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Lucky
Lester here, hoping to hold true to my name
this week. The last few weeks have been
a little questionable, but my overall record
remains strong, especially for picking every
game, every week. Last week Lucky went 5-8-1
bring his record for the year to 51-45-5.
This week is full of tough match-ups, big
spreads, and make it or break it games.
But I'm bound to improve my fate in a rather
interesting week eight.
It's time to lay my best picks out on the
line once again so they're back...
SUPER
PICKS
Packers(-2)
@ Redskins - I've got to take Brett Favre
and his Packers for the second week in a
row. Although Brett's mind might be on his
wife's health, he seems to do best when
his emotions are high. Brett is one of my
favorite players ever. His poise, his ability
to have fun on the field, to seemingly effortlessly
lead a team to victory; all these admirable
qualities make it impossible not to respect
the guy. Brett is back on his game; he has
led his team to two straight easy victories,
and will continue against a Redskins team
that barely beat a Bear's team quarterbacked
by Jonathan Quinn. Clinton Portis should
have a good night, and keep his team in
the game, but the Packers need to make up
for early losses at home and take a few
on the road. This game in Washington is
a perfect time to get one back. Ahman Green
looked like his old self against Dallas
last week, and will test a pretty good Redskins
defense. Take the Packers and the best signal
caller for the past ten years.
Game Date: 10/31/04 13:00 ET
Cardinals(+3)
@ Bills - The Cardinals did one of two things
last week. They either beat a pretty damn
good Seahawks team that is struggling, or
beat a much-overrated Seahawk team that
had just been ranked too high from the get
go. Lucky's got to go for the first one.
The Cardinals have been a feisty crew all
year long, and surprisingly their defense
has been stellar. Emmitt Smith has looked
pretty good, especially for a washed up,
should've retired years ago, left for dead
by the Cowboys and Bill Parcels, running
back that led his team to victory last week.
I love seeing former Cowboys do good for
other teams, and this guy who was the Star
in the Dallas logo for so many years, has
me jumping for joy, no matter how much he's
making me lose (see last weeks pick). Anquan
Boldin looks like he's returning this week,
but that shouldn't matter. Buffalo is a
poor team, and didn't even look good in
their only win of the season. The kicker,
well the Cardinals are getting three points.
Here's to Dennis Green and his fine return
to coaching... Cheers!
Game Date: 10/31/04 13:00 ET
49ers(+1.5)
@ Bears - The Bears aren't good, not at
all. They can't be satisfied with Craig
Krenzel leading their already struggling
offensive unit. Sure, Thomas Jones has been
a pleasant surprise, but I don't think he
can run for big yards against nine guys
in the box. The 49ers will play single coverage
all day against Chicago, challenging Krenzel
to beat them through the air. Although Craig
would love to oblige, he just doesn't have
that ability yet. The Niners should look
to give the ball to Kevan Barlow early and
often. His numbers haven't been what they
were projected to be, but, he'll improve
this week. Tim Rattay is a much better option
at quarterback, so now everything points
to the Niners. I think they are, for the
first time this year, a damn good bet.
Game Date: 10/31/04 20:35 ET
Jaguars(+1)
@ Texans - I mean, I like the Texans as
much as the next guy, probably more, since
they take fans away from the Cowboys, but
(-1) against a 5-2 Jaguars team that just
beat the Colts in Indianapolis, are you
kidding me? Byron Leftwhich will continue
his 300 plus yard game streak in this one,
and although David Carr will give the Texans
a chance, Leftwhich will prevail. The Jags
are just a more complete team. Their defense
is tough as nails, their offense has really
come together over the last few weeks, and
they're 5-2. I usually take the Texans,
but not this week, not against a team as
confident as the Jaguars. Look for running
back Fred Taylor to finally break out of
his slump this week. He just had 100 plus
yards against the Colts, but I see a couple
touchdowns in his immediate future.
Game Date: 10/31/04 13:00 ET
Lions(+3)
@ Cowboys - Can't hate the Boys if they're
winning me money on a weekly basis right?
Wrong! These Cowboys are making me love
watching them play. Between my new least
favorite player Keyshawn Johnson's bickering
and Bill Parcels ridiculous facial expressions,
I can't figure out what I like watching
more, the actual game or the sidelines.
And there's always those Cowboy cheerleaders.
