Nick Parsons – Philadelphia NFL Future

Philadelphia Eagles O/U 8 1/2

2009: 11-5 SU / 9-7 ATS / 4-4 ATS at home / 5-3 ATS on road / O/U 10-6

The Eagles are a young team after dumping veteran QB and “face of the franchise” Donovan McNabb. Kevin Kolb will now be thrust into the spotlight in the City of Brotherly Love and he’ll be joined by as many as four new starters on defense. Philadelphia had 11 victories last year, despite giving up 27 TD passes and only holding two of their final 10 opponents to under 20 ppg. Kolb threw for over 350 yards in two starts last year, and will get help from wide receiver DeSean Jackson and from running back LeSean McCoy, however I have a hard time seeing this offense “gelling” immediately, and expect it will take some time before the “big three” for Philadelphia show some chemistry with each other on offense.

Here’s the schedule: vs. Green Bay; @ Detroit; @ Jacksonville; vs. Washington; @ San Francisco; vs. Atlanta; @ Tennessee; vs. Indianapolis; @ Washington; vs. NY Giants; @ Chicago; vs. Houston; @ Dallas; @ NY Giants; vs. Minnesota; vs. Dallas

So can Philadelphia duplicate the success it had last season and win 11 games or more? In my opinion the answer is an emphatic “no”. The Eagles chose a league-high 13 players in the April draft, with the majority on the defensive side, and most of them will be expected to play key roles on this years team; that does not bode well for Philly fans. When also taking into account their schedule, which includes a tough home opener vs. the Packers, and three of five on the road, you may want to consider a second look at the UNDER 8 1/2 total victories in 2010.

Matt Fargo – New England NFL Future

Under 9.5 New England Patriots +110 (BEST BET)

The once powerful Patriots dynasty has taken a step back ever since that last second Super Bowl loss against the Giants three years ago. New England failed to make the playoffs at 11-5 in 2008 and last season, it got back into the postseason with a 10-6 record only to get hammered in the Wild Card round at home against Baltimore. This season, New England enters camp without an offensive or defensive coordinator in place which is almost unheard of nowadays in the NFL. Dean Pees, the defensive coordinator the last six years was let go while Bill O’Brien, who is the quarterbacks coach, is the closest thing to a coordinator in that side of the ball. While the Patriots still have Tom Brady at quarterback, they are not getting any younger. Both Randy Moss and Wes Welker have lost a step at receiver while the running back situation is relatively the same with Kevin Faulk, Sammy Morris and Fred Taylor all 33 and above. The offensive line is solid but is aging as well. Defensively, New England is not even close to the same roster that went to the Super Bowl. The pieces are there for the unit to be strong but there are missing pieces that can bring it down as well. The Patriots were fifth in the league in points allowed last year but that did not tell the full story. They need to shore up the run defense in a hurry.

New England has not won fewer than 10 games since 2002 so going under this number may seem illogical. However, the AFC East is as strong as ever and the schedule is daunting. The Jets and Dolphins are both divisional title candidates and while the Bills will be down once again, travelling to Orchard Park in late December means anything can happen. As for the rest of the schedule, it is far from easy. The Patriots travel to San Diego, Pittsburgh (after the Big Ben return) and Chicago while home games include visits from Cincinnati, Baltimore, Minnesota, Indianapolis and Green Bay. Those are eight games that can go either way so a 3-5 record in those means even going 4-2 in the division (which is a stretch) and 2-0 against Cleveland and Detroit, nine wins is the max. Predicted Finish: 9-7