COMPLETED PICKS
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....18-15-1.......54.54%....+23.75
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....18-15-1.......54.54%....+23.75
SIZE=4]Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack
Most popular picks this week in the Westgate SuperContest:
344— Buffalo +6.5- W
337— LA Rams +3- W
304— Atlanta +2.5- L
303— Tennessee -2.5- L
280— Arizona +6.5- W
243— Pittsburgh -6- W
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 194,367
Please wear a mask when you go out.
**********
Armadillo: Tuesday's Den: Nobody asked me, but…….
13) Steelers 26, Giants 16:
— Pitt led 16-10 late in 3rd quarter; Giants had a 19-play drive that ended on an end zone INT.
— Last five years, Pittsburgh is 15-6 ATS against NFC teams.
— 11 of Steelers’ last 14 road openers stayed under the total.
— Barkley carried ball 15 times for 6 yards; he caught 6 passes for 60 yards.
— Giants started one drive on Pittsburgh’s 3-yard line but only kicked a FG.
— Giants started out 0-1 eight of last nine years.
— Giants are 4-14 ATS in last 18 games as a home underdog.
12) Titans 16, Denver 14
— Titans missed three FG’s and a PAT, but kicked 25-yard FG with 0:17 left for the win.
— The was the Oilers/Titans’ first win in Denver since 1980 (they also won a 1987 replacement game, but I don’t count that)
— Tennessee won seven of last eight road openers, covered nine of last 13.
— Broncos were stopped on downs on the Tennessee 1-yard line in 2nd quarter.
— Titans converted 7-16 on 3rd down, Denver only 3-9.
— Denver is 21-10-1 ATS in its last 32 home openers.
11) Why did the Houston Texans trade DeAndre Hopkins? Isn’t it important to keep your best players, especially when your young QB is growing into being an elite player? Going to be a lot of heat on Texans’ management if they regress on offense this season.
My high school Chemistry teacher was Bill Warner (no relation to Kurt); he was a great teacher, also a licensed pilot, a basketball referee, a brilliant guy. When something made no sense to him, he would call it “nonsensical” He is the only person I’ve ever heard use that word.
To me, the Texans trading Hopkins was nonsensical.
10) No NFL head coach has ever won Super Bowls with two different teams.
Only two guys (Bill Parcells, Mike Holmgren) made it to a Super Bowl with another team, after winning a title somewhere else.
9) NFL supposedly wants more scoring in their games, but two huge offensive plays in the last minute of close games were nullified Sunday by offensive pass interference calls. If you want more points to be scored, why would you point the officials towards calling more offensive PI?
Bengals scored a TD with 0:06 left that was negated; Dallas completed a long pass that would’ve set up a game-tying field goal. Wide receivers pushing off has been overlooked for decades; Michael Irvin is in the Hall of Fame because of that.
The NFL makes their rules, the officials just enforce them; I don’t understand this apparent change in direction.
8) Last 16 years, Cleveland Browns are 0-15-1 in their season openers; they threw 10 passes to Odell Beckham Sunday in Baltimore, but completed only three of them.
7) Mike D’Antoni’s NBA coaching record: 16 years, 672-527 in regular season games, 54-56 in playoff games. If he still wants to coach, hard to believe someone won’t hire him.
6) Denver Nuggets are first NBA team ever to have four straight playoff series go 7 games.
5) Overlooked with all the football Sunday was Alec Mills throwing a no-hitter for the Cubs in Milwaukee, in his 15th career start.
Earlier this season, Lucas Giolito threw a no-hitter for the White Sox; this is the first season ever that both Chicago franchises had a pitcher throw a no-hitter in the same season.
4) Over the last 21 years, Washington Redskins have started 13 different quarterbacks in their season opener. This isn’t a good thing.
3) Big day for Mets fans; the Wilpon family and Saul Katz have agreed to sell the Mets to billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen, which has to help the team a lot. The Wilpons were horrendous owners.
Trivia: If you watch Billions on Showtime, Damian Lewis’ character Bobby Axelrod is loosely based on Cohen. He is a rich guy, really rich.
2) Atlanta Braves signed Pablo Sandoval to a minor league deal, after the Giants released him. Sandoval could be a DH for the Braves down the stretch.
1) If the baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
AL East: Tampa Bay, Toronto
AL Central: Chicago, Minnesota
AL West: Oakland, Houston
AL wild cards: Cleveland, New York
NL East: Atlanta, Miami
NL Central: Chicago, St Louis
NL West: Los Angeles, San Diego
NL wild cards: Philadelphia, San Francisco[/SIZE]
Most popular picks this week in the Westgate SuperContest:
344— Buffalo +6.5- W
337— LA Rams +3- W
304— Atlanta +2.5- L
303— Tennessee -2.5- L
280— Arizona +6.5- W
243— Pittsburgh -6- W
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 194,367
Please wear a mask when you go out.
**********
Armadillo: Tuesday's Den: Nobody asked me, but…….
13) Steelers 26, Giants 16:
— Pitt led 16-10 late in 3rd quarter; Giants had a 19-play drive that ended on an end zone INT.
— Last five years, Pittsburgh is 15-6 ATS against NFC teams.
— 11 of Steelers’ last 14 road openers stayed under the total.
— Barkley carried ball 15 times for 6 yards; he caught 6 passes for 60 yards.
— Giants started one drive on Pittsburgh’s 3-yard line but only kicked a FG.
— Giants started out 0-1 eight of last nine years.
— Giants are 4-14 ATS in last 18 games as a home underdog.
12) Titans 16, Denver 14
— Titans missed three FG’s and a PAT, but kicked 25-yard FG with 0:17 left for the win.
— The was the Oilers/Titans’ first win in Denver since 1980 (they also won a 1987 replacement game, but I don’t count that)
— Tennessee won seven of last eight road openers, covered nine of last 13.
— Broncos were stopped on downs on the Tennessee 1-yard line in 2nd quarter.
— Titans converted 7-16 on 3rd down, Denver only 3-9.
— Denver is 21-10-1 ATS in its last 32 home openers.
11) Why did the Houston Texans trade DeAndre Hopkins? Isn’t it important to keep your best players, especially when your young QB is growing into being an elite player? Going to be a lot of heat on Texans’ management if they regress on offense this season.
My high school Chemistry teacher was Bill Warner (no relation to Kurt); he was a great teacher, also a licensed pilot, a basketball referee, a brilliant guy. When something made no sense to him, he would call it “nonsensical” He is the only person I’ve ever heard use that word.
To me, the Texans trading Hopkins was nonsensical.
10) No NFL head coach has ever won Super Bowls with two different teams.
Only two guys (Bill Parcells, Mike Holmgren) made it to a Super Bowl with another team, after winning a title somewhere else.
9) NFL supposedly wants more scoring in their games, but two huge offensive plays in the last minute of close games were nullified Sunday by offensive pass interference calls. If you want more points to be scored, why would you point the officials towards calling more offensive PI?
Bengals scored a TD with 0:06 left that was negated; Dallas completed a long pass that would’ve set up a game-tying field goal. Wide receivers pushing off has been overlooked for decades; Michael Irvin is in the Hall of Fame because of that.
The NFL makes their rules, the officials just enforce them; I don’t understand this apparent change in direction.
8) Last 16 years, Cleveland Browns are 0-15-1 in their season openers; they threw 10 passes to Odell Beckham Sunday in Baltimore, but completed only three of them.
7) Mike D’Antoni’s NBA coaching record: 16 years, 672-527 in regular season games, 54-56 in playoff games. If he still wants to coach, hard to believe someone won’t hire him.
6) Denver Nuggets are first NBA team ever to have four straight playoff series go 7 games.
5) Overlooked with all the football Sunday was Alec Mills throwing a no-hitter for the Cubs in Milwaukee, in his 15th career start.
Earlier this season, Lucas Giolito threw a no-hitter for the White Sox; this is the first season ever that both Chicago franchises had a pitcher throw a no-hitter in the same season.
4) Over the last 21 years, Washington Redskins have started 13 different quarterbacks in their season opener. This isn’t a good thing.
3) Big day for Mets fans; the Wilpon family and Saul Katz have agreed to sell the Mets to billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen, which has to help the team a lot. The Wilpons were horrendous owners.
Trivia: If you watch Billions on Showtime, Damian Lewis’ character Bobby Axelrod is loosely based on Cohen. He is a rich guy, really rich.
2) Atlanta Braves signed Pablo Sandoval to a minor league deal, after the Giants released him. Sandoval could be a DH for the Braves down the stretch.
1) If the baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
AL East: Tampa Bay, Toronto
AL Central: Chicago, Minnesota
AL West: Oakland, Houston
AL wild cards: Cleveland, New York
NL East: Atlanta, Miami
NL Central: Chicago, St Louis
NL West: Los Angeles, San Diego
NL wild cards: Philadelphia, San Francisco[/SIZE]
7NY ISLANDERS -8 TAMPA BAY
TAMPA BAY is 31-11 ATS (16.3 Units) in road games against good offensive teams - averaging 29.5+ shots on goal per game in the current season.
***********************************
NHL
Dunkel
Tuesday, September 15
NY Islanders @ Tampa Bay
Game 7-8
September 15, 2020 @ 8:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
NY Islanders
12.096
Tampa Bay
14.207
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Tampa Bay
by 2
6
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-170
5
Dunkel Pick:
Tampa Bay
(-170); Over
************************************
NHL
Long Sheet
Tuesday, September 15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NY ISLANDERS (47-28-0-13, 107 pts.) vs. TAMPA BAY (56-25-0-6, 118 pts.) - 9/15/2020, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TAMPA BAY is 118-55 ATS (+181.5 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 21-8 ATS (+9.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 99-79 ATS (+14.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
NY ISLANDERS are 68-66 ATS (+151.4 Units) in road games on Tuesday nights since 1996.
