TAMPA, Fla. — We’re in beautiful Tampa, Fla., this week for a matchup between the 6-3 Houston Texans and the 4-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucs are one of about a dozen teams — Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, Indianapolis, Dallas Carolina, Miami, Atlanta, San Francisco and the New York Jets — that play home games this week and will not have an easy time against opponents they all believe, or did believe at one time, that they could beat (we didn’t include Seattle in that list because they’re going to get pasted at home by Baltimore).
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Fla.
This is a battle of two teams going in different directions. The Texans have won three straight while Tampa has lost two in a row. Maybe that’s the reason that prompted the Bucs into claiming bad boy Albert Haynesworth off waivers from New England today. If Haynesworth reports and attends practice on Thursday, he’ll start on Sunday and Bucs coach Raheem Morris says he has no problem with the club’s decision to sign a guy who couldn’t cut it in Washington and New England after seven great seasons in Tennessee. Haynesworth will play the position he played with the Titans — Gap 1 D Tackle in a 4-3 — and Morris hopes that will help Haynesworth become engaged again.
One can always hope.
Game time is 1 p.m. EST on Sunday and it should be a much better game than advertised — in a week full of games that will be better than they look.
It’s Week 10 in the NFL and all 32 teams will play this week. There are no byes. And there is also a Thursday night game as the Oakland Raiders play the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium.
Tim Tebow
Then, on Sunday, the big games include Denver (read: Tim Tebow) at Kansas City (read: the official team of the ESPN Tebow Haters Club this week) ; Buffalo at Dallas; Pittsburgh at Cincinnati; Detroit at Chicago and New England at the Jets. Monday night, the Minnesota Vikings meet the undefeated 8-0 Green Bay Packers. We fully expect Green bay to go to 9-0.
Meanwhile, NFL games continued to be hairline close last weekend, as the final seven games of Week 9 were all decided in the last three minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime. Then again, that’s really nothing new this season.
Through nine weeks of the 2011 campaign, 66.2 percent of games played (86 of 130) have been within seven points in the fourth quarter. That’s tied for the fourth-most in any season in NFL history through Week 9. The most ever? Eighty-nine in 2004.
Frankly, if you look at the number of games in which Doc and The Coach disagree, you’ll get a pretty good feel for how close things will be this week.
Last week the Doc went 9-5 (80-50) straight up and 9-5 (70-60) against the spread while The Coach went 7-7 (87-43) straight up and 7-7 (70-60) against the spread.
This week, The Doc writes our previews and rationalizations. The Coach reserves the right to answer when he disagrees. Which, this week, is often.
THURSDAY NIGHT
Oakland Raiders (4-4) at San Diego Chargers (4-4)
Line: Chargers by 7
U.S. Thanksgiving comes a couple of weeks early as the first Thursday night game of the season is a big AFC West match up. Both teams are struggling right now, and the division is up for grabs. Wasn’t Carson Palmer supposed to be an upgrade in Oakland? Norv Turner’s club is taking steps backwards but they do have home field advantage and a high scoring offense, so that should give them the edge in this one.
Dr Football: CHARGERS TO WIN AND COVER.
The Coach: CHARGERS TO WIN AND COVER
SUNDAY AFTERNOON
(17) Mike Wallace of the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers (6-3) at Cincinnati Bengals (6-2)
Line: Steelers by 3
The Steelers are coming off a home loss to the Ravens, and will hopefully (for them, at least) take the road to redemption against the Cincinnati Bengals, who look pretty smart right now after drafting Andy Dalton and trading away Carson Palmer. The Bengals are are sitting pretty with a 6-2 record, but haven’t really played anyone that will contend for a title in January. This week, they do. Lately, the 6-3 Steelers have not and probably will not lose back to back divisional games, and the smart money this week says they’ll make a statement against the upstart Bengals. Watch for Pittsburgh to do more offensively than they have the past two weeks against a Cincinnati defense that really isn’t as good as the numbers might suggest.
Dr. Football: STEELERS TO WIN AND COVER.
