You can't escape it...the NFL still looms
large even though the calendar tells us the new season is more than four months
away.
Between now and opening kick-off, we have
the draft, training camp and all the pre-season games...but today, you can get a
jump on betting the Week 1 regular season matchups at SPORTSBETTING.com.
As has been the tradition since the year
following 9/11, the regular season will kickoff on a Thursday, September 10 to
be exact, with the defending champions Pittsburgh Steelers hosting the
Tennessee Titans-the Steelers are listed as 5-point favorites in early betting.
While the Steelers are a profitable 13-7
ATS against the Houston/Tennessee franchise at home, Pittsburgh hasn't fared as well since the
team relocated going 4-3 ATS in seven home games against the Titans.
Known as a strong defensive team, Pittsburgh has actually
been involved in some high-scoring affairs vs. the Titans, as far as the Total
goes.
In the same seven meetings since the Tennessee move, the
Titans and Steelers have an O/U record of 6-1.
September brings excitement as football
bettors anticipate another season of wagers but the Pittsburgh Steelers did a
poor job at the beginning of last season only cashing in at 1-3 ATS during the
first four weeks of 2008.
On the other hand the Titans come out on
fire in the first month of the season, cashing in on eight-straight in the month
of September (8-0 ATS) and in their last 20 September games are 14-6 ATS.
Recent NFL tradition dictates that the
regular season starts on a Thursday and recent tradition dictates the Week 1
sked closing with a Monday Night double header.
Unless he yaps his way off his new team, WR
Terrell Owens and the Buffalo Bills will travel to Gillette Stadium to take on
the New England Patriots and hopefully Tom Brady will be making his return from
a knee injury, although it's probably still too early to tell for sure.
Brady might not be 100 percent (even if he
does play) and relief QB Matt Cassel is now in Kansas City but the Pats still
see themselves installed as 10-point faves.
While New England
is very profitable in its last 20 games on the Money line when favored at more
than 8-points, 18-2 SU, the same cannot be said of its ATS numbers.
In fact, when the line is set at more than
-8, the Pats are 8-12 ATS in the same time including 0-9 in its last nine in
that situation.
Being that Buffalo is an AFC East rival,
New England will be aiming to score an early division win and against division
competition the Pats have gone 12-8 ATS in their last 20 games against the
likes of the New York Jets, Miami Dolphins and of course the Buffalo Bills.
With Randy Moss and Terrell Owens on
opposite sidelines, both teams could go vertical which could lead to a lot of
points and would be a stark contrast to the two teams' recent matchups. The
last 20 tilts between the two have produced 4 Overs and 16 Unders.
Week 1 will officially close with another
divisional rivalry, with the Oakland Raiders hosting the San Diego Chargers;
the latter listed at -6.5 on the road.
San Diego bettors will be happy to hear that their team has been extremely
profitable against the Raiders, whether they are situated in L.A.
or Oakland.
In the last 20 road games against the
Raiders franchise, San Diego has racked up a 16-4 record ATS and is currently
in the midst of 5-0 SU and 7-0 ATS runs against the silver and black.
Of course, these lines are subject to
change and with the teams' rosters far from set, it's guaranteed that the lines
will move, dramatically in some instances.
However, if you're looking to get an early
jump on NFL betting, have at ‘er.
