2008 NFL Week 11 Betting Tips
It’s Week 11 in the NFL and in case you haven’t felt it yet, the playoffs are just around the corner.
Week 11 of the 2008-09 NFL football season stared this Thursday night as teams continue to jockey for position with the playoffs only less than two months away. And after ten weeks into the season, we learned that the Titans continue to surprise themselves, the Bills continue to disappoint their fans, the Giants like to toy with their prey and an old fart like Kurt Warner could be the MVP at the end of the year.
Crazy huh? Guess what, it only gets crazier because Week 11 stared with the 
New England Patriots. What has been crazy about this team is the fact that they have been able to stay on top of their division playing without starting quarterback Tom Brady and starting running back Laurence Maroney. They played Brett Favre and the surging New York Jets last Thursday night and since the Jets are tied with the Pats for the AFC East lead, it sure was nice to relive this Eric Mangini - Bill Belichick rivalry.
The 5-4 Miami Dolphins look for their fourth win in a row when they face the struggling 2-7 Oakland Raiders this Sunday. The Dolphins are ranked 31st in defensive punt-return average, last in opponent’s field position on kickoffs and last in net punting average but somehow still managed to put up a solid win-loss mark above .500. We don’t expect the struggling Raiders to be able to take advantage of Miami’s problems on special teams because while the Dolphins don’t have that strong of a group on special teams, the Raiders have literally not been a team this season yet.
Miami Dolphins by seven.
The winless Detroit Lions, just like last week, the week before that, and the week before that week, will again look for their first win of the season against the 7-2 Carolina Panthers this Sunday. At 0-9, Detroit is now the worst team in the NFL and with them walking into the hostile environment of Bank of America Stadium, facing a Panthers team that has already won three straight, you can almost expect the Lions to lose their 10th straight.
Carolina Panthers by 14.
The Green Bay Packers will try to bounce back from a setback they suffered last week when they meet the Chicago Bears this Sunday to resume one of the better rivalries in the NFC. After solid performances through the first seven games of his debut as an NFL starter this season, quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been served some humble pie the last two outings. Rodgers followed a poor-throwing game in an overtime loss to the Tennessee Titans by running into a pressure-filled buzzsaw in their 28-27 setback against the Minnesota Vikings last Sunday. And where the Packers failed against Tennessee two weeks ago, the Bears defense accomplished last week. The Bears were able to shut down the No.3 ranked running game of the league as they held down the Titans to 29 yards on 20 carries. Sure, the Titans still managed to stay perfect after Kerry Collins decided to go to the air, but since the Bears D are finally up and running again, Rodgers could be walking into an ass whooping this Sunday.
Chicago Bears by three.
The New Orleans Saints, surprisingly struggling lately, will try to get back on track this Sunday when they play the Kansas City Chiefs. The 4-5 Saints are getting more than a little frustrated over their failed attempts to make a run for the NFC South title this season. Yet, these struggles they’ve been having should not be new to them. They struggled last season and it’s happening all over again as the Saints failed miserably for the fourth time since opening the season with a win to at least be a game over the break-even mark. Thankfully, they have a Kansas City Chiefs team that fell for the 17th time in 18 games dating back to the midpoint of the 2007 season in a 20-19 loss to San Diego last week. This is the perfect opportunity for the Saints to break even… AGAIN.
New Orleans Saints by seven.
Next, we have the Minnesota Vikings looking to keep their playoff hopes alive as they face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Vikings won five of their last nine games to compensate for the poor start they suffered this year. The Bucs, on the other hand, have been stumbling lately after such a fiery start. STILL, they are good for second best in the NFC South and are still in the running to earn a bye week once the playoffs arrive. But since the Vikings will have the momentum of having won the last two games, we’re picking them to overcome Jon Gruden’s Bucs.
Minnesota Vikings by three.
The 6-3 Arizona Cardinals look to continue their winning ways next when they meet the struggling Seattle Seahawks. The Cardinals know they must play much better than they did Monday night to have a shot in the playoffs. And although their victory over the 49ers last Monday improved their record to 6-3, giving them a four-game lead in the NFC West, the division is STILL one of the worst ones in football and the Niners are one of the worst teams in professional sports today. Luckily, the Seahawks are no better than the Niners this season and I’m not expecting the Cards to lose to Seattle even if Matt Hasselbeck makes his return to the Seahawks lineup.
Arizona Cardinals by 14.
The 4-5 San Diego Chargers look to improve their chances of winning their division when they face the 6-3 Pittsburgh Steelers. Chargers wide receiver Malcom Floyd continues to take advantage of his opportunities. Floyd got more reps and responded with this third scoring catch of the season to further improve the emerging passing game in this part of California. And with Chris Chambers avoiding any setbacks to his sprained ankle, we’re expecting the Chargers passing game to improve a lot further.
And since Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns last season, we’re picking the San Diego Chargers to win by three.
The Baltimore Ravens, after winning their fourth straight game of the season last Sunday, were able to keep pace with the Steelers for the AFC North lead. The problem is, they have the defending Super Bowl champions New York Giants at Giants stadium this Sunday and at 8-1, I’m expecting those guys to win their fifth straight win since that shocking Monday night loss to the Browns back in Week 6.
