NFL Handicapping Articles

2011 AFC West Predictions and Super Bowl Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 8/25/2011

The Raiders swept their six AFC West games in 2010 and finished in third place in the division. The Chargers had the No. 1 offense and No. 1 defense in the entire league and didn’t make the playoffs. The Broncos – who have owned the Raiders for decades – lost 59-14 at Mile High Stadium to their rivals from Oakland.

2011 Pittsburgh Steelers Predictions and NFL Futures Odds
by Aaron Smith - 8/25/2011

The Pittsburgh Steelers last season fell just short of adding to their record six Super Bowl trophies. The Steelers outgained the Packers and won the time of possession battle in the big game, but the team’s three turnovers were too much to overcome. This is a team that went 12-4 and had a very successful season, but they realize that winning it all is what matters to their fans. The Steelers retained most of the players from last year’s team, and expectations are always high in Pittsburgh.

Peyton Manning Injury and NFL Handicapping
by T.O. Whenham - 8/25/2011

For the first time in a long, long time I actually think Peyton Manning might be mortal. Despite the rumors of his injuries and the impact it could have on the start of his season I never believed it. But then the Colts took bold action — they signed Kerry Collins. This is a team that doesn’t seem to believe in competent, experienced backup quarterbacks, so this signing is by far the clearest indicator we have had that everything might not be rosy in Indianapolis. In fact, it’s hard to believe that things are good at all after this move.

NFC West Predictions and NFL Futures Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 8/24/2011

About the nicest thing that I can say about NFC West football is that it makes a great punching bag. The NFC West is a bit like the minor leagues of the NFL. Outside of a few glimpses, this division has generally produced the weakest collective group of teams in the sport.

2011 Baltimore Ravens Predictions and Super Bowl Futures Odds
by Aaron Smith - 8/24/2011

The Baltimore Ravens won the Super Bowl in 2000. While the team has been close on multiple occasions, it hasn’t been able to get back to the big game for a chance at a second ring. Ray Lewis and the Ravens defense is getting older, but it is still one of the better defenses in the NFL. Joe Flacco and the offense have quite a bit of ability, but they have struggled badly against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Baltimore hasn’t been quite as consistent as they need to be in recent years.

Betting on the NFL Preseason Week 3
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 8/24/2011

Some consider the beginning of football season to be the first week of preseason. Others don’t think the season really begins until the first game of the NFL regular season. For people who just love watching the NFL’s best compete, there is a middle ground: the third week of the preseason. This week is often a dress rehearsal for Week 1 of the regular season.

2011 AFC North Predictions and NFL Futures Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 8/23/2011

You know exactly what you’re going to get from the AFC North each year: Blood and pain. Pittsburgh will again be a Super Bowl threat. Baltimore will again be the able challenger led by a violent defense. Cleveland and Cincinnati? Yeah, they suck just as badly as they have for the past 20 years.

2011 AFC South Predictions and Super Bowl Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 8/23/2011

Indianapolis has had a stranglehold over this division since its inception in 2002. But Peyton Manning’s offseason neck surgery has sidelined the future Hall of Fame quarterback throughout the preseason. And if he can’t go or is limited this season while at the helm in Indy then the door is wide open for another team to jump up and seize the throne of the AFC South.

2011 AFC East Predictions and NFL Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 8/22/2011

Only two teams in the NFL have managed to dominate their respective divisions to the tune of winning seven titles in eight years. The first is Indianapolis in the AFC South. The second is the New England Patriots, who have made the postseason in 12 of 17 seasons and demolished the AFC East for the past decade.

2011 Buffalo Bills Predictions and NFL Betting Odds
by Darin Zank - 8/22/2011

Few teams long for the good old days like the Buffalo Bills. For a franchise that played in four straight Super Bowls back 20 years ago, the last decade has been torture. After going 4-12 last year the first year under new Head Coach Chan Gailey, Buffalo has now gone through six straight losing seasons and still hasn't made the playoffs since 1999. This is tied with the Detroit Lions for the longest such drought in the league.

2011 Green Bay Packers Predictions and Super Bowl Futures Odds
by Alan Matthews - 8/22/2011

What else can you say about the 2010 Packers? As late as Week 16, the playoffs were in jeopardy for Green Bay. But then Aaron Rodgers returned from missing nearly two games with a concussion and shredded the New York Giants for 404 yards passing and four touchdowns and the Packers wouldn’t lose again on the way to their fourth Super Bowl title. And how confident are the Pack in their current group? They have not made any significant free agent or trade acquisitions while nearly every other team has been very busy in this truncated offseason.