NY ISLANDERS are 10-4 ATS (+14.1 Units) revenging a home loss versus opponent this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 25-20 ATS (+50.1 Units) in road games revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 2 seasons.
NY ISLANDERS are 103-113 ATS (+253.0 Units) in road games after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 8-5 (+0.2 Units) against the spread versus NY ISLANDERS over the last 3 seasons
TAMPA BAY is 8-5-0 straight up against NY ISLANDERS over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.5 Units)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Tuesday, September 15
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NY Islanders @ Tampa Bay
NY Islanders
NY Islanders is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games on the road
NY Islanders is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
Tampa Bay is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
TAMPA BAY is 31-11 ATS (16.3 Units) in road games against good offensive teams - averaging 29.5+ shots on goal per game in the current season.
***********************************
NHL
Dunkel
Tuesday, September 15
NY Islanders @ Tampa Bay
Game 7-8
September 15, 2020 @ 8:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
NY Islanders
12.096
Tampa Bay
14.207
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Tampa Bay
by 2
6
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-170
5
Dunkel Pick:
Tampa Bay
(-170); Over
************************************
NHL
Long Sheet
Tuesday, September 15
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NY ISLANDERS (47-28-0-13, 107 pts.) vs. TAMPA BAY (56-25-0-6, 118 pts.) - 9/15/2020, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TAMPA BAY is 118-55 ATS (+181.5 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 21-8 ATS (+9.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 99-79 ATS (+14.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
NY ISLANDERS are 68-66 ATS (+151.4 Units) in road games on Tuesday nights since 1996.
NY ISLANDERS are 10-4 ATS (+14.1 Units) revenging a home loss versus opponent this season.
NY ISLANDERS are 25-20 ATS (+50.1 Units) in road games revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 2 seasons.
NY ISLANDERS are 103-113 ATS (+253.0 Units) in road games after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 8-5 (+0.2 Units) against the spread versus NY ISLANDERS over the last 3 seasons
TAMPA BAY is 8-5-0 straight up against NY ISLANDERS over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+1.5 Units)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Tuesday, September 15
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NY Islanders @ Tampa Bay
NY Islanders
NY Islanders is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games on the road
NY Islanders is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
Tampa Bay is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
COMPLETED PICKS
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/15/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -400 Detail
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....19-16-1.......54.28%....+19.75
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/15/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -400 Detail
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....19-16-1.......54.28%....+19.75
Wednesday’s 6-pack
Odds to win the US Open golf tourney this week:
8-1— Dustin Johnson
9-1— Jon Rahm
14-1— McIlroy, Schauffele, Thomas
16-1— Collin Morikawa
25-1— Bryson DeChambeau, Webb Simpson
30-1— Matsuyama, Fleetwood, Day, Reed, Finau
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 195,354
Please wear a mask when you go out.
Quote of the Day
“It begins and ends with the general manager. You can talk to me all day long. I personally wouldn’t know what coach to hire. That’s why you have a basketball operations team that’s made of a half a dozen people that use all kinds of analytics and experience. They’ll make a recommendation to me. They do about everything. I’m the sign-off guy. That’s it.
“I wouldn’t know how to interview a basketball coach. You want me to go interview a CEO for a company, I’m the first one to tell you I think [I’m] better than anybody else. To be successful in business, and I say this in my book, you better know what you know and you better know what you don’t know. I surely know what I don’t know when it comes to basketball.”
Houston Rockets’ owner Tilman Fertitta
Wednesday’s quiz
Who coached the Steelers before Mike Tomlin?
Tuesday’s quiz
Joe Girardi has managed the Marlins, Bronx, Philadelphia.
Monday’s quiz
Rams’ owner Stan Kroenke also owns the NBA’s Denver Nuggets and the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche.
************
Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings……
13) ESPN finally found its Monday Night Football crew; Steve Levy, Brian Greise, Louis Riddick are an excellent 3-man team. Smart, unassuming, easy to listen to.
12) Baseball announced its playoff plan; AL bubble in California, NL bubble in Texas, no days off in the division or league championship series, which is a big deal. Pitching depth is going to be a lot more important than usual. Aces will only pitch once in a best-of-5 series, unless they pitch a game on short rest.
Air quality in southern California could be become a problem; I’m assuming the backup plan is Arizona’s dome, but that wasn’t mentioned Monday.
World Series will be in the Rangers’ new domed stadium in Arlington.
11) Nuggets 104, Clippers 89 (Denver wins 4-3)
— Denver held LA to 33 points in 2nd half.
— Nuggets were down 3-1 in both series this year, but won both.
— Jokic had 16 points, 22 rebounds, 13 assists. Wow.
— In their 50-year history, Clippers are now 0-8 in games where they had a chance to reach the conference final.
10) Cincinnati Bengals’ kicker Randy Bullock missed a game-tying 31-yard field goal at the end of Sunday’s 16-13 loss to the Chargers; Bullock then grabbed his leg— a calf strain was given as the reason. Bengals need a new kicker.
Problem is, Cincinnati plays on Thursday this week and if you bring someone into Ohio from another state, there is a 72-hour thing because of COVID, so the Bengals quickly scooped up kicker Austin Seibert, who was shown the door by the Browns after he missed a PAT and a field goal in Cleveland’s 38-6 loss in Baltimore Sunday.
Seibert will see his old friends Thursday, when the Bengals visit Cleveland.
9) Unusual fact: Five QB’s whose team won in Week 1 were led in rushing by their QB. More and more teams are going to running back-by-committee.
I cringe every time a quarterback takes a hit while running; they’re very valuable players, so there is a fine line between a running QB making his offense more explosive while also risking the whole thing blowing up, if that QB gets hurt.
8) NFL officials called two huge offensive pass interference penalties Sunday, but they only called offensive holding 18 times in 16 games last week, so that’s an improvement. Thats the 2nd-fewest amount of Week 1 holding calls since 2001.
7) Why some teams don’t want their head coach also being a coordinator:
Denver Broncos totally screwed up clock management in the last minute Monday night; once Tennessee got within field goal range, Denver had to use its timeouts, to preserve some time for their offense if the Titans took the lead, which they did.
Head coach Vic Fangio also coordinates Denver’s defense, and that was what he was thinking about while Tennessee was driving at the end. Game management was botched, depriving the Broncos of a last-gasp chance at a win- remember, the game was in Denver, so longer field goals are more possible.
6) Orlando’s NBA bubble on the Disney grounds will also host eight early season college basketball tournament:
— Champions Classic, Jimmy V Classic
— Wooden Legacy, preseason NIT
— Orlando Invitational, Charleston Classic
— Myrtle Beach invitational, Diamond Head Classic
5) Over the last 10 years, when NFL teams went for it on 4th and 1, they got the first down 64% of the time.
4) Tennessee Titans missed three field goals and an extra point Monday night; last year, they made only 44.4% of their FG’s, by far the worst %age in the NFL. 2nd-worst %age last year was the Jets, who made 67.9% of their field goals.
3) My preference for the NFL schedule would be Monday night doubleheaders every week but no Thursday games, except for Week 1 and Thanksgiving Day. Football wasn’t meant to be played on three days’ rest.
2) Michael O’Keefe, the actor who played Danny Noonan in Caddyshack 40 years ago, caddied for club pro Danny Balin this week at practice rounds for the US Open.
1) If you baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
AL East: Tampa Bay, New York
AL Central: Chicago, Minnesota
AL West: Oakland, Houston
AL wild cards: Cleveland, Toronto
NL East: Atlanta, Miami
NL Central: Chicago, St Louis
NL West: Los Angeles, San Diego
NL wild cards: Philadelphia, San Francisco
Odds to win the US Open golf tourney this week:
8-1— Dustin Johnson
9-1— Jon Rahm
14-1— McIlroy, Schauffele, Thomas
16-1— Collin Morikawa
25-1— Bryson DeChambeau, Webb Simpson
30-1— Matsuyama, Fleetwood, Day, Reed, Finau
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 195,354
Please wear a mask when you go out.
Quote of the Day
“It begins and ends with the general manager. You can talk to me all day long. I personally wouldn’t know what coach to hire. That’s why you have a basketball operations team that’s made of a half a dozen people that use all kinds of analytics and experience. They’ll make a recommendation to me. They do about everything. I’m the sign-off guy. That’s it.
“I wouldn’t know how to interview a basketball coach. You want me to go interview a CEO for a company, I’m the first one to tell you I think [I’m] better than anybody else. To be successful in business, and I say this in my book, you better know what you know and you better know what you don’t know. I surely know what I don’t know when it comes to basketball.”
Houston Rockets’ owner Tilman Fertitta
Wednesday’s quiz
Who coached the Steelers before Mike Tomlin?
Tuesday’s quiz
Joe Girardi has managed the Marlins, Bronx, Philadelphia.
Monday’s quiz
Rams’ owner Stan Kroenke also owns the NBA’s Denver Nuggets and the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche.
************
Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings……
13) ESPN finally found its Monday Night Football crew; Steve Levy, Brian Greise, Louis Riddick are an excellent 3-man team. Smart, unassuming, easy to listen to.
