Week 14 Review/Week 15 Preview:

For The Week/Season:
vs W/L: (12-4)/(147-61)
vs. ATS: (7-9)/(113-95)
vs. Aggregate: (6-10)/(95-113)

ATS vs. "CBS Sportsline Experts"

Richard 117-91-0
PFN: 113-95
Judge 111-97-0
Harmon 105-103-0
Prisco 100-108-0
Urbano 98-110-0
Madden 93-115-0

W/L vs. “USA Today Experts”

PFN: 147-61
Sean Leahy 145-63
Nate Davis 141-67
Pete O'Brien 143-65
Gary Mihoces 139-69
Jarrett Bell 137-71
Tom Pedulla 137-71
Jim Corbett 133-75
Skip Wood 127-81

Week 15 Preview:

Week 14 proved to be a pretty lousy week for us (again) ATS, and suddenly, we’re four games behind in the ATS race, so it’s time to redouble the effort and come back strong this week.

At New Orleans -6.5 Dallas 53.5

Dallas got punked out at home last week and survived a frightening accident by DeMarcus Ware. So the Great Romo’s dubious December record remains intact. Hopefully, wiser minds will prevail and keep him out of Saturday’s game, though he claims to be rarin’ to play. The Saints remain undefeated, though barely so after last week’s squeaker in Atlanta. They would still like to clinch home field advantage in the NFC and, at home, they’re practically unstoppable.

Projected Final Score: New Orleans 35, Dallas 27

At Pittsburgh -1.5 Green Bay 40

Why is Pittsburgh favored here? Just because they’re at home? Pittsburgh was supposed to “unleash hell” last week in Cleveland and ended up road kill. Polamalu’s still out and the Steelers’ D is simply not the same without him. Sure, there’s a measure of pride involved, but that’s about it for Pittsburgh. Green Bay is close to grabbing one of the Wild Card spots and doesn’t want to hit a speed bump this late in the season.

Projected Final Score: Green Bay 23, Pittsburgh 21

At Tennessee -2.5 Miami 42

If Vince Young doesn’t play, the Titans will be at a serious disadvantage, as Kerry Collins brought them to an 0-6 start before Coach Fisher pulled the plug. Meanwhile, the Dolphins are hanging in tough in the AFC East race, winning on the road last week and remain only one game back of New England and they definitely have more at stake than does Tennessee.

Projected Final Score: Miami 24, Tennessee 20

New England -6.5 At Buffalo 40.5

The Patriots played flat last week in their win over Carolina; had that been a tougher opponent New England could’ve easily lost. Now they go up to balmy Buffalo where the Bills will be seriously jacked to defeat New England, based on their Week 1 performance. The Patriots head into this one probably without Wilfork, which would enable the Bills to run Jackson up the middle and Lynch on the edges with success. The Harvard Man (Fitzpatrick) will also be able to have some success with Evans and TO due to the Patriots’ non-existent pass rush. This is just a real tough spot for New England.

Projected Final Score: New England 24, Buffalo 23

Arizona -10.5 At Detroit 46.5

How many times will the Cardinals turn it over this week? That was an utterly disgraceful performance Arizona turned in on Monday night against the ‘Niners. They deserved every bit of the ass-whippin’ Coach Singletary’s boys laid on and then some. This week, they travel to Detroit to face a team that basically packed it in for the season before Thanksgiving. It’s one thing to get beaten, but the Lions basically failed to show up last week against the Ravens, losing by 38 points. We should know two things by now: (1) Arizona does not want a repeat of last week; and (2) the Lions simply do not care.

Projected Final Score: Arizona 27, Detroit 13

At Philadelphia -8.5 San Francisco 44.5

They’ll be digging out of a blizzard on Sunday morning in Philly, so we’ll have to watch and wait to see how much of an effect the storm will have on the game. It’s going to be hard for the ‘Niners to duplicate the energy and effort of Monday night’s win, traveling across the country on a short week. Certainly, they have the right coach to motivate them, but it’s really hard to see them competing against a team that hung 45 points on the board last week. The problem with Philly is that their defense was (charitably) putrid last week and needs to step up against a relatively untested quarterback. It’s going to be a tough game with the Iggles prevailing by a touchdown.

