2009 Week Three NFL Football Game Previews
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Sunday, September 27th, 2009
Cleveland Browns (0-2) @ Baltimore Ravens (2-0)
Time: 1pm ET
Spread: Baltimore - 13
Over/Under: 38.5
Preview: The Cleveland Browns will look to get their first win of the 2009 season on Sunday. The task may be awfully large for Cleveland as they travel down the interstate and take on the unbeaten Baltimore Ravens. Cleveland scored just 6 points in a 21 point beating last week against the Broncos. In week one, Minnesota downed the Browns 34-20. Head coach Eric Mangini has been frustrated to start the season, as he has recently claimed he will fine players much quicker when breaking rules. Mangini has also mentioned that he will stick with former Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn. Quinn has struggled to start the season for the Browns. Cleveland is the lone AFC North team that remains winless. The Baltimore Ravens had their backs against the wall last week at San Diego. Those are moments when your best players are supposed to come through, and Ray Lewis did just that. Finding away through the San Diego offensive line, took Darren Sproles down in the backfield on a fourth and goal play with just under a minute to play. Baltimore has continued to see second year quarterback Joe Flacco shine, as he has thrown for 497 yards in two games. The Ravens lead the AFC North with their 2-0 record.
Kansas City Chiefs (0-2) @ Philadelphia Eagles (1-1)
Time: 1pm ET
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: The Kansas City Chiefs will travel to the east coast to take on the Philadelphia Eagles. Kansas City will be in search of their first win, after losses to Baltimore and Oakland. The Chiefs felt they could win their latest game against the Raiders. Darren McFadden ran for a late touchdown to seal the deal in a 13-10 win. Dwyane Bowe was the Chiefs top performer in the loss, as he caught 5 passes for 56 yards and a touchdown. Kansas City coaches found some positives in the loss. The Chiefs only allowed 166 yards of total offense in the loss, a week after allowing 501 to Baltimore. The Philadelphia Eagles will look to add Donovan McNabb back to the mix after missing week two against New Orleans. Kevin Kolb, the back-up quarterback struggled, throwing 3 interceptions in the loss. The Eagles defense, after shutting Carolina down in week one, allowed the Saints to put up 48 points. The Eagles are tied in second place in the NFC East with the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins, while Kansas City sits in fourth place in the AFC West, behind Denver, San Diego and Oakland.
Green Bay Packers (1-1) @ St. Louis Rams (0-2)
Time: 1pm ET
Spread: Green Bay - 6.5
Over/Under: 41
Preview: The Green Bay Packers will look to get back to winning ways after their disappointing loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. The Packers had a tough time slowing down Carson Palmer and the Bengals offense in the 31-24 loss. Greg Jennings, who came into the game as questionable with a wrist injury, did not catch a pass in the loss. Green Bay is now tied with Chicago, in second place in the NFC North. St. Louis lost in week two but found some positives as they scored their first touchdown of the 2009 season. The Rams scored just seven points in the 9-7 loss to Washington. With the loss, St. Louis extended their losing streak to 12, dating back to the 2008 season. The Rams are in last place in the NFC West, behind San Francisco, Arizona and Seattle.
Atlanta Falcons (2-0) @ New England Patriots (1-1)
Time: 1pm ET
Spread: New England - 4
Over/Under: 45.5
Preview: The co- leaders of the NFC South will put their 2-0 record on the line when they head east to Foxboro to take on the New England Patriots. The Atlanta Falcons have picked up two solid wins in the first two weeks of the season over Miami and Carolina. Matt Ryan has not faded from his solid rookie season, as he has helped aid the Falcons to 47 points in two games. Ryan has used his new tight end Tony Gonzalez early and often after coming over from Kansas City. Gonzalez leads the team in catches with 12, yards with 144 and touchdowns with 2. With Gonzalez in the mix with explosive Michael Turner and the ever talented Roddy White the Falcons offense appears legit. New England has gotten off to a rocky start in 2009. After struggling, but picking up a win in week one over Buffalo, the Patriots were limited to just 9 points in game two against divisional foe New York Jets. The Patriots have averaged just 17 points in their first two games. The Patriots are tied with Buffalo in second place within the AFC East, trailing the Jets by a game.
