Tag Archives: Week 15 Preview

Houston Texans vs St. Louis Rams: Free Football Picks

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Houston Texans vs St. Louis Rams: Free Football Picks: This line has been weird all week, basically unbetable in most books, and I’m not really sure why that is. I know the Texans have an underrated defense, they are missing a rushing attack, but they have one of the better passing attacks in the league despite missing one of their best receiving options, TE, Owen Daniels.

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I know the Rams don’t have a very good rushing attack, but they do have Steven Jackson, though dinged up he be, and he’s good enough to be a threat and get close to 100 yards on the ground. I know that no matter who is healthy and who is injured for the Rams, they are going to have a bad quarterback with smallish wide receivers that rarely get the ball thrown to them where they can make a play. So exactly what the books are waiting for here is beyond me, but at -10, I think the Texans can do the job.

Those are the things, amongst other things as well, that I know.

Houston just needs to put two halves together and this thing will be more lopsided than NASCAR’s turning signals. If they don’t string together two well played halves, I still think 10 is a solid number for them to cover. Houston has been pretty solid on the road (3-3 with wins over Cincinnati and Tennessee) and they have beat up on bad teams (hello Bills -31 to 10, Raiders -29 to 6, and Seahawks -34 to 7). That’s good enough for the girl I go with, I’ll take the Texans.

Houston Texans (-10) @ St. Louis Rams

San Francisco 49ers vs Philadelphia Eagles Week 15 NFL

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San Francisco 49ers vs Philadelphia Eagles Week 15 NFL: This could be one of those games that the Eagles just lose so they can make things five times as difficult for themselves – admit it – they have a knack for paddy-whacking themselves right into the most difficult of situations no matter how sunny the horizon looks. But they can also score three touchdowns on two possessions, and continue to be one of the most explosive teams in the NFL, on both sides of the ball.

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But I can’t look past the Niners and nine points – it just seems to perfect to fail me. Niners and nine – the only way I’d feel better, the only way I’d feel I absolutely had to bet the Niners at all cost would be if they were getting 49 points – shoot – even if they were favored by 49, the symmetry would be too good to pass up. But 9 points? The 49ers have lost one single game by more than 7 points this season. In their 7 losses, four of them have been by 4 points or less. This team also plays close games, and they are also pretty good.

The Eagles passing attack matches up well with the 49ers leaky secondary, but throwing the ball to win every game doesn’t always go as easily as planned, similar to in basketball when you live by the three and die by the three, the Eagles have shot themselves square in the bag of goods on more than a couple occasions. The 49ers will make them earn it, and despite being just 1-5 on the road, San Fran looks like a nice bet with 9 points.

San Francisco 49ers (+9) @ Philadelphia Eagles

Atlanta Falcons vs New York Jets NFL Week 15 Picks

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Atlanta Falcons vs New York Jets NFL Week 15 Picks: When it comes right down to it, I think the Falcons are a lot better than their record insists, both these teams play close games, and Atlanta should be as healthy as they’ve been in the last month. The only thing I have going against me here is the Falcons’ road woes, and woeful they are indeed. Atlanta has just one road win in six chances, going 1-5 away from Atlanta this season.

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But I think the Falcons are better than a 6-7 insinuates – look at their losses. Aside from Carolina (a team that just happens to be a match-up nightmare for the run-defense-less Falcons) Atlanta has only lost to winning teams, the Patriots, Cowboys, Saints, Giants, Eagles, and Saints – and 4 if those games have been by one possession. They play close games. And they often step up their play for big games.

The Jets have won 3 straight after losing three straight in November. But it’s not like they’ve played dominate football, they’ve just played one of the softest three weeks in football, playing at home against Carolina, then on the road against powerhouses such as the Bills and Buccaneers – sign me up for that schedule. The Jets haven’t beaten a team with a winning record since they upset the Patriots in Week 2.

Offensively, the Falcons are obviously better, and even against bad defenses, the Jets have had plenty of trouble bringing the football with them to the end-zone. That’s enough for me to take the Falcons at +6.

Atlanta Falcons (+6) @ New York Jets

Indianapolis Colts vs Jacksonville Jaguars Pick & Preview

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Indianapolis Colts vs Jacksonville Jaguars Pick & Preview: I think that, when this line came out, the line was reflecting a general prediction that the Colts were going to start resting starters. But when Indy announced that everybody that is healthy will play, all hell broke loose and the lines shot in another direction, and all the while most books don’t even have the game as an option. It’s tough when it’s the Thursday Night game and there’s no real injuries, and still Vegas can’t pull their collective heads out far enough to go with a proper line for the dang thing. But now, Wednesday morning early, the game is a 3 point spread in favor of the Colts, and while it’s no gimmie, I have to like Indy on the road here.

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It’s not Indy as much as it’s Jacksonville, I just can’t trust them. They’re good enough to challenge the Colts – nothing they do is flashy, but they have enough solid play offensively to put up some points, and holding an Indy team that isn’t playing at full strength, for rest or minor injuries, seems possible. Even with their unexciting defense the way it is. But how can you trust the Jaguars? They’re way up, way down, unimpressive at home, terrible on the road, barely beating bad teams, getting killed by a handful, and they just don’t play smart football.

In the end, I trust the Colts more than the Jaguars, and think their football intelligence, as much on the sidelines as on the field, will get them their 14th win over Jacksonville.

Indianapolis Colts (-3) @ Jacksonville Jaguars: