[LLXC]

RATING 5 CINCINNATI (+7) over San Diego
RATING 3 BUFFALO (+7) over New England
RATING 2 MINNESOTA (-7) over Carolina
RATING 1 WASHINGTON (+3) over NY Giants

SAN DIEGO (-7) Cincinnati (44) 3:05 PM The Chargers appear to be in great shape in the AFC but the remaining schedule is extremely difficult. Although San Diego has won eight in a row they have not yet wrapped up the division title and Cincinnati can take the #2 spot back with a win this week. The Chargers have lost twice at home this season and have six wins by eight points or less while also facing a very weak schedule so there may be some flaws with this squad. The biggest advantage the Chargers have is the big physical receivers as San Diego has a horrible running game and a poor run defense. Cincinnati’s secondary has been incredibly impressive and this should be a very favorable match-up for an upset. BENGALS BY 4

New England (-7) BUFFALO (401⁄2) 12:00 PM Buffalo has five wins on the season but they generally have come as a result of turnovers as was the case against last week. The Bills offense is posting pathetic numbers as they were badly out-gained again last week but Buffalo should be motivated for this game especially considering how things played out in the first meeting. New England was able to win last week and keep the lead in the division but the Patriots are no lock for the playoffs at this point. This looks like a winnable game on paper but the Patriots have failed to cover three straight weeks and have zero S/U road wins this season. PATRIOTS BY 3

Minnesota (-7) CAROLINA (421⁄2) 7:20 PM Many were quick to write off the Vikings after one bad loss but Minnesota bounced back with an impressive win over Cincinnati last week. Carolina has covered in four of the last six games but the Panthers might be in for a tough match-up, as the offense has struggled to score in recent weeks. Carolina has not topped 17 points in the last four games while Minnesota remains one of the top scoring teams in the league. Sunday night was not kind to the Vikings the last time around but Carolina continues to disappoint. VIKINGS BY 14

MONDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2009 NY Giants (-3) WASHINGTON (42) 7:35 PM The Redskins have been playing well of late and did not feel the letdown last week in what could have been a tough spot. Washington has covered in five straight games despite only four wins on the year and the Giants lost in a critical game last week. The Giants have covered once in the last eight games and the defense has been horrendous in recent weeks. Look for the Redskins to be in position to win this game as New York can not get stops and continues to turn the ball over. It is hard to believe the Giants were once 5-0 but this team should continue to fade. REDSKINS BY 4

[LLXC]

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2009 NEW ORLEANS BOWL @New Orleans, LA 7:30 PM Southern Miss (-31⁄2) Middle Tennessee State (58) Troy has been the clear top team in the Sun Belt this season and last including beating Middle Tennessee State 31-7 in the regular season. Last year in the New Orleans Bowl Southern Miss beat Troy 30-27 in overtime as the Golden Eagles were rush-doubling underdogs. Southern Miss finished the year 7-5 but actually was out-gained in eight of the final ten games of the season. Southern Miss rarely had much of a rushing deficit averaging188 yards per game on the ground. Middle Tennessee is also a strong rushing team but the schedule has been much weaker playing in the Sun Belt. MTSU did defeat Memphis from C-USA earlier this season but the Golden Eagles beat that same Tigers team in much more convincing fashion. Since taking over at QB Martevious Young has been incredibly efficient with only one interception thrown against 13 touchdowns. QB Dwight Dasher for the Blue Raiders has thrown 21 touchdowns but 14 interceptions has been his downfall. Statistically overall these teams look quite even but MTSU did not hold up well in its last bowl performance and did not beat a winning team all season. Early season wins over Maryland and Memphis do not hold up at this point in the year while four Southern Miss losses of seven points or less robbed the Golden Eagles of an even stronger season. Coach Fedora had his team ready to play last season in the bowl game when a suspect defense played extremely well, particularly against the run and going back to the same setting should encourage another strong effort. Middle Tennessee State may be happy to be here, making its first bowl appearance since ’06. Both defenses will likely play better than the numbers support. SOUTHERN MISS BY 14
RATING 4: Southern Miss (-31⁄2) over Middle Tennessee
RATING 1: ‘UNDER’ (58) Southern Miss/MTSU