NEIP.US

It may only be preseason in the NFL, but the Atlanta Falcons are making a statement that they'll be a factor in the NFC. The Falcons starters behind QB Matt Ryan were almost flawless, and left the reserves with a 14-0 lead before eventually beating the St. Louis Rams 20-13 at the Edward Jones Dome on Friday night. Both teams are now 1-1 in NFL preseason action. Running back Michael Turner was unstoppable in his limited playing time, churning out 65 yards in the Falcons opening drive. After the game, he confirmed that the Falcons offense had placed a priority on sound execution: "We wanted to come out and execute. They were preaching that all… Read More

Tom Brady returned to NFL action and looked good in limited playing time as the New England Patriots opened their preseason schedule with a 27-25 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. Brady played into the second quarter, moving well and showing no lingering effects of his knee surgery. The Patriots also rewarded their NFL preseason financial backers by winning outright as a +2 road underdog. The combined 52 points scored shattered the posted total of 32 for an easy OVER. With the Pats and Eagles putting 27 points on the board in the first half, the total had almost been surpassed by the halftime break. Brady had little to say after the game… Read More

Kyle Orton's debut as the Denver Broncos starting QB didn't go quite as planned. Orton, who was acquired from Chicago in the off-season, threw interceptions on each of his first three offensive series. San Francisco's offense didn't exactly light up the scoreboard, but it did do enough to eke out a 17-16 NFL preseason victory before their home fans. The good news for Orton is that despite his three interceptions and a solid backup performance by Chris Simms. Broncos coach Josh McDaniels has been steadfast in his support. Orton appeared thankful of this fact in his postgame comments: "That's great. That's certainly what you need in this league… Read More

The bad news for the Baltimore Ravens in their 2009 NFL regular season opener was that their vaunted defense gave up 24 points despite holding a decided advantage in every other statistical category. The good news was that their offense was more than up to the task, answering with 38 points and a franchise record 501 yards. All told, the Ravens opened their season on a winning note beating the Kansas City Chiefs 38-24. Quarterback Joe Flacco threw for a career high 307 yards and three touchdown passes in the victory. NFL sports betting devotees who took the +13 points with the Chiefs as a road underdog were hard luck losers as the Ravens managed… Read More

Two weeks after being thoroughly outplayed by the New York Jets, the New England Patriots have won two straight and on Sunday ended the Baltimore Ravens undefeated start to the NFL season with a 27-21 victory. They needed a little luck along the way"usually sure handed receiver Mark Clayton dropped a wide open fourth down pass in the final minute to kill a potential game winning drive deep in New England territory. Both teams are now 3-1 on the season. The Patriots got the NFL pointspread victory as well, covering as -2 home favorites. It was Baltimore's first ATS setback on the season, while New England evened their pointspread record at 2-2.… Read More

New York Jets rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez tracked down NFL legend Joe Namath before the game looking for a pep talk and some pointers. He didn't exactly get what he'd bargained for from Broadway Joe, but what the NFL Hall of Famer told him may have had a more beneficial effect. Sanchez looked very decidedly not like a rookie as he threw for 272 yards and a touchdown against one interception. More importantly, the Jets easily beat the host Houston Texans 24-7. NFL sports betting enthusiasts who took the Jets as +4 road underdogs cashed their tickets with the outright win. New York improved to 10-8 ATS as an underdog over the past three NFL… Read More

The Indianapolis Colts offense was in high gear as Peyton Manning threw two TD passes in three series of action, leaving backup Curtis Painter with a 14-0 lead over the Philadelphia Eagles before exiting the game. While the Colts would eventually rely as much on their defense as their offense as they made their way to the Superbowl, on this day the offense was all it took. The Colts went on to win 23-15 in NFL preseason action at in Indianapolis. Manning was in good spirits as he discussed the Colts' offense after this game: "I think everybody wanted to be in there. The entire offense felt hungry after last week. Sure, there were some mistakes… Read More

When the biggest play of a NFL football game is an extra point, there's a good chance it was a dull contest. Such was the case on Thursday night in rainy Foxboro, Massachusetts as the Cincinnati Bengals edged the New England Patriots by a 7-6 score. The big play of the game? A point after touchdown by the Bengals backup kicker, none other than wide receiver Chad Ochocinco. The unlikely placekicker's extra point would prove to be the margin of victory in the low scoring game. After the game, the always entertaining Chad Ochocinco talked about his love for European soccer: "'Esteban' Ochocinco is back, the most interesting footballer in the world.… Read More

The good news for the Kansas City Chiefs as they prepare for the start of the NFL regular season is that their starting quarterback is back at practice. The bad news is that they still don't know when hell be able to play. Matt Cassel returned to the Chiefs practice field on Monday for the first time since he injured his left knee in a NFL preseason game on August 29th. Still, there's been no confirmation from either he or the team as to when hell return to action. Cassel, who saw his stock shoot up precipitously as an NFL QB following his solid play in New England after starter Tom Brady went down to a season ending injury, signed a six year,… Read More

The Oakland Raiders scored the only touchdown of the game in the first quarter and then prevailed in the kicking duel that followed en route to a--9 upset of the visiting Philadelphia Eagles. Much maligned quarterback Jamarcus Russell played his best game of the season despite two interceptions, throwing for 224 yards and a touchdown. NFL betting enthusiasts who backed the Raiders as a whopping +14 home underdog were never in any trouble as Oakland took the lead late in the first quarter and never relinquished it. Oakland evened their mark against the NFL pointspread at 3-3, while the Eagles dropped to 3-2 against the number. The 22 points scored… Read More