points here with TCU.

For one of these teams they will snap a five game losing streak, the other will finish with six straight losses to end the season. The Jets looked like a team heading for the playoffs until this run of five loss and now they can only play for pride. The Dolphins still have a shot at the playoffs, but need a win coupled with a Patriots loss or tie to the Bills. The Dolphins lost at New England last week, 21-23. Teddy Bridgewater has taken over at QB for injured Tua Tagovailoa. With Tua. Bridgewater was solid, but dislocated his pinky finger and had to be replaced by Skylar Thompson. Still unsure if Bridgewater will go today or back to Thompson. Joe Flacco will start for the Jets with Zach Wilson a huge disappointment in New York. The Jest will also be without three starting offensive linemen today. I don't see the Jets rolling over here today, but do they have the offensive weapons or line for that matter? What I expect is a defense to come out fired-up and ready to play. With Thompson at QB for the Dolphins I don't see a lot of points on that side of the ball either. I'll take this game UNDER.

A big AFC North game here on Sunday has the Browns playing at the Steelers. The Browns have been eliminated from the playoffs but look to play spoiler and keep the Steelers home too. The Browns did it last week, beating Washington and eliminating them from the playoffs. The Browns have lots of injuries though, especially on the offensive side of the ball so points might be difficult today for Cleveland. The Steelers have won three straight games and five of their last six. The Steelers have the best rushing defense in the league and will look to stop the Browns potent rushing attack. The Steelers offense has struggled though as QB Kenny Pickett has more INT's then TD's. Either way this game goes, I expect a low scoring contest here today. Play the UNDER.

The Tampa Bay Bucs are 8-8 on the season and just 3-4 on the road as they head to Atlanta for this AFC South contest. The Bucs beat the Panthers last week, 30-24 while the Falcons beat the Cardinals, 20-19. The Bucs QB Tom Brady has never lost to the Falcons and who can forget that NFL Super Bowl combeack he led when with the Patriots. The Bucs are the 4th seed in the playoffs. HC Todd Bowles said he will play the starters here today. Though have to wonder how long Brady will be in the game. Should he come out Blaine Gabbert would take over. The Bucs average just 18.5 ppgs this season and are last in rushing. The Falcons have lost six of their last eight and play for pride here today. Desmond Ridder will make his fourth pro start today. The Bucs already have offensive line issues so with that I don't expect Brady to be in this game a long time. The Bucs are 0-5 ATS in their last five road games. I have to believe this game means more to the Falcons then the Bucs. Play Atlanta.

Final week of the season and the Bears only can look to break a nine game losing streak here today at Soldier Field. As for the Vikings they are still playing for position in the NFC playoff picture. The Bears got clobbered last week by the Lions, 10-41 for their ninth straight loss. The Vikings are also coming off a loss last week as the Packers pounded them, 17-41. The Bears will be without QB Justin Fields who will sit out with various injuries today. Nathan Peterman will get the start. A lot of Bears younger players will try to impress for better roles next season with this team or another team. The Vikings looked like one of the best after nine weeks, going 8-1. Then Dallas beat them badly, 3-40. Since then, they are just 4-3. The Vikings have the division won, but a win today could improve their playoff position. I believe the Vikings will do just enough to win here today, but not be able to cover this big line. Play Chicago.

The AFC South title is on the line as the final week of the regular season begins here on Saturday with a pair of games. The Titans can salvage a bad finish to the season with a win here and playoff berth, while the Jaguars are looking to win five straight. The Jaguars have a one-game lead over the Titans with their 8-8 mark and the Titans 7-9. A Tennessee win and they would take the division because of their better AFC South record. A Jags loss and they could still make the playoffs, but they need help with losses by the Pats, Dolphins and Steelers. With Ryan Tannehill out at QB for the Titans, Mike Vrabel will start Joshua Dobbs over his rookie backup. Dobbs will be making only his second start of his six season NFL career. But I like this move from Vrable as Dobbs is highly intelligent, though lacking starter experience. The only issue is that Dobbs has only been with the team a few weeks. What I also like about this spot is that Vrable has had two weeks to prepare for this game with the Titans off last week. The Pressure is on the Jags today as they are a pretty big favorite. The Jags have done well as a dog, but as much as the chalk. In all likelihood a Jax loss puts them out of the playoffs. Vrable also had done great with teams in the dog role, covering at a very high rate. Plus add the fact that RB Derrick Henry is healthy for this game and I believe the Titans have a great shot here today to win. But lets take the points anyways. Play Tennessee.

The Kansas City Chiefs will have all hands on deck here on Sunday as a win will give them the AFC best record and home field throughout the playoffs. The Raiders season is done, QB Derek Carr likely done with the Raiders as Jarrett Stidham makes his second straight start here today. Stidham did well vs the NFL's top defense last week with both his arm and legs, but the Raiders came up just short at home. Stidham passed for 365 yards in that loss. Another potential big loss is that of AFC leading rusher Josh Jacobs. While Jacobs has some nagging injuries, it's a personal issue that may keep him out today. These teams last met back in week 5 and the Raiders comeback fell just short in the loss at KC, 29-30. Jacobs rushed for 154 yards in that contest. KC qb Patrick Mahomes has dominated the Raiders, going 8-1 in career with 26 TD's and just three INT's. The Vegas defense is 29th in the league so look for Mahomes to torch them again here on Saturday. Chiefs should win here today, but can they cover the big spread? I look for the Raiders with Stidham to at least stay inside the number as the KC starters might be pulled if they get up by double digits in this game. No pressure on the Raiders also, and that also helps. I'll take Vegas here on Saturday.

