NFL
Armadillo's Write-up
Week 17
Thursday’s game
Seahawks (-3.5) @ Bears
Seahawks (8-7)
Seahawks lost last two games, giving up 30-27 points.
Seattle allowed 26+ points in losses, 21 or less in wins.
Seattle gained less than 300 yards in four or last six games.
Seahawks are 0-3-1 ATS this year in games coming off a loss.
Team total: over 10-5
Opponents’ team total: over 9-6
QB Smith is 38-43 as an NFL starter, 26-24 with Seattle.
Seahawks won/covered their last four road games.
Seattle is 5-8-2 ATS in last 15 games as a road favorite.
Seattle was held under 300 TY in four of last six games.
Over is 3-1 in their last four games.
Seattle is 4-2 in games decided by 6 or fewer points.
Seahawks are minus-11 in turnovers in losses, +4 in wins.
Bears (4-11)
Bears are 0-9 SU/2-7 ATS in last nine games.
Bears are 3-4 SU/4-3 ATS at home this year.
Chicago was outscored 102-42 in three games without Eberflus.
Bears scored 24+ points in their wins (0-10 score less than 24)
Team total: under 9-5-1
Opponents’ team total: under 9-6
Bears are 7-6 ATS last 13 games as a home underdog.
Chicago is 13-17-2 ATS in last 32 games coming off a loss.
Last four weeks, Bears ran ball for 79.2 yards/game.
Last nine games, Bears are 0-9, despite being +2 in turnovers.
Under is 6-3 in their last nine games.
Bears are 0-10 when they allow 19+ points.
Seattle won last two series games, 25-24/24-17
Seahawks won/covered three of last four visits to Chicago.
Over is 9-2 in last eleven meetings.
Armadillo's Write-up
Week 17
Thursday’s game
Seahawks (-3.5) @ Bears
Seahawks (8-7)
Seahawks lost last two games, giving up 30-27 points.
Seattle allowed 26+ points in losses, 21 or less in wins.
Seattle gained less than 300 yards in four or last six games.
Seahawks are 0-3-1 ATS this year in games coming off a loss.
Team total: over 10-5
Opponents’ team total: over 9-6
QB Smith is 38-43 as an NFL starter, 26-24 with Seattle.
Seahawks won/covered their last four road games.
Seattle is 5-8-2 ATS in last 15 games as a road favorite.
Seattle was held under 300 TY in four of last six games.
Over is 3-1 in their last four games.
Seattle is 4-2 in games decided by 6 or fewer points.
Seahawks are minus-11 in turnovers in losses, +4 in wins.
Bears (4-11)
Bears are 0-9 SU/2-7 ATS in last nine games.
Bears are 3-4 SU/4-3 ATS at home this year.
Chicago was outscored 102-42 in three games without Eberflus.
Bears scored 24+ points in their wins (0-10 score less than 24)
Team total: under 9-5-1
Opponents’ team total: under 9-6
Bears are 7-6 ATS last 13 games as a home underdog.
Chicago is 13-17-2 ATS in last 32 games coming off a loss.
Last four weeks, Bears ran ball for 79.2 yards/game.
Last nine games, Bears are 0-9, despite being +2 in turnovers.
Under is 6-3 in their last nine games.
Bears are 0-10 when they allow 19+ points.
Seattle won last two series games, 25-24/24-17
Seahawks won/covered three of last four visits to Chicago.
Over is 9-2 in last eleven meetings.
Thursday’s 6-pack:
Some teams getting highest %age of points on foul shots:
28.7% of points— Charlotte
26.7%— Rice
26.5%— Seattle
26.1%— NC-Wilmington
26.0%— Butler
25.9%— Cal-Davis
Quote of the Day
“That sucked, to be blunt.”
Steelers’ coach Mike Tomlin, after their 29-10 loss to Kansas City.
Thursday’s quiz
Which three NFL teams has Pete Carroll coached?
Wednesday’s quiz
Mark Jackson was coach of the Golden State Warriors, before Steve Kerr.
Tuesday’s quiz
When Rickey Henderson got his 3,000th career hit, he was playing for the San Diego Padres.
***********************************
Right now, ESPN has 13 of 16 SEC teams getting into the NCAA Tournament.
South Carolina is 9-3, #65 on kenpom.com they’re the lowest-rated SEC team.
John Calipari’s first Arkansas team is 10-2, but against #233.
Kentucky, in Mark Pope’s first season, is 10-2 against schedule #65.
Conference play hasn’t started yet, so once teams start losing, things will change, but right now, this is far and away the best league in the country.
— There are four unbeaten teams left: Florida, Oklahoma, Tennessee from the SEC and Drake from the MVC.
Bracketology has Drake as an 11-seed, meaning they better win Arch Madness to get into the NCAA Tournament, but not bad for a team with four starters who were playing for a D-2 team last season.
— Big X
Arizona is 6-5; 0-5 vs top 100 teams, 6-0 vs everyone else; they’ve played schedule #53.
Bracketology has 8 of 16 teams in the Field of 68.
Cincinnati is 10-1, with the #5 eFG% defense, but against schedule #299.
Iowa State’s only loss was 83-81 to Auburn; they’re shooting 60.5% inside the arc.
— Big 18
UCLA and USC are in the same league as Rutgers and Maryland; the over-educated morons who run college sports have outdone themselves with all this shuffling.
Bracketology has 10 of 18 Big 18 teams getting in the NCAAs; KenPom has six of their teams in the top 25.
All 18 teams have played two conference games already; 12 of the 18 teams split their games. It isn’t obvious who the best teams are, unlike the SEC, where Auburn, Florida, Tennessee have stood out so far.
— Big East
Seton Hall, Villanova seem to be down; Georgetown is better. UConn, Marquette and St John’s look like the three best teams, at this early point in the season.
ESPN has only three Big East teams in the Tournament; they had only three in last year’s event, their lowest amount in the last 25 years.
— ACC
KenPom has ACC as the #5 conference; they haven’t finished higher than 5th since 2020.
There are 18 teams in ACC now, with Cal,Stanford, SMU joining; lot of long road trips.
North Carolina is off to a 7-5 start, 2-5 vs top 100 teams.
Duke is 10-2, losing to Kansas/Kentucky; their best player is a freshman.
Right now, ESPN has five teams in the field of 68.
— Mountain West
San Diego State is 8-2, Utah State 11-1; they appear to be the best teams so far.
Decent depth though; Boise State, New Mexico, UNLV and Colorado State are capable.
ESPN has only two Mountain West teams in the field of 68.
— Famous birthdays, December 26
Carlton Fisk, 77
Chris Chambliss, 76
Ozzie Smith, 70
Storm Davis, 63
Tim Legler, 58
Omar Infante, 43
Trevor Siemian, 33
Hogan Harris, 28
— West Coast
Addition of Oregon State/Washington State for this year/next year will help this league, then the bottom will fall out when Gonzaga bolts in two years, and Beavers/Coogs go back to the Pac-12.
This year, Gonzaga/Saint Mary’s are two best teams, with San Francisco, Oregon State, Santa Clara and Wazzu adding quality depth.
Bottom of the league isn’t so great right now; ESPN has Gonzaga/Saint Mary’s in the NCAA’s, but that could change.
— Atlantic 15
Dayton, VCU and St Bonaventure appear to be the best teams. Richmond/UMass are down, Loyola Chicago just had a rough 0-3 trip to Hawai’i.
Archie Miller has Rhode Island at 11-1, but they’ve played schedule #323.
A-15 could be a one-bid league for second time in three years; last time they had more than two teams in NCAAs was 2018.
— Charlotte 94, Murray State 90, 2OT
This game, played very late Monday night, ended around 12:45am Tuesday here in Las Vegas, which means if I was home, it would’ve been almost 4am, which is awesome, kind of like the old ESPN Basketball Marathon they used to have in November every year.
Two ordinary teams played their butts off for three hours; fun to watch
Charlotte was 34-36 on the foul line.
Murray State led by 10 with 6:19 left in regulation.
Five players fouled out.
— Missouri Valley
Only once since 2016 has the Valley not been a one-bid league; Arch Madness is what matters.
KenPom.com has #72 Bradley as the highest-ranked team right now.
That said, ESPN has two MVC teams in the field of 68 right now, because Drake is 11-0- they have Indiana State as the other team in right now.
It is still December; a lot will change between now and Selection Sunday.
— It needs to be said here that the transfer portal has made the sport more top-heavy; every kid at a mid-major who makes two layups in a row thinks he belongs in the NBA. The rich steal from the not-rich, just like baseball. Can’t be a lot of fun being a mid-major head coach.
— Big West
Cal-San Diego is 11-2, including beating three eastern mid-majors at a tournament in Florida; the Tritons are forcing turnovers 24.4% of the time, #4 in country.
Since 2014, Cal-Irvine is 140-41 in Big West games, but they’ve only made the NCAA’s twice during that time- they upset K-State in the first round in 2019. Anteaters always play good defense; success in the conference tournament has been more challenging.
— Southern
Furman is ranked #113 by KenPom; they’re highest-ranked team in SoCon right now, two years after upsetting Virginia in the NCAAs.
10-3 Samford seems like their biggest challenger right now; they’re shooting 39.6% on the arc (#18) getting 42% of their points on the arc (#8)
Some teams getting highest %age of points on foul shots:
28.7% of points— Charlotte
26.7%— Rice
26.5%— Seattle
26.1%— NC-Wilmington
26.0%— Butler
25.9%— Cal-Davis
Quote of the Day
“That sucked, to be blunt.”
Steelers’ coach Mike Tomlin, after their 29-10 loss to Kansas City.
Thursday’s quiz
Which three NFL teams has Pete Carroll coached?
Wednesday’s quiz
Mark Jackson was coach of the Golden State Warriors, before Steve Kerr.
Tuesday’s quiz
When Rickey Henderson got his 3,000th career hit, he was playing for the San Diego Padres.
***********************************
Thursday’s Den: College Basketball thoughts, on a winter day
— SECRight now, ESPN has 13 of 16 SEC teams getting into the NCAA Tournament.
South Carolina is 9-3, #65 on kenpom.com they’re the lowest-rated SEC team.
John Calipari’s first Arkansas team is 10-2, but against #233.
Kentucky, in Mark Pope’s first season, is 10-2 against schedule #65.
Conference play hasn’t started yet, so once teams start losing, things will change, but right now, this is far and away the best league in the country.
— There are four unbeaten teams left: Florida, Oklahoma, Tennessee from the SEC and Drake from the MVC.
Bracketology has Drake as an 11-seed, meaning they better win Arch Madness to get into the NCAA Tournament, but not bad for a team with four starters who were playing for a D-2 team last season.
— Big X
Arizona is 6-5; 0-5 vs top 100 teams, 6-0 vs everyone else; they’ve played schedule #53.
Bracketology has 8 of 16 teams in the Field of 68.
Cincinnati is 10-1, with the #5 eFG% defense, but against schedule #299.
Iowa State’s only loss was 83-81 to Auburn; they’re shooting 60.5% inside the arc.
— Big 18
UCLA and USC are in the same league as Rutgers and Maryland; the over-educated morons who run college sports have outdone themselves with all this shuffling.
Bracketology has 10 of 18 Big 18 teams getting in the NCAAs; KenPom has six of their teams in the top 25.
All 18 teams have played two conference games already; 12 of the 18 teams split their games. It isn’t obvious who the best teams are, unlike the SEC, where Auburn, Florida, Tennessee have stood out so far.
— Big East
Seton Hall, Villanova seem to be down; Georgetown is better. UConn, Marquette and St John’s look like the three best teams, at this early point in the season.
ESPN has only three Big East teams in the Tournament; they had only three in last year’s event, their lowest amount in the last 25 years.
— ACC
KenPom has ACC as the #5 conference; they haven’t finished higher than 5th since 2020.
There are 18 teams in ACC now, with Cal,Stanford, SMU joining; lot of long road trips.
North Carolina is off to a 7-5 start, 2-5 vs top 100 teams.
Duke is 10-2, losing to Kansas/Kentucky; their best player is a freshman.
