Pete's Picks:
Just relax and enjoy the ride
URL:http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/columns/obrien/2003-01-09-pete_x.htm
Let's not get too carried away over this Giants-49ers officiating fiasco. After all, the important thing — regardless of whether or not New York got screwed — is that the Giants STILL covered the spread.
Even more importantly, the controversy is a good reminder that we shouldn't take this whole NFL thing so seriously. It is just entertainment. Truth is, the referees are in completely over their heads. They always have been. You can't expect a small group of aging men to keep track of 22 blazing fast athletes for three hours — while at the same time trying to avoid being crushed in the process. The problem is, now that we have 152 different camera angles of every play, their shortcomings are exposed on a regular basis.
Pittsburgh (plus 4) at Tennessee
Steelers linebacker Joey Porter wins the award for Most Bizarre Inspirational Tool by accusing Titans strength and conditioning coach Steve Watterson of pouring coffee on him after a play where Porter ended up on the Tennessee sideline. The Titans brass, however, deny the coffee charge. They insist the drink was chicken broth (I'm not making this up) and that the dumping was totally inadvertent.
The refs, of course, failed to throw a flag on the play.
TITANS, 23-17
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Atlanta (plus 7½) at Philadelphia
Falcons cornerback Ray Buchanan wins the award for Dumbest Comment Made By A Player That Should Know Better for suggesting the Eagles would be better off with A.J. Feeley than Donovan McNabb this week. For that, Philly is the Lock of the Week.
EAGLES, 30-16
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San Francisco (plus 5) at Tampa Bay
Even though the Bucs were less than impressive the last month of the season, it's tough to believe the 49ers will have a full tank of gas after last Sunday's thriller. San Francisco hasn't covered the spread in its last nine games while Tampa Bay has claimed six of the last seven ATS at home.
BUCCANEERS, 20-13
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New York Jets (plus 5½) at Oakland
We've got to have one upset and this is the one that makes sense. The Jets have outscored their last three opponents 113-34. And the visitor in this series has covered in five of the last seven meetings. New York is the Upset Special.
JETS, 31-27
Last week: 2-2 straight up (138-76 season); 3-1 against the spread (108-100-6 season). The Upset Special is 6-9. The Lock of the Week is 12-3 (The Upset Special and Lock of the Week records are straight up). Point spread is based on Danny Sheridan's line as of Thursday. Feedback can be sent to fbpete@usatoday.com. |