 The Rose Bowl has the PAC-12 Champion Utah taking on Penn State from the Big 10. The Utah Utes are 10-3 on the season and look to win their first ever Rose Bowl here on Monday. They won the PAC-12 in back-to-back seasons. They rank in the top 20 in both the offense and defense. Penn State will be making its fifth trip to the Rose Bowl and its first win since 1995. Penn State was third in a very good Big 10 in both scoring 35.8 ppg and total offense. Utah though will be hampered a bit here on Monday as both their top rusher and receiver from the regular season will not play here today. Will we see the same Utah team that took down USC in the PAC-12 Championship? I see this Penn State team as being very well balanced and with those two key players missing on Utah, I'll take the Nittany Lions here today. Play Penn State.

One big thing you have to keep in mind for these bowl games is which teams have players that want to play. We see it more and more where players either enter the transfer portal or opt out to prepare for the NFL draft. Some still will play for their team, but most don't. Purdue will get hit by that today in the Citrus Bowl. The Boilermakers were 8-5 on the season. Former Purdue QB and Saint's all star Drew Brees will be an assistant coach today as HC Jeff Brohm moves on to Louisville. They will also be without QB Aidan O'Connell and WR Charlie Jones (the Nation's leading receiver in receptions) along with three other full-time starters. All five of those players opted out to enter the transfer portal. LSU was 9-4 and while they will also miss a few players, they weren't hit nearly as hard as Purdue. WR Kayshon Boutte will be their biggest player opting out for the NFL Draft. LSU was happy to welcome back QB Jayden Daniels who announced he would return for 2023. Purdue's offense will be a big question here today without HC Brohm and the combo of O'Connell to Jones also gone. I'm taking LSU here today as they will have a big edge at the QB position. Play LSU.

Early game on the Monday Bowl schedule has Mississippi State taking on Illinois. The Bulldogs will be playing with heavy hearts here today after the passing of their coach, Mike Leach. Both these teams did more than expected of them this year. Illinois started the season with a 7-1 record but then had three straight losses to Michigan State, Purdue and Michigan. They did finish the season with a win over Northwestern to get to eight wins. Miss State also started fast, getting out of the gate to a 5-1 start, but they could only play .500 ball the rest of the way. Have to wonder how this Miss State will rebound since the passing of their coach on Dec 12. DC Zach Arnett will take over the heac coaching duties here today. Miss State decided to play this game despite losing their coach. That makes me believe that want to win this one for the coach. That can be a strong motivating factor and I will be on them here today. Play Mississippi State. 

AFC North Clash here on Sunday has the Pittsburgh Steelers not officially elminated from the playoffs but in need in help and a win here on Sunday. The Steelers are 7-8 on the season and have won two straight games. They scored a late touchdown last week to beat the Raiders, 13-10, as a 2.5-point favorite. They held the Raiders to just 201 totals yards and 58 rushing yards. The Baltimore Ravens have secured a playoffs spot with their 10-5 record. The Ravens beat the Falcons last week 17-9, as a 6.5-point favorite. The Ravens will one again be without QB Lamar Jackson, who is out with a knee injury. The Steelers are 4-1 ATS in their last five, 16-7-3 ATS their last 26 games in January and 9-4-1 ATS their last 14 in Week 17. The Steelers are also 2-5 Ov/Un in their last seven vs the NFC North and 22-47-1 Ov/Un in their last 70 road games. The Ravens are 1-5-1 their last seven vs the AFC and AFC North. They are also 1-6-1 ATS in their last eight home games. The Ravens have gone under in their last four games, under in their last eight on field turf and under in six straight at home. The Dog is 20-6-3 ATS the last 29 meetings between these teams. These teams have also gone under in six of the last eight in Baltimore and under in four straight overall. I'm taking the Steelers and the UNDER here today in a must win spot against a Baltimore team that I don't expect to get many points.   

AFC North Clash here on Sunday has the Pittsburgh Steelers not officially elminated from the playoffs but in need in help and a win here on Sunday. The Steelers are 7-8 on the season and have won two straight games. They scored a late touchdown last week to beat the Raiders, 13-10, as a 2.5-point favorite. They held the Raiders to just 201 totals yards and 58 rushing yards. The Baltimore Ravens have secured a playoffs spot with their 10-5 record. The Ravens beat the Falcons last week 17-9, as a 6.5-point favorite. The Ravens will one again be without QB Lamar Jackson, who is out with a knee injury. The Steelers are 4-1 ATS in their last five, 16-7-3 ATS their last 26 games in January and 9-4-1 ATS their last 14 in Week 17. The Steelers are also 2-5 Ov/Un in their last seven vs the NFC North and 22-47-1 Ov/Un in their last 70 road games. The Ravens are 1-5-1 their last seven vs the AFC and AFC North. They are also 1-6-1 ATS in their last eight home games. The Ravens have gone under in their last four games, under in their last eight on field turf and under in six straight at home. The Dog is 20-6-3 ATS the last 29 meetings between these teams. These teams have also gone under in six of the last eight in Baltimore and under in four straight overall. I'm taking the Steelers and the UNDER here today in a must win spot against a Baltimore team that I don't expect to get many points.   

