REFlections on a REFreshingly REFined Thursday Night Football Game

Finally. The Thursday Night Curse is over. Thank you Jimmy the Weasel. Thank you Union Refs. And thank you ATS-covering Cleveland Browns.

When Marco's living room erupted in cheers, elated profanities, and high fives between this evening's Cleveland Browns fans (Marco and me), my wife came running into the room.
"Did the Browns win?" she asked excitedly.
"Oh, God no," I said, "But they only lost by seven."

Instead of words, she gave me a look which silently conveyed that although she was happy I'd found a passion in my life, she would never truly understand gambling. I returned a similar look silently responding that although I'd be happy to explain it to her again, I'd be much happier if we could just leave things the way they are. I kind of like that she hates football, because I'm kind of an anti-social asshole when I'm gambling.

Anyway, how about those spread-covering dogs from Cleveland? With the close loss this evening, they have now moved into first place in the AFC North ATS standings. If the playoffs were to start today they would be looking at losing an opening round Wild Card game by less than 7.5 points. This team is not to be bet against, and with all the youth on their team I wouldn't be surprised in the least if they started winning games straight up.

As for tonight's game - if it weren't for gambling and the return of the Union Refs, I would never have pirated the NFL Network from my neighbor's satellite. Here they are in no particular order:

Top Five Reasons It's Good to Have Union Refs Back:

                               

5. As I mentioned, it gave me a reason to tune in last night, to watch these formerly hated villains walk into a hostile M & T Bank Stadium to a round of applause. They looked and probably felt like rock stars. They're certainly getting paid like them now. There's plenty of money to go around in the NFL, but the next time I hear someone whine about "part-time" teachers and all their vacation time, I'll point out the $3000/hour NFL refs now get for their 60 hour year. I know they probably have to do book tours and make the occasional charity appearance.

4. Seeing players get fired up about a penalty, start to approach a ref and complain, then have four teammates quickly surround them and remind them how much worse it was last Sunday. The only people who will miss the Replacement Refs are Golden Tate and Justin Tucker.

3. Having the game and the line decided by a good call late in the game. Instead of sixteen yellow pass interference flags thrown when Joe Flacco almost completed a pass to Jacoby Jones near the end zone, the play was brought back near the line of scrimmage on a defensive holding call. The result - a Ravens punt and a Browns cover. Awesome.

2. In addition to good calls, games will also be decided in less than five hours. Monday Night showed us that the NFL was likely headed towards Instant Replay for Instant Replay and sentences like, "Seattle is challenging the challenge of the review of the last play."

1. And last but not least, being a huge fan of the Lingerie League, I'm really excited to have our real refs back in the league, because let's face it - those scabs were ruining the game.

Stay tuned. Sunday looks like it's going to be a lot of fun.

Vinny and Marco

NFL Week 4 Picks ATS: Return to Glory

After a disappointing 6-10 ATS showing last week, The Spread Zone is now hovering just above par at 25-23 ATS for the season, thanks in part to the outstanding job the Replacement Refs did on Monday Night in Seattle. Just for nailing that hometown call, Marco and I feel like winners.

                               

With a deal finally being struck between the Union Refs and the NFL last night, here are three things you are guaranteed to see this week:

1. Some semblance of order will be returned to our weekly football line-up.

2. Conflicted fans who still want to complain about questionable calls will now applaud knowing it could be a lot worse.

3. As part of the new bargaining agreement, Ed Hoculi will be reffing shirtless with black and white stripes painted on his body.

                              

Welcome back formerly most hated referees. We all love you now.

As for Week 4's Picks ATS, they all feel like locks. Maybe it's the first bye week allowing us to better focus our energy on 15 picks, but I have a hard time imagining that anyone betting will disagree with our predictions. It's going to be crowded at the top of our pool. Okay, let's get back to winning this week, shall we? Home teams in CAPS, okay?