Right now, ESPN has five teams in the field of 68.
— Mountain West
San Diego State is 8-2, Utah State 11-1; they appear to be the best teams so far.
Decent depth though; Boise State, New Mexico, UNLV and Colorado State are capable.
ESPN has only two Mountain West teams in the field of 68.
— Famous birthdays, December 26
Carlton Fisk, 77
Chris Chambliss, 76
Ozzie Smith, 70
Storm Davis, 63
Tim Legler, 58
Omar Infante, 43
Trevor Siemian, 33
Hogan Harris, 28
— West Coast
Addition of Oregon State/Washington State for this year/next year will help this league, then the bottom will fall out when Gonzaga bolts in two years, and Beavers/Coogs go back to the Pac-12.
This year, Gonzaga/Saint Mary’s are two best teams, with San Francisco, Oregon State, Santa Clara and Wazzu adding quality depth.
Bottom of the league isn’t so great right now; ESPN has Gonzaga/Saint Mary’s in the NCAA’s, but that could change.
— Atlantic 15
Dayton, VCU and St Bonaventure appear to be the best teams. Richmond/UMass are down, Loyola Chicago just had a rough 0-3 trip to Hawai’i.
Archie Miller has Rhode Island at 11-1, but they’ve played schedule #323.
A-15 could be a one-bid league for second time in three years; last time they had more than two teams in NCAAs was 2018.
— Charlotte 94, Murray State 90, 2OT
This game, played very late Monday night, ended around 12:45am Tuesday here in Las Vegas, which means if I was home, it would’ve been almost 4am, which is awesome, kind of like the old ESPN Basketball Marathon they used to have in November every year.
Two ordinary teams played their butts off for three hours; fun to watch
Charlotte was 34-36 on the foul line.
Murray State led by 10 with 6:19 left in regulation.
Five players fouled out.
— Missouri Valley
Only once since 2016 has the Valley not been a one-bid league; Arch Madness is what matters.
KenPom.com has #72 Bradley as the highest-ranked team right now.
That said, ESPN has two MVC teams in the field of 68 right now, because Drake is 11-0- they have Indiana State as the other team in right now.
It is still December; a lot will change between now and Selection Sunday.
— It needs to be said here that the transfer portal has made the sport more top-heavy; every kid at a mid-major who makes two layups in a row thinks he belongs in the NBA. The rich steal from the not-rich, just like baseball. Can’t be a lot of fun being a mid-major head coach.
— Big West
Cal-San Diego is 11-2, including beating three eastern mid-majors at a tournament in Florida; the Tritons are forcing turnovers 24.4% of the time, #4 in country.
Since 2014, Cal-Irvine is 140-41 in Big West games, but they’ve only made the NCAA’s twice during that time- they upset K-State in the first round in 2019. Anteaters always play good defense; success in the conference tournament has been more challenging.
— Southern
Furman is ranked #113 by KenPom; they’re highest-ranked team in SoCon right now, two years after upsetting Virginia in the NCAAs.
10-3 Samford seems like their biggest challenger right now; they’re shooting 39.6% on the arc (#18) getting 42% of their points on the arc (#8)
NFL BEST BETS FOR DECEMBER !
11/26/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/23/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/22/2024.................12 - 7 - 0...................63.15%.......................+ 21.50
12/19/2024.................0 - 2 - 0.....................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/16/2024................. 3 - 1 - 0....................75.00%.......................+ 9.50
12/15/2024.................5 - 12 - 0...................29.41%.......................- 36.00
12/12/2024...................1 - 1 - 0...................50.00%........................- 0.50
12/09/2024...................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/08/2024...................9 - 8 - 0....................52.94%.........................+ 1.00
12/05/2024....................0 - 2 - 0....................00.00%....................- 11.00
12/02/2024....................2 - 0 - 0...................100.00%....................+ 10.00
12/01/2024.....................3 - 7- 0.....................30.00%.....................- 23.50
TOTALS........................35 - 46 - 0..................43.20%.................... - 73.00
11/26/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/23/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/22/2024.................12 - 7 - 0...................63.15%.......................+ 21.50
12/19/2024.................0 - 2 - 0.....................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/16/2024................. 3 - 1 - 0....................75.00%.......................+ 9.50
12/15/2024.................5 - 12 - 0...................29.41%.......................- 36.00
12/12/2024...................1 - 1 - 0...................50.00%........................- 0.50
12/09/2024...................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/08/2024...................9 - 8 - 0....................52.94%.........................+ 1.00
12/05/2024....................0 - 2 - 0....................00.00%....................- 11.00
12/02/2024....................2 - 0 - 0...................100.00%....................+ 10.00
12/01/2024.....................3 - 7- 0.....................30.00%.....................- 23.50
TOTALS........................35 - 46 - 0..................43.20%.................... - 73.00
Armadillo Sports
Friday’s 6-pack:
College hoop teams playing the fastest tempo:
— Cal Poly
— South Dakota
— North Carolina
— Fresno State
— Alabama
— New Mexico
Quote of the Day
“The opportunity to make money someplace else created a situation that you have to begin to ask yourself as a coach what is this all about. And the answer is it’s become professional.”
Former Miami coach Jim Larrañaga
Friday’s quiz
NFL QB’s Tony Romo, Sean Payton and Jimmy Garropolo all played college football at the same school; which one?
Thursday’s quiz
Pete Carroll has coached the Jets, Patriots and Seahawks.
Wednesday’s quiz
Mark Jackson was coach of the Golden State Warriors, before Steve Kerr.
******************************************
Friday’s Den: Random stuff with the weekend here……..
Seahawks 6, Bears 3
This was the worst NFL game I’ve ever seen. Ever.
Total yardage: Seattle 265, Chicago 179
Seahawks kicked a FG on their first drive.
After the first drive, they ran 41 plays for 180 yards.
Seattle gained less than 300 yards in five or last seven games.
Bears are 0-10 SU/3-7 ATS in their last ten games.
Bears averaged 2.2 yards/pass attempt; Williams was sacked 7 times.
Chicago has scored 45 points in four games since Eberflus got fired.
Bears are 0-10 when they score less than 24 points,
Under is 7-3 in Chicago’s last ten games.
Chiefs 29, Steelers 10
Chiefs won their last six games, covered last three.
Chiefs’ first two drives: 15 plays, 121 yards, 13 points.
Last three games, Kansas City is +10 in turnovers.
Mahomes threw for 320 yards, three TD’s.
Win clinches the #1 seed in AFC for Kansas City.
Steelers ran for 202 yards, but were minus-2 in turnovers.
Pittsburgh was 8-16 on third down, Chiefs 3-10.
Steelers averaged only 3.9 yards/pass attempt.
Steelers lost their last three games, after a 7-1 run.
Last three games, Pittsburgh allowed 402.7 yards/game.
Ravens 31, Texans 2
Baltimore won its two post-bye games, scoring 35-34-31 points.
Ravens’ first two drives: 15 plays, 111 yards, 10 points.
Baltimore is 11-0 if they score 27+ points, 0-5 if they score less than 27
QB Jackson put game out of reach with a 48-yard TD run.
Ravens are 6-2 ATS as a road favorite this year.
Ravens outgained Houston, 432-211
Texans had only ten first downs the whole game.
Houston is 2-7 when it gives up more than 20 points.
Under is 7-1 in Texans home games.
This was first-ever NFL game with a halftime score of 17-2.
— Toledo 48, Pittsburgh 46 OT
Toledo kicked a 51-yard FG with 1:45 left to force OT
Rockets scored two TD’s in a 0:14 span in the second quarter.
Toledo led 20-12 at halftime.
Pitt ran ball 66 times for 301 yards, but lost.
This game had six overtime innings, the longest bowl game ever.
— Kansas State 44, Rutgers 41
Rutgers led 27-17 at halftime, 34-17 with 6:00 left in 3rd quarter.
Dylan Edwards ran 18 times for 196 yards and two TD’s.
K-State ran ball 42 times for 347 yards (8.3 yards/carry).
Rutgers gained 319 yards in first half, only 82 after halftime.
— Arkansas State 38, Bowling Green 31
Ark State took a 10-0 lead on a 60-yard punt return for a TD.
Then, Falcons’ #3 QB threw a 43-yard TD pass on a fake punt.
Bowling Green outgained Ark State, 479-360
Ark State QB Raynor threw for 221 yards and two TD’s.
— South Florida 41, San Jose State 39 OT
USF led 21-7 after a 93-yard kick return in second quarter.
Bulls kicked a 41-yard FG with 0:02 left in regulation to force OT.
San Jose outgained South Florida, 441-291.
— Famous birthdays, December 27:
Tovah Feldshuh, 72
Mark Budaska, 72
Craig Reynolds, 72
Kent Benson, 70
Donald Igwebuike, 64
Eva LaRue, 58
Kevin Ollie, 52
Carson Palmer, 45
Cole Hamels, 41
Greg Zuerlein, 37
Jordan Montgomery, 32
Brock Purdy, 25
— 75-year old Jim Larrañaga is no longer Miami’s basketball coach; whether he got fired or quit isn’t relevant (no one quits those jobs unless it is health-related).
Larrañaga won 744 games as a college coach; he had Miami in the freakin’ Final Four two years ago, but the Hurricanes are 4-8 this season, after ending last year on an 0-10 skid. Our society has become very fickle, especially towards older people, so Larrañaga is gone now.
— Speaking of which, there are murmurs that 73-year old Pete Carroll has interest in being the next coach of the Chicago Bears, who need all the coaching they can get.
Carroll has a 181-131-1 record as an NFL head coach, winning a Super Bowl with Seattle; he was also 97-19 as USC’s coach.
— Teddy Bridgewater was an NFL QB for nine years, for six different teams; he was Detroit’s backup QB last year, then retired so he could coach high school ball at Miami Northwestern HS, his alma mater. Miami Northwestern won a state title this past season and now Bridgewater has un-retired, to go back to the Lions as a backup.
— Nebraska 78, Oregon State 66
Cornhuskers win the Diamond Head Classic; they’re 10-2 this season.
Nebraska was 38-44 on the foul line in the 3-game tournament.
Cornhuskers are forcing turnovers 21% of time (#49)
— The fiercest game in those 8-team tournaments is the 7th place game, when two teams that are 0-2 in the event fight like hell not to go home to the mainland 0-3.
Murray State beat Loyola Chi 71-68 in the 7th place game at Diamond Head; Racers were 22-33 on the foul line, Loyola 14-21. Ramblers led by 11 early in second half, but went home 0-3.
— QB Fernando Mendoza has transferred from the Cal Bears to Indiana; he threw for 3,004 yards this year, with 16 TD passes, six INT’s.
— QB Darian Mensah bolted from Tulane to Duke after leading the Green Wave to a 9-4 regular season record. Word came out on the Interweb this week that Mensah signed a 2-year deal worth $8M to play for Duke!!!! 4 million freakin’ dollars a year!!!!
By way of comparison, Jimmy Garropolo is the Rams’ backup QB, in the NFL. He’s making $3,044,305 this season.
Go figure.
Friday’s 6-pack:
College hoop teams playing the fastest tempo:
— Cal Poly
— South Dakota
— North Carolina
— Fresno State
— Alabama
— New Mexico
Quote of the Day
“The opportunity to make money someplace else created a situation that you have to begin to ask yourself as a coach what is this all about. And the answer is it’s become professional.”
Former Miami coach Jim Larrañaga
Friday’s quiz
NFL QB’s Tony Romo, Sean Payton and Jimmy Garropolo all played college football at the same school; which one?
Thursday’s quiz
Pete Carroll has coached the Jets, Patriots and Seahawks.
Wednesday’s quiz
Mark Jackson was coach of the Golden State Warriors, before Steve Kerr.
******************************************
Friday’s Den: Random stuff with the weekend here……..
Seahawks 6, Bears 3
This was the worst NFL game I’ve ever seen. Ever.
Total yardage: Seattle 265, Chicago 179
Seahawks kicked a FG on their first drive.
After the first drive, they ran 41 plays for 180 yards.
