The struggling Bengals losers of six of their last seven matches head to Los Angeles to take on the high flying Chargers in Week 14 NFL action. The NFL betting board lists the hosts as a large -14 point spread favorite with the total posted at 47.5 points. This has the feel of a college game to me with Cincinnati outmatched in most metrics making the two-touchdown line appear to be an underlay. Get Loot’s take on this game and see which side of the spread he is landing on.
The Fresno State Bulldogs come to Albertsons Stadium to take on the Boise State Broncos in the Mountain West Conference Championship Game. Both teams are 10-2, with Fresno having won the West division with a 7-1 conference record and Boise taking down the Mountain division with the same mark. Last week, Boise beat a 10-1 Utah State team, 33-24, to win the division and earn a spot in this game. Fresno finished the season strongly and now looks for revenge against their tormentors. Who will be the victor this time around and more importantly who will get the money?
The Stanford Cardinal come to Memorial Stadium in Berkeley for a week 14 PAC-12 showdown with the California Golden Bears. It’s not much of a road trip, with Stanford about an hour from Cal and it should be a well-contested game between these 7-4 teams. Both teams have won two in a row, but the similarities end there. In what has been a wild and woolly PAC-12 this season, each season’s path to this spot has been very different. Read on to get Loot’s free college football pick.
The 49ers are in rough shape. For them not to be competitive against a spiraling Tampa bunch is a testament to how bad things are going into week 13. Nick Mullens offered some early promise at quarterback, but has thrown two picks in each of his last two games and the luster is long gone. The story of this team has been injuries. Then just this past week, Rueben Foster went from a difference-maker on defense to getting cut after another transgression. Is this the point where the 49ers give up? This idea can make getting even 10 points from your sportsbook seem like not enough.
So far this season, Pittsburgh has responded well to bad situations. After winning only one of their first four games of the season, they were able to alter course dramatically, winning 6 straight and have not failed to cover the spread once in that period. The last few weeks have seen the Steelers slacking off a bit. First came a close win against Jacksonville where they were half-dead for the first three quarters of the game. Against Denver, four turnovers and a general sagging in overall energy was responsible for the defeat. Does the Pittsburgh roller coaster climb back to the win column and so by 4 points?
With almost every NFL team, there are going to be peaks and valleys. The Raiders have been awful—there is no debate. But they managed to beat the Cardinals on the road a few weeks back. They dominated most of the first half against the Chargers the game before. And, against Baltimore on the road last week, they took a 7-0 lead and trailed only 13-10 at halftime. So, it’s not like they’re getting run over every time out. When looking at those efforts the 15 points bookmakers are offering looks a little juicy.
This season hasn’t gone according to script for the Lions, sitting at 4-7 and basically out of contention. Detroit is just a team taking up space. They have jumped up from time to time, with their wins coming against some good teams like New England and Carolina, along with decent teams like Miami and Green Bay. But more often than not, they fall flat as they did at home against the Bears last Thursday. Still, they were in it until the end. The big games have bettors looking at betting the +9.5 at their sportsbook. Should you? Loot makes his prediction.
The Utah Utes take on the Washington Huskies on Friday in the Pac-12 Conference Championship Game at Levi’s Stadium. The 9-3 Utes have shown a lot of resolve this season and won the South division in the Pac-12. They beat the BYU Cougars on Saturday, 35-27. They will have to beat the North division champion Huskies; also 9-3, coming off a huge win over in-state rival Washington State, 28-15, to earn a spot in the conference title game. It hasn’t been an easy path here for either team. Get our handicappers take on who to bet on.
The Northern Illinois Huskies take on the Buffalo Bulls on Friday in Detroit in the MAC Championship Game. The Bulls were the MAC East division champs this season on the strength of a 10-win season and a 7-1 mark in-conference. The Huskies were only 7-5 this season, but their 6-2 MAC record allowed them to prevail in the West division. Check out Loot’s take on the game and get his predicted point spread winner.
The one thing the Cardinals have going for them is a nice defense against the pass. After Rivers threw for over 400 yards last week, they will be pushed to their limits. Unfortunately for them, their run-defense is maybe the worst in the conference. Even Oakland was able to feast on this “D,” which is a damning indictment if there ever was one. With the Chargers able to run the ball well, especially with star back Melvin Gordon, it looms as a major matchup problem. But is it a 12 point problem? LL looks at the match up and the 11.5 point spread.