Thursday Free Pick: (258) KANSAS CITY CHIEFS -2
I have just one play for Monday night at this point, and don’t want to force a weak opinion here as the free play. I’d rather hopefully impart a little good information that should come into play on Thursday night as the Bengals and Chiefs duel in a pre-season game.
As mentioned in yesterday’s blog, I am all about finding little bits of information that might be used to gain an advantage. I found something regarding the Bengals that seems at least mildly meaningful to me.
This involves rookie center Russell Bodine, who’s going to be snapping the ball on a frequent basis over the next few weeks. Bodine is evidently having a few problems getting the timing down with QB Andy Dalton. This is, of course, being pretty much dismissed as nothing out of the ordinary with camp just getting rolling. But I can see this being an issue that rears its head and leads to a turnover or two in the early going.
It’s important to note that Bodine has more than just snapping the football to worry about. He did not make line calls or audibles at North Carolina. So this is a pretty steep learning curve for Bodine right now, and I’d be surprised if he emerges without some mistakes being made in his first couple of pre-season games.
These are the types of under the radar news bites that I really like to have in pocket when analyzing upcoming games. It might seem insignificant, but if Bodine’s inexperience gets the Chiefs just one extra possession on Thursday night, that’s an advantage that could make a huge difference in the final outcome. I’m still a long way from finalizing this week’s NFL exhibition card, but I see this as an exploitable advantage for Kansas City and am therefore siding with the Chiefs as very small chalk.
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Read about my general preseason betting approach on my homepage