Venue/Stadium: Metlife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Time/Date: Monday September 19, 2011 – 8:30 PM ET
NFL Odds
Moneyline: Giants -270
Spread (ATS): Giants -6
Over/Under: 44
Steve Spagnuolo earned his first job as an NFL head coach by proving his merit as defensive coordinator of the New York Giants in 2007 and 2008. Now, the man who led the St. Louis Rams to within one win of a division title in his first season in control will look for his first win of year two against that same team he helped win a Super Bowl back in 2007. Both teams are battling a plethora of injuries that contributed to week one losses, and will clash at MetLife Stadium under the bright lights of Monday night hoping to avoid consecutive losses to open their respective seasons.
The Giants will likely be without two of the defensive stars that helped Spagnuolo’s units lead the league with 53 sacks in 2007, as ends Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora are both injured. New York is already without cornerback Terrell Thomas and linebacker Jonathan Goff for the remainder of the season, and as injuries take their toll on the defense it will be up to Eli Manning and the offense to get things done. Manning struggled against the rival Washington Redskins week one as he completed just over 50-percent of his passes for 268 yards and an interception, while the running game never really got going either with Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs combining for just 73 yards on 19 carries. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
The offense will need to be better Monday night, and that could be tough as Spagnuolo is already familiar with their strengths and weaknesses, especially with the chance that wide receiver Hakeem Nicks could also miss the game with a knee injury.
The third-year head coach had to be happy to hear that quarterback Sam Bradford will be able to play this week after bruising his right index finger in the fourth quarter of the Rams’ 31-13 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. How the injury will affect his play will be one of the keys to the game for St. Louis, as well as whether or not running back Stephen Jackson and wide receiver Danny Amendola will be cleared to play. The Rams’ defense improved dramatically a year ago under Spagnuolo, but seemed to wear down against Philadelphia as the game went on. If Bradford can operate at a high level and Jackson plays then St. Louis should be able to keep this one close in Spagnuolo’s return, but it will be very tough to push a contender like New York to 0-2 on the road.
NFL Betting Pick: Giants
