Sunday Recap for Week 2 of NFL Betting
by Robby Maddux
Sunday's Week 2 NFL wagering action is in the books and what a day it was, and there were many major headlines created. Let's take a look back at what went down, followed by a glance at tonight's huge NFC East showdown.
In the early games, the defending champion St. Louis Rams (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS) to start their season at 2-0 SU and ATS. In the season opener, the defending champs allowed only seven points to Washington (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS). The Giants have not lost a road game since their 2007 opener and set an NFL single-season record with 11 consecutive SU wins away from home in last season, amazingly, covering the spread in ten of those roadies.
Detroit Lions (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS) and to move to 2-0 SU and ATS. The Packers have now won 19 of their last 22 regular-season games SU, covering in ten of its last twelve including this season.
Notable Early Game Headlines at a Glance:
- Minnesota (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS), 18-15.
- Chicago (1-1 SU, 1-0-1 ATS).
In the late afternoon games, veteran quarterback Kurt Warner and the Arizona Cardinals made headlines. Warner had a perfect 158.3 passer rating for the third time in his career, tying Peyton Manning for the NFL record. Warner completed his first nine passes for 221 yards, including two TD tosses, finishing with 361 yards going 19-of-24 and three TDs in a 31-10 victory over Miami (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS) that has the Cardinals 2-0 SU and ATS for the first time in 17 years.
Notable Late Afternoon Game Headlines at a Glance:
- Matt Cassel in his first NFL start at quarterback led the Brady-less Bunch (2-0 SU, 1-1 ATS) over Brett Favre and the New York Jets (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS), 19-10.
- Kicker Joe Nedney overcame a botched field goal as time expired in regulation to kick a 40-yarder 4:40 into OT, sending the Seattle (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS), 33-30.
- The Dolphins lost their 11th consecutive road game SU, falling to Arizona 31-10.
Sunday's finale was an AFC North clash between the visiting Cleveland Browns (0-2 SU, 1-1 ATS). Pittsburgh continued its dominance over the Browns by winning its tenth consecutive game SU against their closest divisional rivals 10-6 - but failed to produce green for black and gold backers as 6-point favorites. The Pittsburgh win extended the NFL’s longest current winning streak between any two teams.
Playing with a separated shoulder in 60 mph win gusts, Ben Roethlisberger still completed 12-of-19 for 186 yards and improved to 10-0 SU in NFL games in his home state of Ohio.
NFL Week 2 Offensive Studs and Duds
Stud quarterback in the second week was Philip Rivers who was 21-for-33, with 377 yards and three TDs but the Denver (2-0 SU, 1-0-1 ATS), resulting in a push as the Broncos posted the win by completing a 2-point conversion with 29 seconds remaining.
Oakland's (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS) rookie Darren McFadden rushed for 164 yards and a TD on 21 carries in a cover 23-8 victory over Kansas City (0-2 SU, 1-1 ATS) as the young stud carried the silver and black to just its fifth SU win in 18 games. On the receiving end of things, Green Bay's Greg Jennings had six catches good for 167 yards in a money-making win over Detroit (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS), 48-25.
Earning dubious honors as duds in Week 2 is the entire Cleveland team and head coach. Cleveland quarterback Derek Anderson threw two interceptions, one setting up Roethlisberger’s scoring pass to Hines Ward, and the second that ended the Browns’ best chance of finding the end zone on the final play of the first half following some questionable clock management by coach Romeo Crennel in the last two games.
Anderson owns a QB rating of 57.1, going 29-of-56 with 280 yards, one TD, and two picks and fumbles through the first two weeks. The Browns scored 402 points last year. They’ve scored 16 on one touchdown and three field goals this year and off to an 0-2 SU and 1-1 ATS start.
Following an electrifying Sunday of online NFL odds has Dallas favored by 6½ -points with a game total of 46.
If you're a Philly fan, you have to like your chances of earning a MNF paycheck, considering the Eagles are 9-3 ATS in their last 12 dates in Big D, and when the NFC East heavyweights trade punches the roadies have covered in four of the last five bouts.
The Cowboys opened the season as one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl and in Week 1 they looked very much like a championship caliber team, posting a 28-10 cover win over hosting Cleveland. Tony Romo was 24-of-32 for 320 yards and threw his lone touchdown pass to Terrell Owens, who had five catches for 87 yards.
Philadelphia looked even more dominate in its season-opener with a 38-3 home win against St. Louis, easily covering the spread with the arm of Donovan McNabb, who threw for a Week 1-best 361 yards (21-of-33) and three touchdowns in a well orchestrated passing masterpiece.
Now, the bitter division rivals are ready to light up MNF's center stage, and the victor will make a statement that the NFC East title is theirs for the taking. Dallas investors are hoping for a Romo-Owens show, but the duo hookup has fluttered the last two times they've hosted the Eagles. The Cowboys are 1-4 ATS in their last five MNF appearance. Romo posted a 32.6 QB rating in those two games and Owens had just four catches for 60 yards, as Dallas was held to a combined 13 points.
Meanwhile, Philly fans are looking for another star performance from McNabb with sound backup from Brian Westbrook, who also shined with a solid season debut with 91 yards and a TD on 19 carries, but has rushed for 100 yards only once in 12 career games versus Dallas.
Note: The contest between Houston Texans (0-1 SU, 0-1 ATS), which was originally rescheduled from Sunday afternoon to Monday evening due to Hurricane Ike's presence has now been pushed back to Sunday, Nov. 9 due to extensive damage to Reliant Stadium.
Houston was originally scheduled to play the Bengals on Nov. 9. But, Cincinnati will take its bye week on that date and will face the Texans on Oct. 26, instead, so Houston and Baltimore can play on Nov. 9, which is a date the Ravens originally had scheduled as a bye.
NFL Week 3 Byes: None