The Coach: STEELERS TO WIN AND COVER
Denver Broncos (3-5) at Kansas City Chiefs (4-4)
Line: Chiefs by 3
The only team in the AFC West that won last week was the Broncos, and suddenly they are just one game behind the rest of the pack. Kansas City is coming off a humiliating loss at home to the winless Dolphins, and won’t let it happen again. (Coach sez: They won’t? Sure they will. And they’ll lose because of Tim Tebow. Whenever Tim Tebow plays well, Merrill Hoge has to go on ESPN radio and TV and make up some kind of excuse for the fact he’s a complete buffoon. Tebow might not look like the type of player Hoge believes should be an NFL quarterback, but there is one thing he does — he wins. He’s 2-1 at the helm of the sad-sack Broncos and he’ll win again on Sunday — just to make Merrill Hoge look like a buffoon again).
Dr. Football: CHIEFS TO WIN AND COVER.
The Coach: BRONCOS TO WIN AND COVER
Maurice Jones-Drew
Jacksonville Jaguars (2-6) at Indianapolis Colts (0-9)
Line: Jaguars by 3
When a team goes on the road with a 2-6 record and is a three-point favorite against a divisional rival, you know the home team must be terrible. Everyone wants the Colts on the schedule this season. But maybe Indy’s due? Jags quarterback Blaine Gabbert is terrible, and the Colts have to win sometime don’t they? This game is not for the faint of heart. Of course, it’s not for people who expect a lot of passing. (Coach sez: Maurice Jones-Drew will rush for 150 yards and three touchdowns)
Dr. Football: COLTS TO WIN.
The Coach: JAGUARS TO WIN AND COVER.
Buffalo Bills (5-3) at Dallas Cowboys (4-4)
Line: Cowboys by 5.5
Buffalo may give them more of a challenge than the Seahawks did last week, but I still think Tony Romo and the rest of the Cowboys will win their first game against an AFC opponent this season. This game won’t have the magic of Super Bowls XXVII or XXVII, but it will have the same outcome of those two games, just a bit closer.
Dr. Football: COWBOYS TO WIN BUT NOT COVER.
The Coach: COWBOYS TO WIN BUT NOT COVER.
Josh Freeman of the Bucs
Houston Texans (6-3) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-4)
Line: Texans by 3
The Texans are riding a lot of momentum right now and have a divisional championship firmly in their sights, but visiting Tampa Bay isn’t an easy task. This is also a must-win for the Buccaneers, who now sit in 3rd place in their division and need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Bucs offense has to come up with a game plan for third downs after going 2 of 12 in the loss to the Saints which won’t happen this week as the Texans have the NFL’s No.1 ranked defense.
Dr. Football: TEXANS TO WIN AND COVER
The Coach: BUCCANEERS TO WIN.
Cool Cat Cam Newton
Tennessee Titans (4-4) at Carolina Panthers (2-6)
Line: Panthers by 3
Cam Newton has played well above expectations this season for the favoured Panthers, and this is a winnable game for them. But they won’t. Chris Johnson is just to get into form, and he Titans are a way better team no matter what the odds makers say. just may be.
Dr. Football: TITANS TO WIN
The Coach: PANTHERS TO WIN AND COVER.
Washington Redskins (3-5) at Miami Dolphins (1-7)
Line: Dolphins by 4
The Dolphins finally have their first win of the season, so maybe it’s time to put back to back wins, and the Redskins are the perfect opponent for that. Washington has been terrible recently; when you don’t have a QB in this NFL, you don’t have a chance. The Redskins are also a banged up bunch and won’t put up much of a fight in this one.
Dr. Football: DOLPHINS TO WIN AND COVER.
The Coach: DOLPHINS TO WIN AND COVER
New Orleans Saints (6-3) at Atlanta Falcons (5-3)
Line: Saints by 1
Both teams are coming off wins last week. The Falcons will be looking for their fourth-straight victory. The Saints (aside from the Colts game) aren’t as dominant as in years past, and the Falcons are pretty hot right now. A great NFC South division battle in “Hot Lanta”! Both teams play better in a Dome, but the Falcons play a lot better at home so I’ll take them in what should be a close game.