 Just two weeks left in the regular season and the Minnesota Vikings have wrapped-up the NFC North Division with a 12-3 record. They are 5-games ahead of both Detroit and the Packers. Packers need a win here today to keep their postseason hopes alive. The Vikings beat the Giants last week, 27-24, as a 4.5-point favorite. The Packers went to Miami and beat the Dolphins, 26-20, as a 3.5- point favorite. The Packers were +3 in turnover ratio in that game. The Vikings are just 3-10 ATS their last 13 vs a team with a losing record. The Packers do well on the grass, going 17-7 ATS their last 24. The Vikings are 5-1 Ov/Un in their last six vs the NFC North and 8-1 Ov/Un in their last nine on hte road vs a team with a losing home record. They have also gone over in five straight games. The Packers are 11-5 Ov/Un in their last 16 vs the NFC North and 8-3 Ov/Un in their last 11 games in week 17 of the season. The Packers have covered nine of the last 13 vs the Vikings in Green Bay and the home team is 9-4 ATS the last 13. In addition, these games have gone over in four of their last five Meetings. Take the Over in this matchup today.

Just two weeks left in the regular season and the Minnesota Vikings have wrapped-up the NFC North Division with a 12-3 record. They are 5-games ahead of both Detroit and the Packers. Packers need a win here today to keep their postseason hopes alive. The Vikings beat the Giants last week, 27-24, as a 4.5-point favorite. The Packers went to Miami and beat the Dolphins, 26-20, as a 3.5- point favorite. The Packers were +3 in turnover ratio in that game. The Vikings are just 3-10 ATS their last 13 vs a team with a losing record. The Packers do well on the grass, going 17-7 ATS their last 24. The Vikings are 5-1 Ov/Un in their last six vs the NFC North and 8-1 Ov/Un in their last nine on hte road vs a team with a losing home record. They have also gone over in five straight games. The Packers are 11-5 Ov/Un in their last 16 vs the NFC North and 8-3 Ov/Un in their last 11 games in week 17 of the season. The Packers have covered nine of the last 13 vs the Vikings in Green Bay and the home team is 9-4 ATS the last 13. In addition, these games have gone over in four of their last five Meetings. Take the Packers today.

Two teams in desperate need of a win to keep their playoff hops alive meet today as the Seahawks host the Jets. Both teams are 7-8 and both have a narrow slot at make the Wild Card playoffs, but both must win here today. The Jets lost their last home game of the season last week to the Jaguars, 3-19. It was their fifth loss in the last six weeks. Seattle also lost last week to the Cheifs, 10-24. The Jets would be eliminated from the playoffs with a loss and will also need the Pats to lose a game. The Seahawks are 8th in the West but will need to not only win, but will also need a Washington and Green Bay loss to get in. These two teams are very evenly matched and with Zach Wilson benched again that actually will help the Jets. But I think it's the Seattle defense that will step up today and do just enough to get the Seahawks the win in what will be a close finish. Take the point or so with Seattle here today.

With just two weeks to play, the Detroit Lions still have an outside shot of the making they playoffs as they are tied with the Packers at 7-8 in the NFC North. The Lions lost last week at Carolina, 23-37, as a 1.5-point favorite. They gave up 570 total yards to the Panthers, 320 rushing and 250 passing. Meanwhile, the Chicago Bears are in last place in the NFC North and eliminated from the playoffs. They lost at home last week to the Bills, 13-35 as a 8-point dog. The Lions have the fourth ranked offense in the NFL while Chicago is 27th. Problem is the Lions have the last ranked defense while Chicago is just slightly better at 23rd. The Bears are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 on the field turf. They are also 7-21 ATS their last 28 vs the NFC and 2-6 ATS their last eight road games. The Bears have gone over in their last five road games and 8-1 Ov/Un in their last nine overall games. The Lions are 8-0 ATS their last eight vs the NFC and 7-1 ATS their last eight overall. Detroit is 7-2 Ov/Un in seven of their last nine home games. They are also 5-1 Ov/Un in five of their last six vs the NFC. Detroit will have to go all out here at home on Sunday to keep those playoff hopes alive. Chicago has no motivation in this one. Take the OVER.

The Tampa Bay Bucs are only 7-8 on the season but can win the NFC South here on Sunday with a win over the 2nd place Carolina Panthers. This really is a playoff game for both teams because the loser could be out of the playoffs. Tampa Bay has pretty much been a dead under team this year. They are 4-11 Over/Under on the season and their offense has been very vanilla this year. They actually rank ok, 15th overall in the NFL in offense. However, the rushing game is dead last while QB Tom Brady has had to throw for his life this year and has them 4th in passing offense. Carolina has the 29th ranked offense, 10th in rushing and 28th in passing. The Panthers kept their playoff hopes alive with a win over Detroit last week, 37-23. They have already beaten the Bucs once this year so another win here and they hold the tie-breaker. The Panthers are 3-8 Ov/Un in their last 11 vs the NFC South. The Bucs are 4-17 Ov/Un in their last 21 vs the NFC. I look for a low scoring game here on Sunday. Play the UNDER.