Seattle gained less than 300 yards in five or last seven games.
Bears are 0-10 SU/3-7 ATS in their last ten games.
Bears averaged 2.2 yards/pass attempt; Williams was sacked 7 times.
Chicago has scored 45 points in four games since Eberflus got fired.
Bears are 0-10 when they score less than 24 points,
Under is 7-3 in Chicago’s last ten games.
Chiefs 29, Steelers 10
Chiefs won their last six games, covered last three.
Chiefs’ first two drives: 15 plays, 121 yards, 13 points.
Last three games, Kansas City is +10 in turnovers.
Mahomes threw for 320 yards, three TD’s.
Win clinches the #1 seed in AFC for Kansas City.
Steelers ran for 202 yards, but were minus-2 in turnovers.
Pittsburgh was 8-16 on third down, Chiefs 3-10.
Steelers averaged only 3.9 yards/pass attempt.
Steelers lost their last three games, after a 7-1 run.
Last three games, Pittsburgh allowed 402.7 yards/game.
Ravens 31, Texans 2
Baltimore won its two post-bye games, scoring 35-34-31 points.
Ravens’ first two drives: 15 plays, 111 yards, 10 points.
Baltimore is 11-0 if they score 27+ points, 0-5 if they score less than 27
QB Jackson put game out of reach with a 48-yard TD run.
Ravens are 6-2 ATS as a road favorite this year.
Ravens outgained Houston, 432-211
Texans had only ten first downs the whole game.
Houston is 2-7 when it gives up more than 20 points.
Under is 7-1 in Texans home games.
This was first-ever NFL game with a halftime score of 17-2.
— Toledo 48, Pittsburgh 46 OT
Toledo kicked a 51-yard FG with 1:45 left to force OT
Rockets scored two TD’s in a 0:14 span in the second quarter.
Toledo led 20-12 at halftime.
Pitt ran ball 66 times for 301 yards, but lost.
This game had six overtime innings, the longest bowl game ever.
— Kansas State 44, Rutgers 41
Rutgers led 27-17 at halftime, 34-17 with 6:00 left in 3rd quarter.
Dylan Edwards ran 18 times for 196 yards and two TD’s.
K-State ran ball 42 times for 347 yards (8.3 yards/carry).
Rutgers gained 319 yards in first half, only 82 after halftime.
— Arkansas State 38, Bowling Green 31
Ark State took a 10-0 lead on a 60-yard punt return for a TD.
Then, Falcons’ #3 QB threw a 43-yard TD pass on a fake punt.
Bowling Green outgained Ark State, 479-360
Ark State QB Raynor threw for 221 yards and two TD’s.
— South Florida 41, San Jose State 39 OT
USF led 21-7 after a 93-yard kick return in second quarter.
Bulls kicked a 41-yard FG with 0:02 left in regulation to force OT.
San Jose outgained South Florida, 441-291.
— Famous birthdays, December 27:
Tovah Feldshuh, 72
Mark Budaska, 72
Craig Reynolds, 72
Kent Benson, 70
Donald Igwebuike, 64
Eva LaRue, 58
Kevin Ollie, 52
Carson Palmer, 45
Cole Hamels, 41
Greg Zuerlein, 37
Jordan Montgomery, 32
Brock Purdy, 25
— 75-year old Jim Larrañaga is no longer Miami’s basketball coach; whether he got fired or quit isn’t relevant (no one quits those jobs unless it is health-related).
Larrañaga won 744 games as a college coach; he had Miami in the freakin’ Final Four two years ago, but the Hurricanes are 4-8 this season, after ending last year on an 0-10 skid. Our society has become very fickle, especially towards older people, so Larrañaga is gone now.
— Speaking of which, there are murmurs that 73-year old Pete Carroll has interest in being the next coach of the Chicago Bears, who need all the coaching they can get.
Carroll has a 181-131-1 record as an NFL head coach, winning a Super Bowl with Seattle; he was also 97-19 as USC’s coach.
— Teddy Bridgewater was an NFL QB for nine years, for six different teams; he was Detroit’s backup QB last year, then retired so he could coach high school ball at Miami Northwestern HS, his alma mater. Miami Northwestern won a state title this past season and now Bridgewater has un-retired, to go back to the Lions as a backup.
— Nebraska 78, Oregon State 66
Cornhuskers win the Diamond Head Classic; they’re 10-2 this season.
Nebraska was 38-44 on the foul line in the 3-game tournament.
Cornhuskers are forcing turnovers 21% of time (#49)
— The fiercest game in those 8-team tournaments is the 7th place game, when two teams that are 0-2 in the event fight like hell not to go home to the mainland 0-3.
Murray State beat Loyola Chi 71-68 in the 7th place game at Diamond Head; Racers were 22-33 on the foul line, Loyola 14-21. Ramblers led by 11 early in second half, but went home 0-3.
— QB Fernando Mendoza has transferred from the Cal Bears to Indiana; he threw for 3,004 yards this year, with 16 TD passes, six INT’s.
— QB Darian Mensah bolted from Tulane to Duke after leading the Green Wave to a 9-4 regular season record. Word came out on the Interweb this week that Mensah signed a 2-year deal worth $8M to play for Duke!!!! 4 million freakin’ dollars a year!!!!
By way of comparison, Jimmy Garropolo is the Rams’ backup QB, in the NFL. He’s making $3,044,305 this season.
Go figure.
NFL
Armadillo's Write-up
Week 17
Saturday’s games
Chargers (-4) @ Patriots
Chargers (9-6)
Chargers lost three of their last five games.
LA is 6-0 scoring 24+ points, 3-6 scoring 23 or fewer points.
Chargers ran for 117 yards LW, first time in five games they ran for 100+ yards.
Last eight games, Chargers are +4 in turnovers.
Team total: over 8-7
Opponents’ team total: under 8-6-1
Chargers are 4-1 ATS this season as road favorites.
Favorites are 5-2 ATS in their road games this year.
Chargers are 5-3 ATS this year in games coming off a win.
QB Herbert is 39-39 as an NFL starter.
Under is 6-1 in their road games this year.
Chargers were held under 300 TY in four of last five games.
Patriots (3-12)
Patriots are 0-5 SU/2-3 ATS in last five games.
New England led 14-0 at Buffalo LW, wound up losing 24-21.
Patriots outgained the Bills 379-324 in that game.
Patriots are 1-12 SU when they allow more than 10 points.
Team total: under 7-6-1
Opponents’ team total: over 4-1 last five
NE is 12-23-1 ATS in last 36 games as an underdog.
Patriots are 32-51 SU since Tom Brady left town.
Patriots are 2-3-1 ATS as a home underdog this year.
Rookie QB Maye is 2-8 as an NFL starter.
Over is 5-1 in their last home games.
Patriots are 2-5 in games decided by 6 or fewer points.
New England won seven of last eight series games.
Chargers (-5) won 6-0 in Foxboro last year.
Chargers are 1-5 SU/2-4 ATS in last six visits to Foxboro,
Under is 4-2 in last six meetings.
Broncos @ Bengals (-3.5)
Broncos (9-6)
Broncos won four of last five games, scoring 33.2 ppg
Denver is 5-1 ATS in its last six games.
Denver is 8-1 if they score more than 20 points, 1-5 if they score 20 or less.
Broncos are 1-5 in games decided by 7 or fewer points.
Team total: over 10-4-1
Opponents’ team total: under 9-6
Denver is 4-4 SU/6-2 ATS in its road games TY.
Denver is 4-2 ATS as a road underdog TY.
In wins, Broncos are +11 in turnovers; in losses, minus-5.
Denver led 21-13 at half LW, was outscored 21-6 in second half.
10 of Broncos’ last 12 games went over the total.
Denver leads Bengals by 2 games for one of last two playoff slots.
Bengals (7-8)
Bengals won their last two games, by 7-10-18 points,
Bengals were +5 in turnovers in those three games.
Bengals are 6-1 if they allow 24 or fewer points, 1-7 if they allow more than 24.
Over is 10-4 in their last fourteen games.
Team total: over 9-6
Opponents’ team total: over 9-5-1
Bengals are 2-5 SU/ATS at home this season.
Bengals are 11-7-2 ATS last 19 games as a home fave (2-4 TY).
Bengals are 17-7-1 ATS in last 25 games coming off a win
Five of their seven wins are by 10+ points.
Over is 5-1 in their last six home games.
QB Burrow is 40-32-1 as an NFL starter.
Teams split their last six meetings.
Road team won last four series games.
Broncos are 4-1 SU/ATS in last five visits to Cincinnati.
Under is 4-1 in last five series games.
Cardinals @ Rams (-6.5)
Cardinals (7-8)
Cardinals are 2-5 SU on road; both wins were by one point.
Arizona is 1-4 since its bye; they lost four of last five on road.
Arizona is 6-2 scoring 24+ points, 1-6 scoring less than 24.
In its seven wins, Arizona outscored foes 94-44 in second half.
Team total: over 9-6
Opponents’ team total: under 9-6
Arizona is 4-1 ATS as a road underdog this year.
Last four weeks, Cardinals gained average of 385 yards/game.
Arizona is 3-1 in games decided by 5 or fewer points.
Over is 3-0 in their last three games.
Cardinals gave up 243 rushing yards in LW’s loss at Carolina.
Arizona is 18-13 ATS in last 31 games coming off a loss.
Rams (9-6)
Rams won eight of their last ten games, after a 1-4 start.
Rams are 5-0 scoring 26+ points, 4-6 scoring less than 26.
11 of their 15 games were decided by 8 or fewer points.
Rams won last two games, 12-6/19-9; the defense has improved.
Team total: under 10-5
Opponents’ team total: under 7-3-1 last eleven
Rams are 4-3 SU at home TY, 0-2 ATS as a home favorite.
Rams are 8-11 ATS in their last 19 games as a home favorite.
Last ten games, Rams are +7 in turnovers.
Rams are 11-5-1 ATS in last 17 games coming off a win.
Over is 3-1 in their last four home games.
Rams are 10-8-1 ATS in last 19 NFC West home games.
Arizona outgained Rams 489-245, pounded LA 41-10 in Week 2.
Teams split their last six meetings.
Cardinals are 2-6 SU/ATS in last eight visits to LA.
Over is 5-2 in last seven series games.
Armadillo's Write-up
Week 17
Saturday’s games
Chargers (-4) @ Patriots
Chargers (9-6)
Chargers lost three of their last five games.
LA is 6-0 scoring 24+ points, 3-6 scoring 23 or fewer points.
Chargers ran for 117 yards LW, first time in five games they ran for 100+ yards.
Last eight games, Chargers are +4 in turnovers.
Team total: over 8-7
Opponents’ team total: under 8-6-1
Chargers are 4-1 ATS this season as road favorites.
Favorites are 5-2 ATS in their road games this year.
Chargers are 5-3 ATS this year in games coming off a win.
QB Herbert is 39-39 as an NFL starter.
Under is 6-1 in their road games this year.
Chargers were held under 300 TY in four of last five games.
Patriots (3-12)
Patriots are 0-5 SU/2-3 ATS in last five games.
New England led 14-0 at Buffalo LW, wound up losing 24-21.
Patriots outgained the Bills 379-324 in that game.
Patriots are 1-12 SU when they allow more than 10 points.
Team total: under 7-6-1
Opponents’ team total: over 4-1 last five
NE is 12-23-1 ATS in last 36 games as an underdog.
Patriots are 32-51 SU since Tom Brady left town.
Patriots are 2-3-1 ATS as a home underdog this year.
Rookie QB Maye is 2-8 as an NFL starter.
Over is 5-1 in their last home games.
Patriots are 2-5 in games decided by 6 or fewer points.
New England won seven of last eight series games.
Chargers (-5) won 6-0 in Foxboro last year.
Chargers are 1-5 SU/2-4 ATS in last six visits to Foxboro,
Under is 4-2 in last six meetings.
Broncos @ Bengals (-3.5)
Broncos (9-6)
Broncos won four of last five games, scoring 33.2 ppg
Denver is 5-1 ATS in its last six games.
