Craig Davis
Super Bowl Sunday Lineup
75 Dime – SAINTS
10 Dime – MARYLAND
SAINTS --- In a similar fashion to last year, I'm more comfortable backing an explosive offense GETTING points rather than a supposed good defense giving points. Granted, last year's version of the Pittsburgh Steelers wasn't quite the offensive juggernaut the Colts were this year, but it's really not as wide of a margin as you might think. The Steelers of 2008 ran the ball much better than the Colts of 2009, but the Colts obviously throw it better than the Steelers did a year ago. Either way, I just don't feel comfortable backing a team by at least five points who could easily allow, at worst, a backdoor cover to a team that can score from anywhere on the field.
I first want to look at the Colts and why I believe they are susceptible to not only failing to cover the five points, but also losing this game SU. If anyone tells you to forget the regular season and ONLY look at the playoffs, you need to kick them in the teeth and tell them to get as far away from you as possible. The Super Bowl is the culmination of the ENTIRE body of work, from early September through the beginning of February, and we must all realize certain teams will slip up from time to time during that lengthy process... but we can never dismiss anything that happens along the way.
Before we look at each team individually, I want to first compare common opponents (including the playoffs). Keep in mind, I'm not saying this is a great barometer when trying to handicap a game, but it does give you a sense of how these teams have fared against the same type of competition. Early in the season, the Colts went to Miami and had to come back on four separate occasions to pull off a 27-23. In my opinion, Miami laid out the blueprint as one of the better ways to beat the Colts (though they never finished their business). Miami possessed the ball for nearly 46 of 60 minutes, keeping Peyton Manning and company on the sidelines in hopes of getting him a little rusty and out of rhythm. It didn't work, but it did allow Miami to not get blown out and have a legit shot to win in the end. New Orleans also visited Miami this season, and nearly suffered a worse fate than Indy. They fell behind 24-10 at halftime and actually trailed 31-10 at one point in the third quarter, but used a 22-0 spurt in the 4th quarter to secure a 46-34 win... once again proving there is no deficit too large for this offense to overcome.
Indy and New Orleans both pummeled Arizona, with the Colts beating them by 21 and the Saints beating them by 31. Neither game was very close.
The Colts and Saints both played the Jets (Indy got them twice), and both came out on top (I'm not going to count the regular season matchup). New Orleans did it with defense while Indy did it with a second-half surge after falling behind 17-6 late in the second quarter.
Both played Buffalo, but to Indy's credit it was the second team that got abused. The Saints completely destroyed the Bills as I believe Indy would have done had they played their starters.
However, the one game I'd like to pay the most attention to is the matchup with New England. Both Indy and New Orleans got the Patriots in a primetime game (Sunday and Monday night) and both played at home. Now, tell me who you were more impressed with... New Orleans whipping the Patriots by 21 (after calling the dogs off in the 4th) or the Colts who needed a bone-head decision from Bill Belichick to secure a one-point win? Honestly, I don't really care if both teams won or both teams lost, but the Pats were a playoff team and likely the best team to use for our comparison. Tom Brady torched the Indy secondary to the tune of 375 yards and 3 touchdowns. Brady threw for 237 yard, no TDs and two INTs vs. the Saints. Kevin Faulk rushed for a game-high 79 yards vs. the Colts. Faulk was non-existent vs. the Saints, though Laurence Maroney did rush for 64. Clearly the Saints beat this very same Patriots team SOUNDLY... just two weeks after the Colts earned their miracle win.
I don't bring these games up to necessarily compare stats or who fell behind by a larger margin... I bring them up for those people who have been telling me that the Saints aren't even in the same league with the Colts. For those people who tell me that Peyton Manning is clearly, head-and-shoulders ahead of Drew Brees. For those who keep reminding me that the Saints struggled to beat the Vikings at home two weeks ago. But as you can see, these two teams have played a lot of the same teams this year... and the results are eerily similar. So tell me, are the Colts really SUPERIOR in this matchup? If you look at only common opponents, I think it's safe to say not only are the Saints every bit as "classy" as the Colts, but they actually played better against the same set of teams.
