Hello, and welcome to another edition of the Beej Knows Best. I hope everyone had a wonderful fall break, whether you went home to visit family, stayed here at Emory, visited friends at other schools or went to Las Vegas, like I did. In case you had some sense of doubt in your mind, I could not recommend going to Vegas more. It's a fantasy land. And although I might have lost a bit too much money and potentially a few years off of my life, I have come back to Emory without a tattoo or a wife, so the trip was an overall success.
Now let's talk some business. As a Jets fan, this marks the week where I start focusing a little bit more on college football to see who we are going to snag with our top pick in the draft – which is disappointing. Although the college football season has been spectacularly exciting thus far, there's nothing like watching your favorite team make a run towards the Super Bowl. For the majority of the NFL, this is a time to make a strong push into a bye week, similarly to the shellacking laid upon the Giants by the Eagles last weekend. For others, it's almost a safety blanket, a way to take a step back, refocus and stop the bleeding. Expect to see coaches on the hot seat after this week, if they are unable to turn the tide of their team almost halfway through this 2014 campaign. Without further ado, let's take a look at some of the key matchups for this week.
Atlanta Falcons at Baltimore Ravens (-7)
The Falcons are on a three game slide, and their season is slowly but surely starting to slip away. They play Baltimore and Detroit before heading into a bye week that they sorely need. Meanwhile, the Ravens offense is starting to look formidable once again despite the loss of Ray Rice, with Joe Flacco airing it out to the Smiths (Torrey and Steve Sr.). It seems as though emotionally they have moved on. The Falcons have moved the ball quite well on offense, but have absolutely struggled on defense. Meanwhile, rookie C.J. Mosley has anchored the Ravens defense and has fans in Baltimore very excited about the future. I believe this is going to be shootout, but the Ravens will ride the momentum of rocking the Buccaneers to a victory at home.
Baltimore 38 Atlanta 27
Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts (-3)
My hypothetical alter ego named "Betting Jayson" just put tuition on the line. Indianapolis is currently on a four game winning streak, and is clicking on all cylinders. Andrew Luck has truly broken out as a top quarterback in the league, and their defense ranks 6th in sacks and has returned two interceptions for touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Bengals will most likely be without their top playmaker in A.J. Green, and their second wide receiver, Marvin Jones. Additionally, Vontaze Burfict has just been fined for attempting to hurt players after the plays end, and Adam Jones has called out kicker Mike Nugent for "not doing his job." Seems like there is some trouble in paradise after starting out with a dominant 3-0 this season. Speaking of kicker Nugent, he has missed six of his 17 attempts this season. I think Indianapolis is going to take this one.
Indianapolis 31 Cincinnati 17
New Orleans Saints at Detroit Lions (-2.5)
This game is a matchup of injuries and attrition. For the Saints, Jimmy Graham is questionable, and they have key players on both offense and defense who are banged up for this matchup. For the Lions, they are uncertain about the status of one of the league's best offensive players, Calvin Johnson. Both of these players are crucial to their offense's success. The status of the two players are equally uncertain, so I'll move forward assuming they both sit. The Lions offense has struggled without Johnson. However, they have been very successful on defense, holding opponents to under 20 points five times. Drew Brees, who despite a myriad of injuries has kept the Saints offense afloat, will challenge the Lions' defense. Although the Saints are sitting at 2-3, they are only one game back behind the Panthers in the NFC South. Coming off of a bye week, I believe that the Saints will be prepared on the road, and Brees will get his crew to the finish line.
New Orleans 24 Detroit 17
-- By Jayson Patel, Contributing Writer
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