12) Baseball announced its playoff plan; AL bubble in California, NL bubble in Texas, no days off in the division or league championship series, which is a big deal. Pitching depth is going to be a lot more important than usual. Aces will only pitch once in a best-of-5 series, unless they pitch a game on short rest.
Air quality in southern California could be become a problem; I’m assuming the backup plan is Arizona’s dome, but that wasn’t mentioned Monday.
World Series will be in the Rangers’ new domed stadium in Arlington.
11) Nuggets 104, Clippers 89 (Denver wins 4-3)
— Denver held LA to 33 points in 2nd half.
— Nuggets were down 3-1 in both series this year, but won both.
— Jokic had 16 points, 22 rebounds, 13 assists. Wow.
— In their 50-year history, Clippers are now 0-8 in games where they had a chance to reach the conference final.
10) Cincinnati Bengals’ kicker Randy Bullock missed a game-tying 31-yard field goal at the end of Sunday’s 16-13 loss to the Chargers; Bullock then grabbed his leg— a calf strain was given as the reason. Bengals need a new kicker.
Problem is, Cincinnati plays on Thursday this week and if you bring someone into Ohio from another state, there is a 72-hour thing because of COVID, so the Bengals quickly scooped up kicker Austin Seibert, who was shown the door by the Browns after he missed a PAT and a field goal in Cleveland’s 38-6 loss in Baltimore Sunday.
Seibert will see his old friends Thursday, when the Bengals visit Cleveland.
9) Unusual fact: Five QB’s whose team won in Week 1 were led in rushing by their QB. More and more teams are going to running back-by-committee.
I cringe every time a quarterback takes a hit while running; they’re very valuable players, so there is a fine line between a running QB making his offense more explosive while also risking the whole thing blowing up, if that QB gets hurt.
8) NFL officials called two huge offensive pass interference penalties Sunday, but they only called offensive holding 18 times in 16 games last week, so that’s an improvement. Thats the 2nd-fewest amount of Week 1 holding calls since 2001.
7) Why some teams don’t want their head coach also being a coordinator:
Denver Broncos totally screwed up clock management in the last minute Monday night; once Tennessee got within field goal range, Denver had to use its timeouts, to preserve some time for their offense if the Titans took the lead, which they did.
Head coach Vic Fangio also coordinates Denver’s defense, and that was what he was thinking about while Tennessee was driving at the end. Game management was botched, depriving the Broncos of a last-gasp chance at a win- remember, the game was in Denver, so longer field goals are more possible.
6) Orlando’s NBA bubble on the Disney grounds will also host eight early season college basketball tournament:
— Champions Classic, Jimmy V Classic
— Wooden Legacy, preseason NIT
— Orlando Invitational, Charleston Classic
— Myrtle Beach invitational, Diamond Head Classic
5) Over the last 10 years, when NFL teams went for it on 4th and 1, they got the first down 64% of the time.
4) Tennessee Titans missed three field goals and an extra point Monday night; last year, they made only 44.4% of their FG’s, by far the worst %age in the NFL. 2nd-worst %age last year was the Jets, who made 67.9% of their field goals.
3) My preference for the NFL schedule would be Monday night doubleheaders every week but no Thursday games, except for Week 1 and Thanksgiving Day. Football wasn’t meant to be played on three days’ rest.
2) Michael O’Keefe, the actor who played Danny Noonan in Caddyshack 40 years ago, caddied for club pro Danny Balin this week at practice rounds for the US Open.
1) If you baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
AL East: Tampa Bay, New York
AL Central: Chicago, Minnesota
AL West: Oakland, Houston
AL wild cards: Cleveland, Toronto
NL East: Atlanta, Miami
NL Central: Chicago, St Louis
NL West: Los Angeles, San Diego
NL wild cards: Philadelphia, San Francisco
Work joyfully and peacefully, knowing that right thoughts and right efforts will inevitably bring about right results.
Armadillo: Thursday's six-pack
MLB leaders in RBI:
49— Jose Abreu, CWS
46— Freddie Freeman, Atl
45— Luke Voit, NYY
44— Marcell Ozuna, Atl
41— Manny Machado, SD
40— Mike Trout LAA, Fernando Tatis SD
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 196,103
Please wear a mask when you go out.
**********
Armadillo: Thursday's Den: 13 athletes who excelled at more than one sport
(listed alphabetically)
— Danny Ainge— Played 14 years in the NBA, after a great career at BYU. He also hit .220 in 211 games over three years for the Toronto Blue Jays.
— Jim Brown— One of the best running backs in NFL history, he led the NFL in rushing in 8 of his 9 seasons. Brown also played basketball, ran track, and was a great lacrosse player while in college at Syracuse.
— Wilt Chamberlain— Scored 31,419 points in his NBA career; once scored 100 points in a game- he averaged over 30 ppg for his career. He preferred track in high school, high jumping, long jumping, running the quarter-mile and half-mile events while also throwing the shot put.
When he was in the NBA, Wilt got annoyed that he was criticized for shooting too much so the next season (1967-68) he led the league in assists.
— Bob Hayes— Played wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys for 11 years; he also won two gold medals in track at the 1964 Olympics. Hayes caught 371 passes for 20 yards/catch in his NFL career, scoring 73 touchdowns.
— Bo Jackson— Was a great running back at Auburn, and played 38 games for the Raiders, averaging 5.4 yards/carry. He played eight years in the major leagues, hitting 141 homers- he played the last two years with an artificial hip.
— Michael Jordan— Not much to add here; won a national title at North Carolina, six NBA titles with the Chicago Bulls, and out of nowhere, he hit .202 for the AA Birmingham Barons in 1994, as an outfielder, during his sabbatical from the NBA.
Hitting .202 doesn’t sound like much, but I was an official scorer for two years at the AA level; there are guys who were career baseball players who didn’t hit .200 at that level. Jordan also stole 30 bases that season.
— Kenny Lofton— Played 17 years in the big leagues, with a .372 on-base %age and 622 stolen bases— hell of a ballplayer, a 6-time All Star. Lofton also played college basketball at Arizona; he is one of only two people EVER to play in the Final Four and World Series.
— Nate Robinson— Played 11 years in the NBA, he won the Slam Dunk title three times even though he is only 5-9; he scored 11 ppg for his professional career. Robinson originally went to U of Washington on a football scholarship; he played football for the Huskies as a freshman, but gave football up after that season.
— Bill Russell— Played 13 seasons in the NBA, won 11 titles, lost in the finals another year. San Francisco won consecutive NCAA titles with Russell as their center in 1955-56. Russell also was a high jumper at USF; at one time, he was ranked as the 7th-best high jumper in the world, but had to choose between track and basketball as far as the Olympics went- he chose basketball.
— Deion Sanders— Played 14 years in the NFL for five teams; he picked off 53 passes in his pro career, running back nine of them for touchdowns. He also played baseball, playing nine years in the major leagues, hitting .263 for four teams, with 186 stolen bases.
— Tim Stoddard— First person ever to play in a Final Four and a World Series; he was a starting forward on NC State’s championship team in 1974. He also pitched in the major leagues for 13 years, winning a World Series ring with the ’83 Orioles. He also got a hit in his only at-bat in a World Series game.
— Charlie Ward— He won the 1993 Heisman Trophy, leading Florida State to their first-ever national title on the gridiron. Ward also played 11 years in the NBA for three teams, mostly the Knicks, scoring 6.3 ppg for his career.
— Dave Winfield— Played both baseball/basketball for the Minnesota Gophers; his college basketball coach was Bill Musselman, who later coached in the NBA. Winfield was also drafted by the NFL’s Vikings, but he never played college football.
Winfield was a great baseball player; he played 22 years in the majors, hit .283 with 465 career homers and an on-base %age of .353.
Armadillo: Thursday's six-pack
MLB leaders in RBI:
49— Jose Abreu, CWS
46— Freddie Freeman, Atl
45— Luke Voit, NYY
44— Marcell Ozuna, Atl
41— Manny Machado, SD
40— Mike Trout LAA, Fernando Tatis SD
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 196,103
Please wear a mask when you go out.
**********
Armadillo: Thursday's Den: 13 athletes who excelled at more than one sport
(listed alphabetically)
— Danny Ainge— Played 14 years in the NBA, after a great career at BYU. He also hit .220 in 211 games over three years for the Toronto Blue Jays.
— Jim Brown— One of the best running backs in NFL history, he led the NFL in rushing in 8 of his 9 seasons. Brown also played basketball, ran track, and was a great lacrosse player while in college at Syracuse.
— Wilt Chamberlain— Scored 31,419 points in his NBA career; once scored 100 points in a game- he averaged over 30 ppg for his career. He preferred track in high school, high jumping, long jumping, running the quarter-mile and half-mile events while also throwing the shot put.
When he was in the NBA, Wilt got annoyed that he was criticized for shooting too much so the next season (1967-68) he led the league in assists.
— Bob Hayes— Played wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys for 11 years; he also won two gold medals in track at the 1964 Olympics. Hayes caught 371 passes for 20 yards/catch in his NFL career, scoring 73 touchdowns.
— Bo Jackson— Was a great running back at Auburn, and played 38 games for the Raiders, averaging 5.4 yards/carry. He played eight years in the major leagues, hitting 141 homers- he played the last two years with an artificial hip.
— Michael Jordan— Not much to add here; won a national title at North Carolina, six NBA titles with the Chicago Bulls, and out of nowhere, he hit .202 for the AA Birmingham Barons in 1994, as an outfielder, during his sabbatical from the NBA.