Projected Final Score: Philadelphia 23, San Francisco 16

At NY Jets -5.5 Atlanta 40

A big snowstorm will be winding down in Jersey just as this one kicks off,
Chris Redman played like the second coming of Matt Ryan last week as the Falcons lost by a whisker but this week may be a different story. Just like the Dolphins, the Jets are on the heels of the Patriots with three games left to play. Don’t you think there’s sufficient motivation to play well?

Projected Final Score: NY Jets 24, Atlanta 17

At Ravens -9.5 Chicago 40.5

Flacco had a huge afternoon against a dead Detroit team last week and it’s a question whether the offense can repeat against a better team this week. OK, so the Bears aren’t exactly the Monsters of the Midway this year, but the possibility exists that Cutler could have some success against the Ravens’ pass D. Stranger things have happened, right?

Projected Final Score: Ravens 24, Chicago 13

At Kansas City -1.5 Cleveland 36.5

Maybe this is a game the Chiefs could actually win then again the Browns are coming off a big home win against Pittsburgh and have a few days of extra rest. The Chiefs predictably struggled last week against Buffalo but may have more success against a team that may not be capable of turning in back-to-back solid performances. Beating the Super Bowl champs was the bright spot of the Browns’ season. It’s hard to see them duplicating the effort on the road.

Projected Final Score: Kansas City 20, Cleveland 17

Houston -10.5 At St. Louis 43

Have pity on the poor souls that may be forced to watch this sorry mismatch. Yet another game that should be rescheduled for the overnight hours. Not that the Texans are any great shakes, but the Rams are historically bad. How much analysis is necessary here?

Projected Final Score: Houston 31, St. Louis 3

At San Diego -6.5 Cincinnati 44

The Bengals will fly to California still numb with grief over the loss of a teammate and friend. They will dedicate their efforts to his memory and for a few hours they will be focused and everything will seem business as usual. They have already pulled together and played through the sudden death of their defensive coordinator’s beloved wife this year, but any death isn’t a matter from which survivors simply shrug off and move forward. The Bengals will come into this game wounded and highly motivated. The Chargers are in an awkward spot, as they have the division wrapped up and fully understand the energy that Cincinnati will bring on Sunday. But they are consummate professionals who will perform at a high level regardless of the circumstances.

Projected Final Score: San Diego 27, Cincinnati 20

At Denver -12.5 Oakland 37

How telling is it for the future of JaMarcus Russell that Charlie Frye will be starting this week in place of the injured Gradkowski? Russell can keep munching on Skittles on the sidelines while all that potential drifts like smoke into the horizon. The Raiders were smacked at home by the Redskins last week and look to be nose-diving into season’s end. The Broncos were within a touchdown of Indy until folding at the end. This week the only question is how many points they’ll put up against a dead-ass opponent. Still, how much confidence does Kyle Orton inspire, 12 ½ worth?

Projected Final Score: Denver 27, Oakland 16

At Seattle -6.5 Tampa Bay 39

Whoever came up with this game on the schedule ought to be flogged. The Seahawks lost by almost four touchdowns last week while the Bucs lost by more than three. Can someone—anyone come up with one plausible excuse to care about this game longer than a nanosecond? Waiting…

Projected Final Score: Seattle 24, Tampa Bay 16

Minnesota -7.5 At Carolina 42.5

The Panthers gave New England a pretty good go last week and even though the clock is ticking away on their season they’d certainly like to close things out positively. The Vikes crushed Cincinnati last week and are in the awkward spot of trying to get everyone rested and ready for the playoffs while simultaneously keeping their foot on the pedal. The Vegas Boys have already factored Coach Chilly’s dilemma into the spread otherwise it’d be double digits.

Projected Final Score: Minnesota 24, Carolina 16