Denver is 8-1 if they score more than 20 points, 1-5 if they score 20 or less.
Broncos are 1-5 in games decided by 7 or fewer points.
Team total: over 10-4-1
Opponents’ team total: under 9-6
Denver is 4-4 SU/6-2 ATS in its road games TY.
Denver is 4-2 ATS as a road underdog TY.
In wins, Broncos are +11 in turnovers; in losses, minus-5.
Denver led 21-13 at half LW, was outscored 21-6 in second half.
10 of Broncos’ last 12 games went over the total.
Denver leads Bengals by 2 games for one of last two playoff slots.
Bengals (7-8)
Bengals won their last two games, by 7-10-18 points,
Bengals were +5 in turnovers in those three games.
Bengals are 6-1 if they allow 24 or fewer points, 1-7 if they allow more than 24.
Over is 10-4 in their last fourteen games.
Team total: over 9-6
Opponents’ team total: over 9-5-1
Bengals are 2-5 SU/ATS at home this season.
Bengals are 11-7-2 ATS last 19 games as a home fave (2-4 TY).
Bengals are 17-7-1 ATS in last 25 games coming off a win
Five of their seven wins are by 10+ points.
Over is 5-1 in their last six home games.
QB Burrow is 40-32-1 as an NFL starter.
Teams split their last six meetings.
Road team won last four series games.
Broncos are 4-1 SU/ATS in last five visits to Cincinnati.
Under is 4-1 in last five series games.
Cardinals @ Rams (-6.5)
Cardinals (7-8)
Cardinals are 2-5 SU on road; both wins were by one point.
Arizona is 1-4 since its bye; they lost four of last five on road.
Arizona is 6-2 scoring 24+ points, 1-6 scoring less than 24.
In its seven wins, Arizona outscored foes 94-44 in second half.
Team total: over 9-6
Opponents’ team total: under 9-6
Arizona is 4-1 ATS as a road underdog this year.
Last four weeks, Cardinals gained average of 385 yards/game.
Arizona is 3-1 in games decided by 5 or fewer points.
Over is 3-0 in their last three games.
Cardinals gave up 243 rushing yards in LW’s loss at Carolina.
Arizona is 18-13 ATS in last 31 games coming off a loss.
Rams (9-6)
Rams won eight of their last ten games, after a 1-4 start.
Rams are 5-0 scoring 26+ points, 4-6 scoring less than 26.
11 of their 15 games were decided by 8 or fewer points.
Rams won last two games, 12-6/19-9; the defense has improved.
Team total: under 10-5
Opponents’ team total: under 7-3-1 last eleven
Rams are 4-3 SU at home TY, 0-2 ATS as a home favorite.
Rams are 8-11 ATS in their last 19 games as a home favorite.
Last ten games, Rams are +7 in turnovers.
Rams are 11-5-1 ATS in last 17 games coming off a win.
Over is 3-1 in their last four home games.
Rams are 10-8-1 ATS in last 19 NFC West home games.
Arizona outgained Rams 489-245, pounded LA 41-10 in Week 2.
Teams split their last six meetings.
Cardinals are 2-6 SU/ATS in last eight visits to LA.
Over is 5-2 in last seven series games.
NFL
Armadillo's Write-up
Week 17
Sunday’s games
Colts (-8) @ Giants
Colts (7-8)
Indy is 3-2 SU in last 5 games, 2-5 ATS in last seven.
Colts don’t have a win by more than eight points.
Colts are 4-7 when they give up 20+ points.
Colts are 3-5 SU on road, with wins by 1-1-3 points.
Team total: over 7-6-2
Opponents’ team total: over 5-1 last six
Colts won 38-30 LW; they ran for 335 yards, threw only 11 passes
QB Richardson is 8-7 as an NFL starter.
Colts are 0-2 ATS as a road favorite TY.
Indy is 3-2-1 ATS this year in games coning off a win.
Over is 5-1 in Colts last six games.
Colts are 5-2 if they score more than 20 points, 2-6 if they don’t.
Indy is 5-9 ATS in last 14 games vs NFC teams.
Giants (2-13)
Giants are 0-10 SU/1-9 ATS in last ten games.
Giants are 0-8 SU/2-6 ATS at home this year.
Giants haven’t had a positive turnover ratio in any games TY.
Lock threw two pick 6’s in 31-7 loss at Atlanta last week.
Team total: under 9-6
Opponents’ team total: over 8-1 last nine
Last ten games, Giants were outscored 142-46 in first half.
Under Daboll, Giants are 9-9-1 ATS as a home underdog
Under Daboll, Giants are 15-14-1 ATS coming off a loss.
QB Lock is 9-17 as an NFL starter.
Under is 10-5 in their games this season.
Last four weeks, Giants gained 257.4 yards/game.
Giants get #1 pick in ’25 Draft if they lose last two games.
Colts won four of last five meetings.
Colts won two of last three visits here.
Over is 5-1 in last six series games.
Raiders @ Saints (-2)
Raiders (3-12)
Las Vegas snapped a 10-game skid with last week’s win.
Raiders are 4-7 ATS in last eleven games
Raiders have 28 turnovers in 15 games (minus-17).
Last four weeks, Las Vegas scored only 14.8 ppg.
Raiders are 2-3 ATS TY in games with spread of 3 or less points.
Team total: over 8-7
Opponents’ team total: over 9-6
Raiders are 2-6 SU/4-4 ATS on road this season.
Last three weeks, Raiders were held to 283 yards/game.
QB O’Connell is 6-9 as a starter, 1-4 TY.
Under is 4-0 in their last four games.
Las Vegas is 0-2 ATS this year in games coming off a win.
Raiders are 13-9-1 ATS in last 23 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Saints (5-10)
New Orleans is 3-3 SU/ATS since their coaching change.
Saints were outgained 404-196 in Monday’s 34-0 loss at Green Bay.
New Orleans is 2-10 when it scores less than 35 points.
Saints are 0-9 when they give up 20+ points.
Team total: under 7-2 last nine
Opponents’ team total: under 4-2 last six
Saints are 3-5 SU/4-4 ATS at home this season.
New Orleans is 2-7 ATS this year in games coming off a loss.
Saints are 2-5 in one-score games this year.
#3 QB Rattler is 0-5 as a starter this year.
Under is 5-1 in their last six games.
NFC South home teams are 10-12 ATS in non-divisional games.
Last three weeks, Saints ran ball for only 76 yards/game.
Saints won four of last six series games.
Teams split their last four meetings in New Orleans.
Over is 4-3 in last seven series games.
Titans (-1) @ Jaguars
Titans (3-12)
Titans lost last four games, giving up 31.8 ppg
Rudolph is 9-7-1 as an NFL starter, mostly with Pittsburgh
Tennessee is 1-10 ATS in its last eleven games.
Titans gave up 335 yards rushing in LW’s 38-30 loss.
Team total: under 9-5-1
Opponents’ team total: over 8-4-3
Titans are 2-6 SU/ATS on the road this year.
Since 2020, Tennessee is 2-7 ATS as a road favorite.
Seven of their last eight losses were by 8+ points.
Tennessee is minus-15 in turnovers this season.
Tennessee is 2-9 ATS in last ten games coming off a loss.
Titans are 0-7 when they give up 300+ yards.
Jaguars (3-12)
Jaguars lost seven of their last eight games (5-3 ATS).
Jaguars covered six of their last nine games.
Last five games, Jaguars are minus-8 in turnovers.
Team total: under 9-6
Opponents’ team total: over 6-5 last eleven
Jaguars are 2-9 in games decided by 7 or fewer points.
Jaguars are 1-5 SU/3-2-1 ATS at home this season.
Jaguars are 1-12 if they score less than 32 points.
Jaguars are 1-11 if they give up 18+ points.
Backup QB Jones is 19-29 as an NFL starter.
Three of their last four games stayed under the total.
Jaguars are 6-5 ATS TY in games coming off a loss.
Jaguars are 9-13-1 ATS in last 23 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Jaguars (+3.5) won 10-6 in Nashville three weeks ago.
Jaguars won three of last four series games.
Titans lost 34-14/20-16 in last two visits to Nashville.
Over is 3-1 in last four meetings.
Jets @ Bills (-10)
Jets (4-11)
Jets are 2-9 SU/3-8 ATS in last 11 games.
Jets have only three losses by more than six points.
Jets are 3-1 if they allow 17 or less points, 1-10 if they allow 19+.
Jets are 0-7 scoring less than 21 points.
Team total: under 7-4 last eleven
Opponents’ team total: over 8-2 last ten
Jets are 2-6 SU/3-5 ATS on road this season.
Jets are 11-20 ATS last 31 games as a road underdog.
Over is 7-3 in their last ten games.
Jets are 2-8 SU/3-7 ATS since their coaching change.
Last six games, Jets allowed 26.9 points/game.
Jets are 4-10 ATS in last 14 AFC East road games.
Bills (12-3)
Bills won nine of their last ten games (7-3 ATS)
Buffalo’s last three games were decided by 2-6-3 points
Buffalo gave up 35-23-44 points in its losses (10-0 allow less than 23).
Bills are +21 in turnovers, +6 in last four games.
Team total: over 12-3
Opponents’ team total: under 8-7
Buffalo is 4-3 ATS as a home favorite TY.
Bills are 7-4 ATS TY in games coming off a win.
QB Allen is 80-38 as an NFL starter.
Nine of last ten Buffalo games went over the total.
Buffalo is 7-6-1 ATS in last 13 AFC East home games.
Bills trailed 14-0 last week, were outgained 379-324.
Bills (-2.5) won 23-20 in New Jersey in Week 6
Jets outgained Buffalo 393-359 in that game.
Buffalo won eight of last ten series games.
Jets are 0-4 SU/0-3-1 ATS in last four visits to Buffalo.
Over is 4-2 in last six meetings.
Panthers @ Buccaneers (-8.5)
Panthers (4-11)
Carolina lost four of last five games, is 6-1 ATS in last seven.
Six of their last seven games were decided by 6 or fewer points.
Last four weeks, Panthers gave up 236-209-211-206 rushing yards.
QB Young is 5-21 as an NFL starter.
Team total: under 7-7-1
Opponents’ team total: over 10-5
Carolina is 13-12 ATS in last 25 games coming off a win.
Panthers are 2-5 SU/3-4 ATS as a road underdog TY.
Carolina is 10-19-1 ATS last 30 games as a road underdog
Over is 11-4 in Carolina games this year.
Carolina is 1-10 when they give up more than 22 points..
Panthers are 3-6-1 ATS in last ten NFC South road games.
Buccaneers (8-7)
Bucs are 4-1 since their bye, scoring 30-26-28-40-24 points.
Bucs are 2-5 in games decided by 6 or fewer points.
Tampa Bay is 3-4 SU/4-3 ATS at home this year.
Bucs are 4-1 ATS this year in games coming off a loss.
Team total: over 12-3
Opponents’ team total: over 9-6
Bucs are 4-3 SU/ATS on the road this season.
Tampa Bay is 4-2-1 ATS last seven games as a home favorite.
QB Mayfield is 50-55 as an NFL starter, 18-16 with Buccaneers.
Nine of Tampa Bay’s last 12 games went over the total.
Bucs held last six opponents under 100 yards rushing.
Tampa Bay is 1-5-1 ATS in last seven NFC South home games.
Bucs ran for 236 yards, edged Carolina 26-23 in OT in Week 13.
Bucs won nine of last ten series games.
Panthers are 0-5 SU/0-4-1 ATS in last five visits to Tampa.
Over is 6-3 in last nine meetings.
Packers @ Vikings (-1.5)
Packers (11-4)
Packers won nine of last 11 games (5-0 ATS last five).
Green Bay is 5-1 SU/4-2 ATS on road this season.
Last five weeks, Green Bay scored 32.6 points/game.
Packers held 4 of last 5 opponents to 80 or fewer rushing yards.
Team total: over 10-5
Opponents’ team total: under 11-3 last 14
GB is 17-7 ATS in last 24 games as a road underdog
Packers are 11-7 ATS in last 18 games coming off a win.
