Chargers (+2) at Dolphins- The Chargers were early season darlings after beating the defending champion, Seattle Seahawks to start a treat of a five game winning streak, but now their star, or lightning bolt, is fading. I will say I was bit taken in and thought, "Hey, the Chargers may be legit, this year and could. Phillip Rivers is clearly channeling Stan Humphries or something, could they have a chance to ghost all the way?"
But outside of that Seattle win, who have they played? The last three wins in that five game winning streak were against the Jaguars (1-7), Jets (1-7) and Raiders (0-7). That's three teams with a combined record of 3-21. Basically, these were all games that they should have won with no problem whatsoever. What happened though is the the Bolts squeaked past the Raiders and then lost the next two games to division foes, Kansas City and Denver.
On the other side of the coin, the Dolphins have won three of four and their one loss was just a three point loss to a very talented Packers team. Then there's San Diego traveling across the country into the treacherous and haunting eastern time zone. Everything kind of points to the Dolphins covering this one, no problem, right? Well, here's the thing, the Chargers are coming off a a Thursday nighter, so they've got extra rest and prep time and we're setting the clocks back, giving one of those lost time zone crossing hours, back. They're gonna be itching to get off the snide. It is one of the tougher calls this week, but I think the Chargers pull this one out. Chargers 24-21
Jaguars (+10.5) at Bengals- The Bengals look to be getting A.J. Green back for a game against the 26th ranked pass defense. That sounds good to me, kids. Sure, they won't have Giovanni "Scare"nard, but Jeremy "House on Haunted" Hill looks to be more than serviceable as his replacement, so I don't see the Jags getting win number two, in week nine. That being said, the Jags defense has improved and I don't think the Bengals put up a ton of points. Bengals 21-13
Buccaneers (+6.5) at Browns- Look, before I start, let me just say I think Buccaneers are less than good. I want to make that very clear. Got it? Okay, good. In their last four games they have a win and two of their losses were by six points or less. There's just something Lake Eerie about believing in the Browns to cover. Browns 21-17
Redskins (+1) at Vikings- RG III returns Sunday and while it is tough to say where he will be, having not played in an NFL game week two, I think you have to like what he brings to the table. I think Teddy Bridgewater is not quite in sync with his offense, just yet, so the I think the 'Skins zom-beat the Vikings in this one. Redskins 23-14
Eagles (-1.5) at Texans- Nick Foles has been somewhat inconsistent and the Texans have J.J. Watt and that frightening Clowney, fella.
Sorry for the clown pic...it's Halloween weekend, though, folks...deal. Bottom line, though, is that the Eagles are the better football team. That and clowns are scary. Eagles 28-17
Jets (+9.5) at Chiefs- It is certainly pickaxe-citing that Vick's first start as a Jet is against former head coach Andy Reid. Now Vick is better than Geno Smith, but does he make the Jets better enough to beat the Chiefs in Kansas City? I don't think so, but the Jets have a good rush defense and I don't trust Alex Smith to out up big points. Chiefs 20-17
Cardinals (+3) at Cowboys- The Cowboys rely on running Demarco Murray into the ground while the Cardinals rely on their defense to keep them in games. Should we expect some ghoul-line stands from Zona? Maybe not, but expect a close one. Cardinals 28-24
Rams (+10) at 49ers- Frank "Guts and" Gore and company are favored pretty big, but it may be coverable. The Niners are coming off a bye, are at home (in what was once called Monster Park) and are against the Rams...who don't play complete games, really. 49ers 24-13
Raiders (+14.5) at Seahawks- A spread of this size is always tough to bet on, but the Raiders are not really good. The Raiders have only scored more than 14 points once this season and the Seahawks Legion of Booo, despite being a bit overrated, is still fairly frightening. The Raiders have only lost by more than 14.5 or more points twice and only once on American soil. Seahawks 27-14
Broncos (-3) at Patriots- Foxboro kind of haunts Peyton Manning and he has not played well in cooler weather. Manning's last trip to Foxboro didn't end, well, the way he wanted. Broncos may very well be the better team, but I think Peyton's Foxboro troubles continue. Patriots 31-27
Ravens (-1.5) at Steelers- Ben Roethlisberger was elite for a few hours last Sunday against the Colts, but will that continue? Probably not, but doesn't mean they should be home dogs, here. I don't think the Steelers are coffin up the deficit they faced in the teams' first meeting. Steelers 21-18
Colts (-3) at Giants- The Colts are coming off a horror-fying loss in Pittsburgh loss last week, while the G-men return from a bye week. The Giants corners are actually decent, but I expect quite a few scores in this game. All in all this is a tough pick and figuring out witch one to pick. I think I look for a big game from Ahmad Bradshaw against his former mates and with a little Luck, the Colts roll. Colts 27-21