Cleveland Browns (+12.5) over BALTIMORE RAVENS: Our friend Jimmy the Weasel always says "A quick touchdown and that 12.5 turns into 19.5." He also says this with lines of 13.5, 19.5, and the rare but not unheard of 21.5. With the parity in this year's NFL, we'll take 10.5 plus points no matter who's playing. The Ravens are due for a comedown, and we're due for a Thursday Night win. Besides, the Ravens are 8-1 SU but 1-8 ATS as a double digit favorite, while the Browns are 11-3 ATS as an underdog of 9 or more points.

New England Patriots (+3.5) over BUFFALO BILLS: Although Buffalo's F-Jax - who averages 5.0 yards per carry against the Patriots - may return this week, the Patriots haven't lost three games in a row since the Civil War. but we finally saw Brady use all of weapons last week. Brandon Lloyd and company will have a big day. They will send a message after losing two straight.

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (+1.5) over San Diego Chargers: Home cooking has won the past five meetings between these teams, so welcome home Jamaal Charles and Dwayne Bowe. Also, the Chiefs are 10-3-1 ATS in their last 14 home games against the Chargers. Kansas City will keep their momentum going, control the game, and grab a share of the AFC West lead.

ATLANTA FALCONS (-7.5) over Carolina Panthers: Finally, the Falcons look like a real contender. Marco and I both can throw for 300+ yards against the Panther defense, so if you have anybody on the Falcons put them into your fantasy lineups. Atlanta owns Carolina, going 6-1 ATS in their last seven, while Carolina struggles on turf with a 4-10-1 ATS in their last 15. 

                                

San Francisco Forty Niners (-3.5) over NEW YORK JETS: An angry Niner defense that was embarrassed last week will take this game over early. They will hurt people. Sanchez will get injured, leave the game, and be replaced by Tebow. Tebow will also get injured, and the NY Jets fans' chants for Greg McElroy will finally be heard. A terrified McElroy will take a knee on every play and Greg Schiano will kick his ass later. Yes, we know the Niners are 3-13-1 ATS in their last 17 as a road favorite and 1-5 ATS in their past 6 road games, but we're gamblers. Besides, Darrelle Revis took is on a permanent vacation to IR Island.

Minnesota Vikings (+4.5) over DETROIT LIONS: This is one of the toughest games of the week. Minnesota is overvalued after beating the Niners last week, but Detroit has underachieved all year, plus Stafford is banged up. Will Leshoure will outplay Peterson? Will the Lions roll at home.? We don't think so. Although the Minnesota Vikings have lost 11 straight divisional games, Detroit is 2-8 ATS going into a bye. Meanwhile, Minnesota is suddenly a top 8 defense, even better against the pass than the rush. A great fantasy value team, the Vikings will at the very least cover this game. 

ST LOUIS RAMS (+3.5) over Seattle Seahawks: Did you know that 30,000 fantasy football match-ups were decided by MNF's botched final play? Death threats were e-mailed vehemently from the smack talk lobbies all over the world. This week, Seattle will be suffering from a We-Shouldn't-Have-Won-That-Game-Hangover, and the guilty feelings will overpower their 6-1 SU and 5-2 ATS recent record in St. Louis. Who doesn't have a record like that in St. Louis the past 6 years? These new Rams are 4-0-1 ATS in their last five at home games, so look for them to continue this trend in a heated NFC West divisional contest. 

Tennessee Titans (+12.5) over HOUSTON TEXANS: Remember what Jimmy The Weasel says. Broader statistics don't support this pick with the Texans being 12-3 ATS in their past 15 at home and the Titans being 3-11 ATS in recent road games against the AFC South. That being said, Jake Locker is not made of broader statistics, and a little known fact is that five of the last six meetings between these two teams has been decided in overtime or by less than three points. 

Oakland Raiders (+5.5) over DENVER BRONCOS: If we predict McFadden is going to go off every week, one of these days we're bound to be right. We've been doing it for 23 years with The Bay Bridge Series and look us now, suckas. The Broncos are 0-6 ATS in their last six at home against the Raiders and 2-7-1 ATS in their last ten as a home favorite. Meanwhile, the pedestrian looking Raiders play the underdog well, going 10-3 ATS in their last 13 in that role. Sorry Peyton, we still love you, but McFadden is going to go off this week.