Green Bay is 10-0 when it allows less than 24 points.
Under is 7-4 in their last eleven games.
Last five games, Green Bay is +7 in turnovers.
Packers are 21-12 ATS in last 33 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Vikings (13-2)
Minnesota won last eight games, scoring 30.4 ppg in last five.
Vikings allowed 31-30 points in their two losses.
Minnesota is 6-1 SU/5-2 ATS at home this season.
Vikings are 8-1 in games decided by 8 or fewer points.
Team total: over 10-4-1
Opponents’ team total: under 8-7
Under O’Connell, Minnesota is 7-9 ATS as a home favorite.
Vikings are 3-2 ATS as a home favorite this year.
Minnesota has 29 takeaways in 13 games (+9 turnovers).
Minnesota gave up 391/386 TY in its two losses.
QB Darnold is 33-37 as an NFL starter, 12-2 with Vikings.
Vikings are 13-4-2 ATS in last 19 games coming off a win.
Vikings are 13-10-2 in last 25 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Vikings (+3) won 31-29 at Green Bay in Week 4
Vikings won three of last four series games.
Packers are 3-2 SU/ATS in last five visits to Minnesota.
Over is 6-2-1 in last nine meetings.
Cowboys @ Eagles (-9.5)
Cowboys (7-8)
Dallas won four of its last five games, after an 0-5 skid.
Cowboys are 2-8 when they allow more than 20 points.
Cowboys are 5-4 in games decided by 8 or less points.
WR Lamb has been shut down for the season
Team total: under 7-5 last twelve
Opponents’ team total: over 7-3 last ten
Dallas is 5-2 SU/4-3 ATS on road this season.
Cowboys are 9-8 ATS last 17 games as a road dog.
Backup QB Rush is 9-4 as an NFL starter.
Cowboys converted only 32 of last 94 third down plays.
Over is 9-3 in last dozen Dallas games.
Dallas is minus-11 in turnovers in its losses, +10 in wins.
Dallas is 10-7 ATS in last 17 games coming off a win.
Eagles (12-3)
Eagles are 10-1 SU/7-4 ATS in their last eleven games.
Last five weeks, Eagles ran ball for 205.8 yards/game.
Eagles outscored last nine opponents 136-82 in first half.
Last nine weeks, Philly is +12 in turnovers.
Team total: over 8-2 last ten
Opponents’ team total: under 7-4 last eleven
QB Hurts has concussion issues (check status)
Philly is 5-1 SU/2-4 ATS at home this season
Backup QB Pickett is 14-10 as an NFL starter.
Eagles are 9-13 ATS in last 22 NFC East home games.
Eagles are 2-6 ATS in last eight games coming off a loss.
Under is 5-2 in their last seven games.
Eagles held 8 of last 11 opponents under 300 TY.
Eagles outgained Cowboys 348-146, won 34-6 at Dallas in Week 10
Home team won last six series games.
Cowboys are 1-4 SU/ATS in last five visits to Philly.
Over is 5-2 in last seven series games.
Dolphins (-6.5) @ Browns
Dolphins (7-8)
Dolphins are 5-2 in last seven games, but lost last two on road.
Miami is 1-7 when it gives up 20+ points, 6-1 if they allow less.
Last three games, Miami is 9-34 on 3rd down
Tagovailoa is 38-25 as an NFL starter.
Team total: under 7-7-1
Opponents’ team total: over 8-7
Miami is 2-5 SU/3-4 ATS on road this season.
Dolphins ran for 166 yards LW, first time in 7 games they ran for 100+.
Dolphins are 2-3 ATS TY in games coming off a win.
Miami is 28-20 ATS TY in last 48 games coming off a win.
Under is 6-1 in their road games this year.
AFC East road favorites are 4-3 ATS in non-divisional games.
Browns (3-12)
Browns lost six of last seven games, giving up 27.7 ppg
#3 QB Thompson-Robinson is 1-3 as an NFL starter
Cleveland is 1-11 when they score less than 24 points.
Browns’ last six losses were all by 9+ points.
Team total: under 11-3
Opponents’ team total: over 8-6
Browns are 6-17-1 ATS in last 24 games coming off a loss.
Browns are 2-5 SU/ATS at home this season.
Browns are 7-5-1 in last 13 games as a home underdog.
Cleveland is 2-3 ATS as a home underdog this year.
Cleveland allowed 20+ points in 13 of 15 games.
Browns are minus-13 in turnovers the last five games.
Miami won three of last four series games.
Dolphins are lost four of their last five visits to Cleveland.
Over is 3-1 in last four meetings.
Falcons @ Commanders (-4)
Falcons (7-7)
Rookie QB Penix won his first NFL start 34-7 last week.
Atlanta won its last two games, 15-9/34-7.
Falcons were held to 21 or fewer points in all seven losses.
Atlanta scored 22+ points in seven of its eight wins.
Team total: under 6-3 last nine
Opponents’ team total: over 6-5-1 last 12
Atlanta is 4-3 SU/ATS on road this year.
Falcons are 2-7 ATS last nine games as a road underdog.
Falcons are 5-9 ATS in last 14 games coming off a win.
Last two games, Atlanta is +4 in turnovers
Six of Falcons’ last seven games stayed under the total.
Falcons need two wins to clinch NFC South title.
Commanders (10-5)
Washington won last three games, scoring 42-20-36 points.
Commanders are 2-5 if they give up more than 22 points.
Rookie QB Daniels is 10-5 as an NFL starter.
Washington won LW, despite giving up 211 rushing yards.
Team total: over 11-4
Opponents’ team total: under 8-7
Washington allowed 26+ points in all five losses.
Commanders are 6-2 SU/ATS at home this season.
Washington was held under 300 TY in three of five losses.
Commanders are 10-14 ATS in last 24 games as a home favorite.
Commanders are 21-11-1 ATS in last 33 games coming off a win.
Over is 4-0 in their last three home games.
Washington won/covered last three series games.
Falcons won three of last four visits here.
Under is 3-2 in last five meetings.
Armadillo's Write-up
Week 17
Sunday’s games
Colts (-8) @ Giants
Colts (7-8)
Indy is 3-2 SU in last 5 games, 2-5 ATS in last seven.
Colts don’t have a win by more than eight points.
Colts are 4-7 when they give up 20+ points.
Colts are 3-5 SU on road, with wins by 1-1-3 points.
Team total: over 7-6-2
Opponents’ team total: over 5-1 last six
Colts won 38-30 LW; they ran for 335 yards, threw only 11 passes
QB Richardson is 8-7 as an NFL starter.
Colts are 0-2 ATS as a road favorite TY.
Indy is 3-2-1 ATS this year in games coning off a win.
Over is 5-1 in Colts last six games.
Colts are 5-2 if they score more than 20 points, 2-6 if they don’t.
Indy is 5-9 ATS in last 14 games vs NFC teams.
Giants (2-13)
Giants are 0-10 SU/1-9 ATS in last ten games.
Giants are 0-8 SU/2-6 ATS at home this year.
Giants haven’t had a positive turnover ratio in any games TY.
Lock threw two pick 6’s in 31-7 loss at Atlanta last week.
Team total: under 9-6
Opponents’ team total: over 8-1 last nine
Last ten games, Giants were outscored 142-46 in first half.
Under Daboll, Giants are 9-9-1 ATS as a home underdog
Under Daboll, Giants are 15-14-1 ATS coming off a loss.
QB Lock is 9-17 as an NFL starter.
Under is 10-5 in their games this season.
Last four weeks, Giants gained 257.4 yards/game.
Giants get #1 pick in ’25 Draft if they lose last two games.
Colts won four of last five meetings.
Colts won two of last three visits here.
Over is 5-1 in last six series games.
Raiders @ Saints (-2)
Raiders (3-12)
Las Vegas snapped a 10-game skid with last week’s win.
Raiders are 4-7 ATS in last eleven games
Raiders have 28 turnovers in 15 games (minus-17).
Last four weeks, Las Vegas scored only 14.8 ppg.
Raiders are 2-3 ATS TY in games with spread of 3 or less points.
Team total: over 8-7
Opponents’ team total: over 9-6
Raiders are 2-6 SU/4-4 ATS on road this season.
Last three weeks, Raiders were held to 283 yards/game.
QB O’Connell is 6-9 as a starter, 1-4 TY.
Under is 4-0 in their last four games.
Las Vegas is 0-2 ATS this year in games coming off a win.
Raiders are 13-9-1 ATS in last 23 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Saints (5-10)
New Orleans is 3-3 SU/ATS since their coaching change.
Saints were outgained 404-196 in Monday’s 34-0 loss at Green Bay.
New Orleans is 2-10 when it scores less than 35 points.
Saints are 0-9 when they give up 20+ points.
Team total: under 7-2 last nine
Opponents’ team total: under 4-2 last six
Saints are 3-5 SU/4-4 ATS at home this season.
New Orleans is 2-7 ATS this year in games coming off a loss.
Saints are 2-5 in one-score games this year.
#3 QB Rattler is 0-5 as a starter this year.
Under is 5-1 in their last six games.
NFC South home teams are 10-12 ATS in non-divisional games.
Last three weeks, Saints ran ball for only 76 yards/game.
Saints won four of last six series games.
Teams split their last four meetings in New Orleans.
Over is 4-3 in last seven series games.
Titans (-1) @ Jaguars
Titans (3-12)
Titans lost last four games, giving up 31.8 ppg
Rudolph is 9-7-1 as an NFL starter, mostly with Pittsburgh
Tennessee is 1-10 ATS in its last eleven games.
Titans gave up 335 yards rushing in LW’s 38-30 loss.
Team total: under 9-5-1
Opponents’ team total: over 8-4-3
Titans are 2-6 SU/ATS on the road this year.
Since 2020, Tennessee is 2-7 ATS as a road favorite.
Seven of their last eight losses were by 8+ points.
Tennessee is minus-15 in turnovers this season.
Tennessee is 2-9 ATS in last ten games coming off a loss.
Titans are 0-7 when they give up 300+ yards.
Jaguars (3-12)
Jaguars lost seven of their last eight games (5-3 ATS).
Jaguars covered six of their last nine games.
Last five games, Jaguars are minus-8 in turnovers.
Team total: under 9-6
Opponents’ team total: over 6-5 last eleven
Jaguars are 2-9 in games decided by 7 or fewer points.
Jaguars are 1-5 SU/3-2-1 ATS at home this season.
Jaguars are 1-12 if they score less than 32 points.
Jaguars are 1-11 if they give up 18+ points.
Backup QB Jones is 19-29 as an NFL starter.
Three of their last four games stayed under the total.
Jaguars are 6-5 ATS TY in games coming off a loss.
Jaguars are 9-13-1 ATS in last 23 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Jaguars (+3.5) won 10-6 in Nashville three weeks ago.
Jaguars won three of last four series games.
Titans lost 34-14/20-16 in last two visits to Nashville.
Over is 3-1 in last four meetings.
Jets @ Bills (-10)
Jets (4-11)
Jets are 2-9 SU/3-8 ATS in last 11 games.
Jets have only three losses by more than six points.
Jets are 3-1 if they allow 17 or less points, 1-10 if they allow 19+.
Jets are 0-7 scoring less than 21 points.
Team total: under 7-4 last eleven
Opponents’ team total: over 8-2 last ten
Jets are 2-6 SU/3-5 ATS on road this season.
Jets are 11-20 ATS last 31 games as a road underdog.
Over is 7-3 in their last ten games.
Jets are 2-8 SU/3-7 ATS since their coaching change.
Last six games, Jets allowed 26.9 points/game.
Jets are 4-10 ATS in last 14 AFC East road games.
Bills (12-3)
Bills won nine of their last ten games (7-3 ATS)
Buffalo’s last three games were decided by 2-6-3 points
Buffalo gave up 35-23-44 points in its losses (10-0 allow less than 23).
Bills are +21 in turnovers, +6 in last four games.
Team total: over 12-3
Opponents’ team total: under 8-7
Buffalo is 4-3 ATS as a home favorite TY.