Now let's quickly look back at the Colts 2009 regular season and see just how many times they were involved in close games with LESSER offenses than what New Orleans brings to the table. San Francisco came to Indy, led the game at halftime, and nearly pulled the upset. Colts held on for an 18-14 win. How about Jacksonville? I realize the Jags have perenially played the Colts tough, but a 2-point win and a 4-point win is hardly anything to get excited about if you're a Colts' backer today. Houston? The Texans actually had the lead in both meetings, but the Colts imposed their will in the second half of both games and won the first meeting by 3 points and the second game by 8. How about the Ravens? A late Joe Flacco interception (with the team already clearly in field goal range) cost the Ravens a potential win and the Colts held on for a 17-15 win. My point? As good as the Colts are, several teams were easily able to keep the game close with a chance to win in the end. I'm not asking the Saints to win, I'm just asking them to keep it close.
A smart handicapper who is siding with one team or the other in this game doesn't necessarily need to look at which team is better on paper, a smart handicapper puts his clients in the best position to win, and there are far more scenarios that favor the underdog Saints here today. Depending on the angle you want to take, you can make arguments as to why each team is better, but in the end it's all just an opinion. What I'm doing is looking at both teams over the entire season and giving you the team I think puts us in the best position to win money. The general public LOVES to bet the favorites and at last check, nearly 2 out of every three bets has been placed on the Colts. That's GREAT news for us.
What's even better is that despite the heavy money on the favorite, the line is actually coming down a bit. That's called reverse line movement and although it's not a sole reason to bet a team, it sure does help. We all saw the Saints struggle with the Vikings while the Colts decimated the Jets in the second half. As soon as Vegas opened this line, the public flooded in on the Colts. And considering this game is being played at a neutral site, the 5-point line would normally tell us (using the standard 3-point home field advantage) the Colts would be favored by 8 or 9 at home and would actually be favored by 2 or 3 IN New Orleans. Obviously that's ridiculous and I think Vegas might be begging us to take the Colts.
Folks, the bottom line is... we have two very talented teams who are more than capable of winning this game. The Colts have the advantage at the QB position, the Saints have the advantage at RB, both teams have good WRs and TEs, both have solid O-lines and D-lines, and both teams have solid linebackers and defensive backs. The Saints have the advantage in special teams with Garrett Hartley, Reggie Bush and Courtney Roby (don't forget about him). When all is said and done and the smoke clears, the Saints may not end up winning this game but I just can't imagine them losing by more than a field goal. 75-dime Super Bowl Winner #2 in a row on the New Orleans Saints PLUS the number.
MARYLAND --- Even back when the Tar Heels were dominating the world, they still found ways to struggle against Maryland. The Terps have, surprisingly, won three of the last four meetings with the Heels and have covered four straight in this series. Now, as Carolina continues to struggle and Maryland seems to just be getting better, I can't help but backing the Terrapins even on Super Bowl Sunday when football rules the roost. Having picked my spots carefully this year, I have successfully picked on or against Carolina four times so far this year, including my latest winner WITH the Heels over their rival NC State. But as you read in that analysis, I will always back the Heels vs. NC State because they just seem to own the Wolfpack. But they aren't playing their rival today and I can see this group actually getting blown out of the gym. These kids aren't stupid... they know they will need a miracle to make the NCAA Tournament. I'm not suggesting they will give up, but this team is a far cry from last year's championship team that ran roughshod through the tourney and were never really challenged. This year's version of Carolina is younger, less experienced and getting more and more frustrated with every loss. Maryland, on the other hand, has won five of their last six and seven of their last nine and hasn't lost a home game in conference yet this year. In fact, they've only dropped one home affair this year and it came in one of those "sleeper" type games to William & Mary. Play that game 10 times and Maryland wins 9 of them. Enough said. Maryland is not only better than Carolina, they are in contention for the ACC Title and need this win to continue to keep pace with Duke for the conference crown. Terps roll today.
Prop Bets
1st Half Completions -- Drew Brees (11.5) (-125) --- OVER
1st Half Total Interceptions --- UNDER 1 (-115)
Longest Completeion Drew Brees --- UNDER 39.5 (-115)
Receptions by Joseph Addai --- OVER 2.5 (100)
First Score of the Game/Field Goal or TD ---- Field Goal (200)
