The NFL Preseason is underway, and the college football season fires things up later this month, making it the perfect time to get on board for another winning year of football at Doc's Sports. We are in our 43^rd year in the sports selection business and as successful as ever behind a dedicated team of expert handicappers. One of the best of the best at Doc's for the past eight years has been Raphael Esparza.

He honed his craft in the sports betting industry over the course of a long and illustrious career working behind the counter for some of the biggest sportsbooks in Las Vegas, and at the height of his career he was the Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria. Raphael was formally known as the Vegas Sports Informer up until the point of his retirement from the industry a year ago.

He now focuses all of his energy working with a vast network of some of the biggest and most influential insiders in Las Vegas. These professionals know the sports betting inside and out, which has helped Raphael create an "inside edge" that he relies on to make all of his selections. His handicapping service stands out from all the rest given that he can deliver selection packages for a wide array of sports that include the WNBA, horse racing, boxing, professional tennis and soccer leagues all around the globe.

Doc's Sports and Raphael have been engaging in a weekly Q&A for quite some time now to provide our readers with his expert insight into some of the hottest trending topics in the sports betting industry today. What better source is there than someone with direct access to the undisputed sports gambling capital of the world? The following is this week's conversation.

Doc's Sports: Last week you mentioned that Las Vegas should pull in some decent action on the first full round of NFL Preseason games. Which matchups on the Week 1 slate have caught your early attention?

RE: There are a couple a great games this week, including a rematch of the last two Super Bowls, but if you are looking for value in the betting odds then take a closer look at the Saints getting three points on the road against St. Louis and Carolina getting 1.5 points on the road against a Bills team that had to play in the Hall of Fame Game this past Sunday night.

Doc's Sports: We have already covered the four division races in the AFC for this upcoming season, so turning to the battle to win the highly-competitive NFC West, which team do you have coming out on top?

RE : The NFC West could be the most competitive division in the NFL. You already have two of the best teams in the league in Seattle and San Francisco, and both Arizona and St. Louis should be improved this year. If I had to make a pick I would go with San Francisco to win, but the better play could be the "under" on both the 49ers (10.5) and Seahawks (11) projected win total this year.

Doc's Sports : The SEC has been the most dominant major conference in college football for the past several years by winning seven of the last eight national titles. While Alabama is favored by just about everyone to win the conference title this season, do you see another stunning upset waiting in the wings for the Crimson Tide?

RE: This is still Alabama's conference to lose, but it will still face some stiff competition from Auburn, LSU and possibly even Texas A&M to secure the West Division title. As far as the East Division, it should be a battle between Georgia and South Carolina for the top spot. My top pick in the SEC is the "over" on Florida's projected win total of 7.5 games as the Gators get back to a decent bowl this year.

Doc's Sports: The MLB trade deadline came and went last week. Do you see any of the deals that were made having a major impact on either league's pennant race?

RE: The clear winner in my book was the Detroit Tigers with the addition of Tampa Bay starter David Price. They did not have to give up all that much to get him, and you know that you have a powerful rotation when Justin Verlander is now your third- or fourth-best starter.

Doc's Sports : You recently posted an article previewing the NFC East in your blog Straight Bet Talk and while we will get to your official picks for this division a little later down the road, my question this week is how do these four teams stack up against the rest of the league in terms of the action they pull in for the Las Vegas sportsbooks?

RE: The NFC West is still the top performing NFL division when it comes to generating action on the games with West Coast teams such as San Francisco and Seattle that remain extremely attractive to the clientele in Las Vegas.

I would have to put the NFC East in the top three given the heavy influence of people from the New York area that have relocated to town as well as the overall popularity of Dallas. RG III has done wonders for raising Washington's status among the betting public, and Philadelphia is another up-and-coming team. You can really see the handle go up when one of these teams is playing on Sunday or Monday night.

Click here to visit Raphael Esparza's Insider's Page at Doc's Sports for more information on his amazingly-profitable sports handicapping picks. Also, get $60 worth of Esparza's member's picks absolutely free - no obligation, no sales people - you don't even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit for any sport Esparza handicaps. Click here for $60 worth of free picks from Raphael Esparza . Also be sure to follow him on Twitter @VSIDocsports.