Was I dreaming or did Carson Palmer throw six touchdown passes and the Bengals still lose to of all teams, the Browns?
Are the Texans, Lions, 49ers and Packers really a combined 8-0?
Have injuries already destroyed any hope for the Bills and Rams?
These questions need to be asked following a Week 2 Sunday result of underdogs going 11-3-1 against the spread, including winning six games straight-up.
It was a great day for bookmakers and professional bettors. But to many others Sunday was a bizarre mystery with disastrous pocketbook consequences.
What can we expect now entering Week 3?
Who the hell knows to be honest? The highest total is 50 on the Bengals-Seahawks matchup. It doesn’t matter that the Seahawks’ passing game isn’t entirely clicking yet or that Shaun Alexander may not be 100 percent.
The Bengals surrendered 51 points, 554 yards and five touchdown passes to a quarterback named Derek Anderson.
“You know (Seattle coach Mike) Holmgren is going to be looking at that game footage,” said Dan O’Brien, a senior oddsmaker at Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Its’ nice to know Cincinnati head man Marvin Lewis is a defensive-minded coach. I would hate to think what would have happened if Lewis didn’t stress defense.
O’Brien wouldn’t be surprised, though, if more points were scored in the Tennessee-New Orleans Monday night game. LVSC opened the winless Saints as 6-point favorites with an ‘over/under’ of 48.
“I would look for New Orleans to finally get clicking,” O’Brien said. “I would expect to see the Saints’ ‘A’ game. They can’t lose at home on Monday night and go 0-3. I anticipate a lot of do-or-die New Orleans’ money.”
All the Titans do with Vince Young, though, is cover spreads. Tennessee is 12-2 against the spread its past 14 games. Young has led the Titans to seven wins in their past nine games.
So far it has been a year of surprises with the Houston Texans near the head of the list.
“The Texans are vastly improved,” said O’Brien, who opened Indianapolis six-point favorites at Houston. “I increased their power rating during the off-season and I moved them up another 2 ½ points since the beginning of the season.”
Green Bay could be another live home underdog. O’Brien said the LVSC linesmakers debated the Chargers-Packers matchup, favoring San Diego anywhere from 4 to 6 ½ points before deciding to open the Chargers minus 5.
“I wonder if this guy (coach Norv Turner) hasn’t already destroyed this team yet,” O’Brien said of San Diego.
O’Brien considers the Atlanta Falcons the worst team in the NFL right now. LVSC opened Carolina a 4-point road favorite against the Falcons, who will be making their first home appearance.
The Falcons have played two respectable defenses on the road, Minnesota and Jacksonville. The results haven’t been pretty – 10 points, Joey Harrington sacked 13 times and Warrick Dunn and Jerious Norwood a combined 3.4 rushing average on 49 attempts.
“The Falcons’ defense is serviceable,” O’Brien said. “But their offense is just pathetic and that makes the defense a lot worse.”
At least on paper, another good Sunday night matchup appears on tap with the Bears hosting the Cowboys. The game opened Bears minus 3. The winner gets established as the team to beat in the NFC.
“The more I see of the Cowboys, the more I get convinced they’re the best team in the NFC,” O’Brien said. “(Rex) Grossman is in between inconsistent and terrible.”
