Close Calls - Preseason Week 3
By Joe Nelson
VegasInsider.com
Seattle Seahawks (-5½) 27, Dallas Cowboys 17 (43): Seattle took control in the third quarter of this preseason matchup Thursday night, a game marred by Tony Romo’s injury. Leading 27-10 the total that dipped from 44½ down to 43 by game time was still in doubt. After a Dallas fumble near midfield, Seattle seemed poised to add more points, but the Seahawks went for it on fourth and short on the long end of field goal range and came up empty as Trevone Boykin was sacked. Led by Jameill Showers, Dallas delivered a late touchdown drive, finding the end zone inside of two minutes to clinch the ‘over’ for many.
New England Patriots (+3) 19, Carolina Panthers 17 (44½): The Patriots led 16-3 heading into the fourth quarter and seemingly put the game away with a field goal with just over five minutes to go in the game. The Panthers posted two late scoring drives behind Joe Webb, but they failed on the two-point conversion attempt on the first score as they would have had the opportunity to force overtime on the second score had that conversion succeeded and overtime could have flipped the outcomes on both the side and the total.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-3) 30, Cleveland Browns 13 (43): The total on this game went upward from 41½ to a closing number of 43, right where the final score landed. With 37 points in the first half the ‘over’ certainly was in good shape, aided by a 73-yard punt return for the Buccaneers and a big pass play from the Browns just before halftime. There was just a lone field goal in the third quarter and another field goal in the fourth quarter as a late Browns drive led by rookie Cody Kessler came up empty. The final field goal was enough to hit the ‘over’ for most but the total wound up a push on the closing number.
Pittsburgh Steelers (+3) 27, New Orleans 14 (44½): This matchup of two of the top offensive teams in the league featured the highest total of the week. It appeared that mark would still be cleared with 38 points through three quarters and both teams moving the ball successfully. Down by 10, the Saints opted to go for it on fourth and one at the Pittsburgh 10-yard line early in the fourth quarter and that move did not pay off, costing those on the ‘over’ as well with a missed scoring opportunity. After a New Orleans interception, the Steelers added a field goal with just over three minutes to go to put the score at 27-14, but it wasn’t enough as a late Saints drive ended in an interception and the ‘under’ held on.
Washington Redskins (-3½) 21, Buffalo Bills 16 (42½): Washington had a 21-9 lead at the half, but the Bills were within five early in the third quarter and an attempt to answer by the Redskins failed as an 11-play drive ended on downs in field goal range with Washington trying to make a fourth and one conversion. The teams traded four straight punts despite picking up several first downs and E.J. Manuel failed to move the chains just ahead of the two-minute warning as the Bills went for it on fourth and 13 down by five. Manuel appeared to get redemption with 16 seconds to go in the game hitting Greg Little for a touchdown, but offensive pass interference wiped out a score that would have flipped the spread and total results. On fourth and goal from the Washington 28, the Redskins came up with an interception in the end zone to end the game and preserve narrow wins on the favorite and the ‘under’.
Baltimore Ravens (-2½) 30, Detroit Lions 9 (42½): The Ravens took control of this game in the second quarter and the ‘under’ looked promising with a 23-6 edge for the Ravens at the end of three quarters. Baltimore would add a touchdown about halfway through the final frame, but another touchdown would be needed for the ‘over’ to hit. Disaster struck those on the ‘under’ as Ravens running back Stephen Houston fumbled with the loose ball returned to the Baltimore 9-yard line in the final minutes. The Lions went backwards behind Jake Rudock however and simply settled for a short field goal as the ‘under’ held on.
New York Giants (PK) 21, New York Jets 20 (42): The Jets had a dominant yardage edge early in this game, but only led 10-0 late in the third quarter. The Giants finally got on the scoreboard just before the fourth quarter with a touchdown pass from Ryan Nassib. Early in the fourth quarter, a Bryce Petty pass was intercepted and returned 73 yards as all of sudden the Giants had a 14-10 lead. Behind rookie Christian Hackenberg, the Jets took control again with 10 points in three minutes in the middle of the fourth quarter to lead by six, which was enough to secure the underdog cover for most as the Jets were +2½ before an afternoon slide in the hours before the game started with the closing line down to even. After the Giants failed to add points on a 72-yard drive, Hackenberg gave them another chance with an interception deep in Jets territory and two plays later the Giants had a 21-20 lead. The Jets did get into Giants territory on a late drive with the total still in play and early Giants backers looking for another score, but they came up empty on a fourth and one play with just over a minute to go.
Tennessee Titans (+3) 27, Oakland Raiders 14 (41½): The total on this game slipped from 43½ to 41½ and that certainly looked like a move in the wrong direction as the first team offenses were sharp combining for 34 first half points. A productive opening drive of the second half for the Raiders wound up with a Tennessee touchdown after a 47-yard fumble return and with over 20 minutes to go the total was at 41. The Titans were content to punt with a lead and four separate times in the fourth quarter the Raiders were inside of Tennessee territory only to fail to add points with two interceptions, being stopped on downs, and running out of time on the final possession as the ‘under’ held on.
Denver Broncos (-6) 17, Los Angeles Rams 9 (41): Denver led just 10-9 at halftime as the biggest favorite of the day on Saturday. A third quarter touchdown put the Broncos past the spread but with an eight-point lead any score would spoil the cover. These teams combined for seven consecutive punts with minimal yardage at one point, but late in the game the Rams had a great scoring opportunity going 68-yards behind Sean Mannion and reaching the Denver 7-yard line. Down eight, Los Angeles needed a touchdown however and on fourth down the threat ended with an incomplete pass.
Minnesota Vikings (-6½) 23, San Diego Chargers 10 (40): While the Vikings took control of the game early in the second half with a touchdown and a two-point conversion, the Chargers did have chance to spoil the spread and total results in the final minutes. For the third straight week, the Minnesota defense held in the final minutes, this time intercepting Mike Bercovici for a touchback with the Chargers in the red zone when a touchdown would have forced at least a push or worse for those that eventually held on backing Minnesota or the ‘under’.
Jacksonville Jaguars (-2½) 26, Cincinnati Bengals 21 (42½): The Bengals had a 14-0 lead early and after a great opening drive out of the half, Cincinnati led 21-3. Jacksonville climbed within 10 by the end of the third quarter and closed the gap to just two points early in the fourth quarter as the total sat at 40 with over 11 minutes to go. The spread and total results flipped on one play as Bengals quarterback Joe Licata was intercepted with Hayes Pullard delivering a long return touchdown to seal the ‘over’ and put Jacksonville in position for the small favorite cover. Two late Cincinnati possessions resulted in harmless punts as the Jaguars got their first win.