The lines are from Vegas and the home teams are in CAPs.
Jacksonville +9 over NEW ENGLAND
The Jaguars offence isn’t as good as it looked last week, but it isn’t as bad as it was against the Bills. New England’s defence has improved after a terrible start to the season, but has some holes in it. Jacksonville’s run game could prove to be a lot for the Pats’ undersized line to handle, making this matchup closer than Bill Belichick would want it to be. With two great corners looking to blanket the Pats’ receiving corps, we could get a huge game from Rob Gronkowski as well as their extensive group of running backs. We’d say it’s likely that Tom Brady and Co. are headed to Minnesota in two weeks’ time, but covering the spread could be a tough propostition – even if Blake Bortles is prominently involved.
Minnesota -3 over PHILADELPHIA
If you’re a fan of defensive football, this game will be a treat. Both teams are capable of controlling a game and shutting down an opponent’s offence, but one team will have it much easier. Nick Foles was able to escape the Falcons’ clutches last week, but this week will be a whole different story. It’s easy to look competent when you have an extra week to prepare for your opponent. We should see the Foles that struggled mightily to close the season and Minnesota will take advantage. On the opposite side, Case Keenum is nothing special and he did need a miracle to beat New Orleans last week, but has proven capable under centre and has a better set of weapons around him than Foles. You can’t count out the underdog Eagles, who are perfectly playing the ‘Nobody-believes-in-us’ card, but this matchup is just too much.
Last week: 3-1
Playoffs: 4-4