Hitting .202 doesn’t sound like much, but I was an official scorer for two years at the AA level; there are guys who were career baseball players who didn’t hit .200 at that level. Jordan also stole 30 bases that season.
— Kenny Lofton— Played 17 years in the big leagues, with a .372 on-base %age and 622 stolen bases— hell of a ballplayer, a 6-time All Star. Lofton also played college basketball at Arizona; he is one of only two people EVER to play in the Final Four and World Series.
— Nate Robinson— Played 11 years in the NBA, he won the Slam Dunk title three times even though he is only 5-9; he scored 11 ppg for his professional career. Robinson originally went to U of Washington on a football scholarship; he played football for the Huskies as a freshman, but gave football up after that season.
— Bill Russell— Played 13 seasons in the NBA, won 11 titles, lost in the finals another year. San Francisco won consecutive NCAA titles with Russell as their center in 1955-56. Russell also was a high jumper at USF; at one time, he was ranked as the 7th-best high jumper in the world, but had to choose between track and basketball as far as the Olympics went- he chose basketball.
— Deion Sanders— Played 14 years in the NFL for five teams; he picked off 53 passes in his pro career, running back nine of them for touchdowns. He also played baseball, playing nine years in the major leagues, hitting .263 for four teams, with 186 stolen bases.
— Tim Stoddard— First person ever to play in a Final Four and a World Series; he was a starting forward on NC State’s championship team in 1974. He also pitched in the major leagues for 13 years, winning a World Series ring with the ’83 Orioles. He also got a hit in his only at-bat in a World Series game.
— Charlie Ward— He won the 1993 Heisman Trophy, leading Florida State to their first-ever national title on the gridiron. Ward also played 11 years in the NBA for three teams, mostly the Knicks, scoring 6.3 ppg for his career.
— Dave Winfield— Played both baseball/basketball for the Minnesota Gophers; his college basketball coach was Bill Musselman, who later coached in the NBA. Winfield was also drafted by the NFL’s Vikings, but he never played college football.
Winfield was a great baseball player; he played 22 years in the majors, hit .283 with 465 career homers and an on-base %age of .353.
11TAMPA BAY -12 NY ISLANDERS
TAMPA BAY is 20-2 ATS (17.8 Units) after playing a game where 4 or fewer total goals were scored in the current season.
NHL
Long Sheet
Thursday, September 17
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TAMPA BAY (56-25-0-7, 119 pts.) vs. NY ISLANDERS (48-28-0-13, 109 pts.) - 9/17/2020, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NY ISLANDERS are 100-79 ATS (-16.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
NY ISLANDERS are 29-27 ATS (+63.2 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 118-56 ATS (+20.8 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 33-16 ATS (+12.3 Units) in road games revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 20-3 ATS (+14.8 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 21-9 ATS (+8.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
NY ISLANDERS is 6-8 (+0.2 Units) against the spread versus TAMPA BAY over the last 3 seasons
TAMPA BAY is 8-6-0 straight up against NY ISLANDERS over the last 3 seasons
6 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.1 Units)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Thursday, September 17
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tampa Bay @ NY Islanders
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games on the road
Tampa Bay is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games
NY Islanders
NY Islanders is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay
NY Islanders is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Tampa Bay
--------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Dunkel
Thursday, September 17
Tampa Bay @ NY Islanders
Game 11-12
September 17, 2020 @ 8:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Tampa Bay
13.879
NY Islanders
12.423
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Tampa Bay
by 1 1/2
6
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-165
5
Dunkel Pick:
Tampa Bay
(-165); Over
TAMPA BAY is 20-2 ATS (17.8 Units) after playing a game where 4 or fewer total goals were scored in the current season.
NHL
Long Sheet
Thursday, September 17
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TAMPA BAY (56-25-0-7, 119 pts.) vs. NY ISLANDERS (48-28-0-13, 109 pts.) - 9/17/2020, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NY ISLANDERS are 100-79 ATS (-16.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
NY ISLANDERS are 29-27 ATS (+63.2 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 118-56 ATS (+20.8 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 33-16 ATS (+12.3 Units) in road games revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 20-3 ATS (+14.8 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 21-9 ATS (+8.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
NY ISLANDERS is 6-8 (+0.2 Units) against the spread versus TAMPA BAY over the last 3 seasons
TAMPA BAY is 8-6-0 straight up against NY ISLANDERS over the last 3 seasons
6 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.1 Units)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Thursday, September 17
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tampa Bay @ NY Islanders
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games on the road
Tampa Bay is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games
NY Islanders
NY Islanders is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay
NY Islanders is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Tampa Bay
--------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Dunkel
Thursday, September 17
Tampa Bay @ NY Islanders
Game 11-12
September 17, 2020 @ 8:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Tampa Bay
13.879
NY Islanders
12.423
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Tampa Bay
by 1 1/2
6
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-165
5
Dunkel Pick:
Tampa Bay
(-165); Over
COMPLETED PICKS
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/17/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/15/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -400 Detail
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....19-18-1.......51.35%....+9.25
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/17/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/15/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -400 Detail
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....19-18-1.......51.35%....+9.25
Friday’s 6-pack
NFL QB’s who got to 10,000 passing yards the fastest:[/B]
36 games— Kurt Warner
37— Matthew Stafford
38— Dan Marino
38— Andrew Luck
38— Marc Bulger
32— Patrick Mahomes has 9,623 passing yards in 32 games; he will be on top of this list in a couple of weeks.
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 197,244
Please wear a mask when you go out.
Quote of the Day
“This isn’t about zones and defenses and offenses and stuff like that. We’ve just got to be better.”
Brad Stevens
Friday’s quiz
Who played QB for the Cleveland Browns, the last time they played in a playoff game?
Thursday’s quiz
Cal-Irvine’s sports teams are known as the Anteaters.
Wednesday’s quiz
Bill Cowher coached the Steelers before Mike Tomlin.
********************************
Friday’s Den: Wrapping up a busy Thursday
13) White Sox 4, Twins 3— Chicago clinches its first playoff berth since 2008.
6th inning of this game, Josh Donaldson was carping about balls/strikes during his at-bat, then he hits a home run to put the Twins up 3-2. When he rounds the bases, he kicks dirt on home plate as he scores as the ump kicks him out. Not good.
Twins are fighting like hell to make the playoffs; you can’t get kicked out of a one-run game.
12) Dodgers were the first team to clinch a playoff berth; they’re 35-15 this season.
11) Browns 35, Bengals 30:
— Burrow was 37-61 for 316 yards, most passes a rookie has ever completed in a game.
— Bengals had 30 first downs, converted 8-18 on 3rd down.
— Last three years, Cincy is 15-8 ATS as a road underdog; over is 11-2 in their last 13 road openers.
— Bengals went 5-5 going for it on 4th down.
— Chubb ran for 124 yards, two TD’s for the Browns.
— Cleveland scored TD’s on three of first four drives.
— Browns allowed 68 points in splitting their first two games.
10) Sean McVay is in his 4th year as an NFL head coach; he went to college at Miami OH, but he is four years younger than another Miami alum, Ben Roethlisberger, who is still playing ball. McVay is 34, Big Ben is 38.
9) When the Clippers ousted Dallas in the first round of the playoffs, they shot 47% on 3-point shots from the corner, which is exceptional.
Problem is, they got to Game 7 against Denver in the 2nd round and went 0-12 on those corner jumpers behind the arc. 0-12 doesn’t butter the biscuit.
8) An adventurous gambler wagered $200,000 on the Lakers to win the NBA title; if the Lakers win it all, the bettor pockets $121,212.
7) Heat 106, Celtics 101 (Miami leads 2-0)
— Miami was down 13 at the half, but held Boston to 41 points in 2nd half, after Celtics scored 60 in first half.
— Miami was +11 (20-9) in turnovers.
— Crowder/Robinson took 24 shots; 22 of them were 3’s.
6) This weekend’s Mariners-Padres series was moved to San Diego, because of the poor air quality in Seattle.
5) Angels’ rookie 1B Jared Walsh has scored a run/driven in a run in nine consecutive games, the longest streak like that by a rookie in baseball history.
4) Saw a film clip Thursday of Colorado Rockies’ manager Bud Black giving up Reggie Jackson’s 500th home run in 1984, when Jackson was playing for the Angels. Black was a good pitcher, with a 121-116 career record.
Angels’ manager then was John McNamara; two years later, he was Boston’s manager when they lost the World Series in seven games to the Mets. He was also Jackson’s manager in Oakland in 1970, when Jackson got involved in a squabble with owner Charlie Finley, the team unraveled and McNamara got fired.
3) How would you like to be the guy who works for the Diamondbacks who advised them to sign Madison Bumgarner to a 5-year, $85M contract? You’d have to be a little bit queasy about you job.
Bumgarner is only 31, but he’s got a lot of miles on that arm; he’s thrown 1,877 regular season and 101 more in the postseason. This year, he is 0-4, 8.53 in seven starts. Not good.
2) Get well soon to Texas Rangers’ TV analyst CJ Nitkowski, who tested positive for COVID; Ranger games are fun to listen to- Nitkowski is a good analyst.
