NFL Week Eight Betting Preview: Giants have suffered no Superbowl hangover

NFL / Andy Richmond / 25 October 2008 / Leave a Comment

Andy Richmond looks ahead to the big games in the NFL as one of the league's top offences prepares to do battle with the number one defence...

New York Giants v Pittsburgh Steelers

Irresistible force meets immoveable object is the succinct description of the Steelers Giants contest which supplies the support to the NFL London Game this weekend and arguably is a contest that would do equal justice to the Wembley stage - maybe not in terms of glam, glitz and razzmatazz but if you like your football hard and mean then this is the game for you.

But for the undefeated Tennessee, who we get our first look at on SKY on Monday Night Football (the early hours of Tuesday for UK viewers), these two teams would be the best in their respective conferences. Both have suffered just the one loss this year and are well placed for a play-off push, although the Giants do play four of their next six games on the road.

The Giants have suffered no hangover from their Superbowl success. Ranked third offensively overall they run quite literally into the league's top ranked defence here. The Giants' passing game has slowed in recent weeks and they will need to rediscover their form here as the Steelers "D" can defend both the run and the pass. They are also well known for their aggressive style - outside linebackers James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley combining in the last three games for 11 quarterback sacks. Giants QB Eli Manning will need to be in quick release mode in this phase of the game.

Led by Brandon Jacobs the Giants rushing game leads the league in yardage in this particular discipline - averaging 170 yards per game and Jacobs is particularly difficult to stop if he gets into the second level of the Steelers' defence.

Pittsburgh's game has traditionally been based on a very solid defence ever since the days of the famous "Steel Curtain" but to win football games you need to score and whilst the Steelers take high rank in the NFL defensive standings there offence is nothing like as high powered. The Giants are a competent and aggressive unit so Ben Roethlisberger will have to watch out.

This is going to be hard, rough and tough - football played in the trenches and certainly not as aesthetically pleasing as I think the London game but I'm just as excited about this game which will go a long way to sorting out the hierarchy in both conferences

Recommendation: Back the NY Giants (+3.5) at 1.74

Indianapolis Colts v Tennessee Titans

The league's last unbeaten team the 6-0 Titans finally make an appearance on our screens, the first time on a Monday Night Football since December 2004 - welcome back.

The Titans are all about a dominating defence and a potent ground game. The Colts are struggling to find the consistency and spark which has seen them towards the head of the NFL peleton over the past few seasons. They looked to have turned the corner with a dominating win over the Ravens but fell apart the week after against the Packers. They have the quality but there are places they would rather visit than Nashville at present.

You won't need a degree in football tactics to know what the Titans are going to do here on offence - three words sum it up: pound the ball. The Colts have to stop the one-two punch of running backs Chris Johnson and LenDale White; they combined for a franchise history making 332 yards in a game last week against the Chiefs, both of those protagonists setting career high statistics. The Colts struggled to stop the Packers' Ryan Grant last week and their undersized defensive line is going to have that same struggle this week against this power running game - their one hope is the star safety Bob Sanders' returns to the line-up after injury.

The Titans passing game just about provides enough output to remain efficient but with White and Johnson you don't need much more than that. The Colts will need to move the ball quickly through the air this week and QB Manning needs to be in sharp form. I doubt whether the Colts running game behind a poor offensive line will be able to disturb the Titans up front but the Colts still have receivers more than capable of producing yardage after the catch to generate decent if not explosive offence.

The Titans have the strength to keep up the winning run, although I still have a feeling that the points in this game are pitched a little low - traditionally these games have been low scoring battles, but the Titans offence is now more potent and never has the Colts defence been so vulnerable.

Recommendation: Back the Titans (-4.5) at 2.02 and back over total match points (42.5) at [2.3].