Our pick? The New York Giants by seven. Why? Because they are simply the best team in the NFL today.
The Cincinnati Bengals finally scored their first win of the season when they came up with a 21-19 win over the Jaguars before their bye week last weekend. The problem is, reality may set in once these Bengals return to the field because standing in front of them are the Philadelphia Eagles looking to keep pace with the rest of their division rivals from the NFC East, and in case you haven’t heard, the NFC East is the best division in professional sports today.
Our pick? Philadelphia Eagles by 14.
The Denver Broncos have the high-flying Atlanta Falcons next as both teams look to follow up on a successful outing last weekend with another W on the football field. However, the Broncos may have more problems to fix than the ATL because the Broncos’ running back situation has now turned out to be as bad as anyone could have ever imagined. Denver will likely go into its next game without its top four tailbacks. Michael Pittman and Andre Hall suffered season-ending injuries in Denver’s Nov.2 game against Miami and against Cleveland last Thursday, running back Ryan Torain suffered a knee injury that will likely keep him out the rest of the season. All that while Selvin Young continues to play hurt.
And since rookie Matt Ryan has simply been spectacular for the ATL so far, we’re picking the Atlanta Falcons by three.
The Indianapolis Colts have won two straight to overtake Jacksonville in the AFC South and stay above .500. They have the struggling Houston Texans next, a team that has dropped two straight to fall to 3-6. And while both teams are both behind the still unbeaten division leaders from Nashville, this could be a lopsided contest with the Colts winning it since we’re not expecting the Texans to be able to put up the same effort against the Colts back in the first week of October when Sage Rosenfels staged one of the biggest collapse in the history of sports.
Indianapolis Colts by seven.
Speaking of that unbeaten team from Nashville, the 9-0 Tennessee Titans hit the road this week to face the Jacksonville Jaguars this Sunday. Tennessee managed to hold on to a win again last week, outlasting Chicago 21-14 at Soldier Field. With its formidable run game limited to 20 yards, veteran Kerry Collins stepped up and threw for 289 yards and two touchdowns to give the Titans a franchise-record 12th straight victory. Tennessee broke the franchise mark of 11 consecutive wins set by the Houston Oilers from Oct. 17, 1993 to Jan. 2, 1994. The Titans are also 4-0 on the road for the first time in the franchise’s 49-year history, and in case you haven’t guessed it yet, these guys are just ridiculously good this year.
Our pick? Tennessee Titans by seven.
We have a meeting of two struggling teams next as the San Francisco 49ers host the equally woeful St. Louis Rams. After a huge setback the Niners suffered the last time out, they will probably go all out to try to redeem themselves and return to the win column. St. Louis on the other hand, will need the positive play of Marc Bulger to keep their campaign this year as respectable as they can. One team will ACCIDENTALLY win this game and since the Niners will be at home, we’re going with them.
San Francisco 49ers by three.
Next, we have one of the best rivalries in the league today ready to be renewed, the return of one of the league’s biggest superstars and the intense action of arguably the best division in football all jammed together for what should be one explosive edition of Sunday Night Football.
And in case you didn’t get that, two teams from the NFC East will collide as Tony Romo returns to the Dallas Cowboys just in time to play the surging Washington Redskins in what should be another epic encounter in this classic Cowboys - Redskins rivalry. The Cowboys hope the return of Tony Romo can provide a spark and help the team get back in the win column. They are 1-3 without Romo and have fallen to 5-4 after flirting with perfection in the first few weeks of the season. The last time these two teams met each other, Clinton Portis led the Redskins to a 26-24 win at Texas Stadium to hand the Cowboys their first loss of the year. The problem is, Portis is still questionable for Sunday night’s game because of an injury, probably setting the stage for Romo’s successful return.
Dallas Cowboys by three.
Culminating Week 11 will be Monday Night Football as usual and this week, we have two struggling teams looking to get back on track before it’s too late for any comeback.
The Cleveland Browns have failed to finish games the last few weeks. Instead of nailing what appeared to be winnable games, the Browns celebrated too soon, losing their concentration in the process. It cost them a chance to win two in a row at home to get themselves back in the playoff hunt. As a result, they are on the verge of losing out on that hunt after falling to 3-6 after two straight losses. The Buffalo Bills on the other hand, were simply not the same since coming off their bye week back in Week 6. After leading the AFC East for the first five weeks of the season, the Bills have fallen to a 5-4 mark, losing three in a row to drop them in last place with division rivals Miami.
It is safe to assume that these two teams have been on a downward spiral as of late. But since Buffalo Bills quarterback Trent Edwards is still the more talented athlete than second year Browns QB Brady Quinn, we’re picking the Bills to end this losing skid on Monday night. Bills by three.
Who will win Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, Florida? Bodog sportsbook has the odds.
New York Giants 17.00
New England Patriots 4.50
Dallas Cowboys 7.00
Indianapolis Colts 8.50
Want more odds? Visit Bodog sportsbook for more football betting odds. Want to watch the NFL live? Get NFL tickets online now.
2008 NFL Season Super Bowl XLIII
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