The Miami Dolphins have done a great job to get back to .500 this year. They started the season 0-3 and have managed to get back to 5-5, which is impressive, but this week they are faced with a tough road trip.
The warm-weather Dolphins have to head out to Buffalo to face the cold-weather Bills in what could be a very difficult contest for them. The Bills might be 3-7 but this is still an AFC East rivalry, which means you can throw the records out the window.
In the last 17 meetings in Buffalo, the Bills have won 11 of them outright. Beyond that, the Bills are 5-2 against the spread in their last seven games as a home underdog of three points or less.
Last week, the Bills showed some effort for new head coach Perry Fewell and bettors should expect that to carry over this week. The quarterback change to Ryan Fitzpatrick has made a noticeable difference in the passing game and the Bills have discovered what some people might call an offense.
Overall, the Bills are quite beat up and their run defense is going to deter a lot of bettors from siding with them but this is a matchup of two even teams and the Bills should be able to use their home field advantage to pull this one out.
It’s time for some turkey as the NFL moves into Thanksgiving week. On Thursday, we’ll start with a triple header and then finish off the action on Sunday.
The best bet of the week has to be the Philadelphia Eagles, who are facing off with the hapless Washington Redskins. The Redskins are really beat up at this point and the Eagles, who have been inconsistent at times, should be able to take advantage.
The Redskins will be without three members of their offensive line, including Chris Samuels, Randy Thomas and Chad Rinehart. They’ll also be without their top two starting running backs (Clinton Portis and Ladell Betts) and their starting tight end (Chris Cooley).
Beyond that, the Redskins may also be without cornerback DeAngelo Hall, who has a mild MCL sprain, and defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, who is recovering from a sprained ankle.
The Eagles may be a team that rides the roller coaster, but they are more than capable of taking advantage of a toothless Redskins team.
The Redskins offense can barely muster enough points when everyone is healthy and now they may have to get in a scoring match without many of their regularly. Without a running game and without much of a defense on the Redskins side, look for the Eagles to run up the score in this game and cover the nine-point spread rather easily.
The guys from BetOnline.com went 5-1 with their top picks last week and now Blake Frazier, Stan Simmons and D.J. Tompkins are back with their Week 11 picks.
Sports betting players are always looking for an underdog to ride to a big win, and in the NFL this season, there’s no shortage as there is a number of awful teams, maybe more than at any point in recent memory. This week’s pick may shock you, but it’s all set up for Oakland this week.
Bengals vs Raiders odds – Sunday, November 22, 4:15 PM ET
Cincinnati (7-2) beat Pittsburgh for the second time this year in an 18-12 win in Steeltown, and NFL betting players must have been surprised to see the Bengals beat the Steelers at their own game: with defense. While they only gained 218 yards themselves, including 61 on the ground, the Bengals held the Steelers to 226 yards and 80 rushing yards. Carson Palmer wasn’t spectacular by going 18-of-30 for 178 yards, but he didn’t make any mistakes. The Bengals scored the game’s only major when Bernard Scott ran a kickoff back 96 yards. However, it came at a cost as Cedric Benson left with a hip injury.
The Raiders (2-7) are finally giving JaMarcus Russell the boot after a 16-10 loss at home to Kansas City, as he was 8of-23 for 64 yards. Bruce Gradkowski came in and went 5-of-9 for 49 yards and a couple of picks, but he seemed to be willing to make plays, and if they turn into mistakes, so be it. The Raiders’ coaching staff has never felt that confidently in Russell, who will be on the bench this week. Michael Bush ran for 119 yards, and even if you’re an NFL betting player, if you’re into fantasy, go get him.
NFL betting odds in your sportsbook have the Bengals as a 9.5-point favorite on the road, and even though they’re 4-0 on the road, they’ve yet to go to the West Coast this year, and time difference is a little-referenced factor in sports. In fact, the Bengals haven’t been out west since 2007, when they lost to Seattle and San Francisco. Cincinnati have won three in a row, including wins over tough Baltimore and Pittsburgh teams, and they’re due for a letdown as they head into an easy stretch (at Oakland, home to Cleveland and Detroit). Oakland could get a spark with Gradkowski at the helm, and let’s face it, he’s no worse than Russell. Combine that with an underrated Oakland defense, and 9.5 points is too many to lay with the Bengals.
We’ve reached Week 11 of NFL betting and it seems true “locks” are harder to find each week. Two weeks ago we thought we were safe with Green Bay at Tampa; last week, the surprisingly competitive Rams pushed New Orleans hard enough to beat the spread. Out best bet to find that lock is to start thinking about it by midweek. Right now, the Steelers look like the safe choice.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Kansas City Chiefs
Sunday, November 18, 1:00 p.m. ET
NFL betting: Steelers -10
Interestingly enough, the Steelers’ Week 10 result is the biggest clue as to how they’ll perform in Week 11. If they’d beaten the Bengals and gone to 7-2 atop the AFC North, they’d be in cruise control right now and very susceptible to a trap game – kind of like the Bengals are in Oakland this week. Instead, the Steelers are looking up angrily at the Bengals in the standings and hungry for redemption. Since Pittsburgh won’t get caught napping after a disappointing loss, Kansas City loses the one possible edge it had.
The Chiefs are terrible against the pass; Big Ben Roethlisberger is arguably enjoying his best offensive season to date and should have no problem carving up the K.C. secondary. The Chiefs are horrible against the run; Rashard Mendenhall can stomp all over their front seven. The Chiefs can’t pass, especially with Dwayne Bowe gone from the lineup, so the Steelers won’t have any trouble there. Defending the run, Pittsburgh’s No. 1 run defense will swallow up Jamaal Charles.
It’s tough to see any reason why the Chiefs can win this game or even keep it close, so the Steelers are your lock of the week.
NFLBet has teamed up with the expert handicappers from the BetOnline.com Betting Edge to provide you with their weekly podcast. When it comes to picks, the more the merrier.
Blake Frazier, Stan Simmons and D.J. Tompkins run through their games audio-styles and we list ours below in text. Feel free to post yours as well in the comments.
