Author Archive

It’s so good to have the NFL back. What a week in Week 1. Nearly every single game was close and came down to the wire. It was a great week for the dogs. I tried to pick a spot with calling an upset with the Panthers over the Seahawks. They almost did it if it wasn’t for DeAngelo Williams fumbling the game away.

The close week in all games really shows the parity between teams in the NFL. Early in the season, the dogs usually have the edge when every team is 0-0 and each team thinks they’re going to make the playoffs. Huge improvements among the Bills, Dolphins, Browns, Titans, Rams, Chiefs, Chargers, Cardinals, Lions, Eagles, and many other teams that were written off last year and in past years. There is one certainty among teams in that last half of the power rankings last year, the Jaguars are still the worst team in the NFL! How quickly coaching changes and drafting well can turn around teams immediately.

Last week, nearly all the advice I dished out was sound. I did extremely well picking games straight up, but those (-4.5) spreads cost you when your team pulls off a win by 3-4 points. Not a big deal as it’s only Week 1 and I like to take the first 4 weeks to evaluate things. I continue to believe that the books have the edge weeks 1-8 and that turns around in weeks 9-17 which has always been my bread and butter. The playoff teams step it up a notch while teams whose playoff hopes are defeated give up on the season, which is where I always try to capitalize.

I really like the primetime games this week with …

Question:

Standard League. Who  should I start at Flex? Pick only 1.

Chris Ivory, Gio Bernard, Golden Tate, or Stevie Johnson

Answer:

I would go Golden Tate. I expect the Panthers and Seahawks to exchange TDs in this game. I like this game going over 47 points. Tate should also be Seattle’s top receiver this year as he takes a big step forward this year.

After Tate, I would actually go with Stevie Johnson. Not because he could be a top-scorer, but because he’s just straight thug and running his mouth against the Patriots. I hope he has a big game to back up his talk because the Patriots deserve getting a beat down.

Giovanni Bernard will be splitting caries with BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Giovanni Bernard gets maybe 15 carries this game against a tough Bears defense. I want to see how he splits the load with BenJarvus Green-Ellis first.

I wouldn’t advise you to start any Jets player. Chris Ivory is behind Bilal Powell on the depth chart and the Jets should be one of the lowest-scoring offenses in the league.…

It’s hard to believe that the NFL season is back. We are ready to dominate the 2013 season just like we did the 2012 season. Remember to sign up for the pick ‘em league. It’s a great way to track your picks against the spread throughout the season and you’ll have a chance to win an NFL Shop t-shirt. Click here to register.  The league number is 35254 and the password is thepassrush.

My favorite spreads this week are Texans (-4.5) over Chargers, Bucs (-4) over the Jets, Redskins (-4) over the Eagles, and Colts (-10) over the Raiders. My upset of the week and favorite game to take the points in is Panthers (+4.5) over the Seahawks. I also have two teasers for you.  A 1:00 teaser of Colts (-3.5) and Patriots (-3.5) and a special prime-time teaser for you featuring Redskins (+3) and Texans (+2.5). It’s week 1, and I take it easy through the first four weeks and dial it up around week 5. There’s still a lot of unknowns.

DENVER BRONCOS (-8) over Baltimore Ravens

We posted this full pick earlier this week. I’m passing on this game as the spread is too high against the defending Super Bowl Champions. With Elvis Dumervil now on the Ravens and Von Miller suspended, the Broncos also have question marks on defense, but I expect the Broncos offense to be clicking which should allow them to cruise to an easy victory.

PICK: Broncos (-7) – Confidence 6/10

PREDICTION: Broncos 27 – Ravens 17

New England Patriots (-9.5) over BUFFALO BILLS

I’m passing on this one. There’s a lot of merit into thinking the Patriots will crush the Bills here. The Bills have a rookie QB learning a …

The Pass Rush is back for another season of football picks. Last year was another success and we’re ready to kick ass for another season. We have renewed our pick ’em league so be sure to sign up. Not only is it a great way to track your picks against the spread throughout the entire season, but you’ll have a chance to win an NFL Shop t-shirt if you win the league. I ended up in 2nd place last year and Beantown Brawlers took down the title. Click here to register.  The league number is 35254 and the password is thepassrush. If you haven’t drafted in your fantasy football league yet, be sure to check out our 2013 Fantasy Football Rankings.

Baltimore Ravens @ DENVER BRONCOS (-8)

We start of the season with a rematch from the AFC Championship. I’m going to pass on this game and look to the spreads on Sunday. I think the Ravens take a step back this season as they have a ton of starters to replace on that defense, which is a huge question mark for them going into the 2013 season.

The loss of Anquan Boldin and the injury to Dennis Pitta also takes some options away in the passing game for the re-signed Joe Flacco, who got a ridiculous contract in the offseason. I say the Ravens end up 9-7 or even 8-8 this year, while the Broncos should finish the season no worse than 10-6 and likely around the 12-4 mark being in an easy division. The Broncos are also without some key players as Elvis Dummervil is now on the Ravens and Von Miller was recently suspended for the first six games of the season, so the …

We’re busy working on our 2013 Fantasy Football rankings. It’s currently still a work in progress and will continually be evaluated and updated until Baltimore Ravens vs. Denver Broncos opening kickoff on September 5, 2013.

Check it out… 2013 Fantasy Football Rankings»…

We are five Sundays away from the start of the NFL season. At this point in the season, I’m working on my 2013 fantasy football rankings, pinning down the right online sportsbook to use throughout the year like Bovada sportsbook, and following by beloved Eagles.

The Eagles always seem to have some huge offseason story. In 2009 it was Michael Vick’s return to the NFL, then in 2010 it was Michael Vick taking the reigns as the starter, and 2011 was the year of “The Dream Team” which went terribly wrong. This year the Eagles are dealing with Riley Cooper’s racial comment and trying to find a replacement for Jeremy Maclin, who they lost for the season with an ACL injury.

Although the loss of Jeremy Maclin is huge, I’m not too concerned with the loss. Now that the Eagles offensive line is back, if they can give Vick protection and get the running game going, Vick will be able to effectively spread the ball around. The Eagles were decimated with injuries along the offensive line last season. They lost Pro Bowl LT Jason Peters and C Jason Kelce very early in the season. With Jason Peters and Jason Kelce back along with first-round draft pick OL Lane Johnson, the Eagles can shift Todd Heremans back to guard and this offensive line starts looking like one of the best in the league.

With a a quality offensive line, LeSean McCoy has the ability to return to his his 2011 form rather than his 2012 form and the Eagles can take the load off of him with the emerging Bryce Brown, who showed flashes of greatness last season if it wasn’t for his fumbling problems. Coming out of high …

We’re still several months away from the 2013 NFL season, but at least we have the NFL Draft coming up at the end of the month to help pass some of the time. Right after the NFL draft is the Kentucky Derby on May 4th. If you’re like me, you may want to dabble on betting on  the horsies while sipping on a mint julep. There’s just something about the Kentucky Derby that makes us all feel like wealthy southern gentlemen for a day.

If you want to start doing some homework on the odds, head off and check out Kentucky Derby 2013 race information. So far the front runner to win the grand daddy of horse races is Verrazano who is currently 7/1 odds after opening at 150/1 odds. Some interesting names that caught my attention, if your strategy is to simply bet on names you like, are Will Take Charge at 22/1 odds and War Academy at 30/1 odds.

Is there a potential Smarty Jones in this group? It’s too hard to tell. We’ll know more as we get closer to the race. If your interested in getting after the action, head on over to this 2013 Kentucky Derby gambling site.…