Dr. Football: FALCONS TO WIN.
The Coach: SAINTS TO WIN AND COVER
Colt McCoy of the Browns
St. Louis Rams (1-7) at Cleveland Browns (3-5)
Line: Browns by 2.5
The Rams are one of the worst teams in the league, and their sole win on the season was at home and they go outside of their nice comfy building to travel to Cleveland. The Browns don’t have much going on this season either and it’s a wonder how they’ve won three games so far. Take the banged up Browns to pick up the easy win at home.
Dr. Football: BROWNS TO WIN AND COVER
The Coach: BROWNS TO WIN AND COVER
Arizona Cardinals (2-6) at Philadelphia Eagles (3-5)
Line: Eagles by 14
Arizona is coming off an overtime win against the Rams but that game was hard to watch. The Eagles will be playing with one less day of rest following their Monday night game against the Bears and playing at home, they should get the easy win, but two touchdowns is a stretch for almost any game. Philly will still win, but the Cardinals will keep it close.
Dr. Football: EAGLES TO WIN BUT NOT COVER.
The Coach: EAGLES TO WIN AND COVER.
Baltimore Ravens (6-2) at Seattle Seahawks (2-6)
Line: Ravens by 6.5
The Ravens are favorites by nearly a touchdown on the road against the struggling Seahawks. The Seahawks are a better team at home, but their real hope has to be that the Ravens suffer a letdown after the big win over the Steelers on the road. I can’t see that happening.
Dr. Football: RAVENS TO WIN AND COVER
The Coach: RAVENS TO WIN AND COVER.
Titus Young and Jahvid Best of the Lions
Detroit Lions (6-2) at Chicago Bears (5-3)
Line: Bears by 3
Bears have won three in a row and are playing good ball and are in the playoff mix and will be looking to even the score from their 24-13 loss to Detroit back on Oct. 10. The Lions were rolling before their bye week and have had an extra week to come up with a plan for their ferocious defense to rattle Jay Cutler. I think this will be a long night for Cutler.
Dr. Football: LIONS TO WIN.
The Coach: LIONS TO WIN.
New York Giants (6-2) at San Francisco 49ers (7-1)
Line: 49ers by 3.5
49ers and Giants both in first place? What year are we in? That sounds like a headline from the 1980′s. The 49ers are on a roll, winners of six straight, and sit at 7-1. The next nearest teams are Seattle and Arizona both at 2-6. If they can beat the Giants this week, the 49ers are almost guaranteed a spot in the playoffs. The Giants have won three in a row including knocking off the Patriots at home, and are looking to maintain their lead over the Cowboys and Eagles in the NFC East. This should be a great game.
Dr. Football: GIANTS TO WIN.
The Coach: 49ers TO WIN AND COVER.
SUNDAY NIGHT
Mark Sanchez
New England Patriots (5-3) at New York Jets (5-3)
Line: Jets by 2
Both teams have identical records and whoever wins this game will be in sole possession of the AFC East. The Jets have won three in a row, and the Patriots are trying to avoid losing three in a row. This is a must-win for New England. They usually do very well in those situations. But I thought that they wouldn’t lose two in a row at either. And there is this little thing about them having the 32nd ranked defense…
Dr. Football: PATRIOTS TO WIN
The Coach: JETS TO WIN AND COVER
MONDAY NIGHT
Greg Jennings Celebrates Another TD Pass from Aaron Rodgers
Minnesota Vikings (2-6) at Green Bay Packers (8-0)
Line: Packers by 13.5
Conventional wisdom would only wonder whether or not the Packers would cover the spread. The Vikings relaxed last week while The Packers won a shoot out over the Chargers. All season long we have watched Aaron Rodgers carve up opponent’s secondary’s and this game probably won’t be an exception. I do think the Vikings will “bring it” but they just don’t have enough to win.
Dr. Football: PACKERS TO WIN BUT NOT COVER.
The Coach: PACKERS TO WIN AND COVER