The Ohios State Buckeyes looked like the team to beat in the Big 10 before Michigan dismantled them in their annual matchup. Really Ohio State is lucky to be here with USC losing and opening the door for them to slide back in. There is no pressure on the Buckeyes here today since really they shouldn't even be here. The Buckeyes were 2nd in scoring offense with a 44.5 ppg average. They also had a very good defense, ranked 13th in scoring, holding opponents to just 19.2 ppg. Meanwhile, Georgia was perfect on the Year and had little trouble in the SEC. Stetson Bennet led the team with 3,425 yards passing and 20 TD's. Of course you can make a case for either team. But for me, this high scoring Ohio State team as a nice dog is too much for me to pass up on. I believe Ohio State can win this game, but I'll take the points anyways. Play Ohio State.

Look for defense to be the name of the day here as TCU takes on Michigan. The TCU defense has been great, especially in a secondary that forces a lot of INT's. On offense, they are led by QB Max Duggan, the Heisman Trophy runner up. Duggan had 30 TD's this year and over 3,300 yards passing and just four INT's. But his legs also get him lots of yards with 404 rushing and six TD's on the ground this year. They also will be healthy for this game as everyone is available. For Michigan, they will miss their best running back in Blake Corrum (1,463 yards and 18 TD's after he injured his knee vs Illinois and will not play today. For me, it's all about the TCU offense led by Duggan and their excellent defense. I can get a TD or even better here with the Horned Frogs looks to be a steal to me. Play TCU.

The New Orleans Bowl has Alabama taking on the Big 12 Champion, Kansas State. The Alabama Crimson Tide might be in for a bet of a letdown here today. Winning bowl games is about the players that want to be there and play in the game. I have to wonder about Alabama. They finished with 10 wins and made a case for their being in the playoff final four, but find themselves instead in the Sugar Bowl. Most teams would relish the kind of season Alabama had, but this isn't any team. Most surprising is that neither team looks to without players opting out or going into the transfer portal. Alabama is loaded at offense with last year's Heisman winner Bryce Young leading them at QB. This team averaged 40.8 ppg during the regular season. The Tide look to be a heavy favorite with their offense, but I still wonder if they will have motivation here today. Kansas State can take solice in that the Tide allowed 318 yards to Auburn in their last game, 181 yards rushing to Ole Miss and 185 yards rushing to LSU, all three of those over their last four games. Kansas State won 10 games too this year and might figure to be the be dog as everyone counts them out. I'm going to take the points with the Wild Cats here today and see which Alabama team shows up. Play Kansas State.

The Iowa Hawkeyes and Kentucky WildCats will meet here in the Music City Bow, their second straight postseason meeting. The same teams met last year in the Citrus Bowl with Kentucky coming out on top 20-17. Iowa started the season slow, going 3-4 after being pummeled by Ohio State, 54-10. However, after Mark Stoops turned down the Iowa job that seemed to revitalize the team as they went 4-1 the rest of the way with big wins over Purdue, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Kentucky started the season 4-0 and then went 3-5 the rest of the to finish 7-5. Look for a low scoring bowl game here with the impressive Iowa defense on the field. The Iowa offense ranks near the bottom of the nation, scoring just 17.9 points per game. Now add to that the loss of QB Spencer Petras and those numbers likely will be even less here today. QB Alex Padilla would have started, but he entered the transfer portal so the duties fall to third stringer, Joe Labas. No one knows much about Labas so the WildCats can't really prepare for him. Kentucky will also be without their top QB, as Will Levis has opted out of today's game. So has RB Christopher Rodriquez Jr, who led the team in rushing. The Cats also fired OC Rich Scangarello. Hard to play any game under this posted total, but will either team score here today? This will be very low scoring and I'll take a shot under this low posted total. Play UNDER.

It's the SEC vs the ACC in the Orange Bowl here today as Tennessee faces off against Clemson. This is a fitting bowl for two teams that will be all orange playing in a sea of orange here today. Both teams will also play with QB's that didn't play most of the season. Joe Milton will start for Tennessee after taking over for injured Hendon Hooker in the Vols loss to South Carolina. He did lead the Vols to a lopsided win over Vanderbilt, 56-0. True Freshman Cade Klubnik came in the ACC Championship game win over North Carolina, 39-10. That lead to previous starter, DJ Uiagelelei's entry into the transfer portal that takes him to Oregon State. The Vols had the nation's third ranked passing attack under Hooker, so it will be interesting to see how they attack the Clemson defense. While these teams look a bit different then they did earlier, still should be a very good Orange Bowl. I'm going to stick with Tennessee though in this game. Play Tennessee.

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish can end the season with 9 wins with a win today over South Carolina. The Gamecocks look to win their third straight game here today at the Gator Bowl. South Carolina started the season slow, going 1-2 after three games. However, the finished with a 5-2 mark the final seven games. They also averaged just under 40 points per game in those final five wins. Their biggest win was a dominant performance over Tennessee for their 7th win, 63-38 with over 600 yards of offense. They then finished the season by beating Clemson on the road, 31-30 as a 14 point dog. Notre Dame lost their last game of the regular season at USC, 27-38, as a 4.5-point dog. Both these offenses are very good. But I have been impressed at how S.Carolina performed those final two weeks as double digit dogs in both games. I'll take the points here today with South Carolina.

The Pittsburgh Panthers and UCLA Bruins meet for the first time in football in 50 years as they play in the Sun Bowl from El Paso Texas. The No 18 Bruins had a fine season under Chip Kelly, finishing the regular season at 9-3. If not for a pair of late season losses, the Bruins might have made the NCAA playoff picture. The Bruins should be at full strength despite many players declaring for the NFL Draft or entering the transfer portal. THe Panther on the other hand will be missing seven key players due to the draft and transfers. Pitt finished 8-4 on the season. The big player here today will be UCLA QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson and RB Zach Charbonnet - both of which will play in this Bowl. This UCLA offense is as good as any in the country, especially with DTR and Charbonnet leading the way. Pitt will have trouble staying with this UCLA team with so many good players missing today. I'm taking UCLA.

