NFL Betting: Spotlight Around The AFC in Week Two Of Preseason

With week two of the NFL betting lines preseason set to kick off on Thursday, here is a quick look at where teams from the AFC stand.

The New England Patriots are the favorites to get back to the Super Bowl in 2011, and after a 47-12 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in week one of the preseason with the majority of their starters watching from the sidelines, it is easy to understand just why that is. The Patriots head to Tampa Bay on Thursday to face a Buccaneers’ team that also won big in week one, and it will be interesting to see how they handle things with their starters in the lineup. Things didn’t look so good for the rest of the AFC East in week one after the rest of the division went 1-2, with the Miami Dolphins’ win over the Atlanta Falcons coming after the starters left the field. The Dolphins will debut Reggie Bush at home this week against the Carolina Panthers, while Shawne Merriman and a revitalized Buffalo Bills’ pass rush are on the road to take on the Denver Broncos. New York Jets’ head coach Rex Ryan wasn’t happy with his team’s execution in a close loss to the Houston Texans week one of the preseason, and will be expecting more at home against the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday.

Those same Bengals were blown away by the Detroit Lions 34-3 in their preseason opener, while the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens also lost to leave the Cleveland Browns as the only sports betting winners from the AFC North in week one. The Browns took down the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers 27-17, and will head home hoping to do better against the Lions than Cincinnati did. Meanwhile, the rest of the AFC North wraps up with the Steelers clashing against the Philadelphia Eagles in an in-state showdown, while Baltimore battles the Kansas City Chiefs at home.

In the AFC South, the Indianapolis Colts will look for a better effort from their backups in their second game without Peyton Manning in the lineup, and after a 33-10 blowout loss to the St. Louis Rams there may be nowhere to go but up. The Colts will host a Washington Redskins’ team that made betonline life difficult for the Steelers a week ago, while the Houston Texans host the New Orleans Saints, and the Tennessee Titans travel to take on the Rams on Saturday. The Jacksonville Jaguars are at home against the Atlanta Falcons.

The AFC preseason week two schedule rounds out in the AFC West where the Broncos will continue to watch the battle between quarterbacks Kyle Orton and Tim Tebow despite the fact that a decision has already pretty much been made against the Bills. The San Diego Chargers are at Dallas to face the Cowboys, while the Chiefs will look to bounce back from their opening week sports betting bonus disaster against the Ravens. The Oakland Raiders will also travel in-state, as they get set to clash with the San Francisco 49ers at Candlestick Park.

NFL Preseason Week 2 Game Preview: Philadelphia Eagles vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Online Betting Overview

The Pittsburgh Steelers do not like losing, especially when they are coming off a year where they lost in the Super Bowl. Forget that it is preseason. The Steelers defense was embarrassed by Rex Grossman and the under-achieving Washington Redskins offense. While the Pittsburgh starters did not stay in the game for very long, the Steelers’ pride still works its way down to the second and third string, whether the second and third string players like it or not. The Steelers spent most of their first preseason game looking over talent. But in the preseason battle of Pennsylvania, there may be a little more at stake here.

After that first preseason performance, the NFL betting lines on the Eagles getting to the Super Bowl improved. The Eagles defensive secondary is almost completely brand new, and it will take a couple of games to get the players used to each other. This game would be the perfect one to give the secondary some extended time together. The Eagles’ offense will spend more time looking at second-string players such as quarterback Vince Young. But that is not a weak spot for the Eagles. Young always looks good in the preseason but then falls apart in the regular season. Michael Vick may get some more playing time in this game, but with the Steelers still smarting from last week’s loss, Philadelphia head coach Andy Reid may not keep Vick out there very long.

Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL fans in Pittsburgh know not to get too worried about preseason. But getting touched up by Washington quarterback Rex Grossman for 207 yards when Grossman had limited play in a preseason game is a definite concern for Pittsburgh. The Steelers have always prided themselves on depth in their defense, and that depth was non-existent in the Washington game. Head coach Mike Tomlin will be giving his second and third strings a long look in this game, but he will also give the first string defense a chance to set the tone in the first quarter. The Steelers are still trying to figure out their passing game, so look for a constant carousel of wide receivers to come in and out of this game all night long.

Philadelphia Eagles

The new and improved Eagles would make this one of the best regular season games of the year. But in the preseason, Andy Reid is always protective of his starters. The first quarter of this game will be exciting with the first-string Eagles’ offense against the first-string Steelers’ defense. But when the first teams come out, the Eagles definitely have the upper hand.

The Bottom Line

NFL picks in the preseason can sometimes be difficult because the first stringers are not in there for very long. In this game, depth will decide the outcome and the Eagles have a lot of depth while the Steelers do not. Once the excitement of the first quarter is over, Pittsburgh fans will want to stay tuned and see what Mike Tomlin does about his team’s need for quality second and third string players.

BSNblog Pick: Philadelphia Eagles

NFL Betting: Top Five Week 2 Preseason Games

If you bet football online, this may have been the most anticipated preseason in league history as teams threw together training camp in two weeks after the lockout and got the schedule underway. Sports betting players should watch even more football as the regular season approaches as starters will be playing more with each week. Here is a look at the top five games of Week 2.

Patriots vs. Buccaneers Betting – Thursday, 7:30 PM ET

You should see the debut of New England’s Tom Brady, as well as newcomers Chad Ochocinco and Albert Haynesworth, who weren’t needed in a 47-12 romp over Jacksonville last week. They’ll be going up against a young and hungry Tampa Bay defense that completely dominated Kansas City in a 25-0 mauling on the road, but quarterback Josh Freeman also looked great in his short cameo. This game could steal some of the spotlight from MLB highlights.

Eagles vs. Steelers Betting – Thursday, 8:00 PM ET

State bragging rights aren’t the only thing at stake when these Pennsylvania rivals meet at Heinz Field; both come into the season as legitimate Super Bowl favorites. The Eagles beat Baltimore 13-6 in their debut, but they looked disjointed at times, which is sure to happen on a team with so many new faces. The Steelers fell 16-7 in Washington, and the defense will be the focus after getting lit up by the Redskins’ Rex Grossman and a subpar Washington passing game.

Chiefs vs. Ravens Betting – Friday, 7:30 PM ET

The Chiefs were manhandled by Tampa Bay and it should be noted that they had barely practiced with pads ahead of the game, so it’s no surprise that they were physically outmatched. They should be able to get up for this game against the Ravens, who destroyed the Chiefs 30-7 in Kansas City in last year’s wild-card round and even though it’s the preseason, you don’t need a Bet Online review to know that will come up at some point this week in practice.

Lions vs. Browns Betting – Friday, 8:00 PM ET

Detroit looked impressive in a 34-3 destruction of Cincinnati, and Matt Stafford proved once again that when he is healthy, the Lions’ offense can be explosive. They’ll face another Ohio team in the Browns, who are still getting used to the way new head coach Pat Shurmur does things and as always, pay attention the way he handles young pivot Colt McCoy.

Saints vs. Texans Betting – Saturday, 8:00 PM ET

The Saints looked in midseason form in a 24-3 beatdown of San Francisco, and the defense put up six sacks, all in the first half as they took their foot off the gas in the second. Still, the San Francisco offense looked awful and coach Jim Harbaugh can’t be encouraged about the play of Alex Smith. As long as he’s around, the 49ers will always be considered betting underdogs.