1) If you baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
AL East: Tampa Bay, New York
AL Central: Chicago, Minnesota
AL West: Oakland, Houston
AL wild cards: Cleveland, Toronto
NL East: Atlanta, Miami
NL Central: Chicago, Cincinnati
NL West: Los Angeles, San Diego
NL wild cards: Philadelphia, San Francisco
NFL QB’s who got to 10,000 passing yards the fastest:[/B]
36 games— Kurt Warner
37— Matthew Stafford
38— Dan Marino
38— Andrew Luck
38— Marc Bulger
32— Patrick Mahomes has 9,623 passing yards in 32 games; he will be on top of this list in a couple of weeks.
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 197,244
Please wear a mask when you go out.
Quote of the Day
“This isn’t about zones and defenses and offenses and stuff like that. We’ve just got to be better.”
Brad Stevens
Friday’s quiz
Who played QB for the Cleveland Browns, the last time they played in a playoff game?
Thursday’s quiz
Cal-Irvine’s sports teams are known as the Anteaters.
Wednesday’s quiz
Bill Cowher coached the Steelers before Mike Tomlin.
********************************
Friday’s Den: Wrapping up a busy Thursday
13) White Sox 4, Twins 3— Chicago clinches its first playoff berth since 2008.
6th inning of this game, Josh Donaldson was carping about balls/strikes during his at-bat, then he hits a home run to put the Twins up 3-2. When he rounds the bases, he kicks dirt on home plate as he scores as the ump kicks him out. Not good.
Twins are fighting like hell to make the playoffs; you can’t get kicked out of a one-run game.
12) Dodgers were the first team to clinch a playoff berth; they’re 35-15 this season.
11) Browns 35, Bengals 30:
— Burrow was 37-61 for 316 yards, most passes a rookie has ever completed in a game.
— Bengals had 30 first downs, converted 8-18 on 3rd down.
— Last three years, Cincy is 15-8 ATS as a road underdog; over is 11-2 in their last 13 road openers.
— Bengals went 5-5 going for it on 4th down.
— Chubb ran for 124 yards, two TD’s for the Browns.
— Cleveland scored TD’s on three of first four drives.
— Browns allowed 68 points in splitting their first two games.
10) Sean McVay is in his 4th year as an NFL head coach; he went to college at Miami OH, but he is four years younger than another Miami alum, Ben Roethlisberger, who is still playing ball. McVay is 34, Big Ben is 38.
9) When the Clippers ousted Dallas in the first round of the playoffs, they shot 47% on 3-point shots from the corner, which is exceptional.
Problem is, they got to Game 7 against Denver in the 2nd round and went 0-12 on those corner jumpers behind the arc. 0-12 doesn’t butter the biscuit.
8) An adventurous gambler wagered $200,000 on the Lakers to win the NBA title; if the Lakers win it all, the bettor pockets $121,212.
7) Heat 106, Celtics 101 (Miami leads 2-0)
— Miami was down 13 at the half, but held Boston to 41 points in 2nd half, after Celtics scored 60 in first half.
— Miami was +11 (20-9) in turnovers.
— Crowder/Robinson took 24 shots; 22 of them were 3’s.
6) This weekend’s Mariners-Padres series was moved to San Diego, because of the poor air quality in Seattle.
5) Angels’ rookie 1B Jared Walsh has scored a run/driven in a run in nine consecutive games, the longest streak like that by a rookie in baseball history.
4) Saw a film clip Thursday of Colorado Rockies’ manager Bud Black giving up Reggie Jackson’s 500th home run in 1984, when Jackson was playing for the Angels. Black was a good pitcher, with a 121-116 career record.
Angels’ manager then was John McNamara; two years later, he was Boston’s manager when they lost the World Series in seven games to the Mets. He was also Jackson’s manager in Oakland in 1970, when Jackson got involved in a squabble with owner Charlie Finley, the team unraveled and McNamara got fired.
3) How would you like to be the guy who works for the Diamondbacks who advised them to sign Madison Bumgarner to a 5-year, $85M contract? You’d have to be a little bit queasy about you job.
Bumgarner is only 31, but he’s got a lot of miles on that arm; he’s thrown 1,877 regular season and 101 more in the postseason. This year, he is 0-4, 8.53 in seven starts. Not good.
2) Get well soon to Texas Rangers’ TV analyst CJ Nitkowski, who tested positive for COVID; Ranger games are fun to listen to- Nitkowski is a good analyst.
1) If you baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
AL East: Tampa Bay, New York
AL Central: Chicago, Minnesota
AL West: Oakland, Houston
AL wild cards: Cleveland, Toronto
NL East: Atlanta, Miami
NL Central: Chicago, Cincinnati
NL West: Los Angeles, San Diego
NL wild cards: Philadelphia, San Francisco
Saturday’s 6-pack
Sports franchises that sold for the most $$$$:
$3.3B— Brooklyn Nets
$2.4B— New York Mets
$2.3B— Carolina Panthers
$2.2B— Houston Rockets
$2.0B— Los Angeles Clippers
$2.0B— Los Angeles Dodgers
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 197,682
Please wear a mask when you go out.
Quote of the Day
“On this golf course it’s imperative that you hit fairways, and I did not do that. The whole goal of entering an event is to win, and when I don’t give myself that opportunity over the weekend, it doesn’t feel good.”
Eldrick Woods, after missing the cut at Winged Foot
Saturday’s quiz
Where was Nick Saban’s last coaching job, before he went to Alabama?
Friday’s quiz
Kelly Holcomb threw for 429 yards for the Cleveland Browns, in a 36-33 loss at Pittsburgh in 2002, the last time the Browns played in a playoff game.
Thursday’s quiz
Cal-Irvine’s sports teams are known as the Anteaters.
*********************************
Saturday’s Den: Random thoughts on a happy day
13) Good day Friday; finally got my new glasses, so my eyesight is back to 100%, for first time in 11 months. I have a list of people to thank, but unfortunately, I don’t know a lot of their names.
— Dr Mallick, my retina surgeon, who has since moved to New Jersey
— Dr Lemanski, my cataract surgeon
— My cousins Maureen/Kevin, who went above and beyond to help me out.
— Friends/drivers Luke, Christina, Dara.
— My friend Chris the bartender, who advised me on where to get a new pair of glasses back in February- they helped a lot.
— The people at Memorial Hospital who helped me thru retina surgery
— The people at the Surgery Center in Latham, where I had cataract surgery.
Dr Lemanski’s staff got me new glasses, so it is lot easier to write this site now.
People at the Retina Care Center were also very nice to me.
Its been a long 11 months, but it is good to have my vision back to 100%.
12) Tampa Bay/Oakland clinched playoff spots this week; A’s are in postseason for 6th time in nine years, with a payroll in the bottom third of the sport.
11) Michael Bloomberg is contributing $100M to Joe Biden’s campaign in Florida; money like that has to buy a hell of a lot of TV commercials. This is a good couple months for TV networks; politicians throwing money at them for commercial time.
10) WR Adam Humphries recently signed a $26M deal with the Tennessee Titans; this is a guy who had only one scholarship offer coming out of high school- Clemson. This is part of why Dabo Swinney’s team is in the college football playoff every year; he can recognize talent.
9) Boston Celtics are 8-5 in playoffs so far; they led by 10+ points in four of the five losses.
8) Cleveland Browns’ coach Kevin Stefanski came to Cleveland from the Vikings, where he had been an assistant coach for 14 years, working for three different head coaches. That’s an unusual career path for a pro football coach.
7) Lakers 126, Nuggets 114 (Lakers lead 1-0)
— Game was 70-59 at halftime; LA shot 53% from the floor.
— Anthony Davis scored 37 points; Denver needs to find a way to defend him.
6) Ruben Amaro Jr is a new TV analyst for the Phillies and he is very good; relaxed, talks the game, and as a former GM/coach, knows it very well.
5) Milwaukee Brewers are 24-26, wallowing just below the cut for the playoffs; their most talented pitchers are Brandon Woodruff/Josh Hader, but Hader has thrown only 15.2 innings all year, while a washed-up stiff like Brent Suter has thrown 26 innings- Brett Anderson has thrown 39 innings.
Milwaukee rushed Hader to the majors because their AAA team was in high-altitude Colorado Springs, where prospects got their confidence squashed by lofty ERA’s- they made him a reliever to limit his innings early in his career. But now that he is an established big leaguer, Hader needs to be a starting pitcher, so the Brewers can maximize his immense potential.
4) Late night TV surfing, ran into an old friend; the old TV show Without a Trace was very underrated, about the part of FBI in New York City that found missing people. Anthony LaPaglia was great as Jack Malone, who headed the agency. It is on Paramount Network 2-3 hours in a row, late at night.
3) ESPN signed up longtime NBA star Vince Carter as an NBA/college hoop analyst; you never know how these things are going to go, but I’ll be curious to hear what he has to say.
2) Speaking of college basketball, sounds like next season will begin November 25, the night before Thanksgiving. No freakin’ idea what the schedule is going to look like, but it’ll be fun to see kids playing basketball again.
1) If the baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
AL East: Tampa Bay, New York
AL Central: Chicago, Minnesota
AL West: Oakland, Houston
AL wild cards: Cleveland, Toronto
NL East: Atlanta, Miami
NL Central: Chicago, Cincy/StL
NL West: Los Angeles, San Diego
NL wild cards: Philadelphia, SF/Cin/StL
Sports franchises that sold for the most $$$$:
$3.3B— Brooklyn Nets
$2.4B— New York Mets
$2.3B— Carolina Panthers
$2.2B— Houston Rockets
$2.0B— Los Angeles Clippers
$2.0B— Los Angeles Dodgers
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 197,682
Please wear a mask when you go out.