2011 Minnesota Vikings Predictions and NFC North Futures Odds
by Alan Matthews - 8/22/2011

It’s funny how two teams can look at a 6-10 record from the year before so differently heading into a new season. My first NFC North preview here at Doc’s was on the Detroit Lions. They won six games in 2010 and considered it a giant step forward and a possible steppingstone to a playoff berth in 2011.

2011 Chicago Bears Predictions and NFL Futures Odds
by Alan Matthews - 8/22/2011

Most times, a team coming off an 11-win season, division championship and conference championship berth would be highly regarded heading into the next season. But if you look at the Chicago Bears’ futures odds, it appears everyone forgets about those things and only remembers quarterback Jay Cutler on the sideline in the second half of that NFC title game loss to Green Bay. Cutler’s demeanor and apparent lack of pain caused probably the biggest immediate social media criticism of any pro athlete before LeBron James’ poor performance in the NBA Finals.

2011 NFC East Predictions and NFL Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 8/19/2011

Separating Hype from Hope in the NFC East can be a dicey proposition. The four teams that comprise this venerable division are four of the most successful, proud, storied organizations in the sport. And no matter what the offseason give-and-take produces there is always the belief that these teams are among the best in the conference and in the sport.

NFL Handicapping: First-Year NFL Coaches
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 8/19/2011

There are eight first-year head coaches in the NFL this season. Rarely has there been an incoming class of head coaches this big and this obscure. There is the former head coach people are well aware of like John Fox, who is taking over at Denver, and the interim coaches from last season now taking the reins like Jason Garrett in Dallas and Leslie Frazier in Minnesota. There is the former collegiate head coach, Jim Harbaugh at San Francisco and the elite coordinator like Ron Rivera, now in Carolina.

2011 New York Giants Predictions and NFC East Futures Odds
by David Schwab - 8/19/2011

No matter what happens during the offseason, the New York Giants have made a habit out of being one of the most mysterious teams in the league. Just when you think things are going to implode, they circle the wagons and go on a run that leads to an improbable Super Bowl Championship, as was the case in 2007. Just when you think this team has its act together, things quickly come unraveled as they did in 2009, when the Giants started the season 5-0 only to wind-up 8-8 and out of the playoffs. The bottom line is that New York has managed to win at least 10 games in four of its last six seasons and has not finished under .500 since 2004.

2011 Cincinnati Bengals Predictions and Super Bowl Futures Odds
by Aaron Smith - 8/19/2011

A year ago hopes were high in Cincinnati as the three-headed monster of Carson Palmer, Chad Ocho Cinco, and Terrell Owens made Bengals fans believe their team could do something special. After a dreadful 4-12 campaign where essentially nothing went right, the Bengals will start this season without any of those three players on the squad.

NFL Preseason Betting: Top Storylines
by T.O. Whenham - 8/18/2011

I hate the NFL Preseason. I would rather watch a peewee team practice than sit through most preseason games — especially in the first week. Still, as painful as it can be you have to pay attention to what is going on. The betting public loves to overreact, and these preseason games give them a whole lot to overreact to. By keeping an eye on what is going on you can spot places where they are likely to read too much into things, and that can create opportunities for value down the road. Here’s a look at six of the most interesting storylines to emerge from this first week of action:

NFL Predictions: Rookie Quarterbacks
by T.O. Whenham - 8/18/2011

The NFL Draft this year turned into a Year of the Quarterback. That wasn’t necessarily because of overwhelming talent, but because of a whole lot of need and several viable prospects. There were five quarterbacks picked in the first 36 picks in the draft. A sixth QB, Ryan Mallett, had first-round talent, but attitude issues dropped him down to the third round — 74th overall.

2011 New England Patriots Predictions and Futures Betting Odds
by Darin Zank - 8/18/2011

The New England Patriots haven't won a Super Bowl in a while, but they're still one of the NFL's elite teams. Last year New England rolled to the best record in the league at 14-2, and then got upset by the Jets in a home playoff game. In fact, come to think of it, the Patriots haven't won a playoff game since 2007, and they haven't won a Super Bowl since the Spygate case hit.