The Cowboys have been just what I predicted,
a team that was very overrated, and a team
that obviously overachieved last year. You
can say what you want about the Quincy Carter
incident or the Antonio Bryant stuff, but
all in all, the Cowboys aren't that good,
or even good at all. They struggle every
week and now their defense is getting picked
on... oh yes, it's all coming together quite
nicely. Well, all that said, the upstart
4-2 Lions come to town this week, and Roy
Williams will be back in his old stomping
grounds for the first time as a pro. Think
he'll be excited? I'm willing to bet on
it. In fact, I might just take the Lions
to win this one. All or nothing as I always
say. Game Date: 10/31/04 13:00 ET
Lucky
Lester's Picks For Week Eight
Giants
@ Vikings(-6.5) - The way I see it,
if the Vikings are favored by less than
a touchdown you should always take them
against a lesser team. And the Giants are
a lesser team. Amazing Tiki Barber continued
his offensive rampage last week in a big
loss to the Detroit Lions, but it wasn't
enough. Last week Kurt Warner looked more
like the guy who played behind Marc Bulger
than the guy who started this year. I'm
not saying Kurt's washed up, but he's not
better than Daunte Culpepper, and really
isn't even close. The defenses are about
equal, and although the Giants have an edge
in the running game, Rookie Mewelde Moore
has been a godsend for the Vikings. This
will be a close one, high scoring and as
offensive as your average Vikings game,
but take the Vikings to win by at least
7.
Game Date: 10/31/04 13:00 ET
Bengals(+3)
@ Titans - The Bengals showed that they
are better than the 1-4 record they had
before handing it to the Broncos last week.
I'm not imagining for a second that they
are going to consistently kick the backsides
of teams like Denver every week, but the
Titans are not a team like Denver, especially
with a questionable Steve McNair. The entire
Titan team seems to be on the questionable
list every week, and even if the players
do play, they're not 100%. Rudi Johnson
and Chad Johnson looked like they got the
idea last week, and I only see them continuing
the show against a banged up Tennessee squad.
Carson Palmer might be getting a little
too much credit for his performance against
the Broncos, but his confidence to go at
Champ Bailey says a lot to me about his
game. Take the Bengals.
Game Date: 10/31/04 13:00 ET
Colts(-1)
@ Chiefs - Last week I said I was betting
on the Chiefs as if they were a mirror replica
of last years 13-3 team. Well, they turned
out to be exactly that, if not better against
a decent Falcon team. Mike Vick couldn't
do jack against the Chiefs D which even
I couldn't have imagined. But all this said,
the Chiefs aren't the same team they were
last year. They aren't as consistent and
will show that this week against one of
the most consistent players in the game,
Peyton Manning, and Edgerrin James and Marvin
Harrison for that matter. Sure, the Colts
defense could challenge the Chiefs defense
to see who's more questionable, but the
Colts are just a better team. I don't like
Indianapolis being favored in this game,
but one point is one point, and in situations
like this you have to take the team you
think will win the battle. Manning will
find it easy to toss touchdowns to Mr. Harrison
this weak, and win a big time game in Kansas
City. Game Date: 10/31/04 13:00 ET
Falcons(+6.5)
@ Denver - This games got me vexed. I don't
know which way to go; I don't even know
where to begin. So, I'll start where football
starts, defense. I know the Falcons have
just recently been whipped, but they have
a solid defense. Denver also just got pummeled
by a 1-4 Bengals team, but they also have
a good defense. I have to give Denver a
slight advantage here, but not as big as
people might think. Offensively both teams
looked stagnant at best, with Vick and the
Falcons being a little worse. They could
only manage 10 points against the Chiefs.
But, the Broncos couldn't do anything against
the leagues worst rushing defense. I'll
have to give the Broncos another, very slight,
advantage. Now the intangibles, the little
things, and the stuff I call Swagger. Vick
always has swagger, and a little thing I
like to call cushioning... also known as
(+6.5). Denver also has a large amount of
close victories. So, the intangibles have
to go to the Falcons. Denver seems to squeak
out their victories for the most part, and
if they do win in Mile High, I don't see
it being by much. I always rank intangibles
very high, realizing that the mental part
of the game is larger. Translation: take
the team with the points in this one.