Quote of the Day
“On this golf course it’s imperative that you hit fairways, and I did not do that. The whole goal of entering an event is to win, and when I don’t give myself that opportunity over the weekend, it doesn’t feel good.”
Eldrick Woods, after missing the cut at Winged Foot
Saturday’s quiz
Where was Nick Saban’s last coaching job, before he went to Alabama?
Friday’s quiz
Kelly Holcomb threw for 429 yards for the Cleveland Browns, in a 36-33 loss at Pittsburgh in 2002, the last time the Browns played in a playoff game.
Thursday’s quiz
Cal-Irvine’s sports teams are known as the Anteaters.
*********************************
Saturday’s Den: Random thoughts on a happy day
13) Good day Friday; finally got my new glasses, so my eyesight is back to 100%, for first time in 11 months. I have a list of people to thank, but unfortunately, I don’t know a lot of their names.
— Dr Mallick, my retina surgeon, who has since moved to New Jersey
— Dr Lemanski, my cataract surgeon
— My cousins Maureen/Kevin, who went above and beyond to help me out.
— Friends/drivers Luke, Christina, Dara.
— My friend Chris the bartender, who advised me on where to get a new pair of glasses back in February- they helped a lot.
— The people at Memorial Hospital who helped me thru retina surgery
— The people at the Surgery Center in Latham, where I had cataract surgery.
Dr Lemanski’s staff got me new glasses, so it is lot easier to write this site now.
People at the Retina Care Center were also very nice to me.
Its been a long 11 months, but it is good to have my vision back to 100%.
12) Tampa Bay/Oakland clinched playoff spots this week; A’s are in postseason for 6th time in nine years, with a payroll in the bottom third of the sport.
11) Michael Bloomberg is contributing $100M to Joe Biden’s campaign in Florida; money like that has to buy a hell of a lot of TV commercials. This is a good couple months for TV networks; politicians throwing money at them for commercial time.
10) WR Adam Humphries recently signed a $26M deal with the Tennessee Titans; this is a guy who had only one scholarship offer coming out of high school- Clemson. This is part of why Dabo Swinney’s team is in the college football playoff every year; he can recognize talent.
9) Boston Celtics are 8-5 in playoffs so far; they led by 10+ points in four of the five losses.
8) Cleveland Browns’ coach Kevin Stefanski came to Cleveland from the Vikings, where he had been an assistant coach for 14 years, working for three different head coaches. That’s an unusual career path for a pro football coach.
7) Lakers 126, Nuggets 114 (Lakers lead 1-0)
— Game was 70-59 at halftime; LA shot 53% from the floor.
— Anthony Davis scored 37 points; Denver needs to find a way to defend him.
6) Ruben Amaro Jr is a new TV analyst for the Phillies and he is very good; relaxed, talks the game, and as a former GM/coach, knows it very well.
5) Milwaukee Brewers are 24-26, wallowing just below the cut for the playoffs; their most talented pitchers are Brandon Woodruff/Josh Hader, but Hader has thrown only 15.2 innings all year, while a washed-up stiff like Brent Suter has thrown 26 innings- Brett Anderson has thrown 39 innings.
Milwaukee rushed Hader to the majors because their AAA team was in high-altitude Colorado Springs, where prospects got their confidence squashed by lofty ERA’s- they made him a reliever to limit his innings early in his career. But now that he is an established big leaguer, Hader needs to be a starting pitcher, so the Brewers can maximize his immense potential.
4) Late night TV surfing, ran into an old friend; the old TV show Without a Trace was very underrated, about the part of FBI in New York City that found missing people. Anthony LaPaglia was great as Jack Malone, who headed the agency. It is on Paramount Network 2-3 hours in a row, late at night.
3) ESPN signed up longtime NBA star Vince Carter as an NBA/college hoop analyst; you never know how these things are going to go, but I’ll be curious to hear what he has to say.
2) Speaking of college basketball, sounds like next season will begin November 25, the night before Thanksgiving. No freakin’ idea what the schedule is going to look like, but it’ll be fun to see kids playing basketball again.
1) If the baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
AL East: Tampa Bay, New York
AL Central: Chicago, Minnesota
AL West: Oakland, Houston
AL wild cards: Cleveland, Toronto
NL East: Atlanta, Miami
NL Central: Chicago, Cincy/StL
NL West: Los Angeles, San Diego
NL wild cards: Philadelphia, SF/Cin/StL
21DALLAS -22 TAMPA BAY
TAMPA BAY is 21-2 ATS (18.8 Units) after playing a game where 4 or fewer total goals were scored in the current season.
NHL
Dunkel
Saturday, September 19
Dallas @ Tampa Bay
Game 21-22
September 19, 2020 @ 7:35 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Dallas
12.544
Tampa Bay
13.836
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Tampa Bay
by 1 1/2
4
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-160
5
Dunkel Pick:
Tampa Bay
(-160); Under
NHL
Long Sheet
Saturday, September 19
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DALLAS (50-32-0-8, 108 pts.) vs. TAMPA BAY (57-25-0-7, 121 pts.) - 9/19/2020, 7:30 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TAMPA BAY is 119-56 ATS (+177.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 34-16 ATS (+34.0 Units) in road games revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 22-9 ATS (+8.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
DALLAS is 12-1 ATS (+10.8 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest over the last 2 seasons.
DALLAS is 13-8 ATS (+22.0 Units) when playing in a neutral arena this season.
DALLAS is 32-23 ATS (+8.4 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
DALLAS is 17-11 ATS (+29.8 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 4-2 (+1.5 Units) against the spread versus DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
TAMPA BAY is 4-2-0 straight up against DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.9 Units)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Saturday, September 19
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dallas @ Tampa Bay
Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Dallas's last 9 games when playing on the road against Tampa Bay
Dallas is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Tampa Bay's last 9 games when playing at home against Dallas
Tampa Bay is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games
TAMPA BAY is 21-2 ATS (18.8 Units) after playing a game where 4 or fewer total goals were scored in the current season.
NHL
Dunkel
Saturday, September 19
Dallas @ Tampa Bay
Game 21-22
September 19, 2020 @ 7:35 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Dallas
12.544
Tampa Bay
13.836
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Tampa Bay
by 1 1/2
4
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-160
5
Dunkel Pick:
Tampa Bay
(-160); Under
NHL
Long Sheet
Saturday, September 19
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DALLAS (50-32-0-8, 108 pts.) vs. TAMPA BAY (57-25-0-7, 121 pts.) - 9/19/2020, 7:30 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TAMPA BAY is 119-56 ATS (+177.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 34-16 ATS (+34.0 Units) in road games revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 22-9 ATS (+8.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
DALLAS is 12-1 ATS (+10.8 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest over the last 2 seasons.
DALLAS is 13-8 ATS (+22.0 Units) when playing in a neutral arena this season.
DALLAS is 32-23 ATS (+8.4 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
DALLAS is 17-11 ATS (+29.8 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 4-2 (+1.5 Units) against the spread versus DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
TAMPA BAY is 4-2-0 straight up against DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.9 Units)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Saturday, September 19
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dallas @ Tampa Bay
Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Dallas's last 9 games when playing on the road against Tampa Bay
Dallas is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Tampa Bay's last 9 games when playing at home against Dallas
Tampa Bay is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games
COMPLETED PICKS
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/19/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +690 Detail
09/17/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/15/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -400 Detail
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....20-18-2.......52.63%....+16.15
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/19/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +690 Detail
09/17/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/15/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -400 Detail
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....20-18-2.......52.63%....+16.15
You have the need and the right to spend part of your life caring for your soul. It is not easy...To be a soulful person means to go against all the pervasive, prove-yourself values of our culture and instead treasure what is unique and internal and valuable in yourself and your own personal evolution.
Armadillo: Monday's six-pack
Most popular picks this week in the Westgate SuperContest:
401- Kansas City -6.5— L
306- Green Bay -6— W
302- 49ers -6.5— W
293- Giants +5.5— W
290- Eagles 1— L
287- Arizona 6.5— W
Season record: 8-4
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 199,938
Please wear a mask when you go out.
**********
Armadillo: Monday's Den: Wrapping up an NFL Sunday
Dallas 40, Falcons 39
— Atlanta didn’t cover an onside kick with 1:49 left; watch the highlights, someone has to lose their job over this. Inexcusable loss.
— Falcons led 20-0; game was 29-10 at halftime.
— Atlanta ran 72 plays, Dallas 81; lot of plays for an NFL game.
— Very seldom a team is +3 in turnovers, wins field position by 17 yards, and loses.
— Prescott is first player ever with 450+ passing yards, 3 rushing TD’s in same game.
— Dallas turned ball over on three of first five possessions.
— Dallas hung 570 yards on Atlanta’s defense.
— Cowboys won eight of last ten home openers (3-1-1 ATS last five)
Rams 37, Philadelphia 19
— Game swung on great end zone INT by Darious Williams when LA led 21-16.
— Rams’ first three drives: 23 plays, 196 yards, 21 points.
— LA converted 16-29 on 3rd down in first two games.
— Last three years, Rams are 16-9 ATS on the road.
— Under McVay, LA is 4-0 in road openers, scoring 35.3 ppg.
— LA outgained Eagles 449-363; Rams ran ball for 191 yards.
— Last two years, Philly is 5-12 ATS at home.
— Eagles are 3-9 ATS in last 12 home openers.
Tampa Bay 31, Panthers 17
— Carolina’s 1st drive: INT, 2nd: fumble, 4th: lost on downs.
