Bankroll $75k. Now 70,780.00
INV RECORD 3-6 -$6744.00
ACTION. 9-5 + $2524.00
TOTAL. 12-11 -$4220.00
In the life of a handicapper there is always that fine line of reacting and overreacting.
It seems like it has gotten worse in this era on social media. There is an avalanche of positive and negative reviews on everything from a bad pass to the president’s choice of suit color.
Still, as handicappers, we have to react to what we see or what our numbers tell us to figure out where we need to make adjustments.
Last week I wrote about some teams I lowered in the ratings. This week, some of the upside surprises.
There aren’t that many teams that have given me that upside surprise so far this season. However two come out of the same division.
Ray Rice’s absence from the Ravens would have a strong negative effect on their ability to run the football, thereby putting too much pressure on quarterback Joe Flacco.
Or so I thought.
Instead the Ravens are eighth in the NFL in rushing yards per game with 134.5 and 12th in yards per carry with 4.5.
Joe Flacco certainly hasn’t suffered either. His passer efficiency rating is a healthy 93.4 with 7 TDs and 2 interceptions.
What I expected was mediocrity out of the Ravens, but instead I’ve seen solid play on both sides of the ball. At least so far. I’ve raised them from 92.5 to 94.0 (100 is the top rating).
Even though the Cincinnati Bengals are the defending champions of the AFC North, there were some legitimate questions involving the team coming into this season.
First of all, they’re the Bengals. That name has not been synonymous with excellence over the years. Now, all of a sudden, they look like one of the NFL’s model franchises.
Secondly, there were concerns about their quarterback, Andy Dalton. Dalton had been very erratic in his brief career, particularly on the road.
So far in this early part of the season Dalton has been much more consistent, though he has had only one game away from Cincinnati to judge him by.
Last season the Bengals were much better at home in all phases of the game. The entire team, not just Dalton, looked better in that one road game (at Baltimore). I raised them from 93.5 to 95. I realize its early, but I like what I’ve seen so far.
Many of the New York Giants team members have a Super Bowl ring, and a few even have two. After last year, where quarterback Eli Manning had his worst season as a pro, they installed a new offense. It seems like every year we don’t know what to expect out of the Giants. Heck, even midyear of their last Super Bowl win they looked like nothing more than a .500 team.
The preseason was awful and so were the first couple games. I had dropped the Giants from 89 to 87.5. We were warned that the offense would take a while to learn, but most of us ignored it.
We should have listened. Suddenly it looks like Manning and the whole offense has figured things out. I raised them to 93, the biggest jump I can ever remember giving a team. Now they look like legitimate contenders for an NFC East crown. From there, who knows? They’ve shocked us before.
Another team from the NFC that was expected to have a down year was the Dallas Cowboys. They shot themselves in the foot in their opener against the 49ers by turning the ball over three times in the first quarter.
The 49ers converted all three into TDs and the game was essentially over. Tony Romo looked like a 34 year-old quarterback coming off back surgery. Not what you want to see. Jerry Jones was openly lamenting his failure to draft Johnny Manziel.
Somehow Romo healed since that opening debacle both in his play and his athleticism. The team has picked up, too. The defense, which was historically bad last year, was expected to be no better this season. Instead they have been down-right average, which I think every Cowboy fan in the world would have signed up for.
I started the Cowboys at 90.5, then dipped them to 88 after seeing Romo limp around like arthritic 50 year-old. Now they have climbed to 93, which would put them on a par with the Giants, and right in the thick of the NFC East race.
INV RECORD 3-6 -$6744.00
ACTION. 9-5 + $2524.00
TOTAL. 12-11 -$4220.00
In the life of a handicapper there is always that fine line of reacting and overreacting.
It seems like it has gotten worse in this era on social media. There is an avalanche of positive and negative reviews on everything from a bad pass to the president’s choice of suit color.
Still, as handicappers, we have to react to what we see or what our numbers tell us to figure out where we need to make adjustments.
Last week I wrote about some teams I lowered in the ratings. This week, some of the upside surprises.
There aren’t that many teams that have given me that upside surprise so far this season. However two come out of the same division.
Ray Rice’s absence from the Ravens would have a strong negative effect on their ability to run the football, thereby putting too much pressure on quarterback Joe Flacco.
Or so I thought.
Instead the Ravens are eighth in the NFL in rushing yards per game with 134.5 and 12th in yards per carry with 4.5.
Joe Flacco certainly hasn’t suffered either. His passer efficiency rating is a healthy 93.4 with 7 TDs and 2 interceptions.
What I expected was mediocrity out of the Ravens, but instead I’ve seen solid play on both sides of the ball. At least so far. I’ve raised them from 92.5 to 94.0 (100 is the top rating).
Even though the Cincinnati Bengals are the defending champions of the AFC North, there were some legitimate questions involving the team coming into this season.
First of all, they’re the Bengals. That name has not been synonymous with excellence over the years. Now, all of a sudden, they look like one of the NFL’s model franchises.
Secondly, there were concerns about their quarterback, Andy Dalton. Dalton had been very erratic in his brief career, particularly on the road.
So far in this early part of the season Dalton has been much more consistent, though he has had only one game away from Cincinnati to judge him by.
Last season the Bengals were much better at home in all phases of the game. The entire team, not just Dalton, looked better in that one road game (at Baltimore). I raised them from 93.5 to 95. I realize its early, but I like what I’ve seen so far.
Many of the New York Giants team members have a Super Bowl ring, and a few even have two. After last year, where quarterback Eli Manning had his worst season as a pro, they installed a new offense. It seems like every year we don’t know what to expect out of the Giants. Heck, even midyear of their last Super Bowl win they looked like nothing more than a .500 team.
The preseason was awful and so were the first couple games. I had dropped the Giants from 89 to 87.5. We were warned that the offense would take a while to learn, but most of us ignored it.
We should have listened. Suddenly it looks like Manning and the whole offense has figured things out. I raised them to 93, the biggest jump I can ever remember giving a team. Now they look like legitimate contenders for an NFC East crown. From there, who knows? They’ve shocked us before.
Another team from the NFC that was expected to have a down year was the Dallas Cowboys. They shot themselves in the foot in their opener against the 49ers by turning the ball over three times in the first quarter.
The 49ers converted all three into TDs and the game was essentially over. Tony Romo looked like a 34 year-old quarterback coming off back surgery. Not what you want to see. Jerry Jones was openly lamenting his failure to draft Johnny Manziel.
Somehow Romo healed since that opening debacle both in his play and his athleticism. The team has picked up, too. The defense, which was historically bad last year, was expected to be no better this season. Instead they have been down-right average, which I think every Cowboy fan in the world would have signed up for.
I started the Cowboys at 90.5, then dipped them to 88 after seeing Romo limp around like arthritic 50 year-old. Now they have climbed to 93, which would put them on a par with the Giants, and right in the thick of the NFC East race.
