Free Pick: Under 34.5

The logic for this pick is very simple. You have two of the league’s best defensive teams, Baltimore Ravens vs Pittsburgh Steelers with mediocre offenses at best. Roethlisberger is playing hurt and since he’s been hurt the Steelers have generated a total of 16 points over the last 2 games. If the Steelers had exceptional trouble generating points against Cleveland and Philadelphia it is only reasonable to expect that they will have a very hard time against the Ravens.

Free Pick: Baltimore +5

This Monday night football game will be quite different from the first four Monday night games we’ve seen thus far this season. This is a matchup featuring two of the league’s most powerful defensive teams, Steelers vs Ravens. The Ravens rank first in both points and yards allowed, meanwhile the Steelers rank second and third in those respective categories.

Free Pick: Under 40

I have two reasons for this pick. First the Eagles are banged up. McNabb hurt his chest against Pittsburgh and is expected to start but clearly won’t be 100%. Philadelphia’s main weapon on offense Brian Westbrook sprained his ankle in the same game and did not practice this week. His status is questionable and it is quite obvious that he will not be as explosive as he usually is if he does play. If Westbrook doesn’t play, Philadelphia will have limited offensive output, especially against the Chicago Bears.

Free Pick: Tampa Bay -1

I like Tampa in this one because last week Aaron Rodgers struggled for the first time. Dallas managed a very efficient pass defense and limited Green Bay to 16 points. Rodgers appeared to struggle against a strong defense as he only completed 56.4% of his passes and had a rating of 80.1. He threw for 290 yards but didn’t throw a single touchdown.

Free Pick: Under 44.5

This matchup consists of 2 winless teams that have struggled a lot offensively. Cleveland is the worst ranked team in the league in terms of yards gained and points scored. The Browns are averaging only 8.7 points per game! Cincinnati is not doing much better as the Bengals are currently ranked 30th in the league with 13.3 points.

Platinum Pick: Over 45

The Chargers are looking to build from their momentum they developed after they demolished the Jets 48-29 on Monday. Philip Rivers is on fire and will exploit a vulnerable Oakland Raiders’ pass defense. I have highlighted his success so far this season in my premium pick where I picked San Diego –9, “Philip Rivers has proven to be an all star as he currently leads the league with 9 touchdowns and has the best rating of 124.8.

Premium Pick: Arizona +1

This line is an absolute steal! At first, I was considering betting on Arizona but wasn’t confident enough because they lost last week to Washington and I haven’t followed them much this season. After taking a closer look at this matchup it appeared quite evident that Arizona will take this one.

Premium Pick: San Diego –9

Time to continue the rivalry between the chargers vs raiders. San Diego rebounded nicely from a 0-2 start with a steaming 48-29 win over the Jets on Monday night. This was exactly what they needed to bring themselves back to their dominant form. Last year they started off 1-3 and revived their season with a 41-3 blowout over the Denver Broncos. Since that game they were 13-2 ATS for the remainder of the 2007 season including the playoffs. They finished the season 11-5 and lost to the Pats in the AFC championship.

Premium Pick: Over 46.5

The logic behind this pick is that the Broncos are a high scoring team that performs very weak defensively. Thus, the total for their first 3 games was over. The Chiefs are amongst the bottom 8 teams in the NFL in terms of their defensive output thus far this season. Denver has even worse numbers defensively than the Chiefs.

Premium Pick: Denver –9.5

This is a matchup between an undefeated offensive powerhouse and a struggling, inexperienced team that lost its last 12 regular season games. The only reason people should question Denver’s ability to cover the spread is due to the fact that they didn’t cover in their last 2 games. However, they faced San Diego and New Orleans, two very good football teams. Kansas City is not by any means comparable to neither the Chargers nor the Saints.

Premium Pick: Tennessee –3

I like Tennessee to cover because they are 3-0 against the spread so far this season and because this matchup is quite in their favor. The Titans’ defense ranks third in the league with yards allowed, allowing an average of only 240.3 yards per game. They rank second in points allowed, averaging only 9.7 points per game. Minnesota has averaged 319.7 yards on offense, ranking 17th and has averaged 18 points per game, ranking 23rd in the NFL.

With the 2008-2009 NHL season starting soon, there is a great deal of talk going around about which players will stand out this year. Which players will rise above the fold and prove themselves as viable contenders in the NHL? Who will make a name for themselves and led their team to glory? Here are five players that you should keep an eye on this season. Expect great hockey from these players.