                           

ARIZONA CARDINALS (-6.5) over Miami Dolphins: Arizona's defense will out score the Miami offense. We're all in on the Arizona bandwagon. No way Miami travels east and competes with this fired up football team. The Cardinals have won 7 straight and 10 of 12 at home, and we look for them to win again and cover easily.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (+1.5) over Cincinnati Bengals: Andy Dalton is on fire and I'm not talking about his hair. He and AJ Green will combine to score almost enough to overshadow the Bengals horrible defense. Unfortunately, Cincinnati cannot stop the run and MJD will cruise to a 200 yard performance and the Jags (4-1 ATS in their last five games) will win against a Bengals team that is 2-7-3 ATS in their last 12 overall.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS (-2.5) over Washington Redskins: Tampa Bay has confidence this year with Greg Schiano leading them to their first 3-0 ATS start since their Super Bowl run with Gruden. Washington is becoming a team that's difficult to trust, especially on the road where they boast a 5-20 ATS in their last 20 and an even worse 2-5-1 ATS in Tampa Bay. 

GREEN BAY PACKERS (-7.5) over New Orleans Saints: The Packers offense we remember from last year will be on display against the sad, sad Saints defense. No one is angrier about the replacement refs than Green Baby and they will take it out just enough on New Orleans not to get any penalties from the returning refs. The Saints are 1-4 ATS in Green Bay, and have lost as a 9+ point underdogs four times since 2005. Cedric Benson will be doing the Lionel Richie Lambeau Leap - All Night Long.

New York Giants (+2.5) over PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: Madden 2012 shows us it's not that hard to read NFL defenses, and yet Mike Vick gets paid $100 million to be unable to do so. Somebody buy him a video game console. I'm surprised the Giants get points here. Take them. The Giants are 7-0 ATS in their last 7 as an underdog. Plus, we watched a special on Tom Coughlin on NFL Network today. He is the nicest guy ever. Forget about taking the emotion out of it. We're putting the emotion back into it. 

Chicago Bears (+3.5) over DALLAS COWBOYS: Close call here. Similar teams. Take the points based solely on the Monday Night Football stats. While the Cowboys are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 Monday Nighters, the Bears conversely are 6-2 ATS. We bet it's decided by a field goal. Win or lose, Marco and I still hate Jay Cutler.


So that's the word, fellow gamblers. How do we feel about our picks this week? Let's ask the refs:

                                
                                          Replacement Refs

                             
                                          Returning Refs

I'm sure we're all excited to have the Real Refs back, because now there will never ever ever ever ever be a bad call made in a football game again.

The End

Vinny and Marco

Baltimore Ravens Torrey Smith Inspires Us All

It's not often we're sentimental here at The Spread Zone, preferring callous sarcasm and outright fiction to the factual sports stories and real athletes whose examples of courage inspire us all. Today we make an exception by including a CNN article about Raven's WR Torrey Smith who lost his brother to a tragic accident just hours before he helped Baltimore rally late to beat the visiting New England Patriots. 

May your brother rest in peace, Torrey. 

Ravens' Torrey Smith has inspiring game hours after brother's death

When Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Torrey Smith showed up Sunday night for the game against the Patriots, he had a lot more on his mind than the AFC championship rematch so many fans were waiting to see.

Smith had barely slept and wasn't even sure if he would play. He had driven home to Virginia after learning hours earlier his younger brother Tevin had been killed in a motorcycle accident. Shortly before grabbing an hour of sleep, at around 5:30 a.m., he tweeted about how much his brother meant to him.

Torrey Smith

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@TorreySmithWR

I can't believe my little brother is gone...be thankful for your loved ones and tell them you love them...this is the hardest thing ever

23 Sep 12

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An hour later, as tributes to his brother were pouring in, Smith posted a picture of the two of them together, saying, "I can't say a bad thing about him... proud to have him as a brother. ..."