— Bridgewater threw for 365 yards, but they turned ball over four times (-2).
— Carolina gave up 65 points in losing its first two games.
— Last 2+ years, Panthers are 5-8 ATS as a road underdog.
— Bucs started two drives in Carolina territory, scored on first play both times.
— Fournette had 12 carries for 103 yards and two TD’s.
— Since 2014, Tampa Bay is now 5-15-2 ATS as a home favorite.
Pittsburgh 26, Broncos 21
— Denver QB Lock hurt his shoulder in first quarter, didn’t return.
— Former Florida Gator Driskel was 18-34/256 yards, two TD’s.
— Broncos converted only 8-27 third down plays in first two games.
— Broncos lost their last four road openers, by 10-13-5 points (1-3 ATS).
— Roethlisberger threw for 311 yards; Steelers won first home opener in three years.
— Conner ran for 106 yards and a TD.
— Last three years, Pittsburgh is 9-12 ATS as a home favorite.
49ers 31, NJ Jets 13
— First play of game, Mostert ran 80 yards for a TD.
— 49ers had lot of injuries; backup QB Mullens played 2nd half.
— 49ers are 10-5 ATS in last 15 road openers.
— Jets were outgained 763-531 LW in their first two games.
— Two trips to red zone, Jets kicked two FG’s.
— 49ers’ first four drives: 31 plays, 221 yards, 21 points.
Bills 31, Miami 28
— Allen was 24-35 for 417 yards, averaged 11.5 yards/attempt. Wow.
— Bills drove 97 yards for a TD on their first drive.
— Under McDermott, Buffalo is 3-2 ATS as a road favorite.
— Bills won six of last seven series games.
— Last 4+ years, Miami is 12-7-1 ATS as a home underdog.
— Dolphins covered via the back door with 0:49 left.
— Over is 15-3 in their last 18 home openers.
Indianapolis 28, Vikings 11
— On a day where Stefon Diggs caught 8 passes for 153 yards for Buffalo, Vikings gained total of 175 yards on 47 plays here.
— Cousins completed 11-26 passes, with three INT’s. In a dome.
— In their history, Vikings are 0-12 in road games against the Colts.
— Vikings are 3-9-1 ATS in last 13 games as a road underdog.
— Minnesota is 4-12-1 SU in last 17 road openers (5-10-2 ATS).
— Colts outgained first two opponents 799-416.
— Last three years, Indy is 10-6-1 ATS as a home favorite.
— In nine red zone drives this year, Colts have scored only 34 points.
Chicago 17, Giants 13
— Giants’ RB Barkley hurt his knee early; they fear a torn ACL.
— Giants had ball on 10-yard line as game ended, but couldn’t score.
— Giants started one drive on Chicago’s 25, but settled for a FG.
— Big Blue covered 15 of its last 21 games as a road underdog.
— Chicago scored 10 points on its first two drives, led 17-0 at halftime.
— Bears in 2nd half: 28 plays, 97 yards, no points, one huge sigh of relief.
— Under is 5-1-1 in Bears’ last seven home openers.
Green Bay 42, Lions 21
— Lions are 9-24-1 under Patricia; they were 36-28 under Caldwell, and they fired him.
— Detroit’s first two drives: 21 plays, 150 yards- they led 14-3.
— Detroit’s last nine drives: 38 plays, 154 yards, 7 points.
— Lions are 16-23 ATS in last 39 games as a road underdog.
— Packers gained 1,010 yards, scored nine TD’s on 18 drives in two games.
— Green Bay is 26-15-2 ATS in last 43 games as a home favorite.
— Packers won eight in row, 13 of last 14 home openers (11-3 ATS).
Tennessee 33, Jaguars 30
— Jax outgained Titans 480-354, had 30 first downs, converted 10-14 on 3rd down.
— Jaguars completed 49-65 passes, converted 15-24 on 3rd down in splitting their first two games.
— J’ville covered its last four road openers (3-0 ATS).
— Jaguars lost their last seven visits to Nashville.
— Gostkowski kicked a 49-yard FG with 1:36 left after Titans blew a 2-TD lead.
— Under Vrabel, Tennessee is 3-6-1 ATS as a home favorite.
— Titans won eight of last ten series games.
— Tannehill threw for 239 yards, four TD’s.
Arizona 30, Washington 15
— Washington fell behind 17-0 last week, 20-0 in this game.
— Washington had trouble containing mobile QB Murray- he ran for 67 yards.
— Washington was down 27-3, then scored TD’s on TD’s on last two drives.
— Arizona ran ball for 340 yards, converted 14-31 on 3rd down in first two games.
— Cardinals scored two TD’s, kicked two FG’s on first six drives.
— Murray threw for 286 yards, ran for 67 more.
Chiefs 23, LA Chargers 20 OT
— Chiefs’ first six drives: 33 plays, 142 yards, 6 points.
— Chiefs’ last four drives: 40 plays, 232 yards, 17 points.
— Butker kicked two 58-yard FG’s, including game-winner in OT
— Reid’s SU record after a bye or Thursday game: 18-2.
— Chiefs won 12 of last 13 series games.
— QB Taylor was scratched just before kickoff; rookie Herbert made his NFL debut.
— Herbert was 22-33 for 311 yards, actually looked pretty good, averaging 8.5 yards/pass attempt.
— Chargers led 17-6 midway thru third quarter.
Ravens 33, Texans 16
— Baltimore scored 71 points in winning its first two games.
— Ravens had a pick-6, was +2 in turnovers again.
— Baltimore ran ball for 230 yards.
— Ravens are 5-0-1 ATS in last six games as a road favorite.
— Baltimore is 9-4 ATS in last 13 road openers.
— Texans started 16 of 18 drives at their 25 or worse field position in first two games.
— How does passing game stack up after trading star WR Hopkins?
— Since 2013, Houston is 5-11 ATS as a home underdog.
— Houston covered twice in its last eight home openers.
Seahawks 35, Patriots 30
— NE ran ball for 217 yards LW, but only 67 yards here.
— Newton threw ball for 397 yards, but got stopped on 2-yard line running ball on last play of the game.
— Patriots scored on a pick-6 on first series of the game.
— Five red zone drives, 23 points.
— Seahawks won their last 12 home openers (9-3 ATS).
— Seattle completed 52-63 passes, scored 10 TD’s on 20 drives in first two games.
— Seahawks held Newton to 47 rushing yards; Patriot RB’s combined for 20 YR.
— Seattle had a 13-yard edge in stating field position.
Armadillo: Monday's six-pack
Most popular picks this week in the Westgate SuperContest:
401- Kansas City -6.5— L
306- Green Bay -6— W
302- 49ers -6.5— W
293- Giants +5.5— W
290- Eagles 1— L
287- Arizona 6.5— W
Season record: 8-4
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 199,938
Please wear a mask when you go out.
**********
Armadillo: Monday's Den: Wrapping up an NFL Sunday
Dallas 40, Falcons 39
— Atlanta didn’t cover an onside kick with 1:49 left; watch the highlights, someone has to lose their job over this. Inexcusable loss.
— Falcons led 20-0; game was 29-10 at halftime.
— Atlanta ran 72 plays, Dallas 81; lot of plays for an NFL game.
— Very seldom a team is +3 in turnovers, wins field position by 17 yards, and loses.
— Prescott is first player ever with 450+ passing yards, 3 rushing TD’s in same game.
— Dallas turned ball over on three of first five possessions.
— Dallas hung 570 yards on Atlanta’s defense.
— Cowboys won eight of last ten home openers (3-1-1 ATS last five)
Rams 37, Philadelphia 19
— Game swung on great end zone INT by Darious Williams when LA led 21-16.
— Rams’ first three drives: 23 plays, 196 yards, 21 points.
— LA converted 16-29 on 3rd down in first two games.
— Last three years, Rams are 16-9 ATS on the road.
— Under McVay, LA is 4-0 in road openers, scoring 35.3 ppg.
— LA outgained Eagles 449-363; Rams ran ball for 191 yards.
— Last two years, Philly is 5-12 ATS at home.
— Eagles are 3-9 ATS in last 12 home openers.
Tampa Bay 31, Panthers 17
— Carolina’s 1st drive: INT, 2nd: fumble, 4th: lost on downs.
— Bridgewater threw for 365 yards, but they turned ball over four times (-2).
— Carolina gave up 65 points in losing its first two games.
— Last 2+ years, Panthers are 5-8 ATS as a road underdog.
— Bucs started two drives in Carolina territory, scored on first play both times.
— Fournette had 12 carries for 103 yards and two TD’s.
— Since 2014, Tampa Bay is now 5-15-2 ATS as a home favorite.
Pittsburgh 26, Broncos 21
— Denver QB Lock hurt his shoulder in first quarter, didn’t return.
— Former Florida Gator Driskel was 18-34/256 yards, two TD’s.
— Broncos converted only 8-27 third down plays in first two games.
— Broncos lost their last four road openers, by 10-13-5 points (1-3 ATS).
— Roethlisberger threw for 311 yards; Steelers won first home opener in three years.
— Conner ran for 106 yards and a TD.
— Last three years, Pittsburgh is 9-12 ATS as a home favorite.
49ers 31, NJ Jets 13
— First play of game, Mostert ran 80 yards for a TD.
— 49ers had lot of injuries; backup QB Mullens played 2nd half.
— 49ers are 10-5 ATS in last 15 road openers.
— Jets were outgained 763-531 LW in their first two games.
— Two trips to red zone, Jets kicked two FG’s.