Bills are 7-4 ATS TY in games coming off a win.
QB Allen is 80-38 as an NFL starter.
Nine of last ten Buffalo games went over the total.
Buffalo is 7-6-1 ATS in last 13 AFC East home games.
Bills trailed 14-0 last week, were outgained 379-324.
Bills (-2.5) won 23-20 in New Jersey in Week 6
Jets outgained Buffalo 393-359 in that game.
Buffalo won eight of last ten series games.
Jets are 0-4 SU/0-3-1 ATS in last four visits to Buffalo.
Over is 4-2 in last six meetings.
Panthers @ Buccaneers (-8.5)
Panthers (4-11)
Carolina lost four of last five games, is 6-1 ATS in last seven.
Six of their last seven games were decided by 6 or fewer points.
Last four weeks, Panthers gave up 236-209-211-206 rushing yards.
QB Young is 5-21 as an NFL starter.
Team total: under 7-7-1
Opponents’ team total: over 10-5
Carolina is 13-12 ATS in last 25 games coming off a win.
Panthers are 2-5 SU/3-4 ATS as a road underdog TY.
Carolina is 10-19-1 ATS last 30 games as a road underdog
Over is 11-4 in Carolina games this year.
Carolina is 1-10 when they give up more than 22 points..
Panthers are 3-6-1 ATS in last ten NFC South road games.
Buccaneers (8-7)
Bucs are 4-1 since their bye, scoring 30-26-28-40-24 points.
Bucs are 2-5 in games decided by 6 or fewer points.
Tampa Bay is 3-4 SU/4-3 ATS at home this year.
Bucs are 4-1 ATS this year in games coming off a loss.
Team total: over 12-3
Opponents’ team total: over 9-6
Bucs are 4-3 SU/ATS on the road this season.
Tampa Bay is 4-2-1 ATS last seven games as a home favorite.
QB Mayfield is 50-55 as an NFL starter, 18-16 with Buccaneers.
Nine of Tampa Bay’s last 12 games went over the total.
Bucs held last six opponents under 100 yards rushing.
Tampa Bay is 1-5-1 ATS in last seven NFC South home games.
Bucs ran for 236 yards, edged Carolina 26-23 in OT in Week 13.
Bucs won nine of last ten series games.
Panthers are 0-5 SU/0-4-1 ATS in last five visits to Tampa.
Over is 6-3 in last nine meetings.
Packers @ Vikings (-1.5)
Packers (11-4)
Packers won nine of last 11 games (5-0 ATS last five).
Green Bay is 5-1 SU/4-2 ATS on road this season.
Last five weeks, Green Bay scored 32.6 points/game.
Packers held 4 of last 5 opponents to 80 or fewer rushing yards.
Team total: over 10-5
Opponents’ team total: under 11-3 last 14
GB is 17-7 ATS in last 24 games as a road underdog
Packers are 11-7 ATS in last 18 games coming off a win.
Green Bay is 10-0 when it allows less than 24 points.
Under is 7-4 in their last eleven games.
Last five games, Green Bay is +7 in turnovers.
Packers are 21-12 ATS in last 33 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Vikings (13-2)
Minnesota won last eight games, scoring 30.4 ppg in last five.
Vikings allowed 31-30 points in their two losses.
Minnesota is 6-1 SU/5-2 ATS at home this season.
Vikings are 8-1 in games decided by 8 or fewer points.
Team total: over 10-4-1
Opponents’ team total: under 8-7
Under O’Connell, Minnesota is 7-9 ATS as a home favorite.
Vikings are 3-2 ATS as a home favorite this year.
Minnesota has 29 takeaways in 13 games (+9 turnovers).
Minnesota gave up 391/386 TY in its two losses.
QB Darnold is 33-37 as an NFL starter, 12-2 with Vikings.
Vikings are 13-4-2 ATS in last 19 games coming off a win.
Vikings are 13-10-2 in last 25 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Vikings (+3) won 31-29 at Green Bay in Week 4
Vikings won three of last four series games.
Packers are 3-2 SU/ATS in last five visits to Minnesota.
Over is 6-2-1 in last nine meetings.
Cowboys @ Eagles (-9.5)
Cowboys (7-8)
Dallas won four of its last five games, after an 0-5 skid.
Cowboys are 2-8 when they allow more than 20 points.
Cowboys are 5-4 in games decided by 8 or less points.
WR Lamb has been shut down for the season
Team total: under 7-5 last twelve
Opponents’ team total: over 7-3 last ten
Dallas is 5-2 SU/4-3 ATS on road this season.
Cowboys are 9-8 ATS last 17 games as a road dog.
Backup QB Rush is 9-4 as an NFL starter.
Cowboys converted only 32 of last 94 third down plays.
Over is 9-3 in last dozen Dallas games.
Dallas is minus-11 in turnovers in its losses, +10 in wins.
Dallas is 10-7 ATS in last 17 games coming off a win.
Eagles (12-3)
Eagles are 10-1 SU/7-4 ATS in their last eleven games.
Last five weeks, Eagles ran ball for 205.8 yards/game.
Eagles outscored last nine opponents 136-82 in first half.
Last nine weeks, Philly is +12 in turnovers.
Team total: over 8-2 last ten
Opponents’ team total: under 7-4 last eleven
QB Hurts has concussion issues (check status)
Philly is 5-1 SU/2-4 ATS at home this season
Backup QB Pickett is 14-10 as an NFL starter.
Eagles are 9-13 ATS in last 22 NFC East home games.
Eagles are 2-6 ATS in last eight games coming off a loss.
Under is 5-2 in their last seven games.
Eagles held 8 of last 11 opponents under 300 TY.
Eagles outgained Cowboys 348-146, won 34-6 at Dallas in Week 10
Home team won last six series games.
Cowboys are 1-4 SU/ATS in last five visits to Philly.
Over is 5-2 in last seven series games.
Dolphins (-6.5) @ Browns
Dolphins (7-8)
Dolphins are 5-2 in last seven games, but lost last two on road.
Miami is 1-7 when it gives up 20+ points, 6-1 if they allow less.
Last three games, Miami is 9-34 on 3rd down
Tagovailoa is 38-25 as an NFL starter.
Team total: under 7-7-1
Opponents’ team total: over 8-7
Miami is 2-5 SU/3-4 ATS on road this season.
Dolphins ran for 166 yards LW, first time in 7 games they ran for 100+.
Dolphins are 2-3 ATS TY in games coming off a win.
Miami is 28-20 ATS TY in last 48 games coming off a win.
Under is 6-1 in their road games this year.
AFC East road favorites are 4-3 ATS in non-divisional games.
Browns (3-12)
Browns lost six of last seven games, giving up 27.7 ppg
#3 QB Thompson-Robinson is 1-3 as an NFL starter
Cleveland is 1-11 when they score less than 24 points.
Browns’ last six losses were all by 9+ points.
Team total: under 11-3
Opponents’ team total: over 8-6
Browns are 6-17-1 ATS in last 24 games coming off a loss.
Browns are 2-5 SU/ATS at home this season.
Browns are 7-5-1 in last 13 games as a home underdog.
Cleveland is 2-3 ATS as a home underdog this year.
Cleveland allowed 20+ points in 13 of 15 games.
Browns are minus-13 in turnovers the last five games.
Miami won three of last four series games.
Dolphins are lost four of their last five visits to Cleveland.
Over is 3-1 in last four meetings.
Falcons @ Commanders (-4)
Falcons (7-7)
Rookie QB Penix won his first NFL start 34-7 last week.
Atlanta won its last two games, 15-9/34-7.
Falcons were held to 21 or fewer points in all seven losses.
Atlanta scored 22+ points in seven of its eight wins.
Team total: under 6-3 last nine
Opponents’ team total: over 6-5-1 last 12
Atlanta is 4-3 SU/ATS on road this year.
Falcons are 2-7 ATS last nine games as a road underdog.
Falcons are 5-9 ATS in last 14 games coming off a win.
Last two games, Atlanta is +4 in turnovers
Six of Falcons’ last seven games stayed under the total.
Falcons need two wins to clinch NFC South title.
Commanders (10-5)
Washington won last three games, scoring 42-20-36 points.
Commanders are 2-5 if they give up more than 22 points.
Rookie QB Daniels is 10-5 as an NFL starter.
Washington won LW, despite giving up 211 rushing yards.
Team total: over 11-4
Opponents’ team total: under 8-7
Washington allowed 26+ points in all five losses.
Commanders are 6-2 SU/ATS at home this season.
Washington was held under 300 TY in three of five losses.
Commanders are 10-14 ATS in last 24 games as a home favorite.
Commanders are 21-11-1 ATS in last 33 games coming off a win.
Over is 4-0 in their last three home games.
Washington won/covered last three series games.
Falcons won three of last four visits here.
Under is 3-2 in last five meetings.
Armadillo Sports
Saturday’s 6-pack:
College hoop teams doing the best ATS:
11-1— St Bonaventure
10-1— Oregon State
9-2— Auburn
9-2— Tennessee
9-3— Vanderbilt
Teams doing the worst:
2-9— Saint Louis
2-9— Grand Canyon
2-9— Richmond
3-10— Wake Forest
1-9-2— Minnesota
Quote of the Day
“Greg was a highly accomplished and pioneering figure in sports broadcasting who brought instant credibility to ESPN in the early years of the network as both a SportsCenter anchor and as a key on-air contributor to our initial NBA coverage in the 1980s.”
ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro, talking about the late Greg Gumbel
Saturday’s quiz
Which two NFL teams has UConn coach Jim Mora Jr coached?
Friday’s quiz
NFL QB’s Tony Romo, Sean Payton and Jimmy Garoppolo all played college football at the same school; Eastern Illinois.
Thursday’s quiz
Pete Carroll has coached the Jets, Patriots and Seahawks.
******************************************************
Saturday’s Den: Wrapping up a busy Friday…….
— Arizona Diamondbacks made some noise late Friday night, signed P Corbin Burnes to a six-year, $210M contract. Burnes is 60-36, 3.19 in 138 career starts; he was 15-9, 2.92 in 32 starts for the Orioles last year.
— Detroit Tigers signed IF Gleyber Torres for one year, $15M; Torres hit 15 homers for Bronx LY, after hitting a combined 49 taters the previous two seasons.
Torres is expected to play 2B in Detroit, with Colt Keith moving to first base.
— OF Teoscar Hernandez re-signed with the Dodgers for three years, $66M; he hit 33 HR’s, knocked in 99 runs for the World Champs last year, going 7-20 in the World Series.
— Seahawks beat the Bears 6-3 Thursday; there was a 120-1 prop bet that there wouldn’t be any touchdowns in the game. Circa Casino said they sold eight “no TD” tickets.
— RIP to Greg Gumbel, who passed away from cancer at age 78; he spent 50+ years in sports broadcasting. He was really good at his job, no matter what sport he worked.
In an industry that is increasingly being filled with arrogant jerks, Gumbel seemed like a really good guy, in addition to being excellent at his job, and reactions to his passing have confirmed that.
RIP, sir.
— Famous birthdays, December 28:
Ray Knight, 72
Denzel Washington, 70
James Brooks, 66
Keith Lee, 62
Mel Stottlemyre, Jr, 61
Seth Meyers, 51
John Henson, 34
Dylan Cease, 29
— Eagles QB Jalen Hurts has concussion issues, isn’t expected to play against the Cowboys Sunday. Backup QB Kenny Pickett has a 14-10 record as an NFL starter.
— North Carolina has a bowl game in Fenway Park today, but Bill Belichick isn’t supposed to be there; am guessing he’ll do a TV segment during the game, for recruiting and all.
— Boise State hasn’t had a losing football season since 1997.
— Navy 21, Oklahoma 20
Down 20-14, Sooners scored TD with 0:06 left; they went for 2 points but failed.
Oklahoma led 14-0 with 5:00 left before halftime.
Navy QB Horvath tied game 14-14 with a 95-yard TD run.
— USC 35, Texas A&M 31
Trojans drove 80 yards, scored game-winning TD with 0:05 left.