Alamo Bowl here on Thursday has Washington taking on Texas. Texas finished the regular season at 8-4 after back-to-back wins in the final two games. The Huskies finished with six straight wins. The Longhorns will miss one of their best running backs in Bijan Robinson (6.1 ypc and 18 TD's). Robinson decided to sit out the bowl game as he prepares for the NFL draft. This will put more pressure on QB Quinn Ewers. Washington had 10 wins under one-year coach Kalen DeBoer. And Washington has been playing as good as any team in the country. They have one of the best offenses in the country and an improving defense. The offense is 2nd in the nation in total offense and first in passing offense. Neither team will have much rushing, so the passing edges goes to Washington here today. I think it's a gift getting points with the Huskies today. Take Washington.

Cheez-It Bowl here on Thursday has Oklahoma taking on Florida State. This will be the fifth ever postseason meeting between these two teams. Florida State enjoyed a rejuvenated season after four straight losing campaigns. The Sooners on the other hand had a down season under first year HC Brent Venables, finishing just 6-6. A loss here today and it will be the team's first losing season since 1998. FSU had a nice season under HC Mike Norvell, going 9-3 and can have their first 10-win season since 2016. OU running back Eric Gray has opted out of this game as he declared for the NFL draft. That's a big loss on the ground for the Sooners. FSU ranked top 25 nationally in sacks with 34. They also have a top 20 total scoring defense that yielded the fewest yards per game in the ACC. These teams headed in different directions and with the Sooners missing a key running back they will have troubles against this top defense of the Seminoles. I'll lay the points here with Florida State.

Ole Miss comes in losing three straight games while Tech has won three straight. Speculation that Ole Miss HC Lane Kiffin might be headed to SEC foe Auburn. But Kiffin has come out and said he's staying at Ole Miss. So with that settled, Ole Miss can get back to how they started the season. The Rebels won seven straight to start the season. This Tech team has had a Jekyl and Hyde season. They looked like they would make a bowl. At one stage the Red Raiders were 4-5 as they came down the stretch. But the Raiders rallied in November and ended up rattling off three straight wins to end the year. Texas Tech hit their peak against TCU and Oklahoma. It's hard to get up again for a game like today. Ole Miss has much more desire to play for a win. Take Ole Miss.

 Despite their proximity, this will be the first meeting between East Carolina and Coastal Carolina in the Birmingham Bowl. East Carolina is 7-5 and with a win will have their most wins since 2014 and their first bowl win since 2013. Coastal won in the Bowls last year. Coastal QB Grayson McCall has entered the transfer portal, but is expect to play one more game for Coastal here today. McCall has 24 TD's this season. The problem with Coastal is their defense, which ranks 98th in the nation. East Carolina has a top 25 offense and should move the ball easily today vs this Coastal defense which allows 459 yards. That for me is the key in this game, the inability for Coastal to contain the East Carolina offense. Take East Carolina.

Crampton Bowl today has two teams that have never met before as Buffalo takes on Georgia Southern. Ga Southern has lost three of their last four as they head into today's contest. The Eagles had to beat App State to qualify for this game in what was a back-and-forth scorefest, 51-48. Buffalo also limped into this game. After starting the season 5-3 they lost three in a row and had to come from a 0-16 deficit to Kent State to rally and get into this game. Ga Southern has the fourth ranked passing attack in the nation and that will give Buffalo lots of problems here today. The Eagles can also run the ball with Jalen White who had 914 yards and 10 TD's this year. That will be against a Buffalo defense that had lots of problems stopping the run as they allowed 175 ypg on average. Could be a very high scoring game with both offenses very good. But for me, I give the edges in this one to Ga southern because of their passing game. Play Georgia Southern.

The Indianapolis Colts are officially eliminated with their 4-9-1 overall record. They will host the 8-6 Chargers tonight. Chargers trying for one of those Wild Card games and right now it's theirs to lose. The Chargers are coming off a win last week over the Tennessee Titans, 17-14 as a 3-point favorite. That is two wins in a row and three of their last four games. The Chargers offense is 12th overall, but just 31st rushing and 3rd passing. The defense is 21st, 11th vs pass and 28th vs the rush. The Colts are coming off that devastating loss to the Vikings where they blew the biggest lead in NFL History, 33-0, before losing 36-39 in OT. Have to wonder if they have anything left in the tank here tonight. The Colts will start their third different QB here tonight as Matt Ryan takes a seat. In comes Nick Foles, who has started just once in the last two seasons. Foles will lineup behind the worst pass protection line in the NFL. Foles will also be without Jonathon Taylor who is back on the IR. The Colts offense, despite the 36 points last week, has not eclipsed 20 points in nine of their first 13 games. Tonight a new QB and no Taylor? I think I'll stick with the UNDER here tonight as the Colts have problems putting points on the board. Play UNDER.

