(Steven Jackson can run the Rams to victory)
The St. Louis Rams did the business for us last weekend by seeing off the poor Cleveland Browns in a tight encounter with star receiver Brandon Lloyd getting the only touchdown, this week they face the marginally better Seattle Seahawks but the Rams can put another W on the board by winning this one. Seattle picked up a big upset win by triumphing against the Baltimore Ravens last weekend but the Ravens only consistency this year appears to have been their inconsistency & that was still only the Seahawks third win of the year & they tend to be a much stronger side at home. Seattle had quarterback Matt Hasselbeck leave for Tennessee in the summer & he's shown how good he is with some nice performances there, replacement Tavaris Jackson meanwhile has been horrible having thrown just 6 touchdowns & 9 interceptions, he's also been sacked 22 times showing he's not getting much help from his O-Line & tends to hold onto the ball a little too long. He has been unable to link up with fellow ex-Viking Sidney Rice as he would like to have & it's a big reason they rank a lowly 29th in the offensive yards per game category, they're also pretty lightweight on the ground with running back Marshawn Lynch averaging under 4 yards a carry, he's been much better in his last two games with a big 244 yards but that seemed to come from nowhere. They've said they want to run the ball against the Rams & they have been dreadful at defending the run but the Seahawks offense doesn't inspire confidence on any level having only scored over 20 points on 3 occasions this year.
The Rams gained just their second win of the year with that victory against Cleveland but they've been slowly improving & were very unfortunate to lose against Arizona in the previous week & they could easily have been looking at coming into this game after three straight wins. St.Louis have been plagued by injuries this year & it has really affected quarterback Sam Bradford's game having thrown just 4 TDs for the year & having got banged up & recently sat out a couplf of games, there's a slight doubt regarding Bradford's ankle this week but he took part in practoce & should play. Sam has also looked better in the last 3 games having completed over 60% of his passes although he's thrown a pick in each one also, he was sacked just once last week & if his young offensive line can do a good job again this week he could put up some reasonable yards. Clearly the Rams main offensive weapon is huge running back Steven Jackson who has run for 100+ yards in his last 3 games, he can run over Seattle's defense which relies on a team ethic rather than individual defensive stars. On balance with the Rams gradual improvement & Seattle being much better at home it looks like St.Louis can grind one out here & odds of 4/6 seem fair. The best other bet in this game is to back under total points of 39.5, in Seattle's last 4 games just one has gone over that total & just 2 in the last 6 for the Rams, neither side are good at putting points on the board & 5/6 for under 39.5 points with Victor Chandler is value.
(Brian Urlacher - he's big & scary & can help shut down the Chargers offense)
A team that are really starting to look good are the Chicago Bears who host the San Diego Chargers who are in a downward spiral having lost their last 4 after starting 4&1, the Chargers need to start turning their season around now but a trip up to the Great Lakes is not what the doctor ordered. The Bears had a tough start to the season facing off against the Falcons, Saints & Packers in their first 3 games, they won one of those & have lost just once since against the Lions when they were on top form & gained revenge against Detroit with a great display last week here at Soldier Field. Running back Matt Forte continues to be brilliant & he's leading the team in reception yards as well as rushing yards, the Bears use Forte on so many plays but try to keep him fit by using big Marion Barber on short yardage running situations & that helps stop Forte from getting too battered & bruised, they would have worries if he got injured but he's looking great now. Returner Devin Hester has broken all sorts of return records & will be licking his lips at the thought of facing the woeful San Diego special teams & could have a big game (as usual). Jay Cutler has been consistent at quarterback now that he's got the protection he needs & has answered a lot of the undue criticism he received at the end of last year, with just 6 interceptions thrown this year he won't give the Chargers defense much to work with. On defense the Bears have been great against the run ranking 2nd in yards allowed & that will put pressure on Philip Rivers to throw the ball, Rivers has been uncharacteristically poor this year having thrown 15 picks already. Rivers was just about considered an elite QB but this year has been disappointing at the least & if he goes to the air here he has to be wary of any short passes up the middle as the Bears have brilliant linebackers in Brian Urlacher & Lance Briggs. The Chargers do have weapons on offense with Floyd, Gates & Jackson all being great receivers & two very good runners in Tolbert & Mathews but with the running game likely to be limited & Rivers off-colour it doesn't look good for them here. The Bears can be backed giving away 3.5 points on the handicap but can cover it at odds of 10/11. In the touchdown scorer markets it seems that Marion Barber is still being underestimated & can be backed at 7/5 to score at anytime & 10/1 to score the 1st Touchdown of the game.
Selections:
St.Louis Rams to beat Seattle Seahawks at 4/6 (Boylesports)
Seattle Seahawks v St. Louis Rams game to be under 39.5 points at 10/11 (Victor Chandler)
Chicago Bears to beat San Diego Chargers with -3.5 at 10/11 (general)
Marion Barber to score 1st touchdown at 10/1 & at anytime at 7/5 (Paddy Power)
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