Aggies led 24-7 with 4:00 left in third quarter.
USC WR Lane caught seven passes for 127 yards, three TD’s.
— Vanderbilt 35, Georgia Tech 27
Tech outgained Vandy 394-306, but they were minus-2 in turnovers.
QB Pavia threw for 160 yards, 3 TD’s, ran for 84 yards, 2 more TD’s.
This is Vandy’s bowl win since 2013.
— Arkansas 39, Texas Tech 26
QB Green was 11-21 passing, for a whopping 341 yards (31 yards/completion)
Total yardage: Arkansas 559, Tech 497
Razorbacks led 24-19 at halftime.
— Syracuse 52, Washington State 35
Wazzu is decimated; their coach/QB both bolted to greener pa$ture$.
That said, Coogs fought hard; it was 35-28 with 2:00 left in third quarter.
Syracuse QB McCord threw for 453 yards and five TD’s.
— Conference bowl records (SU/ATS)
AAC 4-1 SU/4-1 ATS
ACC 1-5 SU/1-5 ATS
Big 18 3-2 SU/4-1 ATS
Big X 1-2 SU/0-3 ATS
C-USA 1-2 SU/1-2 ATS
MAC 3-2 SU/3-1-1 ATS
M West 1-2 SU/1-2 ATS
SEC 4-3 SU/4-3 ATS
Sun Belt 3-2 SU/2-2-1 ATS
Favorites: 10-11-1 ATS
Totals: over 14-8
Saturday’s 6-pack:
College hoop teams doing the best ATS:
11-1— St Bonaventure
10-1— Oregon State
9-2— Auburn
9-2— Tennessee
9-3— Vanderbilt
Teams doing the worst:
2-9— Saint Louis
2-9— Grand Canyon
2-9— Richmond
3-10— Wake Forest
1-9-2— Minnesota
Quote of the Day
“Greg was a highly accomplished and pioneering figure in sports broadcasting who brought instant credibility to ESPN in the early years of the network as both a SportsCenter anchor and as a key on-air contributor to our initial NBA coverage in the 1980s.”
ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro, talking about the late Greg Gumbel
Saturday’s quiz
Which two NFL teams has UConn coach Jim Mora Jr coached?
Friday’s quiz
NFL QB’s Tony Romo, Sean Payton and Jimmy Garoppolo all played college football at the same school; Eastern Illinois.
Thursday’s quiz
Pete Carroll has coached the Jets, Patriots and Seahawks.
******************************************************
Saturday’s Den: Wrapping up a busy Friday…….
— Arizona Diamondbacks made some noise late Friday night, signed P Corbin Burnes to a six-year, $210M contract. Burnes is 60-36, 3.19 in 138 career starts; he was 15-9, 2.92 in 32 starts for the Orioles last year.
— Detroit Tigers signed IF Gleyber Torres for one year, $15M; Torres hit 15 homers for Bronx LY, after hitting a combined 49 taters the previous two seasons.
Torres is expected to play 2B in Detroit, with Colt Keith moving to first base.
— OF Teoscar Hernandez re-signed with the Dodgers for three years, $66M; he hit 33 HR’s, knocked in 99 runs for the World Champs last year, going 7-20 in the World Series.
— Seahawks beat the Bears 6-3 Thursday; there was a 120-1 prop bet that there wouldn’t be any touchdowns in the game. Circa Casino said they sold eight “no TD” tickets.
— RIP to Greg Gumbel, who passed away from cancer at age 78; he spent 50+ years in sports broadcasting. He was really good at his job, no matter what sport he worked.
In an industry that is increasingly being filled with arrogant jerks, Gumbel seemed like a really good guy, in addition to being excellent at his job, and reactions to his passing have confirmed that.
RIP, sir.
— Famous birthdays, December 28:
Ray Knight, 72
Denzel Washington, 70
James Brooks, 66
Keith Lee, 62
Mel Stottlemyre, Jr, 61
Seth Meyers, 51
John Henson, 34
Dylan Cease, 29
— Eagles QB Jalen Hurts has concussion issues, isn’t expected to play against the Cowboys Sunday. Backup QB Kenny Pickett has a 14-10 record as an NFL starter.
— North Carolina has a bowl game in Fenway Park today, but Bill Belichick isn’t supposed to be there; am guessing he’ll do a TV segment during the game, for recruiting and all.
— Boise State hasn’t had a losing football season since 1997.
— Navy 21, Oklahoma 20
Down 20-14, Sooners scored TD with 0:06 left; they went for 2 points but failed.
Oklahoma led 14-0 with 5:00 left before halftime.
Navy QB Horvath tied game 14-14 with a 95-yard TD run.
— USC 35, Texas A&M 31
Trojans drove 80 yards, scored game-winning TD with 0:05 left.
Aggies led 24-7 with 4:00 left in third quarter.
USC WR Lane caught seven passes for 127 yards, three TD’s.
— Vanderbilt 35, Georgia Tech 27
Tech outgained Vandy 394-306, but they were minus-2 in turnovers.
QB Pavia threw for 160 yards, 3 TD’s, ran for 84 yards, 2 more TD’s.
This is Vandy’s bowl win since 2013.
— Arkansas 39, Texas Tech 26
QB Green was 11-21 passing, for a whopping 341 yards (31 yards/completion)
Total yardage: Arkansas 559, Tech 497
Razorbacks led 24-19 at halftime.
— Syracuse 52, Washington State 35
Wazzu is decimated; their coach/QB both bolted to greener pa$ture$.
That said, Coogs fought hard; it was 35-28 with 2:00 left in third quarter.
Syracuse QB McCord threw for 453 yards and five TD’s.
— Conference bowl records (SU/ATS)
AAC 4-1 SU/4-1 ATS
ACC 1-5 SU/1-5 ATS
Big 18 3-2 SU/4-1 ATS
Big X 1-2 SU/0-3 ATS
C-USA 1-2 SU/1-2 ATS
MAC 3-2 SU/3-1-1 ATS
M West 1-2 SU/1-2 ATS
SEC 4-3 SU/4-3 ATS
Sun Belt 3-2 SU/2-2-1 ATS
Favorites: 10-11-1 ATS
Totals: over 14-8
NFL BEST BETS FOR DECEMBER !
12/28/2024..................3 - 3 - 0...................50.00%.......................- 1.50
12/26/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/23/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/22/2024.................12 - 7 - 0...................63.15%.......................+ 21.50
12/19/2024.................0 - 2 - 0.....................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/16/2024................. 3 - 1 - 0....................75.00%.......................+ 9.50
12/15/2024.................5 - 12 - 0...................29.41%.......................- 36.00
12/12/2024...................1 - 1 - 0...................50.00%........................- 0.50
12/09/2024...................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/08/2024...................9 - 8 - 0....................52.94%.........................+ 1.00
12/05/2024....................0 - 2 - 0....................00.00%....................- 11.00
12/02/2024....................2 - 0 - 0...................100.00%....................+ 10.00
12/01/2024.....................3 - 7- 0.....................30.00%.....................- 23.50
TOTALS........................38 - 49 - 0..................43.67%.................... - 74.50
12/28/2024..................3 - 3 - 0...................50.00%.......................- 1.50
12/26/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/23/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/22/2024.................12 - 7 - 0...................63.15%.......................+ 21.50
12/19/2024.................0 - 2 - 0.....................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/16/2024................. 3 - 1 - 0....................75.00%.......................+ 9.50
12/15/2024.................5 - 12 - 0...................29.41%.......................- 36.00
12/12/2024...................1 - 1 - 0...................50.00%........................- 0.50
12/09/2024...................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/08/2024...................9 - 8 - 0....................52.94%.........................+ 1.00
12/05/2024....................0 - 2 - 0....................00.00%....................- 11.00
12/02/2024....................2 - 0 - 0...................100.00%....................+ 10.00
12/01/2024.....................3 - 7- 0.....................30.00%.....................- 23.50
TOTALS........................38 - 49 - 0..................43.67%.................... - 74.50
Sunday’s 6-pack:
Interesting NFL spreads for today’s games:
— Jets @ Buffalo (-10)
— Raiders (-2) @ New Orleans
— Cowboys @ Philadelphia (-7.5)
— Dolphins (-3) @ Cleveland
— Packers @ Minnesota (-1)
— Falcons @ Washington (-3.5)
Quote of the Day
“I appreciate that Cam Ward, in this day and age in CFB, played at all. But I just can’t imagine starting any game with teammates, especially as a quarterback, and electing to pull myself out while my teammates are still trying to finish the job in a back-and-forth battle.
I’m a realist. I know the climate. I’m not even knocking Cam here. It’s just different.”
ESPN’s Todd McShay
Sunday’s quiz
In the movie A Star is Born, what state is Bradley Cooper’s character from?
Saturday’s quiz
UConn coach Jim Mora Jr coached the Falcons and Seahawks.
Friday’s quiz
NFL QB’s Tony Romo, Sean Payton and Jimmy Garoppolo all played college football at the same school; Eastern Illinois.
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Ahkello Witherspoon picked off a pass in end zone with 0:37 left.
Arizona outgained the Rams, 396-257.
McBride caught 12 passes for 123 yards and a TD.
Arizona is 1-5 since its bye; they lost five of last six on road.
Arizona is 6-2 scoring 24+ points, 1-7 scoring less than 24.
Rams have won five in a row, last three by 12-6/19-9/13-9 scores.
Nucua caught 10 passes for 129 yards.
Rams blocked the PAT after the Cardinals’ only TD.
Rams are 8-12 ATS in their last 20 games as a home favorite.
Rams won nine of their last eleven games, after a 1-4 start.
Chargers 40, Patriots 7
Chargers clinched their 4th playoff spot in last 15 years.
QB Herbert threw for 281 yards, 3 TD’s.
LA is 7-0 scoring 24+ points, 3-6 scoring 23 or fewer points.
Chargers are 5-1 ATS this season as road favorites.
Bolts outgained new England, 428-181.
Patriots are 0-6 SU/2-4 ATS in last five games.
Chargers were 10-17 on third down, Patriots 2-10.
NE is 12-24-1 ATS in last 37 games as an underdog.
Patriots are 32-52 SU since Tom Brady left town.
New England is 1-12 SU when it allows more than 10 points.
Bengals 30, Broncos 24 OT
Denver forced OT on a 25-yard TD pass to Mims with 0:08 left.
Bengals scored TD with 1:08 left in OT to keep their season alive.
Broncos could’ve clinched a playoff spot with a tie.
Cincinnati missed a 33-yard FG in the overtime.
Broncos are 1-6 in games decided by 7 or fewer points.
QB Burrow threw for 412 yards, three TD’s.
Higgins caught 11 passes for 131 yards, three TD’s.
Bengals’ first two drives: 28 plays, 116 yards, lost ball twice on downs
Bengals’ next three drives: 29 plays, 194 yards, 17 points.
Cincinnati was 7-13 on third down, Broncos 4-12.
— UCLA 65, Gonzaga 62
Zags led by 4 with 7:27 left to play.
Gonzaga was 7-24 on arc, UCLA 12-24
Zags are 1-4 in last five games vs top 100 teams.
— Utah State 67, San Diego State 66
Aztecs led by 18 in first half, by 7 with 1:56 left in game.
Utah State shot 63.6% inside the arc.
Utah State is 12-1, 2-0 in Mountain West games.
— Boise State 73, Fresno State 71
Spartans led by 11 early in second half.
Boise State shot 57.9% inside the arc.
6-8 senior Degenhart had 26 points, 7 rebounds.
— Famous birthdays, December 29:
Ted Danson, 77
Sean Payton, 61
Chad Dukes, 53
Richie Sexson, 50
Kate Moennig, 47
Clint Stoerner, 47
Jack Wilson, 47
Dustin Fowler, 30
Julio Rodriguez, 24
— Iowa State 42, Miami FL 41
Cyclones scored game-winning TD with 0:56 left.
Miami QB Ward declined to play in the second half, after he set the record for most career TD passes, previously held by Case Keenum.
Miami lost its sixth straight bowl game.