Jacksonville Jaguars (0-2) @ Houston Texans (1-1)
Time: 1pm ET
Spread: Houston - 3.5
Over/Under: 46.5
Preview: The Jacksonville Jaguars will look to get in the win column on the road Sunday when they play at Houston. Jacksonville has yet to score a touchdown in the first half of either game they’ve played. The Jaguars quarterback David Garrard has been adequate, but the overall offense has been ineffective. Garrard completed 23 of 43 passes on Sunday for 282 yards, 2 touchdowns and an interception. Maurice Jones Drew and Tory Holt have emerged as the offensive cogs for Jacksonville. The Jaguars are tied with Tennessee at the bottom of the AFC South division. The Texas will be coming off a big win on the road at Tennessee. The Texans, after sputtering offensively in week one, scored 34 points against the Titans defense. Matt Schaub was able to throw for 357 yards in the win, as two of his touchdown passes went to Andre Johnson. The Texans are in second place in the AFC South, trailing only Indianapolis, but ahead of both Tennessee and Jacksonville.
San Francisco 49ers (2-0) @ Minnesota Vikings (2-0)
Time: 1:00pm EST
Spread: Minnesota - 6.5 (@ Oddsmaker Sportsbook)
Over/Under: 40
Preview: In a battle of unbeaten teams, the San Francisco 49ers will travel to Minnesota to take on the Vikings. San Francisco came away with an upset win in week one at Arizona, and backed that up with a home win over Seattle. Frank Gore has started the season as a man on a mission, rushing for over 200 yards in the win over the Seahawks. On the season, Gore has rushed for 237 yards and 4 touchdowns. The 49ers sit alone atop the NFC West division, leading Arizona, Seattle and St. Louis. The Vikings got an early scare in week two from Detroit, but was able to pull away and down the Lions 27-13. Brett Favre, the late addition to the Vikings roster has done an effective job at managing games for Minnesota. The Vikings stud running back Adrian Peterson has amassed 272 yards rushing and also ran for four touchdowns on the season. Minnesota leads the NFC North by a full game over both Green Bay and Chicago and two games over the Detroit Lions.
Washington Redskins (1-1) @ Detroit Lions (0-2)
Time: 1pm ET
Spread: Washington - 6
Over/Under: 38.5
Preview: The Washington Redskins will enjoy their second straight game against a winless foe. Last week the Redskins were able to push the St. Louis Rams losing streak to 12 games. This week, Washington will look to push Detroit to 20 straight losses. The Redskins scored just 9 points in the win over the Rams, and many times their offense was booed by the home fans. Washington will be without right guard Randy Thomas, as he tore a tendon in his right triceps in the win over St. Louis. The Redskins are tied with the Cowboys and Eagles in second place in the NFC East, trailing the New York Giants. The Lions jumped on Minnesota early last week, leading 10-0, but were outscored 20-3 in the second half to lose 27-13. The Lions have allowed a league most 72 points in the first two games of the season. Quarterback Matthew Stafford has thrown five interceptions, which is tied for the most in the NFL with Jake Delhomme. The Lions are the lone winless team in the NFC North.
Tennessee Titans (0-2) @ New York Jets (2-0)
Time: 1pm ET
Spread: NY Jets - 3
Over/Under: 37
Preview: The Tennessee Titans will look to pick up their first win of the season on Sunday. Tennessee will not find it easy as they play on the road at the New York Jets. The Jets have yet to allow a defensive touchdown in two games this season. The Titans lost an overtime decision in week one to Pittsburgh, and then were downed by a field goal last week against Houston. Tennessee got a solid performance in the loss to Chris Johnson. Johnson ran 16 times for just under 200 yards, and also caught 9 passes for 87 yards. Overall, Johnson scored three touchdowns for the Titans. The Jets are alone at the top of the AFC East. The Jets are using rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez, and he has led New York to two early season wins. Rex Ryan the former defensive coordinator in Baltimore has changed the attitude and demeanor of the Jets franchise.