Torrey Smith

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@TorreySmithWR

I can't say a bad thing about him...proud to have him as a brother...RIP Tevin instagr.am/p/P61i4nk-QR/

23 Sep 12

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At 4:30 p.m. Sunday, he finally made the decision he would play – in honor of his brother.

"It was tough emotionally. I didn’t know how I would hold up," Smith said after the game. "I was telling my teammates a minute ago that this is new territory for me personally. I never really had to deal with a death in the family, let alone my brother. In our family, everyone’s so tight. Just like a lot of other families. It’s part of life and, due to my teammates and my family and friends, I’ll be able to get over it.”

When Smith got to the stadium, he said he texted his mother.

"That’s when I really made my decision I was going to play," Smith told reporters at a press conference after the game. "So she was excited about it. She was like, ‘Of course, he’d want you to play.’ He’d admired me so much ... and it’s just a tough situation altogether."

Smith received words of encouragement from everyone inside the club and around the globe. On Twitter, fans shared their condolences. Inside the clubhouse, safety Ed Reed, who lost his brother in 2011, gave Smith a psalm that he hoped would help him through the tough time.

"God’s in control, and God has a plan bigger than ours. We don’t know our time, none of us. We all experience the same things, so I just told him that we’re here for him; I’m here for him," Reed said, recalling his conversation with Smith to reporters after the game.

"I can relate to him. I told him we get so caught up, like our pastor said today, in the physical and what we see. I still talk to my (late) brother to this day because I know there's much more to us than just being here. I told him that he could still have those conversations. Just know that he’s in a much better place."

Taking the field Sunday night, Smith was moved by a moment of silence for his brother.

“That touched me right there, the fact that the organization took the time out to honor my brother, one of my family members, who had absolutely nothing to do with this program besides me," Smith said. "He loved being up here. His birthday was October 6, coming up. He was going to come up Thursday, come to the game versus the Browns, raid my house all week. I’m just thankful (for) the organization; it’s everything I thought it would be. The way they care about you. That’s the reason I wanted to be in Baltimore. That’s the reason I wanted to be a Raven.”

And it seems that Smith wanted to make his team and his brother proud.

He played a spectacular game, with two touchdowns and 127 yards on six catches, despite the adversity and pain. His brother, he said, was everything to him.

"He’s honest, he had a great heart. A lot of people say that all the time when people pass, but he truly was that person," Smith told reporters. "When you see him mad, you’d always laugh because it didn’t look right. So, to be around him, his big smile and his laugh, which was probably one of the most annoying laughs ever, I’m definitely going to miss him. He laughed so hard at everything, and you know, he’d do anything for you. It’s a tough loss for us."

Smith helped lead his team to a 31-30 victory against the Patriots.

In the second quarter, he hauled in a 25-yard pass to put the Ravens on the board for the first time and cut the score to 13-7.

He fell to the ground as he pulled in the pass. After the touchdown, he took a knee and pointed up to the sky. It's a typical move for players, but the meaning was much more personal Sunday night.

"I just said a quick prayer, took a knee. You know, obviously you play with a heavy heart; you want to play for that person," Smith said after the game.

It was the first of Smith's two key touchdowns that helped lift the Ravens toward victory.

"How do you explain it? Coming from a faith perspective, God and heaven work in ... mysterious, wonderful ways," head coach John Harbaugh said of Smith's performance. "I am not talking about winning and losing; I am talking about what you see people accomplish in the face of adversity. That’s really what it’s all about. To me, that’s one of the great things about sports."

The support from his team, rivals and fans helped give Smith the extra push he needed, the player told reporters.

"He seemed like he was ready to play football and ready to go out there and help us get a win," Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco said. "That was great; we all wanted to rally around him and go get it for him."

Getting the win proved to be a tough task for the Ravens, who finally sealed the game with a last-minute field goal. But it was Smith's performance that stood out for most of the players.

"I think he did what his brother would have wanted him to do, and that’s to go out and play like a Raven," running back Ray Rice said afterward. "And what a show he put on for his brother tonight."