Monday Night Recap: Giants @ Eagles

This is the reaction from Eagles Legend Ron "Jaws" Jaworski to the game last night:

.@jawsespn on Bradford "You cannot turn the ball over and it's become a chronic issue with him."

— 975TheFanatic (@975TheFanatic) October 20, 2015

.@jawsespn on Bradford "He's not sharp right now and I am concerned. It's been 6 games, let's stop the excuses and start playing."

— 975TheFanatic (@975TheFanatic) October 20, 2015

As negative as you could possibly be about a quarterback who just "led" his team to a 27-7 win. I put led in quotes because in all honestly this team was led by the defensive line. But you don't come here for in-depth analysis of the defensive line, you come for sketchy pseudo-analysis of player props:

Eagles -4 (Win)
As noted above, the game was not particularly close.

Sam Bradford Passing Yards Over 275.5 (Win)
To be honest I would have taken him over like 300 yards because I really expected him to torch the Giants. But he was missing his receivers all night, and there were very few times he looked like a legit NFL quarterback. But again, you don't come to me for actual analysis, you come to hear me tell you that he ended the game with 280 yards. Cha-ching!

Sam Bradford Touchdown Passes Over 1.5 (Loss)
He only threw one, but he did throw three interceptions.

Darren Sproles To Score A Touchdown (Loss)
There was not nearly enough Sproles last night. He had 2 carries for 4 yards and 1 catch for 3 yards. On Brian Westbrook night, I expected some noise in the return game. He returned 4 punts, but his longest went for just 13 yards.

Eli Manning To Throw An Interception (Win)
I think my new strategy is going to be parlaying both quarterbacks to throw an interception. In every game that doesn't feature Brady or Rodgers, it seems like both QB's always toss at least one each. Last night Eli threw 2 and Bradford threw 3.

Shane Vereen Receiving Yards Over 39.5 (Loss)
Did Vereen even play last night? What the fuck, man. He ended with 1 catch and 6 yards,

Rashad Jennings Over 2 Receptions (Win)
The lock of the night was a winner again, but it wasn't easy. Rashad was only targeted 3 times so he had to catch all 3, and he did. His first catch went for 6 yards, then he fumbled and gave the ball back to the Eagles (but it counts!). And then, in the fourth quarter, on the final Giants possession of the game, down by three touchdowns, Jennings came up big and caught 2 meaningless passes to go over his total.

Last night: 4-3
Monday nights: 17-20
Thursday nights: 12-11-2

We're crawling back up to the black. I'll see you guys on Thursday.

Monday Night Football Preview: Giants @ Eagles

If you follow these Thursday Night/Monday Night previews and recaps, you know I've had a bad stretch of picking NFC East games. It's part of the reason I'm just 12-11-2 on Thursday nights and 13-17 on Monday nights. (Another part of it is I got absolutely creamed with last week's Steelers-Chargers game.)

But we're turning the ship around tonight, just like Chip and Sam and the Birds are turning it around. The march for the playoffs started last week against the lowly Saints, and it continues tonight against a decidedly mediocre Giants team.

The G-men are allowing opposing quarterbacks to average 304.2 passing yards per game, 1.6 touchdowns per game, 1.0 interceptions per game. That group includes Tony Romo and Matt Ryan, but it also includes Kurt Cousins, Tyrod Taylor Who Stinks Now, and Colin Kaepernick Who May Or May Not Stink Now.

Opposing running backs, meanwhile, have been held to just 80.6 rushing yards per game and 0.6 rushing touchdowns. That sentence makes me really regret taking DeMarco Murray on FanDuel this week - perhaps I should have researched a little bit more and coughed up the extra $400 for Devonta Freeman.

Opposing "feature backs" have done these things:

• Joseph Randle: 16 carries, 65 yards, 0 touchdowns, 1 fumble
• Tevin Coleman and Devonta Freeman Combined: 21 carries, 57 yards, 2 touchdowns
• Matt Jones and Alfred Morris Combined: 17 carries, 57 yards, 0 touchdowns, 1 fumble
• Karlos Williams: 18 carries, 40 yards, 0 touchdowns
• Carlos Hyde: 21 carries, 93 yards, 1 touchdowns

For reference, Philly's backs combine to average 24.6 carries per game and 1.0 touchdowns per game. I don't think anybody will deny that DeMarco Murray, Ryan Mathews, and Darren Sproles are as giid or better than any group that NY has faced so far. I'm expecting a decent day on the ground, but the focus here should really be getting Bradford over 300 yards and at least a pair of touchdowns. 

Eagles -4 (-110)

Duh. That one should have been clear from the start. Bovada has the line on the Eagles at 27.5 and the Giants at 22.5. I think the Birds go over and the Giants stay under, but because I think it may end up being a shootout I will just take the plain old spread. 

Darren Sproles to Score a Touchdown (+150)

It's Villanova Graduate Brian Westbrook night at the Linc, as he's getting inducted into the Eagles Hall of Fame before the game. VGBW famously ran a kick back for a touchdown to cripple the Giants, and then Non-Villanova Graduate DeSean Jackson repeated the feat a few years later. This is destiny. Fate. Money in the bank. 

Sam Bradford Passing Yards Over 275.5 (-125)

As discussed above, the Giants are definitely susceptible to a quarterback torch job. Bradford is averaging just 245.8 yards per game, and the line being 30 yards above that is a testament to how bad New York has really been. Against the two teams he's played in the bottom half of the league in defense, #SamIAm went for 336 yards (Atlanta) and 333 yards (New Orleans). 

Sam Bradford Touchdown Passes Over 1.5 (-180)

See above. 

Eli Manning To Throw An Interception (-175)

Guys, it's Eli Manning. This is going to be a fun bet. 

Shane Vereen Receiving Yards Over 39.5 (-115)

Credit where it's due, New York has a solid passing attack. Even if Odell Beckham and Victor Cruz are out, and if Reuben Randle is also out with them, Eli is going to be chucking the ball around. I think Vereen is going to be a guy that benefits, because he can line up in any offensive position on the field. 

Rashad Jennings Over 2 Receptions (-115)

This is a mind blowing line. We know Eli is short on passing options. Jennings has caught 11 passes in the last 4 games. And we have the chance to push if he only catches 2? It's the lock of the week!

Time for me to get back to work. I'll see you guys out there tonight. #FlyEaglesFly