WEEK 8 NFL TIPS

Week 8 NFL Tips - Mooch Pulls Rabbit Out Of Hat . In a conspiracy rivaling Watergate and who shot JFK, Lions Coach Steve Mariucci kept his starting QB for this past Sunday's tilt a secret until game-day. The Mooch went with 35 year old veteran Jeff Garcia (22/34, 210 yards, 1 rushing TD) over the ineffective Joey Harrington in a 13-10 win at Cleveland. Afterwards, Browns backers expecting to see Harrington in the starting lineup were seen rioting in the parking lot and throwing temper tantrums like five year old children. This Sunday the new look Lions host Chicago who whipped the Harrington-led Lions 38-6 earlier this year in the Windy City. Surprisingly, though, that was DET only point spread loss this year, as they are 5-1 ATS overall, as well as 10-3 SU their last thirteen hosting the Windy City Bears.

Pokes' Choke . The only thing more sure than death and taxes these days is the Cowboys will blow a 4th quarter lead each Sunday. Dallas dropped to 4-3 SU after its latest meltdown at Seattle. For those that missed it, DAL led 10-3 before giving up 10 points in the final forty seconds to lose 13-10. This outcome bears a striking resemblance to week two when they led Washington 14-0 at home before surrendering two touchdowns in the last four minutes on Monday night. Dallas will play host to Arizona this week. The infamously-horrible-when-away-from-the-desert-Cardinals are now 4-14 ATS their past eighteen on the road.

Bengals Flunk Big Test . Hyped as the biggest game at Paul Brown Stadium in its six year history, Cincinnati fell to divisional rival Pittsburgh 27-13 in front of a record home crowd. The Steelers dominated the line of scrimmage, out-rushing the Bengals 221-91 and left little doubt that the Bengals are more like Garfield when it comes to competing with the class of the AFC North. The Orange Cats still boast a 5-2 SU record this season, but two ominous signs might spell doom: They rank 27th in rushing defense and also have not beaten a team with a winning record this year. The good news for Bengals backers is that they their team is 5-0 SU and 4-1 ATS vs. sub .500 clubs and host the rapidly fading 1-5 Packers this week.

Eagles Win But Relying Too Much On Wings . Philadelphia is coming off a dramatic 20-17 win over San Diego (but failed to cover as a 3.5-point favorite). Trailing 17-13 with just under three minutes remaining in the 4th quarter, the Eagles looked like an endangered species as the Chargers lined up for a 40-yard field goal attempt. But PHI miraculously managed to block the kick and return it 65 yards for the game winning touchdown. Give Jim Johnson's stop unit credit for containing San Diego's All World Running Back Tomlinson to just 7 yards on 17 carries and keeping him out of the end zone for the first time in eighteen games. Word has it that LT was slowed down after he mistakenly inhaled 3 Philly cheese steaks before the game. But Andy Reid ought to have concerns about his team's own running attack, as it mustered just 24 yards on 14 attempts against SD vs. a whopping 54 pass attempts. For the season, the Eagles rank dead last in the NFL in rushing and are treading on thin water with just 88 rush attempts compared to 269 passing attempts. Philly travels to Denver this week to face a Broncos club coming off a tough road loss but which is an astounding 31-13 ATS their last forty-four hosting teams with a winning record.

Week 8 NFL Tips - Saints Fans Turn To Hail Marys After Latest Loss . Another Sunday, another mistake-filled performance by New Orleans. In their latest 28-17 road loss to St. Louis, the Saints botched a fake field goal attempt, fumbled on a reverse in the 4th quarter that set up the game winning TD and committed 9 penalties for 102 yards. They also fell to a Rams team missing three key starters to injuries-Marc Bulger, Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt-and coach, Mike Martz, who is the hospital recovering from a severe infection. Ok . maybe it was an advantage to have Mad Martz off the sidelines. Word has it Martz is also undergoing psychiatric treatment to reverse a chronic "dumb-play-calling" disorder. And yes, we have a 1st class ticket to hell already booked. But the more things change, the more they stay the same with this wayward New Orleans bunch. The Company sponsored Pee Wee League team plays with more discipline. The latest setback drops Jim "Hot Seat" Haslett's team to 0-5 SU and 1-4 ATS their past five overall. The Saints prayers may be answered this Sunday though, as they play host to a Miami team which is a perfect 0-3 both SU and ATS on the road this year.

New York's Record A Giant Mystery? . The Giants improved to 5-2 SU for the year thanks to a touchdown with eight seconds remaining in their latest 24-23 home win over Denver. The question begs to be asked: Are the Giants ripe for a giant let down in the second half of the season? Shockingly, NY has been outgained in every one of its games this year. Meanwhile, their leaky defense ranks second to last in the NFL overall and bears more holes than our underwear wardrobe from college. Sunday was seemingly another example of a miracle Giants win considering they were dominated in the trenches. The Broncos rushed for 191 yards to New York's 91 and held the ball for thirty-four minutes. Interestingly enough, they host divisional rival Washington which has outgained their last three opponents (Denver, Kansas City and San Francisco) by a whopping 1,302 yards to 702 but only has one win to show for it.

Turner Taps Jordan To Save Season . LaMont Jordan rushed for 122 yards and three touchdowns in Oakland's 38-17 dismantling of Buffalo. Note to Norv Turner: Do the math! In two Raiders wins, Jordan carried the ball 26 and 28 times. In four losses, he carried it just 18,15, 16, and 12 times. We are not implying LaMont is the second coming of "Air Jordan" himself. But with an ailing Randy Moss, along with big injuries on Sunday to Charles Woodsen (broken leg) and Derrick Gibson (dislocated wrist), Turner would be well wise to implement some ball control with the run. Oakland travels cross country to take on a Titans team that is just 4-11 ATS their past fifteen in Nashville.

Week 8 NFL Tips - Just the facts ma'am . Home favorites are slightly profitable at 39-35 ATS this season (excluding ties). But only one range within this group is profitable: Home favorites of -3 or less are 22-14 ATS while favorites above the field goal threshold are an unprofitable 17-21 ATS. Road favorites meanwhile are 11-12 ATS with the various price ranges all hovering around a 50% mean. Overall, favorites of any kind (home or away) are slightly ahead at 51-47 ATS. Within this range, favorites of -3 or less are 29-20 ATS while all other favorites are merely 21-27 ATS.