Miami ran 39 times for 308 yards, but was minus-3 in turnovers.
— East Carolina 26, NC State 21
RB Harris ran 86 yards for a TD with 1:33 left for the winning score.
ECU led 20-7 after three quarters; NC State scored two TD’s in 3:15 span to take 21-20 lead.
ECU finishes season 8-5, after a 2-4 start.
Eight players were ejected after a fight late in the game.
— UConn 27, North Carolina 14
This is UConn’s first bowl win since 2010.
Huskies were 8-16 on third down, Carolina 0-9.
UConn outgained the Tar Heels, 361-206
UNC’s first touchdown was a 95-yard kickoff return.
— Nebraska 20, Boston College 15
Cornhuskers get their first bowl win since 2015.
Nebraska led 20-2 after three quarters, held on for dear life.
BC ran ball 26 times for only 47 yards.
ACC teams are 1-9 in bowl games this month; no bueno.
— BYU 36, Colorado 14
BYU ran ball 42 times for 180 yards; Colorado 19 times for 2 yards.
Cougars led 20-0 at half-time.
BYU was 8-14 on third down, Colorado 3-9.
WR Hunter caught four passes for 106 yards for Colorado.
— TCU 34, Louisiana 3
QB Hoover passed for 252 yards, four TD’s.
TCU’s first four drives: 40 plays, 228 yards, 20 points.
Louisiana in first half: 22 plays, 43 yards, no points.
— Miami OH 43, Colorado State 17
Miami’s lead was only 9-3 at halftime.
Rams outgained Miami 462-401, but turned ball over four times.
Miami ran ball 34 times for 217 yards (6.4 yards/carry)
— Army 27, Louisiana Tech 6
QB Daily scored three TD’s, breaking I-A record for TD’s in a season by a QB.
Army ran ball 64 times for 321 yards (5 yards/carry)
Army outgained Tech 386-216; they finish an excellent season 12-2.
— Conference bowl records (SU/ATS)
AAC 6-1 SU/6-1 ATS
ACC 1-9 SU/1-9 ATS
Big 18 4-2 SU/5-1 ATS
Big X 3-2 SU/2-3 ATS
C-USA 1-3 SU/1-3 ATS
MAC 4-2 SU/4-1-1 ATS
M West 1-3 SU/1-3 ATS
SEC 4-3 SU/4-3 ATS
Sun Belt 3-3 SU/2-3-1 ATS
Favorites: 14-15-1 ATS
Totals: over 16-14 (under 6-2 Saturday)
Interesting NFL spreads for today’s games:
— Jets @ Buffalo (-10)
— Raiders (-2) @ New Orleans
— Cowboys @ Philadelphia (-7.5)
— Dolphins (-3) @ Cleveland
— Packers @ Minnesota (-1)
— Falcons @ Washington (-3.5)
Quote of the Day
“I appreciate that Cam Ward, in this day and age in CFB, played at all. But I just can’t imagine starting any game with teammates, especially as a quarterback, and electing to pull myself out while my teammates are still trying to finish the job in a back-and-forth battle.
I’m a realist. I know the climate. I’m not even knocking Cam here. It’s just different.”
ESPN’s Todd McShay
Sunday’s quiz
In the movie A Star is Born, what state is Bradley Cooper’s character from?
Saturday’s quiz
UConn coach Jim Mora Jr coached the Falcons and Seahawks.
Friday’s quiz
NFL QB’s Tony Romo, Sean Payton and Jimmy Garoppolo all played college football at the same school; Eastern Illinois.
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Sunday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Saturday…….
Rams 13, Cardinals 9Ahkello Witherspoon picked off a pass in end zone with 0:37 left.
Arizona outgained the Rams, 396-257.
McBride caught 12 passes for 123 yards and a TD.
Arizona is 1-5 since its bye; they lost five of last six on road.
Arizona is 6-2 scoring 24+ points, 1-7 scoring less than 24.
Rams have won five in a row, last three by 12-6/19-9/13-9 scores.
Nucua caught 10 passes for 129 yards.
Rams blocked the PAT after the Cardinals’ only TD.
Rams are 8-12 ATS in their last 20 games as a home favorite.
Rams won nine of their last eleven games, after a 1-4 start.
Chargers 40, Patriots 7
Chargers clinched their 4th playoff spot in last 15 years.
QB Herbert threw for 281 yards, 3 TD’s.
LA is 7-0 scoring 24+ points, 3-6 scoring 23 or fewer points.
Chargers are 5-1 ATS this season as road favorites.
Bolts outgained new England, 428-181.
Patriots are 0-6 SU/2-4 ATS in last five games.
Chargers were 10-17 on third down, Patriots 2-10.
NE is 12-24-1 ATS in last 37 games as an underdog.
Patriots are 32-52 SU since Tom Brady left town.
New England is 1-12 SU when it allows more than 10 points.
Bengals 30, Broncos 24 OT
Denver forced OT on a 25-yard TD pass to Mims with 0:08 left.
Bengals scored TD with 1:08 left in OT to keep their season alive.
Broncos could’ve clinched a playoff spot with a tie.
Cincinnati missed a 33-yard FG in the overtime.
Broncos are 1-6 in games decided by 7 or fewer points.
QB Burrow threw for 412 yards, three TD’s.
Higgins caught 11 passes for 131 yards, three TD’s.
Bengals’ first two drives: 28 plays, 116 yards, lost ball twice on downs
Bengals’ next three drives: 29 plays, 194 yards, 17 points.
Cincinnati was 7-13 on third down, Broncos 4-12.
— UCLA 65, Gonzaga 62
Zags led by 4 with 7:27 left to play.
Gonzaga was 7-24 on arc, UCLA 12-24
Zags are 1-4 in last five games vs top 100 teams.
— Utah State 67, San Diego State 66
Aztecs led by 18 in first half, by 7 with 1:56 left in game.
Utah State shot 63.6% inside the arc.
Utah State is 12-1, 2-0 in Mountain West games.
— Boise State 73, Fresno State 71
Spartans led by 11 early in second half.
Boise State shot 57.9% inside the arc.
6-8 senior Degenhart had 26 points, 7 rebounds.
— Famous birthdays, December 29:
Ted Danson, 77
Sean Payton, 61
Chad Dukes, 53
Richie Sexson, 50
Kate Moennig, 47
Clint Stoerner, 47
Jack Wilson, 47
Dustin Fowler, 30
Julio Rodriguez, 24
— Iowa State 42, Miami FL 41
Cyclones scored game-winning TD with 0:56 left.
Miami QB Ward declined to play in the second half, after he set the record for most career TD passes, previously held by Case Keenum.
Miami lost its sixth straight bowl game.
Miami ran 39 times for 308 yards, but was minus-3 in turnovers.
— East Carolina 26, NC State 21
RB Harris ran 86 yards for a TD with 1:33 left for the winning score.
ECU led 20-7 after three quarters; NC State scored two TD’s in 3:15 span to take 21-20 lead.
ECU finishes season 8-5, after a 2-4 start.
Eight players were ejected after a fight late in the game.
— UConn 27, North Carolina 14
This is UConn’s first bowl win since 2010.
Huskies were 8-16 on third down, Carolina 0-9.
UConn outgained the Tar Heels, 361-206
UNC’s first touchdown was a 95-yard kickoff return.
— Nebraska 20, Boston College 15
Cornhuskers get their first bowl win since 2015.
Nebraska led 20-2 after three quarters, held on for dear life.
BC ran ball 26 times for only 47 yards.
ACC teams are 1-9 in bowl games this month; no bueno.
— BYU 36, Colorado 14
BYU ran ball 42 times for 180 yards; Colorado 19 times for 2 yards.
Cougars led 20-0 at half-time.
BYU was 8-14 on third down, Colorado 3-9.
WR Hunter caught four passes for 106 yards for Colorado.
— TCU 34, Louisiana 3
QB Hoover passed for 252 yards, four TD’s.
TCU’s first four drives: 40 plays, 228 yards, 20 points.
Louisiana in first half: 22 plays, 43 yards, no points.
— Miami OH 43, Colorado State 17
Miami’s lead was only 9-3 at halftime.
Rams outgained Miami 462-401, but turned ball over four times.
Miami ran ball 34 times for 217 yards (6.4 yards/carry)
— Army 27, Louisiana Tech 6
QB Daily scored three TD’s, breaking I-A record for TD’s in a season by a QB.
Army ran ball 64 times for 321 yards (5 yards/carry)
Army outgained Tech 386-216; they finish an excellent season 12-2.
— Conference bowl records (SU/ATS)
AAC 6-1 SU/6-1 ATS
ACC 1-9 SU/1-9 ATS
Big 18 4-2 SU/5-1 ATS
Big X 3-2 SU/2-3 ATS
C-USA 1-3 SU/1-3 ATS
MAC 4-2 SU/4-1-1 ATS
M West 1-3 SU/1-3 ATS
SEC 4-3 SU/4-3 ATS
Sun Belt 3-3 SU/2-3-1 ATS
Favorites: 14-15-1 ATS
Totals: over 16-14 (under 6-2 Saturday)
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 29
| Game | Time(ET) | Pick | Units |
|---|---|---|---|
| LV at NO | 01:00 PM | LV -2.0 U 37.5 | +500 +500 |
| DAL at PHI | 01:00 PM | DAL +7.5 U 37.5 | +500 +500 |
| IND at NYG | 01:00 PM | IND -7.5 U 40.5 | +500 +500 |
| CAR at TB | 01:00 PM | CAR +10.5 O 48.0 | +500 +500 |
| NYJ at BUF | 01:00 PM | BUF -10.5 O 44.0 | +500 +500 |
| TEN at JAC | 01:00 PM | TEN -1.0 O 38.0 | +500 +500 |
| MIA at CLE | 04:05 PM | MIA -3.5 U 33.0 | +500 +500 |
| GB at MIN | 04:25 PM | GB +1.0 O 49.0 | +500 +500 |
| ATL at WAS | 08:20 PM | ATL +3.5 U 46.5 | +500 +500 |
NFL BEST BETS FOR DECEMBER !
12/29/2024..................7 - 9 - 0...................43.75%.......................- 14.50
12/28/2024..................3 - 3 - 0...................50.00%.......................- 1.50
12/26/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/23/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/22/2024.................12 - 7 - 0...................63.15%.......................+ 21.50
12/19/2024.................0 - 2 - 0.....................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/16/2024................. 3 - 1 - 0....................75.00%.......................+ 9.50
12/15/2024.................5 - 12 - 0...................29.41%.......................- 36.00
12/12/2024...................1 - 1 - 0...................50.00%........................- 0.50
12/09/2024...................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/08/2024...................9 - 8 - 0....................52.94%.........................+ 1.00
12/05/2024....................0 - 2 - 0....................00.00%....................- 11.00
12/02/2024....................2 - 0 - 0...................100.00%....................+ 10.00
12/01/2024.....................3 - 7- 0.....................30.00%.....................- 23.50
TOTALS........................45 - 58 - 0..................43.68%.................... - 89.00
12/29/2024..................7 - 9 - 0...................43.75%.......................- 14.50
12/28/2024..................3 - 3 - 0...................50.00%.......................- 1.50
12/26/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/23/2024..................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/22/2024.................12 - 7 - 0...................63.15%.......................+ 21.50
12/19/2024.................0 - 2 - 0.....................00.00%.......................- 11.00
12/16/2024................. 3 - 1 - 0....................75.00%.......................+ 9.50
12/15/2024.................5 - 12 - 0...................29.41%.......................- 36.00
12/12/2024...................1 - 1 - 0...................50.00%........................- 0.50
12/09/2024...................0 - 2 - 0...................00.00%........................- 11.00
12/08/2024...................9 - 8 - 0....................52.94%.........................+ 1.00
12/05/2024....................0 - 2 - 0....................00.00%....................- 11.00
12/02/2024....................2 - 0 - 0...................100.00%....................+ 10.00
12/01/2024.....................3 - 7- 0.....................30.00%.....................- 23.50
TOTALS........................45 - 58 - 0..................43.68%.................... - 89.00
