Gridiron Player Club NFL 1-5 Units (10/13/24)

NFL

3 Picks.

1:00PM EST: TB/NO Under 42.5 (4 Units). Tampa Bay's Defense got torched by Atlanta last week but that was mostly a personnel issue. They came into the game without starting safety Antonio Winfield and then lost 2 more throughout the game. The Falcons had a field day throwing over the middle of the field. Both of Tampa's starting safeties will play today and put back together what's been a very good defense under Todd Bowles. The Saints will be starting Rookie QB Spencer Rattler after Carr got injured last week. Their offensive lines still depleted and most importantly without their starting Center. The do it all Taysom Hill's also out. Todd Bowles likes to blitz as much as anybody and New Orleans is set to struggle setting up pass protection. Should see a lot of RB Alvin Kamara here.

The Saints defense has been one of the leagues best. They gave up 26 @ KC last week but there offense got dominated. The Saints gave up 26 @ Atlanta the week before but their defense let up just 4 field goals. A Muffed Punt TD and Pick 6 gave Atlanta 14. They held Philly to 15 at Home, Dallas to 19 on the road, and the Panthers to 10. It's been tough sledding against this Saints defense and they're much tougher in the Superdome. It's a Veteran group that knows it's on them today with the Rookie QB starting and we expect they'll show up. Buccs offense a little banged up as well. Couple WR injuries, starting RB, and starting Center.

The Under has hit in 5 straight meetings between these 2 divisional rivals and 7 of their last 8 overall. 4:05PM EST: LAC/DEN Under 35.5 (2 Units).

The Chargers have scored 10 points exactly in back-to-back games. They've also scored 26 on Carolina and 22 on Las Vegas so far this season. QB Justin Herbert's dealing with an ankle sprain and it's limiting his mobility. LA plays a run first style of football now under Jim Harbaugh. The Broncos have the 2nd ranked scoring defense. After giving up 26 on the road to Seattle Week 1, they've let up just 47 combined points in their last 4 games. They have one of the league's best secondaries and against a weak Chargers Receiving room it'll allow them to dedicate numbers to stopping the run.

The Broncos offense has done enough to win but they're 28th in total yards per game. Rookie QB Bo Nix just had his first decent day against a bad Raiders defense, but he's struggled early on. They're 21st in rushing yards per carry and per game. The Chargers have the #1 ranked scoring defense and they do it by limiting teams to 3.9 YPC. The Rookie will need to make bigtime throws throughout this game and it's something he's struggled to do.

8:20PM EST: Giants +3.5 (4 Units).

The Giants aren't a bad football team. They just dominated the Seahawks in Seattle last week. Took a close 15-20 Loss at Home to Dallas the week before. They beat up on the Browns in Cleveland and really should have beaten Washington, but their kicker got hurt. The offense was without WR Malik Nabers and Daniel Jones had a career day. They scored 29 points in Seattle but were outright robbed of 7 more. There wasn't a clear and obvious view of the goal line so the play stood for a fumble and 101-yard TD for Seattle instead of what should have been a Giants touchdown. They didn't have starting RB Devin Singletary last week and rookie Tyrone Tracy went for 129 yards on 18 carries. No Singletary again so it's the explosive rookie's show.

The Bengals have the 31st ranked scoring defense. Going back, they've allowed 41 to Baltimore, 24 to Carolina, 38 to Washington, and 26 to Kansas City. They're 30th in rushing yards allowed per game, 18th in passing yards allowed per game, and 26th in total yards allowed per game. They've played some good teams but even Carolina scored 24. This is a bad defense, and the Giants offense has been moving the ball.

The Giants defense is quietly among footballs best. They're 11th as a team in points allowed per game but the defense hasn't surrendered more than 21 points in a game. Minnesota scored 28 on the Giants Week 1 but 7 of those came off an interception. They've played some very good offenses. They held Seattle's offense to 13, Dallas to 20, and Washington to 18 via 6 field goals. They'll give Joe Burrow and Co. some problems in this one.