High octane offense, a preference of most total bettors, gave the players a marginal victory as ten games cleared the number while only four fell on the short side.

The highest scoring game of the day saw the Chargers roll to a 48-20 victory over the Broncos, as San Diego established themselves as the AFC frontrunner by virtue of their easy win and the Colts 44-17 pummeling at the hands of the Jaguars. Squares were heavy on the Chargers and the Colts, though the sharps were all over the Jaguars and the over. The porous Indy defense surrendered 375 yards on the ground to the Jaguars who were led by Maurice Jones-Drew’s 166 yards on only 15 carries.

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The house absorbed multiple hits by virtue of the Bengals’ 27-10 drubbing of the Raiders, the Giants’ 27-13 win over the Panthers, the Ravens’ 20-10 victory over the Chiefs and the Vikings 30-20 pasting of the Lions, who were held to minus 3 yards rushing .

A late surge of money on Cincinnati sent them off an 11-point choice while the Giants closed at minus-3, which was a sharp reversal from the opening line which had Carolina a four-point choice. A thumb injury to Panther QB Jake Delhomme caused a halt in the betting until it could be determined who was to be the starting QB. The announcement of Chris Weinke, who had not had a start in over four years, caused the Giants to be inserted as 2 ½-point favorite when the line was reposted on Sunday morning.

The house offset some of their Sunday losses as Miami shocked the Patriots by pulling a 21-0 upset of the AFC East division leaders. Tom Brady threw for only 78 yards passing and was spared further abuse as he was pulled from the game with about five minutes remaining and the contest well out of hand. New England closed a 3 ½-point choice, enticing enough to trigger an onslaught on Patriot money.

Games that proved neutral included Atlanta’ s comeback win over the Buccaneers 17-6, the Packers 30-19 road victory over the 49ers, and Buffalo’s 31-13 win over the Jets, who failed to capitalize on the Patriot loss as they remained two games behind the division leader.

The Titans once again overcame a late deficit in defeating the Texans in overtime, 26-20, for their fourth consecutive win and thus keeping alive their slim play hopes as they advanced to 6-7. Tennessee once again rode the wickets of QB Vince Young who scampered 39 yards for a touchdown almost four minutes into the extra session. Squares backed the Titans from the get go though most of the sharps sided with Houston to put an end to the Titan’s recent run.

Those that backed the Eagles early were rewarded with a 21-19 victory over the home standing Redskins as Philly opened a pick ‘em in most spots. Fueled by a steady diet of Eagle money, the line moved to 2 by game day, giving late Redskin bargain hunters a push, while causing the house to incur losses to the majority of those that backed Philly early.

Team Arizona won their second straight by defeating the Seahawks 27-21, thus preventing Seattle from an early clinching of the NFC West. Wise guys were all over the Cardinals plus the field goal, as Arizona sprinted to a 14-0 lead and managed to hold off the Seahawks on a last ditch drive that ended on the six-yard line.

The night games were profitable for the house as the Browns were ambushed by the Steelers, 27-7 who rolled up 303 yards on the ground. Cleveland took the majority of the money off the 7.5 point opening line, which closed at a solid 7 in most spots. The total was another story as the opening number of 37 plummeted to 33, the result of an unfavorable weather forecast. Virtually all of the under money either cashed or pushed while those that went over the bargain basement total of 33 had some good fortune as Cleveland broke the schneid with a touchdown with just a shade over 5 minutes remaining.

The music stopped for the Cowboys who were dethroned as the NFC No. 2 seed as New Orleans cruised to a 42-17 victory. Drew Brees threw for 384 yards while tossing five TD passes giving the books the final word heading into the Monday night game. Cowboy action was heavy enough to cause the line to move off the solid 7 point number, as it shifted to 7 ½ by early Sunday morning.

The Bears provided some anxious early moments, but managed to blow past the Rams on the strength of four second half touchdowns 42-27. The public was all over Chicago laying the half dozen, as the Bears drew closer to clinching home field advantage in the NFC as they improved their record to 11-2.

Next time, next week.