No Contact for Lamar; Orioles still on the Bubble; Fantasy FB Lineup
Thursday Night Football
The NFL Opened up on Thursday and the Buffalo Josh Allen’s looked really good, as expected. It’s obviously too early to crown anyone, anything, but they are already cooking. The Rams look like they have some issues. We expected a regressession here anyway with the loss of Odell Beckham and Von Miller, but the O-Line was dismal. Stafford got abused by the Bills to the tune of 7 Sacks and 15 Hits, much of which was caused by Von Miller. It’s going to be a long season for the Rams if they can’t figure out these issues.
Buffalo was still a little rusty, as expected, but they could have had a much better day. They forced three turnovers but didn’t really take advantage of them. It could’ve been far worse, or better, depending on your perspective. The defense was missing their starting corners, but didn’t really have much of an issue. The question will be if Josh Allen can survive, because he kept running and he’s going to continue to take a beating. The receiving corps is talented, but needs time to find themselves.
NFL - Week #1 Preview & Fantasy FB Highlights
NO Saints @ Atlanta Falcons - Marcus Mariotta against the Saints defense is a match made in heaven for New Orleans. We both agree on this one - Saints should take this one. Tom isn’t as high on the Saints as Chris though.
SF 49ers @ Chicago Bears - Trey Lance vs. Justin Fields, we both expect SF to cover and win outright. The Bears are bad, and the 49ers defense is so good. No Kittle so his back-up is a flier
Pittsburgh @ Cincinnati - Cincy to cover 6.5pts, but this game is usually a wild one. Chase and Burrow are obvious picks for Fantasy and the Steelers defense are a great bet.
Philadelphia @ Detroit - Detroit has become a movement because of Hard Knocks. This is the first sell-out in Detroit in a very long time, but Philly is the favorite here. Swift is a great, consistent reception hawk. Hurts and Brown should be a lethal fantasy combo as well.
New England @ Miami - This new Miami team puts their stamp on the league, and the division. Waddle & Hill should both have great days, and Tua along with them. New England didn’t really get any better, so we both picked Miami here.
Ravens @ NY Jets - Lamar and the crew are favored by 6.5; Tom doesn’t think that’s enough. Mark Andrews, Lamar, and whoever gets the carries, Drake or Davis should all put up points.
Bonus Coverage: Lamar’s contract didn’t get done, surprise! Next year’s franchise tag will be $47.28mil guaranteed and Lamar isn’t concerned about it.
Jacksonville @ Washington - these teams are terrible, but Jacksonville is favored by 2.5pts. Chris loves Jacksonville, Tom thinks the Commanders STINK. Wentz and Lawrence are the obvious fantasy choices here.
Cleveland @ Carolina - It’s the Baker Mayfield Revenge Tour! Cleveland with Brissett should still roll this team. The Browns defense should limit Baker’s impact. McCaffery should be productive. This is a push - Chris picks Carolina and Tom picks Cleveland.
Indy @ Houston - The Colts are sort of the obvious choice here and we both agree. Matt Ryan and Jonathan Taylor are the major Fantasy players along with Davis Mills.
Giants @ Tennessee - Titans are favored by 5.5 pts. The Giants are just awful and the Brian Dabol experiment is probably futile. Tom picks the Giants to cover, Chris does not. Henry is the fantasy story here
Green Bay @ Minnesota - GB is favored by 1.5, but they are missing their new #1 and have rookies on at wideout. The Vikings are no joke though and can put up a lot of points. We’re split here with Chris picking Minnesota, and Tom Green Bay. Jefferson, Cousins, and Cook are the big names along with Rodgers, for fantasy purposes.
Chiefs @ Cardinals - KC without Tyreek, but we don’t think that’s an issue. The Cardinals still have a lot of growing to do. Mahomes, Kelce, and Murray are the fantasy studs here.
Raiders @ LA Chargers - Herbert in Fantasy and Chargers to cover 3.5. This could be a high-scoring affair. Play all your skill position players on either of these teams. Devante Adams, Hunter Renfro, Austin Ekeler.
Tampa @ Dallas - TB12 and the crew are hard to bet against. Dak has some ankle soreness, but this team still needs to prove itself. TB has the O-line issues which could factor in, but overall Tampa is better on paper.
Broncos @ Seattle - Broncos are favored and Seattle is rebuilding a bit with Geno Smith at the helm. Wilson is the major storyline here with his return to Seattle. We both expect the Broncos to take this one.
O’s/Red Sox at the Yard
The O’s dropped 3 of 4 to Toronto prior to this series. The pitching has given way a little bit here in the last few weeks. The double-header was deflating and they really struggled to get going after that. The Blue Jays certainly seem like they’re on the ascendency, but this was definitely a blow to the Wild Card race and ego.
The season is in their hands though. They have three more games against Toronto in the middle of September, but even when they were winning they weren’t gaining ground. Seattle and Tampa have continued to do their jobs to make the race what it is. They are still young and learning who they are, and this might not be their year but we can’t be disappointed.
The O’s need to take care of business against Boston this weekend to make sure they keep pace heading into the final few weeks of the season. They will most likely need perfect baseball from here out to sneak in.
CFB Week #2 Preview
#1 Alabama @ Texas - Alabama is favored by 20, and that feels low. Texas is getting a home line there. Alabama rolls, and covers the line. We both agree here.
#24 Tennessee @ #17 Pitt - This should be a VERY good game. Tennessee is favored by 6, and we both agree they win and cover.
#20 Kentucky @ #12 Florida - Tom picks Florida and Chris is going with Kentucky. Both teams are young and talented, and finding their identities.
#9 Baylor @ #21 BYU - BYU is favored by 2.5 which is a little surprising. Baylor had been whispered about for a final four spot so this is either disrespect to them or heaps of respect to BYU. Baylor to cover though, we agree.
A lot of good games around the NCAA this weekend even beyond these. Keep an eye out for some entertaining matchups this Saturday!