Glenn McGrew
This NFL Top 10 will be based on a bettor's perspective, rating teams not on their record, but their current strength.
1) NEW ENGLAND: Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good! For the second week in a row the Patriots actually looked mortal. But with the NFL's best signal caller at the helm....did you expect anything else?
2) INDIANAPOLIS Still without favorite receiver Marvin Harrison, Peyton Manning dissected Jacksonville's secondary for four touchdown passes. And, in the process, joined Dan Marino as the only quarterback to throw for more than 20 scoring passes in each of their first 10 NFL seasons.
3) DALLAS: In a showdown between a pair of 10-1 clubs, the Cowboys topped the Packers as Tony Romo went 19 of 30 for 309 yards and 4 touchdowns. The victory was Dallas' sixth straight and gives them a big leg up in the battle for home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.
4) GREEN BAY: The Pack came up short in their Thursday showdown at Texas Stadium. But the bigger concern is the health of Brett Favre, who suffered a banged up right elbow and a separated shoulder. Farve will have 10 days to recuperate and continue his run of 249 consecutive starts.
5) JACKSONVILLE: While the Jaguars loss to Indianapolis leaves them with little or no chance at an AFC South title, their 8-4 record still gives them an excellent shot at a postseason appearance. Also worth noting, despite falling 28-25, Jacksonville held significant edges in first downs (27-19), total yards (411-342) and time of possession (35:45-24:15) over the Colts.
6) TAMPA BAY: With Sunday's win over New Orleans, the Bucs now have a dominating 3-game lead in the NFC South with just 4 games remaining. And they did it with third string quarterback Luke McCown (29 of 37 for 313 yards and 2 scores) who stepped in for Jeff Garcia who's still sidelined with a bruised lower back.
7) SEATTLE: The Seahawks' "bend but don't break" defense was on display in Philadelphia as the Eagles rolled up 363 yards of total offense but stopped numerous Eagle drives by picking off four A. J. Feeley passes, three by linebacker Lofa Tatupu. But the best news for Seattle, Shaun Alexander ran for 65 yards after missing three games with a sprained knee.
8) PITTSBURGH: There's nothing like facing a porous Cincinnati stop unit in order to help breaking a scoring slump. After managing just one touchdown over the last two games (vs the Jets and Dolphins), the Steelers scored three (along with 20 first downs) in their 24-10 victory over the Bengals. Hines Ward had a pair of touchdowns, giving him 64 career td catches, a team record as he passed Hall of Famer John Stallworth.
9) NEW YORK GIANTS: Eli Manning followed up last week's 4-interception debacle vs the Vikings with another less-than scintillating performance at Chicago, losing a fumble and getting picked off twice. But Peyton's little brother redeemed himself by leading the Giants to a pair of late touchdown drives.
10) SAN DIEGO: The Chargers' 1-3 start is almost totally forgotten now as they moved to 7-5 on the year and a 2-game lead in the AFC West. Leading the way....LaDainian Tomlinson with 177 yards on 23 carries.
Just missed: Cleveland, Tennessee and Minnesota |
Glenn McGrew has been right in the center of the Las Vegas handicapping world for over two decades. Making numbers used by some of the biggest players in the world, Glenn has supplied the sharpest of overnight lines to more than 70 newspapers across the U.S. and Canada since the early 90's. His power ratings in college and pro football and basketball are considered the sharpest in the country. Yo ...