 The Miami Dolphins can take a step closer to a Wild Card slot in the AFC with a win today over the Green Bay Packers. The Dolphins are 8-6 in the AFC East, but with the Buffalo win on Saturday they Bills locked up the division. The Packers are 6-8 overall and while not mathematically eliminated, they have a tall task to get the playoffs and a must win here today. The Packers are coming off a win over the Rams last week, 24-12 as a 7.5-point home favorite. That made two wins in a row for thee Packers. Miami lost a close game to the Bills last week in Buffalo, 29-32, as a 7-point dog. That loss makes three losses in a row for the Dolphins. If the Packers can win here today on the road, they will finish the season at home on Lambeau Field for their final two games. Dolphins' center Mitch Morse did not return after being evaluated for a head injury in the second half of last week's game vs the Bills. He is listed as questionable today and he's the one that calls out the lanes and blocking assignments in audibles among snapping the ball.  The Dolphins rank 27th in opponent third-down conversion percentage and they rank near the bottom of the league in passing defense (27th), scoring defense (26th), and red-zone defense (25th). The Pack has won four of the last five vs the Dolphins and today I'll take the points with the visitors. Play Green Bay.

 That cyclone bomb hitting most of the US will provide one of the coldest games in team's history here in the Raiders vs Steelers game. It's a Special Christmas eved night here at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh as the Steelers celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Immaculate Reception. They expect one of the coldest games in team history with temps in the single digits and with the wind chill that will drop well below the zero degree mark. The previous coldest game came in 1977 when the temp hit -2 degrees. Wind plays the biggest factor for me going to the UNDER and it's going to be windy here today. The Raiders will have lots of troubles in this one in the cold weather. Take the UNDER and stay warm.

With the cyclone bomb hitting most of the country this weekend, we can fully expect the retractable roof here in Dallas to be closed for this game. Other than the weather, the big news here is that QB Jalen Hurts (shoulder) will miss today's game at Dallas. Garner Minshew is expected to make the start in his place. Both these teams have clinched a playoff spot as the Eagles are 13-1 with the best record in the NFL and the Cowboys are 10-4. The Cowboys lost to the Eagles back in October when Cooper Rush was filling in for Dak Prescott. The Dallas defense, once one of the best in the league, has suffered injuries and it showed in their loss last week to the Jaguars. The Eagles clinch the NFC and Home field advantage and a first round bye with a win here today ad Dallas. The Cowboys would have to win out the rest of the way if they hope to get the East title. While Minshew won't bring the rushing dynamic to the Eagles, he is deadly accurate as a thrower and will change the game plan here today for the Eagles. Even without Minshew here today I like the Eagles who have the better defense and they want to lock up everything so they can rest a few weeks. Play Philly.

While this one doesn't expect to be quite as cold as other games, it's still expected to be one of the coldest between these two AFC South Rivals in their history. The temperature at kickoff is expected to be around 19 degrees. Houston has little experience playing in these frigid conditions. For Tennessee expect Henry to see plenty of carries in this game. The Texans play in a dome and now face the top rush defense in the Titans. They are 0-4 in their four game against the top ranked rush defenses this year. The Texans have one of the worst rush defenses and Henry has torched them in the past. I expect Henry to do much of the same here on a cold day in Tennessee. Take the Titans on the Money line as part of this 2-team parlay.

Another of these games affected by the weather cyclone bomb hitting most of the country. It's going to be very windy and cold in Chicago on Saturday. There likely won't be any rain/snow, but for me wind plays the biggest factor in NFL totals. Passing becomes difficult and teams will have to rely on their rushing games. In these kinds of games you pretty much toss all the numbers and analytics out the window. The weather is the factor here and the cold and the wind especially. I'm taking under in what should be a blistery, cold day in Chicago.

The New Orleans Saints will miss their cozy indoor stadium here on Saturday as the face the Cyclone bomb hitting the USA. The weather will be the biggest news maker here on Satudray. It's going to be a frightful night in Cleveland as the teamps will be around 10 degrees and the wind chills could be anywhere from -20 to -30 degrees. Cleveland is no stranger to bad weather in the NFL, but this game likely will go down the history books as one of if not the coldest games. Expect the Browns to showcase plenty of Kareen Hund and Nick Chubb here today. Don't execpt to see a lot of balls being thrown in these conditions. The Browns have used these kinds of weather conditions to their advantage for years. For me though, I'm sticking with the UNDER.

The New Orleans Saints will miss their cozy indoor stadium here on Saturday as the face the Cyclone bomb hitting the USA. The weather will be the biggest news maker here on Saturday. It's going to be a frightful night in Cleveland as the temps will be around 10 degrees and the wind chills could be anywhere from -20 to -30 degrees. Cleveland is no stranger to bad weather in the NFL, but this game likely will go down the history books as one of if not the coldest games. Expect the Browns to showcase plenty of Kareen Hund and Nick Chubb here today. Don't except to see a lot of balls being thrown in these conditions. The Browns have used these kinds of weather conditions to their advantage for years. The Saints do not like these conditions and for me this gives a huge advantage to the Browns here today. Take Cleveland on the Money Line as part of this 2-team parlay.

It's going to be an ugly day in the Meadowlands as the weather won't be good. The Jags, who are used to that Florida weather, will have to put up with cold, rain and wind here tonight. For me it's about the wind and we could see gusts over 20 mph. Anything over 15 and you start to effect totals. Plus it will be soaking rain and cold. The Jets already have the league's third top defense as they keep moving up the standings. The offense is 19th while Jax is ranked 6th. The Jags are 2nd in the AFC South, a game back of Tennessee. Right now the best path for the Jags to the postseason is win the AFC South. Getting Wild Card looks harder than winning the division. They have a week 18 meeting with the Titans and that could determine who wins the division. The Jets are 7-7 and right now trail both the Chargers and Dolphins for the Wild Card who are 8-6. The Jets playoff chances have really been hurt by their 1-4 record their last five games. The Jets need to win their last three games to have a real shot at the Wild Card. Their week 18 matchup at Miami looks to be their most critical game right now. So tonight, both teams need this game. For me, I'm taking the UNDER in what looks to be horrible conditions.