— 49ers’ first four drives: 31 plays, 221 yards, 21 points.
Bills 31, Miami 28
— Allen was 24-35 for 417 yards, averaged 11.5 yards/attempt. Wow.
— Bills drove 97 yards for a TD on their first drive.
— Under McDermott, Buffalo is 3-2 ATS as a road favorite.
— Bills won six of last seven series games.
— Last 4+ years, Miami is 12-7-1 ATS as a home underdog.
— Dolphins covered via the back door with 0:49 left.
— Over is 15-3 in their last 18 home openers.
Indianapolis 28, Vikings 11
— On a day where Stefon Diggs caught 8 passes for 153 yards for Buffalo, Vikings gained total of 175 yards on 47 plays here.
— Cousins completed 11-26 passes, with three INT’s. In a dome.
— In their history, Vikings are 0-12 in road games against the Colts.
— Vikings are 3-9-1 ATS in last 13 games as a road underdog.
— Minnesota is 4-12-1 SU in last 17 road openers (5-10-2 ATS).
— Colts outgained first two opponents 799-416.
— Last three years, Indy is 10-6-1 ATS as a home favorite.
— In nine red zone drives this year, Colts have scored only 34 points.
Chicago 17, Giants 13
— Giants’ RB Barkley hurt his knee early; they fear a torn ACL.
— Giants had ball on 10-yard line as game ended, but couldn’t score.
— Giants started one drive on Chicago’s 25, but settled for a FG.
— Big Blue covered 15 of its last 21 games as a road underdog.
— Chicago scored 10 points on its first two drives, led 17-0 at halftime.
— Bears in 2nd half: 28 plays, 97 yards, no points, one huge sigh of relief.
— Under is 5-1-1 in Bears’ last seven home openers.
Green Bay 42, Lions 21
— Lions are 9-24-1 under Patricia; they were 36-28 under Caldwell, and they fired him.
— Detroit’s first two drives: 21 plays, 150 yards- they led 14-3.
— Detroit’s last nine drives: 38 plays, 154 yards, 7 points.
— Lions are 16-23 ATS in last 39 games as a road underdog.
— Packers gained 1,010 yards, scored nine TD’s on 18 drives in two games.
— Green Bay is 26-15-2 ATS in last 43 games as a home favorite.
— Packers won eight in row, 13 of last 14 home openers (11-3 ATS).
Tennessee 33, Jaguars 30
— Jax outgained Titans 480-354, had 30 first downs, converted 10-14 on 3rd down.
— Jaguars completed 49-65 passes, converted 15-24 on 3rd down in splitting their first two games.
— J’ville covered its last four road openers (3-0 ATS).
— Jaguars lost their last seven visits to Nashville.
— Gostkowski kicked a 49-yard FG with 1:36 left after Titans blew a 2-TD lead.
— Under Vrabel, Tennessee is 3-6-1 ATS as a home favorite.
— Titans won eight of last ten series games.
— Tannehill threw for 239 yards, four TD’s.
Arizona 30, Washington 15
— Washington fell behind 17-0 last week, 20-0 in this game.
— Washington had trouble containing mobile QB Murray- he ran for 67 yards.
— Washington was down 27-3, then scored TD’s on TD’s on last two drives.
— Arizona ran ball for 340 yards, converted 14-31 on 3rd down in first two games.
— Cardinals scored two TD’s, kicked two FG’s on first six drives.
— Murray threw for 286 yards, ran for 67 more.
Chiefs 23, LA Chargers 20 OT
— Chiefs’ first six drives: 33 plays, 142 yards, 6 points.
— Chiefs’ last four drives: 40 plays, 232 yards, 17 points.
— Butker kicked two 58-yard FG’s, including game-winner in OT
— Reid’s SU record after a bye or Thursday game: 18-2.
— Chiefs won 12 of last 13 series games.
— QB Taylor was scratched just before kickoff; rookie Herbert made his NFL debut.
— Herbert was 22-33 for 311 yards, actually looked pretty good, averaging 8.5 yards/pass attempt.
— Chargers led 17-6 midway thru third quarter.
Ravens 33, Texans 16
— Baltimore scored 71 points in winning its first two games.
— Ravens had a pick-6, was +2 in turnovers again.
— Baltimore ran ball for 230 yards.
— Ravens are 5-0-1 ATS in last six games as a road favorite.
— Baltimore is 9-4 ATS in last 13 road openers.
— Texans started 16 of 18 drives at their 25 or worse field position in first two games.
— How does passing game stack up after trading star WR Hopkins?
— Since 2013, Houston is 5-11 ATS as a home underdog.
— Houston covered twice in its last eight home openers.
Seahawks 35, Patriots 30
— NE ran ball for 217 yards LW, but only 67 yards here.
— Newton threw ball for 397 yards, but got stopped on 2-yard line running ball on last play of the game.
— Patriots scored on a pick-6 on first series of the game.
— Five red zone drives, 23 points.
— Seahawks won their last 12 home openers (9-3 ATS).
— Seattle completed 52-63 passes, scored 10 TD’s on 20 drives in first two games.
— Seahawks held Newton to 47 rushing yards; Patriot RB’s combined for 20 YR.
— Seattle had a 13-yard edge in stating field position.
23DALLAS -24 TAMPA BAY
DALLAS are 24-11 ATS (17.4 Units) against good teams - outscoring their opponents by 0.3+ goals/game in the current season.
NHL
Dunkel
Monday, September 21
Dallas @ Tampa Bay
Game 23-24
September 21, 2020 @ 8:05 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Dallas
14.367
Tampa Bay
12.013
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Dallas
by 2 1/2
4
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-150
5
Dunkel Pick:
Dallas
(+130); Under
NHL
Long Sheet
Monday, September 21
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DALLAS (51-32-0-8, 110 pts.) vs. TAMPA BAY (57-26-0-7, 121 pts.) - 9/21/2020, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
DALLAS is 39-54 ATS (-25.7 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 119-57 ATS (+179.2 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 61-26 ATS (+13.2 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 13-2 ATS (+9.6 Units) after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game this season.
TAMPA BAY is 10-1 ATS (+8.1 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game this season.
TAMPA BAY is 273-260 ATS (+591.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season since 1996.
DALLAS is 51-40 ATS (+4.1 Units) in all games this season.
DALLAS is 14-8 ATS (+23.1 Units) when playing in a neutral arena this season.
DALLAS is 10-5 ATS (+15.9 Units) in road games after 3 or more consecutive unders this season.
DALLAS is 33-23 ATS (+9.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
DALLAS is 20-15 ATS (+36.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 4-3-0 straight up against DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.9 Units)
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NHL
Monday, September 21
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dallas @ Tampa Bay
Dallas
Dallas is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games
Dallas is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Tampa Bay's last 10 games when playing at home against Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 14 of Tampa Bay's last 19 games when playing Dallas
DALLAS are 24-11 ATS (17.4 Units) against good teams - outscoring their opponents by 0.3+ goals/game in the current season.
NHL
Dunkel
Monday, September 21
Dallas @ Tampa Bay
Game 23-24
September 21, 2020 @ 8:05 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Dallas
14.367
Tampa Bay
12.013
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Dallas
by 2 1/2
4
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Tampa Bay
-150
5
Dunkel Pick:
Dallas
(+130); Under
NHL
Long Sheet
Monday, September 21
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DALLAS (51-32-0-8, 110 pts.) vs. TAMPA BAY (57-26-0-7, 121 pts.) - 9/21/2020, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
DALLAS is 39-54 ATS (-25.7 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 119-57 ATS (+179.2 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 61-26 ATS (+13.2 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 13-2 ATS (+9.6 Units) after a loss by 2 goals or more in their previous game this season.
TAMPA BAY is 10-1 ATS (+8.1 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game this season.
TAMPA BAY is 273-260 ATS (+591.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season since 1996.
DALLAS is 51-40 ATS (+4.1 Units) in all games this season.
DALLAS is 14-8 ATS (+23.1 Units) when playing in a neutral arena this season.
DALLAS is 10-5 ATS (+15.9 Units) in road games after 3 or more consecutive unders this season.
DALLAS is 33-23 ATS (+9.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
DALLAS is 20-15 ATS (+36.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 4-3-0 straight up against DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+0.9 Units)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NHL
Monday, September 21
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dallas @ Tampa Bay
Dallas
Dallas is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games
Dallas is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Tampa Bay's last 10 games when playing at home against Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 14 of Tampa Bay's last 19 games when playing Dallas
COMPLETED PICKS
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/21/2020 0-1-1 25.00% -500 Detail
09/19/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +690 Detail
09/17/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/15/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -400 Detail
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....20-19-3.......51.28%....+11.15
Past Completed Picks
DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD
09/21/2020 0-1-1 25.00% -500 Detail
09/19/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +690 Detail
09/17/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/15/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -400 Detail
09/14/2020 1-0-1 75.00% +750 Detail
09/13/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/12/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -325 Detail
09/11/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1125 Detail
09/10/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1250 Detail
09/09/2020 0-2-0 0.00% -1050 Detail
09/08/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +0 Detail
09/07/2020 2-0-0 100.00% +1000 Detail
09/06/2020 1-1-0 50.00% +175 Detail
09/05/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/04/2020 1-3-0 25.00% -1225 Detail
09/03/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +400 Detail
09/02/2020 1-1-0 50.00% -50 Detail
09/01/2020 2-2-0 50.00% +425 Detail
TOTALS....20-19-3.......51.28%....+11.15
