Week 2 of the 2014 NFL season will conclude tonight with a Monday Night Football battle between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. The game has a start time of 8:35 pm (Eastern) and will be televised on ESPN. Current Vegas odds have the Colts listed as 3 point favorites, while the total is set at 53.5.
Analysis: The Philadelphia Eagles had a very nice year under first year head coach Chip Kelly, who brought enthusiasm and excitement back to Philly. The Eagles started off a bit sluggish in their opener vs the Jaguars, but then they put it all together and walked away with the 34-17 win. Last year the Eagle offense was ranked 4th in scoring, at 27.6 ppg, while also ranking 2nd in total yards (417.3 ypg), 9th in passing (256.9 ypg) and 1st in rushing (160.4 ypg). Nick Foles had an incredible year, finishing the year with 27 TDs and just 2 INTs, while completing 64% of his passes. Foles did lose WR DeSean Jackson, but Jeremy Maclin is back and Riley cooper showed that he is ready for the big stage. The Eagles were solid on defense late in the year and played pretty well vs the Jags, holding them to just 306 total yards in the game.
The Indianapolis Colts had a very nice 11-5 year, which saw them easily win the AFC South. Now they are looking to build on that momentum, but the rest of the division is closing in on them so they may take a small step back here. The Colts fell behind big vs the Broncos in their opener, but made a game of it in the 2nd half and ended up losing the game by just 7 points. The Colts put up 408 yards of total offense, including 354 yards passing, which was the highest passing total of any team in week 1. The defense didn't struggle as much as one might think when playing the Broncos on the road, allowing 361 total yards and 259 yards through the air. he Colts lead their all-time series with Philadelphia by a 10-7 margin and have won four of the past five games between the two clubs. The Colts are 23-13 SU on Monday night football.
Pick: Iwill go with the Under in this one. I feel that while both offenses can score plenty of points, they are both also ball control offenses that can take time off the clock in doing so. Let's also note that the Eagles have injury questions along the OL and that may keep their scoring down, while the weakness of the Colts defense is this run defense and remember that the Eagles were first in the league in rushing last year, so they may look to run a bit more in this one, which will take time off the clock as well. The Colts will will look to score plenty here, but they will also take time doing so and the Eagles defense is not all that bad. The Colts are 15-7 to the Under in their last 22 home games, while the Under is 30-13 in the Eagles last 43 games after they score 30+ points in a game. I expect no more than 48 points in this game.
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Handicapping Tips: Derivative Betting
Steve Fezzik, from Pregame.com take a look at some handicapping tips pertaining to derivative betting. This includes a free pick from Steve.