New York Giants (2-0) @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-2)
Time: 1pm ET
Spread: NY Giants - 7
Over/Under: 44
Preview: The New York Giants can now say they were the first team to ever win at new Cowboys Stadium in Dallas. Lawrence Tines kicked one of his four field goals as the clock expired to push the Giants to a 33-31 win over the Cowboys. Eli Manning, the Giants quarterback completed 25 of 38 passes for 330 yards and 2 touchdowns. Running backs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw combined for 25 carries and just under 100 yards. The surprise for the Giants has been the receiving corp, without Plexico Burress. Rookie Mario Manningham has emerged as a top receiver, as he caught 10 catches for 150 yards and a touchdown in the win. Tampa Bay will be looking for their first win on Sunday. The Buccaneers were losers to Dallas in week one, and Buffalo in week two. Their loss to Buffalo was started early, as the Bills jumped out to a 17-0 lead after one quarter. After two games this season Tampa Bay ranks 31st in the NFL in yards per game. Raheem Morris and his coaches called the latest loss “the worst tackling performance ever”. The coaching staff counted 24 missed tackles in the loss.
Chicago Bears (1-1) @ Seattle Seahawks (1-1)
Time: 4:05pm ET
Spread: Chicago - 1.5
Over/Under: 37
Preview: A pair of .500 teams will meet in the great Northwest on Sunday afternoon. The Chicago Bears coming off a big win over the defending champion Pittsburgh Steelers will take on the Seattle Seahawks, who are coming off a loss to San Francisco, and may be without their quarterback. The Bears picked up a late Robbie Gould field goal Sunday evening to down the Steelers, after their week one loss at Green Bay. Jay Cutler was much better for the Bears after throwing three interceptions in his Bears debut. Matt Forte has been quiet for the Bears, but he will now take on a Seattle defense that yielded over 200 rushing yards to 49ers running back Frank Gore. The Seahawks shut out St. Louis in the opening game of the season, but ran into a red hot San Francisco team. Seneca Wallace replaced Matt Hasslebeck right before halftime in the game Sunday came in and completed 15 of 23 passes for 127 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Hasslebeck is questionable for his start on Sunday.
New Orleans Saints (2-0) @ Buffalo Bills (1-1)
Time: 4:05pm ET
Spread: New Orleans - 6
Over/Under: 52
Preview: The New Orleans Saints are the hottest team in the NFL currently. The Saints have scored 72 points in the first two games of the season. Quarterback Drew Brees has thrown 669 yards and 9 touchdowns to open the 2009 season. His top receivers have been Marquis Colston and Devery Henderson. Mike Bell has come in, in place of injured Pierre Thomas and rushed for 229 yards. The Saints are tied with Atlanta atop the NFC South. The Buffalo Bills bounced back well from their week one debacle. Buffalo jumped out to an early big lead and held on to beat Tampa Bay in week two. Terrell Owens the Bills newcomer receiver has been held in check thus far, but Buffalo’s Trent Edwards has been able to manage the offense well. Buffalo is currently tied in second place with the New England Patriots in the AFC East.
Pittsburgh Steelers (1-1) @ Cincinnati Bengals (1-1)
Time: 4:15pm ET
Spread: Pittsburgh - 4
Over/Under: 37
Preview: The Steelers will look to get back on track Sunday when they play at Cincinnati. Pittsburgh, coming off a three point loss on the road in Chicago will look to figure out their kicking game, and also their offense. The offense sputtered in the 17-14 loss to Chicago, and Jeff Reed, the teams ever reliable kicker missed two late field goals. The loss came one week after Pittsburgh, and especially Reed kicked a game winning field goal in the NFL’s opening game. Troy Polamalu - Pittsburgh’s stud defensive force will continue to miss action due to his injured knee. Polamalu missed the second half of game one, and the entire Bears’ game. Cincinnati will be coming into action looking for their second straight win. The Bengals, after losing in the final seconds in week one, came away with a 31-24 road win at Green Bay. The Bengals have used Cedric Benson’s 217 rushing yards to spark the offense. Carson Palmer has been healthy for both games this season, but we’ll see how long that lasts. Pittsburgh and Cincinnati are both tied in second place, a full game behind Baltimore, and a full game ahead of Cleveland, in the AFC North.
