AFC Quick Hit Preview From Betus Sportsbook
by BetUS Staff
The AFC North might as well be called “How The Mighty Have Fallen”. Baltimore is soul searching, Cincinnati is just trying to stay out of the slammer and Pittsburgh has gone offensive. Meanwhile, Cleveland has risen amongst the ashes to become the favorite to win the division. Can they repeat their Cinderella season? Or will one of the other three pick themselves up off the mat?
THE FAVORITE – Cleveland Browns (+175 to win division)
Why do I love the Browns over the NFL odds-on favorite? Simple. This is a team that is accustomed to running the score, and keeping pace with the full-throttle offenses in the league. They averaged a stunning 25.13 point per game on offense, and have added speedster Donte Stallworth to help free Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow Jr.
What should continue to make the Browns backers nervous is their defense, which allowed 5.4 yards per play and ranked 21st in the league with 23.8 points against per game. That should change with Corey Williams and Shaun Rogers clogging up the middle like a hairball on steroids in the drain-pipe of NFL rushing attacks.
Keep your faith in the Browns because…
THE PRESSURE PLAYER – Pittsburgh Steelers (+110 to win division)
The Steelers have no idea who the hell they are. This is a team that has set the tone as one of the most thrilling, versatile and vicious defenses in the league. Now, they let their secondary and 3-4 defense fall by the wayside in search of becoming a more potent offense.
Santonio Holmes is set to be “the man” this year, while Hines Ward will continue to be one of the best at his position. They’ll be flanked by Limas Sweed, the prospect from Texas, and Dirty Nate Washington. With a wealthy, and steady, Ben Roethlisberger at the helm. Big Ben stayed off the bike and on the ball with 32 scores and only 11 picks last year, en route to a 3,158 yard season. In my opinion, he’s well worth the money.
However, he’ll only protect your investment as much as the defense can protect their endzone. The defense ranked second in points against with 16.8 against, and were third in rush and pass defense (176.5 yards passing against, 89.9 rush yards against). Can they keep it up? Considering that Pittsburgh is investing its energy in to the offense, they better.
IN THE MIDST – Baltimore (+800) and Cincinnati (+700)
The Bengals have officially put Chris Henry out to pasture, and his loss will certainly hurt an offense that lacks continuity on offense. The report on Rudi Johnson is that he’s “better than ever”, and I’m not sure what that means considering he averaged 65.6 yards per game over the past two seasons along with six whole touchdowns.
Chad Johnson continues to be a pain in the rear end, T.J. Houshmandzadeh is showing his mounting frustration and the defense allowed 24.0 points against, ranking them 24th overall defensively.
Baltimore is in a similar boat experiencing busts across the board with their lackluster receiving corps, and boasting a young, inexperienced defense that seems to get torn apart more often than not. The Ravens ended the season 24th overall for offense and 22nd for defense.
Essentially, saying that either of these teams is “in the midst” is an insult to the word “midst”. Neither of these teams should be in your betting consideration, especially when it comes down to NFL betting futures. Stay. The Hell. Away.
