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Results:
NFL Preseason Week 4: Coin 7-9; Rick: 12-4
Cumulative Preseason: Coin 29-32-3; Rick 32-29-3
Thursday, September 6
8:20 pm Atlanta Falcons at Philadelphia Eagles (-2 1/2, 45 1/2) - Rematch of a 2017 NFC divisional playoff game, won by the Eagles, 15-10. Philly went on from there to win the Super Bowl while the Falcons watched and waited until now.
Revenge may be on the minds of some Falcon players, but judging by their 0-4 preseason flop, the Falcons may not be ready for prime time. While the Eagles were only 1-3 preseason, they're arguably a better team, at home, and healthy.
Coin Flip: Philadelphia
PREDICTION: Eagles 23 Falcons 17
Sunday, September 9
1:00 pm Buffalo Bills at Baltimore Ravens (-7, 40 1/2) - Buffalo will start Nathan Peterman at QB, whose previous start resulted in a five turnover first half against Denver last season. Granted, Peterman is better than that, but the Bills haven't offered their quarterbacks much protection in the preseason, so there will be pressures and probably sacks and turnovers.
The Ravens went 5-0 in preseason and appear to be among the top teams in the AFC. Baltimore was 5-3 at home last year; Buffalo was 3-5 on the road. All indications point to the Ravens getting off to a fast start and the Bills making more excuses than positive plays.
Coin Flip: Baltimore
PREDICTION: Ravens 31 Bills 13
1:00 pm Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts (-3, 46 1/2) - Neither of these teams made the playoffs in 2017, so there's been plenty of turnover of coaches and players in the interim. The Colts get Andrew Luck back after he missed most of the season with injuries while the Bengals go with tried and true Andy Dalton.
These teams met in week 8 last season, the Bengals scoring a 24-23 win at Indianapolis, but that was without Luck. They also met last week in a 27-26 Indy preseason home win. This looks like a game that could go down to the wire, and, as such, even a paltry three points may be important.
Coin Flip: Indianapolis
PREDICTION: Bengals 25 Colts 23
1:00 pm Houston Texans at New England Patriots (-6, 50 1/2) - The Patriots hosted Houston in week 3 of 2017, winning, 36-33. While that game may not be of great importance, it was still a win by a field goal in New England with Deshaun Watson at quarterback for the Texans.
With Watson at QB last season, the Texans were 3-4. After his injury, they went 1-8. The second-year QB out of Clemson gives Houston a real chance at upsetting the Patriots.
Coin Flip: Houston
PREDICTION: Texans 31 Patriots 27
1:00 pm Jacksonville Jaguars (-3, 43 1/2) at New York Giants - Take your pick on who will have the hotter hand, Eli Manning or Blake Bortles. Maybe both will throw for 300+ yards, but the difference will be in the red zone, where the Giants will likely struggle. The Jags are one of four road favorites this week, and, considering how well their defense played in preseason, should be able to make the Giants one-dimensional on offense.
Remember, the Jags were 10-6 and won the AFC South last season, The 3-13 Giants won nothing but the second pick in the draft.
Coin Flip: Jacksonville
PREDICTION: Jaguars 24 Giants 10
1:00 pm Pittsburgh Steelers (-4 1/2, 45 1/2) at Cleveland Browns - Cleveland found success in the preseason with both Tyrod Taylor and rookie Baker Mayfield as quarterback, and confidence is high along the shores of Lake Erie.
The Steelers and Browns play twice annually, as they both hail from the AFC North. Last season's games were close calls. The Steelers won the opener, 21-18, in Cleveland, and also at home in Week 16, 28-24. It's worth noting that those were close games and the Browns may actually be better than the 0-16 that was on the field last season.
Coin Flip: Pittsburgh
PREDICTION: Browns 30 Steelers 28
1:00 pm San Francisco 49ers at Minnesota Vikings (-6, 46) - Emerging last season as one of a few elite teams in the NFC, the Vikings open their season at home, hosting and up-and-coming 49ers squad that won their last five games in 2017 after Jimmy Garoppolo took over quarterback duties. Add hard-hitting Carlos Hyde to the mix and the San Francisco backfield looks pretty good.
The Vikings will start Kirk Cousins at quarterback, replacing Sam Bradford, who bolted for Arizona. While Cousins may be as good as Bradford, or even better, the ball bounced favorably for the Vikings last season, but may not go the same way this year.
This is one of the premier games of the opening weekend and it's likely to be close and entertaining, with Minnesota grabbing a late score for the win.
Coin Flip: San Francisco
PREDICTION: Vikings 30 49ers 26
1:00 pm Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints (-9 1/2, 49 1/2) - The biggest point spread of the week is due to Tampa QB James Winston's suspension for the first three games of the season, but one shouldn't fall for it. Both quarterbacks named Ryan - Fitzpatrick and Griffin - had plenty of prep time in the preseason and looked good.
The Buccaneers won their first two preseason games on the road and then the defense imploded, resulting in back-to-back home losses. And that's the problem. Tampa's defense can't stop anyone, especially not Drew Brees and the Saints' offense.
Coin Flip: New Orleans
PREDICTION: Saints 42 Buccaneers 17
1:00 pm Tennessee Titans (-1, 45) at Miami Dolphins - Even though this game is in Miami, it's hard to believe the Dolphins are deeper underdogs. Maybe it has something to do with Tennessee's 0-4 preseason mark, or the fact that they scored only 40 points in those four games.
Miami, however, lost their first three preseason games before walloping Atlanta, 34-7 in the fourth week. It's worth noting that the Titans reached the playoffs last season with a 9-7 record and that Miami was 6-10 and really hasn't made substantive changes to personnel.
Coin Flip: Tennessee
PREDICTION: Titans 20 Dolphins 12
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