Armed Forces Bowl here today is the lone college game on the slate. Air Force takes on Baylor. The AF Falcons bring a four-game win streak into this game and are 9-3 S/U and 6-6 ATS on the season. The Falcons averaged 27.7 ppg while holding opponents to just 13.2 ppg. Air Force coming off that fine defensive effort in their win over Navy, 13-3, as a 2.50 point favorite. They held Navy to -1 yard rushing and just 188 yards passing. They will face a Baylor Bear team that had a down season at just 6-6 S/U and 7-5 ATS. The Bears averaged 33.6 ppg while allowing 26.6 ppg. The Bears tied for 6th in the Big 12 standings with just two teams having a worse record. The Bears bring a 3-game losing streak into today's contest, coming off a loss at Texas, 27-38, as a 10-point dog. These teams haven't met since 1977. Air Force is led by RB Brad Roberts, who had 1612 rushing yards and 15TD's this season. Motivation is a key in these bowl games and Acacdemy's usually have plenty of that because their seniors will likely be the last time they wear the football uniform. Plus getting points with a team that can win 10 games is more than enough for me. I'll take Air Force here today.

Reason: Lone game on the Bowl slate tonight has the New Orleans Bowl between South Alabama and Western Kentucky. The Sun Belt rep in this game has won five straight New Orleans Bowls and the South Alabama Jaguars look to make that six in a row here tonight. Western Kentucky had a lot of replacing to do on offense this year as OC Zach Kittley, QB Bailey Zappe and their top two receivers all departed. However, they did a good job replacing them as they are back in the Bowl game again this year with a 8-5 record. South Alabama is under 2nd year coach Kane Wommack and he had them at 5-7 last year but stepped up this year to a 10-2 mark as both sides of the ball saw great improvements. One of their losses came by just one point to UCLA. One area that could be a problem for Western tonight is their rush defense, that allowed 155.9 yards per game and their 2nd leading tackler will be out as he declared for the NFL Draft. This game will be the South Alabama outstanding defense against the Western Ky offense. Look for South Alabama to control the ball on the ground and their defense to stiffle the Hilltoppers. I expect South Alabama to come out on top here tonight.

The LA Rams might not be mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, but realistically their 4-9 record is not going to be good enough at this point. They did put some excitement into the game last week with the dramatic come-from-behind win over the Raiders with newly acquired QB Baker Mayfield. Mayfield led them to a pair of late fourth Quarter TD's, the last with just seconds to go to get the win. The Packers also having a bad season at just 5-8 overall. The Packers had last week off after beating the Bears the week before, 28-19, as a 3.5-point favorite. The Packers are just 3-7 ATS their last 10 games and 1-4 ATS in their last five at home. It looks to be a cold and possibly snowy night in Green Bay around 20 degrees with some snow likely. Mayfield should be used to it from his days in Cleveland. Lets see if the magic is there again for Mayfield and the Rams. I'll play the Rams.

Just one game on the college bowl schedule here on Monday, The Myrtle Beach Bowl from Conway, SC has Marshall playing U Conn. The U Conn are 6-6 S/U and 9-3 ATS on the season. They are coming off a loss to Army back on Nov 19th, 17-34, as a 10-point dog. The Huskies are in their first season under coach Jim Mora and made their first bowl game since 2015 and with a win their first winning season in 10 years. The Marshall Thundering Herd was 8-4 S/U and 6-6 ATS on the season. The Marshall defense was very good this year, allowing just 16.2 ppg on the season. The Herd finished third in the Sun Belt conference behind Coastal Carolina and James Madison. They finished the season winning four straight games and covering three of those. Marshall is 7-3 ATS in their last 10 Bowl games and 19-7 ATS in their last 26 on real grass. U Conn is just 0-4 ATS in their last four neutral site games. Marshall is a big running club and I look for them to control the ball on the ground here today. Couple that with their excellent defense and I look for this game to go UNDER the total.

The Cincinnati Bengals will have extra incentive here today after AFC North co-leader Baltimore lost on Saturday at Cleveland, 3-13. A win by the Bengals today and they take over sole place atop the division. Tampa Bay leads the worst division in football, the NFC South. The Bucs might not make the playoffs if they were in any other division, but here they lead the South by one game over both the Panthers and Falcons with their 6-7 record. The Bucs got beat bad last week at San Francisco, 7-35, as a 3.5-point dog. The running game continues to be bad, gaining just 69 total yards. Tampa Bay ranks 18th overall in offense, but last in rushing with just 73 yards per game average. If not for their 5th rank pass attack this unit would be even worse. Cincinnati has the 5th ranked offense, 4th in passing. The Bengals won last week at home over the Browns, 23-10, as a 4.5-point favorite. Just how bad has this Tampa Bay offense been? They have scored over 22 points just one time the entire season and that was a losing effort at home vs the Chiefs, 31-41. The rushing game has gone over 100 yards just two times all season. The Bengals are 4-13-1 Ov/Un in their last 18 games. They are also 6-19-2 Ov/Un in their last 27 road games vs a team with a losing home record and 9-24-3 Ov/Un their last 36 overall on the road. The Bucs have gone under in four of their last five home games and six of their last eight on grass. I'm sticking with the UNDER here today.