Game Date: 10/31/04 16:05 ET
Panthers
@ Seahawks(-8) - Eight is a bunch
for a team that just went down at the hands
of an Arizona team that is feisty at best
. But the Panthers really haven't been anything
greater then bottom feeders either. For
two slumping teams, the Seahawks are definitely
the better of the two. Matt Hasselbeck will
actually come to play this week, pull his
head out of his backside, and find his stellar
offensive teammates for a bunch of scores
against a defense that can only imagine
what they use to be. Shaun Alexander should
run for three times the yards he had last
week, and if Hasselbeck throws half as many
touchdowns as he did interceptions against
Arizona, the Hawks should win easily at
home. I'm still a strong believer in the
Hawks and their playoff and Super Bowl aspirations,
but they need to step up and blow out an
injured Panther team. This, I believe, they
will do on Sunday.
Game Date: 10/31/04 16:05 ET
Ravens
@ Eagles(+7.5) - It's real hard for
me to take a team favored by more than a
touchdown against a defense led by Ray Lewis.
But that same defense has to be off the
field while the Baltimore offense has the
ball. That offense is anything but productive
especially with Jamal Lewis suspended for
one more game. Chester Taylor looked okay
last week, but Boller still didn't even
break 100 yards... and he played the whole
game. The Eagles didn't look so dominant
either, but were still good enough to be
one of the two undefeated teams going into
week 8. McNabb has been wonderful since
Terrell Owens made himself an Eagle. Brian
Westbrook is most likely out this week as
well, so it seems the odds are stacking
against an Eagle victory. But, Philadelphia
will find a way this week, and smother a
lackluster Raven offense.
Game Date: 10/31/04 13:00 ET
Patriots
@ Steelers(+3) - My more sensible
half tells me to take the undefeated, 20
plus game win streaking, best team in the
league, Patriots. But, who likes to listen
to him, when a chance to call a huge upset
is on the line. Don't get me wrong, taking
the Patriots looks like a good bet. They
are only favored by 3 and against a Steeler
team that hasn't got the respect they've
deserved yet this year. But, mark my words;
the Steelers and rookie quarterback Ben
Roethlisberger are for real. One might think
that Belichick would have his way with the
rookie, but I think this makes the Coach's
job a little tougher. Big Ben hasn't had
to many games to show the Patriots his tendencies,
and on that note, his rookie status will
help Pittsburgh. The Patriots always seem
to play to the level of their opponents
and that's bound to bite them in the butt
sooner or later. I'm just betting that it
happens in week 8. I hate to listen to my
crazy and cocky side but... wait a second;
I love listening to that side, what am I
thinking? I've got to take The Steel Crew
in this game, showing that New England is
in fact mortal. Game Date: 10/31/04 16:15
ET
Raiders
@ Chargers(-6) - Drew Brees has to
get some respect from me. He has done so
well and until this point all I've been
doing is taking him to fail. I forgot he
was a great field general in college, and
he's still growing as a football player.
The Raiders are terrible, and even lost
to the Saints at home. Their offense looked
better last week, but whose offense doesn't
seem powerful against New Orleans? The Chargers
are doing well listening to Marty Schottenheimer.
This Monday LaDainian Tomlinson said he
is as healthy as he's felt in three weeks.
So, things look good for a decent Chargers
team against a poor Raiders team. Even with
Sapp and Ted Washington, the Raiders can't
stop a running back. Keenan McCardell gives
the Chargers a much-needed boost at receiver,
and in his second week he'll be looking
to hook up with Brees for a TD or two. The
underrated Chargers secondary should put
a stop to the idea that the Raiders are
an explosive offense.
Game Date: 10/31/04 16:15 ET
Miami
@ Jets(-6.5) - I'll take this bet
in the blink of an eye. The Dolphins win
one game and now they aren't even 7-point
underdogs in New York against one of the
best teams in football? Wow! The Jets showed
me last week that they could play with any
team in this league, especially the one-week
wonder Miami squad. Jay Fiedler isn't consistent;
in fact he actually is consistent, consistently
bad! He had one decent week and still it
wasn't all that good. Coach Herm Edwards
won't let his Jets overlook the Dolphins
or get down about a loss to the Patriots
last week. He'll have them fired up and
ready to improve their record. The Jets
still could walk away from this one tied
for the best record in the NFL. Give the
ball to Curtis, the Phins can't stop him.
Game Date: 11/01/04 21:05 ET
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Good
Luck with your NFL Football Wagering!
Lucky Lester
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