Miami Dolphins (0-2) @ San Diego Chargers (1-1)
Time: 4:15pm ET
Spread: San Diego - 6
Over/Under: 44
Preview: The Miami Dolphins were a little shell shocked as the final horn sounded Monday night. After controlling the ball for 75% of the game, Miami walked off the field as a 27-23 loser to Indianapolis. This loss came one week after being ran over by Atlanta in week one. The Dolphins, and the wildcat offense have been able to move the ball, but putting points on the board has been the issue. Miami has scored just 30 points on the season. Running back Ronnie Brown leads the team with 179 yards and 2 touchdowns, and Chad Pennington has tossed for over 350 yards in 2 games. The Dolphins are all alone at the bottom of the AFC East, trailing the Jets, Patriots and Bills. For San Diego, Darren Sproles was unable to find his way into the end zone on the final offensive play last week, and they fell 31-26 to Baltimore. Sproles took over for LaDainian Tomlinson who missed action with an ankle injury. Phillip Rivers has thrown for 688 yards in the first 2 games for the Chargers, with his top threats - Darren Sproles and Vincent Jackson. The Chargers are tied in second place in the AFC West; one game behind undefeated Denver.
Denver Broncos (2-0) @ Oakland Raiders (1-1)
Time: 4:15pm ET
Spread: Denver - 2
Over/Under: 36
Preview: The Denver Broncos under new head coach Josh McDaniels will look to push their 2009 record to 3-0 at Oakland. The Broncos have been sharp defensively in the early going, allowing just 13 points in 2 games. Denver picked up a last minute win in week one over Cincinnati and cruised in week two over Cleveland. Kyle Orton, taking the place of Jay Cutler as quarterback this season in Denver has filled in nicely, throwing for 506 yards. His top receivers thus far have been Brandon Marshall and Brandon Stokley. The Broncos rookie running back Knowshon Moreno is probable for the game, as he is nursing a knee injury. The Raiders are coming off a divisional win over rival Kansas City, and hope to repeat that on Sunday. After falling in week one, late in the game, to San Diego, the Raiders returned the favor, receiving a late touchdown from running back Darren McFadden. Oakland, under Tom Cable, has been able to keep teams from putting up big offensively numbers, and have been able to hang onto the ball offensively. Zach Miller and Louis Murphy have both stepped up on the offensive side of the ball for the Raiders. Denver leads the AFC West by one full game over Oakland and San Diego.
Indianapolis Colts (2-0) @ Arizona Cardinals (1-1)
Time: 8:20pm ET
Spread: Arizona - 2.5
Over/Under: 47.5
Preview: The Indianapolis Colts will look to repeat their magic from week two, this time on Sunday night, during week three. The Colts used a late touchdown pass from Peyton Manning to down the pesky Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football. Manning, despite only throwing the ball 23 times, passed for 303 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Colts got off to a quick start in the game, using a Manning to Dallas Clark 80 yard pass for a 7-0 lead. The ever reliable Adam Vinatieri kicked two field goals in the win for the Colts. Indianapolis has full control of the AFC South, leading Houston by a game, and Tennessee and Jacksonville by two games. The Arizona Cardinals were a disappointment in week one, and a pleasant surprise in week two. After losing at home in week one, many felt they would fold on the East Coast in week two. That was not the case. The Cardinals blasted the Jacksonville Jaguars for 24 first half points, and went on to win 31-17. Tim Hightower has been a bright spot for Arizona. Hightower has a total of 200 yards in 2 games, and also 2 touchdowns scored. Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston both played in week two and look to be okay for week three. Boldin has an injured hamstring, and Breaston has an issue with his knee. The Cardinals are looking to catch first place San Francisco in the NFC West.
Monday, September 28th, 2009
Carolina Panthers (0-2) @ Dallas Cowboys (1-1)
Time: 8:30pm ET
Spread: Dallas - 9
Over/Under: 47
Preview: The Monday Night Football game will feature the struggling Carolina Panthers and the sporadic Dallas Cowboys. Both teams are coming off a loss in week two. Carolina has yet to find a way to put up a win, after winning the NFC South in 2008. The Panthers were drubbed in week one by Philadelphia, as quarterback Jake Delhomme threw four interceptions. Delhomme added another one in the week two loss to Atlanta, and is tied for the league lead in interceptions thrown. The Panthers have been out scored 66-30 in the first two games, and are the lone NFC South team winless thus far in 2009. Dallas is coming off the Sunday night loss at the hands of the New York Giants. A field goal as the clock expired by Lawrence Tines did Dallas in. The game against New York was the first ever regular season game at the new Cowboys Stadium in Dallas. This week, Dallas will look to take better care of the football, as Tony Romo threw three interceptions in the loss. Marion Barber is questionable for this game with an injured quad. Dallas is tied with Philadelphia and Washington for second place in the NFC East.
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