The Cincinnati Bengals will have extra incentive here today after AFC North co-leader Baltimore lost on Saturday at Cleveland, 3-13. A win by the Bengals today and they take over sole place atop the division. Tampa Bay leads the worst division in football, the NFC South. The Bucs might not make the playoffs if they were in any other division, but here they lead the South by one game over both the Panthers and Falcons with their 6-7 record. The Bucs got beat bad last week at San Francisco, 7-35, as a 3.5-point dog. The running game continues to be bad, gaining just 69 total yards. Tampa Bay ranks 18th overall in offense, but last in rushing with just 73 yards per game average. If not for their 5th rank pass attack this unit would be even worse. Cincinnati has the 5th ranked offense, 4th in passing. The Bengals won last week at home over the Browns, 23-10, as a 4.5-point favorite. The Bengals are now 9-1 ATS their last 10 on grass, 13-3 ATS their last 16 on the road and 14-3 ATS their last 17 following a straight up win. Meanwhile, the Bucs are just 1-6-1 ATS their last eight at home, 1-9-1 ATS their last 10 games overall. Cincinnati just a much better team than this Tampa Bay club is right now. I'll take the Bengals.

The Tennessee Titans are just 7-6 overall on the season, but by virtue of playing in one of the weakest divisions in the NFL, they lead the AFC South by 2-games over the Jaguars. That includes three straight losses by the Titans too. The Titans coming off a loss to the Jags last week, 22-36 as a 3-point favorite. The Titans defense ranked just 25th overall while the Chargers are 23rd. The Chargers are 12th on offense while the Titans are 29th. The Chargers are coming off a win last week at home over Miami, 23-17, as a 3-point dog. Tennessee has been a good over team on the road where 15 of their last 22 away games have gone over. The Chargers are 7-3 Ov/Un in their last 10 home games and 10-3 O/Un in their last 13 on field turf. Five of the last seven between these teams have gone over and that's what I'm looking for today. Play the OVER.

The New England Patriots look to continue their dominance vs the Raiders here on Sunday. The Pats have won six straight vs the Raiders and now it's mentor vs mentee as Josh McDaniels looks to beat his old coach in Bill Bellichick. Somehow the Raiders collapsed (again) last week and let Baker Mayfield lead the Rams on two late TD drives to pull out the win, 17-16. A unsportsmanlike penalty on Raiders' Perryman sure helped in the defeat as the play was a sack and ended up 15 yards and a first down all because he slapped the ball out of the players hand. It's bad enough when physical mistakes hurt you, but stupid mental ones really are hard to take. That loss ended any hope of a Raiders playoff as they dropped to 5-8. While not mathematically eliminated, they sure look to be done as a Thanksgiving Turkey. The Pats need a win here today to improve on their 7-6 record and keep their playoff hopes alive. The Pats are a good bounce back team, evidenced by their 23-5 spread mark the last 28 times they have got 250 yards or fewer the previous game. They are also 4-1-1 ATS in their last six road games and 7-3 ATS their last 10 overall. Not only has the road team covered four of the last five in this series, but the Pats are 5-1 ATS their last six meetings. I'm taking the Patriots as the Raiders just keep finding ways to lose games.

 Two teams with a lot of expectations this year just didn't come through on what was expected as the Arizona Cardinals visit the Denver Broncos. The Russell Wilson experiment has been a bust in Denver this year. The Broncos are in last place in the AFC West with a 3-10 record and have lost five straight games. The defense has been good, ranked 7th overall in the league. It's the 27th ranked offense that has been brutal. The Broncos finally had an over play when they played the Chiefs last week in a 28-34 loss. That broke a string of eight under plays. Still, the Broncos are 2-11 Ov/Un on the season. The 28 points last week was a season high and the first time over 21 points since October 2nd. The Cardinals offense hasn't been the same without Kyler Murray at QB. Murray has been hurt with a ACL injury and missed the last few weeks. He will be out again here today. Without Murray the Cards have scored 13, 24 and 10 points the last three weeks. The offense has dropped to 20th in the NFL. Can't really see many points in this one. The Denver defense should keep the score low today. Play UNDER.

 The Dallas Cowboys struggled all game with the lowly Houston Texans last week, but finally pulled out the win, 27-23, as a 17-point favorite. The Texans didn't roll over against their intrastate rivals from the North. The win improved the Cowboys to 10-3, though they still trail the 1st place Eagles by two games. As for Jacksonville, they pulled the upset win at Tennessee last week, 36-22, as a 3-point dog. The Jags are now 7-1 on the season when they score 24 or more points. They are 0-6 when scoring fewer then 24 points. The Jags are in 2nd place in the AFC South, two games back of first place Tennessee. The Jags offense is decent, ranked 11th overall while Dallas is one slot higher at 10th. The Jags are 27th on defense while Dallas is much better at 5th. Dallas has been a good covering team, but not so much on the grass where they are 3-7 ATS their last 10. In addition the dog has covered four of the last five in this series. Question is, which Jax team do we see today, the one that scores 24 points or more and wins or the one that scores fewer than 24 and loses. I think we see the former here as they get those 24 or more points and cover this dog line. Play Jacksonville.